The 3rd Epiphany Sunday: 1 Corinthians 12:12-31a; Luke 4:14-21
Key verse: "The body is one and has many members." (1 Corinthians 12:12)
Podcast Message: Missing Parts
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Hello, This is Jade.
Welcome to Yi.kigai
A space for all to explore the intersection between faith and daily life
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Happy Epiphany. It is the 3rd Sunday of Epiphany. Have you seen God revealing God-Self in your daily life these days? Or have you ever desperately wanted to see God’s presence? Well, I have, but did not realize it right away.
Soon after I started serving at a church in 2010, a leader approached me and showed me a list of individuals that needed to be called and visited for communion. So I phoned each one of them and scheduled all the visits. As I was assessing how I was doing in general as their pastor for the first quarter, I didn’t feel a sense of fulfillment, but couldn’t put my finger on what was missing.
By that time, I had completed several leadership inventory assessments which offered me a better understanding of my areas of strength and weakness. My leadership style was more people and task oriented, but not so much authority or spirit oriented. In fact, I would check off my list each day to make sure I followed through on all my to dos. Once I was done, I would say out loud to myself, “Done!”
I told myself that something was either not done well or was missing. As I looked at the Pastoral Care ministry, I realized that it needed to be assessed differently. The Pastoral Care Ministry was not something that could easily be checked off, nor could it be fulfilled by just one person. As a matter of fact, I began to learn that not every ministry can be done by simply checking it off.
In 1 Corinthians 12:12-31a, St. Paul explains that we are the body of Christ - one body with many members. Each person is gifted for specific purposes. He urges people of faith to honor and respect each other after listing several ministries and needed gifts to build and unify the body of Christ. Then he continues by proposing a better way to strive for the greater gifts. Honor and respect each gifted member but strive for the greater gifts? Does St. Paul contradict himself by promoting competition? Certainly not!
Have you ever received a gift but never really used it? By not using the gift, its value might stay the same, but how about the purpose of the gift? Let’s say if we use the gift well and often, its value certainly becomes much greater to us because the gift has fulfilled its purpose.
My assessment was a wake up call. It was the body of Christ who was gifted by God to care for each other. That was missing. Through several conversations with some gifted members, the training to be Eucharist ministers began. We met weekly, studied and discussed the meaning of pastoral care. They practiced their gifts by visiting people two by two. Together, we strived for the greater gifts of caring and teaching. Then I could see that God’s presence was shining through gifted members graciously. It was beautiful.
God reveals God-Self through the body of Christ who grows in grace and recognizes the rich and diverse gifted individuals. Yes, it might be easier to get something done by yourself instead of spending time to equip and strive for the greater gifts together. St. Paul reminds us that it is not God’s intention at all! No one can be everything to everyone. It doesn’t work out well for the long term anyway and for the community. It is not good for a community of faith that is gifted by God graciously and generously. Thanks be to God who teaches us to see the giftedness in each other.
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May your coming week be blessed by God’s grace
As together we explore the intersection between faith and daily life
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