SCL

(I’ve been thinking for a while now about how to write a post about when we claim not to have some general spiritual gifts. I know there have been times in my own life where friends have said things like this to me, “I just can’t get into the Bible, I don’t think reading it is one of my spiritual gifts.” That seems a little silly to me, but I couldn’t figure out a good way to write about that topic. Until I received an unexpected guest post from a guy named Christopher Madin. He didn’t mean to send me a guest post, he just emailed me a funny story. But as soon as I read it I knew it needed to be shared on Stuff Christians Like. Without further ado, I give you brand new guest post…)

Not having the spiritual “gift of helps”

A couple years ago I got in a heated argument with a fairly well-known Christian author when he was guest speaking in our Sunday school class. He was talking about how we each have spiritual gifts, which is totally valid, but by way of example he happened to mention that you would never find him sweeping up the church because he didn’t have the “Gift of Helps.”

I have to admit that I kind of went after him on this in a way that, looking back, bordered on inappropriate. I pointed out that I didn’t see “helps” mentioned as a spiritual gift in any Bible I’ve read. I told him that it doesn’t take any particular spiritual gift to clean up or help out around the church – unlike prophesying or healing the sick, anyone can swing a broom.

I suggested that the idea of a gift of “Helps” was invented by people who were too lazy to pitch in and help out around the church. I asked him if he was seriously suggesting that he couldn’t put a chair away because he didn’t have that spiritual gift. “I see that those chairs need to be put away, and I’m just standing here. I wish I could help, I really do. If only God had blessed me with the Gift of Helps!”

That’s about when our college ministry pastor got up and closed things out for the day. I was such a jerk, I know, but what a load of nonsense.

Has that ever happened to you? Have you ever claimed not to have the spiritual gift of helps so that you could get out of doing something you didn’t want to do?

(For more great stuff from Chris Madin, check out his blog.)

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