THIS IS FOR EVERYONE—WHETHER YOU ARE A SPEAKER OR A SERVER!
When you think you are too insignificant, too old, too broken, or just simply not as gifted as someone else look at I Peter 4:10-11, NLT: “God has given each one of you a gift from His great variety of spiritual gifts.”
I want to go through this passage with you and make some comments in middle of several phrases.
“God has given EACH ONE OF YOU” (that means YOU) “a gift from His great variety of spiritual gifts.”(There are a bunch of different gifts, but Peter is about to pull out two completely different ones to make the most amazing and encouraging point).
Whatever spiritual gift you have been given (and every single one of you has definitely been given one), Peter says, “Use them well to serve one another.”
Different gifts are not given to puff up one person and discourage another because you might think one gift is more impressive than another.  Rather, each gift is given to make the recipient of that gift into a servant, not a performer.
Let’s go on: “Do you have the gift of speaking? Then, speak as though God Himself were speaking through you.” Wow! I tend to listen to speakers like my pastor, Ben Mandrell, or my women’s Bible Study teacher, Donna Gaines, and think, “Gayle, you are such an an in adequate joke. You have nothing to say and certainly nothing you can say so eloquently.”
When I hear something like that in my head, I know it is straight from Satan himself.  I have been given the gift of speaking and how on ungrateful it would be for me to put it in a closet because I thought someone else might be better. Life isn’t a competition, it is an opportunity to let God live in and through me for His glory. No matter how it may come out when I open my mouth, I must commit to “Speak as though God Himself were speaking through me.” And you, too!
In the “parable of the talents” God gave one servant five talents, one two talents, and one talent. In that parable, it sounds to me like they were all given the exact same talent, but they were given that talent in differing degrees. Each servant was expected to use whatever talent was given to them, whether it be level one, two, or five.
Many, many of you are speakers, too. It doesn’t matter whether another person speaks better than you or not. Whether you speak on the 3rd grade level or the PhD level speak up “as though God Himself were speaking through you.” It is not pride to speak up, rather it is a sin to not do so.
Now next, I’m now talking to all you others. You know you aren’t speakers. You are so shy, you don’t even talk to yourself. This next part is going to blow you away. Peter now says, “Do you have the gift of helping others?”
WHAAT??? “Helping others” is a spiritual gift??? Is helping others really mentioned right alongside the gift of speaking as though God Himself is speaking through you??? Who knew!
Back up to the verse that comes before this passage. I Peter 4:9 says, “Cheerfully share your home with those who need a meal or a place to stay.”
YOUR spiritual gift is JUST as important in the body of Christ as mine or Donna’s, or Pastor Ben’s! Let that sink in.
Peter goes on to say that if your gift is the gift of helping others you should “Do it with all the strength and energy that God supplies.”
There is not a single person who knows Jesus who does not have either a speaking OR a helping gift!!! And whichever one it is, God will give you both the strength and the energy to do whatever it is He has gifted you to do. You cannot sit back and say about someone else, “My, my, he (or she) is gifted,” like that is why they are able to do something and you are not.
You are just as gifted as they are!!! And it is God who is supplying the strength and the energy for you to do what He’s gifted you to do. There are zero excuses here!
Peter concludes by saying if we all do our part, “Then everything you do will bring glory to God through Jesus Christ. All glory and power to Him forever and ever! Amen.”
Wow, that is one amazing passage of Scripture! You better get busy. God has given each one of you a gift, and then also given you the strength and energy to perform that gift. I’m not really seeing any exceptions in these verses!
