At some point in your life, you’ve likely heard of ‘the dream team.’ Whether it be in sports, music, play casts, or even just a school project, we all are likely familiar with this concept: The one group of people who are all brimming with talent. And despite what anyone tries to tell you, all of their skills and talents seem to be something they were born with. Of course she could sing a high c as soon as she came out of the womb. Of course he could run at lightning speed before he could even crawl.

And when we see how bright their talents and skills seem to be, we suddenly feel a heavy, looming shadow over us, following us wherever we go. We see ourselves as so pale and blank in the contrast of their gift’s vibrance that we start to feel useless. Much more, we start to talk to ourselves as such.

You’re worthless.

God can’t use you.

You’ll never be as good as them.

I struggled immensely with this growing up. I had a sister who could play anything on the violin after listening to a recording once. And I had friends who could jump into a gorgeous four part harmony at the drop of a hat. And as all of my friends excelled and began using these gifts to serve in the church, I felt left behind. As far as I knew, I was useless and I didn’t deserve to be part of God’s family. 

And if you’ve ever felt similarly, let me just tell you that this is a lie straight from the devil. When you think about it, what would make the devil more happy than us giving up on ourselves and not reaching our full potential in Christ?

But after providentially stumbling upon 1 Corinthians 12, my whole view on spiritual gifts changed. 

The chapter talks about spiritual gifts, which must have been needed in the time it was written because during the book of Acts, many people were gifted with gifts of speaking in tongues, prophesying, healing, and more! Imagine being in a church with all of these gifted, spiritual people, but when you tried to heal someone you found that it didn’t work. When you tried to prophesy, it flopped. It would feel pretty disappointing that God was working His power through all of these people but you’re just stuck with being the same old you.

Paul speaks directly to this issue by first looking at its core. Verses 4-7 “Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; 5 and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; 6 and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. 7 To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.”

When I read these verses for the first time, I found them unsatisfactory. At the time, all I wanted was to be good at music, and it just didn’t make sense why God wouldn’t give me that gift, especially since I was intending to use it for the ‘common good.’

But friends, it’s important that we remember that He is working all things together for our good and His glory (Romans 8:28), even if it’s not the way we want or expect. If God were to give all of us the same gifts, at the same levels, the church would be lacking in many ways. 

Think of it like this: if you were planting a garden and all you planted was tomatoes, one day, if you were to want a salad, you would have the tomatoes, but you wouldn’t have the lettuce you needed.

Paul has a similar example of this in 1 Corinthians 12, but instead of a garden he uses an analogy of ‘the body of Christ.’

Verses 17-20 say, “If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? 18 But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. 19 If all were a single member, where would the body be? 20 As it is, there are many parts, yet one body.”

So take a moment and breathe this scripture in. You are valuable. Your gifts are valuable. You bring something to the table. You contribute to God’s dream team. 

Even if your gift isn’t as apparent or flashy as someone else’s, that doesn’t mean it isn’t seen and valued by God. Paul actually speaks to this, explaining that, “On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and on those parts of the body that we think less honorable we bestow the greater honor…God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it that there may be no division in the body.”

Even if I’m not as musical as my sister or her friends, that doesn’t mean I’m less valuable in God’s eyes. Consider what Paul says in verses 15-16, “15 If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. 16 And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body.” 

Maybe you’re still searching for ‘your gift.’ Something that you have a true knack in. You can understand and believe you’re valuable in God’s eyes, but you just wish you had something to work with. 

Well, I’m almost certain people back in the apostles’ day felt this as well, because Paul immediately follows chapter 12 with chapter 13, discussing the topic of love. Because as verses 1-2 say: “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.”

A part of my story I don’t always love sharing is the part where I idolized finding my ‘gift.’ I wanted to contribute so badly, I would do whatever I could to serve, but my heart posture was so corrupt I forgot the ultimate reason God gave us these gifts.

Perhaps the people in Paul’s day felt this as well; they wanted to be useful and helpful so badly that they forgot the most important commandment Jesus had given them in Matthew 22:37-39: “And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

These two commandments are the most important of all, and God gave us gifts not to replace them but to give us a way to carry them out effectively.

If we put so much emphasis on finding our gift, finding our purpose, finding where we fit in our church or our world, we push everything else aside, God included. Meanwhile God has been planning to pick you for His team all along. 

The good news that these passages provide is that no matter what our gift is, we have value in God’s eyes. We have a spot in His family and His church, and we don’t need to earn it. We can rest in this truth instead of running around and overstretching ourselves. We can embrace this calling to love God and love others, no matter what gifts we have.