For Me? Awww, You Shouldn't Have

Jeremiah 1:4-10

In another church I served as the Youth Director we had enough young people for a choir. It was a really good choir filled with the exuberance of youth. We had the perfect mix of youth who were good and knew it and youth who were weren't as good, and knew it. The choir was a great way to not only worship God, but to also build confidence and humility.

During rehearsal one Sunday I walked around the choir as they practiced their upcoming song. I smiled as I listened to a boy or two try to reach the high notes with voices trying to pull through puberty. I smiled even more as I watched girls roll their eyes when the choir director asked them to repeat a section again. These were typical teens willing to worship God through song and that's what made it a wonderful choir.

As I walked past the front row of girls I heard what I thought was the most angelic voice I've heard in a while. I paused to find the voice but had a difficult time because it was a very faint sound. It was as though this voice didn't want to be heard, but could not hide. Then, as my eyes met with those from which this voice was coming, the voice went silent and her eyes went down. Everyone noticed the absence of that voice and turned to see why it went silent. Instead of attracting more attention to her I walked away and didn't bother rehearsal again.

After rehearsal I approached this young lady to tell her how much I appreciated her voice and she shouldn't shy away from it. I explained it as a gift from God that she should happy to carry for God. Time went by and we had more Sundays to talk about what a gift from God was and how we're given certain gifts which God hopes we'll use to help make God's kingdom on earth a better place.

Then, one Sunday during rehearsal, out of nowhere a voice, angelic and loud, rang above all other voices, stopping the rehearsal midway through the song. Cheers from the choir rang out and a tear formed in the eyes of the choir director and myself. Later this young lady told me that she finally understood what it meant to have a gift from God and she just wanted to share it with everyone in God's name.

God has a purpose for us all. Chances are we know what our gifts are, but for some reason we're afraid to use it. Just as God said to Jeremiah, "I am with you to deliver you." God knows the gifts God has given to us and God is there to guide us in developing these gifts in order that someday we'll be able to use these gifts to help God in realizing God's intent for us; to be in relationship with God, others, and ourselves.