YOU be YOU...

  If you've been in the church for any length of time, you've probably  heard someone preach on the following verses...

 

"The human body has many parts, but the many parts make up one whole body.

So it is with the body of Christ.  Some of us are Jews, some are Gentiles,

some are slaves, and some are free.  But we have all been baptized into one body

by one Spirit, and we all share the same spirit.  Yes the body has many different parts,

 not just one part.  If the foot says, "I am not a part of the body because I am not a hand",

 that does not make it any less a part of the body.  And if the ear says, " I am not part

of the body because I am not an eye", would that makes it any less a part of the body? 

 If the whole Body were an eye, how would you hear?  Or if the whole body were an ear,

 how would you smell anything?  But our bodies have many parts,

and God has put each part just where he wants it...."

1 Corinthians 12:12-18

 

 

... these verses are often used to remind us that we are all part of the family (the body) of Christ and the body of Christ cannot function correctly without each of us doing our part.  Personally I have heard the message of "Be who God created you to be", so many times now that you would think it would have finally penetrated deep into my soul.  Yet, there are so many times I find myself trying to be like someone else.  I hear a preacher who is so charismatic and full of the spirit that I find myself wanting to be like Him.  Or I meet another missionary whose so prophetic and outgoing that I long to have that gift.  Or I will work with people, or read about people, that seem so much more spiritual than me and before I know it, I'm trying to conform myself into their image.  But God never called me (and He never called you) to be like someone else....in fact the only image we should be conforming ourselves to is HIS.  So why do I do this?!?!

  Well, I'm actually not going to answer that question here, but I bring this all up to talk about something that came up for me this morning during our team training time.  We were all sitting there talking about this one particular preacher and as I was speaking, I had this moment where it became so clear to me how important it is to just be me.  In fact I  was saying something about how I'm never going to be a "Heidi Baker" or a "Todd White" and how sometimes the things that speak to other people, don't always speak to me....and out of the blue it hit...this is because that's the way God designed it.

  I know, that kinda seems like a "DUH!" thing to say, but think about it for a minute.  God could have created all of us to walk out our faith in the exact same way.  He could have given us all the exact same gifting's and abilities, all the same voices, all the same form of expression, when we became Christians, but he didn't.  He created us all individually and our differences are actually what make us fit together perfectly as one body of Christ.  If we don't take the time to be ourselves, to explore our gifting's and allow God's Holy Spirit to work through us as we are, those people in the world who will only respond to our type of Christ "Expression" will miss out.  Not only that but the Body of Christ will miss out!

  So yeah, I might not be a Heidi Baker, a Todd White, a Jason Upton, a Judah Smith.  But I am a Jessica ------.  I am exactly who I am suppose to be and God created me as I am in order to be able to do what He has called me to do and to touch the people He has prepared ahead of time for me to touch.  If I try to be anything other than THIS person, the Jessica L--- W------ that He made, it's not only me who will suffer...but the Church and the World will to.

  I need to remember this.  It's so easy to forget since we live in a world that is constantly telling us that you need to DO this, BE that, GET this, HAVE that.  I need to stop listening to the voices all around me and instead listen to the only voice that matters...God's.  He created me, with a purpose, and He knows exactly who I am suppose to be.  He wrote the instruction book for my life....I think it's about time I start letting Him have full say over it.  I hope it's time for you too!  Amen.