Romans 12:1-8 (NRSV)
Read Romans 12:1-8 on biblegateway.com
Chapter 12I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Verse 2Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God-what is good and acceptable and perfect. Verse 3For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. Verse 4For as in one body we have many members, and not all the members have the same function, Verse 5so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another. Verse 6We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us: prophecy, in proportion to faith; Verse 7ministry, in ministering; the teacher, in teaching; Verse 8the exhorter, in exhortation; the giver, in generosity; the leader, in diligence; the compassionate, in cheerfulness.
Devotion
God has gifted each of us in remarkable and useful ways for the work God calls us to do. There’s promise and challenge in that.
When I was introduced to the children of the congregation I now serve, Pastor Nate held up a loose puzzle piece and invited volunteers to fit that piece into the picture he was holding – a photo taken of the congregation when I was visiting during the call process. The kids seemed nearly as delighted to complete the picture with that odd-shaped piece as I was to be that piece!
I still have that puzzle piece. It reminds me that God brought me here to be part of the puzzle of this faith community -- to find places to fit my gifts and passions in with everyone else’s. Fitting into the life of this congregation isn’t about conforming; it’s about joining together in yielding to the transformation God is stirring up.
Prayer
Gracious God, in the freshness of this new day, I offer myself to you as a living sacrifice. Fill me, use me, transform me, so that I may do the work you have set out for me to do. Amen.