The fruit basket

As different as apples and oranges, goes the saying. This is how we like to express the things that are completely different. One red, one orange, one you have to peel, the other you don’t.

What makes a fruit basket so delightful is the assortment it contains. Different colors and flavors, beautifully assembled into an array of choices; there is something for everyone. Our spiritual gifts are a lot like a fruit basket. We are all created with different spiritual gifts, different expressions, different styles, different methods, and on and on. We are truly unique.

The apple is not superior to the orange, and the kiwi is not deemed less important than the pear. All are necessary to create a fruit basket. All spiritual gifts are equally essential.

Our gifts can take infinite forms really. Whether on the front lines of war torn countries or on the front lines of helping broken families or fighting for our own family, our gift matters; whether teaching in a classroom or speaking to thousands in a stadium, our gift matters; whether feeding the homeless or feeding our family, our gift matters; whether praying out loud or silently praying, our gift matters; whether building a church or building up its’ people, our gift matters; whether writing books for the multitude or sending a card, just because, our gift matters; whether trained as a counselor or listening as a friend, our gift matters. All gifts matter. The gifts we have been given by God are truly endless and they all matter.

“When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it…” (Genesis 3:6).

Eve wanted what she didn’t have. I have struggled- wanting the gifts of others. For some reason we seem to think that our gifts are less than. The enemy is good at tempting us to desire what we don’t have. Eve didn’t realize she had all she needed. She was tempted and believed she had to have what she didn’t have. It didn’t go so well for her. We gotta love what we have. It’s all a gift!

I try and praise God for what He has given others. It works. I celebrate them and their gifts, instead of longing for their fruit. My fruit is part of the fruit basket. So is yours. Together we make a beautiful arrangement.

I wonder… when God brings us together for His purpose… He may do a little shopping at the market, selecting each fruit, knowing everything about it, and one by one He carefully adds us and assembles a beautifully crafted fruit basket. Yes, I do believe so.