On The Holy Spirit and luxury cars

It’s the time of year when commercials seem specifically designed to make us believe we’re a bad husband, bad friend, bad parent, if we don’t get a tremendous gift for someone, right? I mean, maybe you spend weeks pouring over catalogs, surfing the web late at night, looking for just the right gift for that special someone, and finally you think you’ve got it. Then, the next night you turn on the TV. All you want to do is watch a little football, or maybe catch the end of Elf and there it is – you know the one. The commercial with soothing music and the garage door opens and in the bay is a shiny black Lexus with a red bow on top, and the cute, perky wife leans over and gives the man a deep, lasting hug. All of a sudden, you are the worst husband ever!

Now, I don’t know anyone who’s actually ever received a Lexus for Christmas, and I certainly don’t know anyone who’s given one. But imagine just for a minute, that you did. Imagine you saved up for years and years, and just once, for that special someone, you plunked down 50 large and brought home a Lexus LS and because you’re a good negotiator, you got the dealer to throw in, at no cost, one of those big red bows. And you drive it home, and park it in your neighbor’s garage until the big day, and on Christmas morning, that special someone wakes up and walks out into the driveway and sees it. And the reaction? Well, it’s a little subdued – not quite what you expected, but you know you did the right thing, so you wait. And days go by, but the Lexus never moves. And Winter goes and Spring comes, and you walk out into the garage and the red bow still sits on top and the odometer still reads 0. When you question your spouse as to why they are still driving the 8-year-old minivan, they just shrug. How do you feel? It was a perfect gift, you paid a high price for it, and it’s going unused.

Did you know God paid a price for you? Did you know He saved you not just so he could spend eternity with you, because he wants that – he’s crazy about you. But he also saved you so you could help advance His kingdom. I know this because if he just wanted you in heaven, he could have taken you away right then. Instead, he left you here and gave you, along with His very spirit, spiritual gifts you can use to help Him find others to spend eternity with. How are you doing with that? Are you giving everything you have to build His Kingdom here on earth? Is your heart broken for people who are far from God?

In his book, Forgotten God, Francis Chan writes that his youth pastor used to ask: “what would your church (and the worldwide church) look like if everyone was as committed as you are? If everyone gave and served and prayed exactly like you, would the church be healthy and empowered? Or would it be weak and listless?”

What would your church look like if everyone was as committed as you? Would there be a band on stage every week? Would it have enough people to teach kids on Sunday morning? What would small groups look like if everyone were as committed as you? What would neighborhood outreach look like? What would the weekly offering look like? What would your city look like?

On the other hand, what would your church look like if everyone were engaged in using their gifts to the extreme?

If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully. –Romans 12:6-8

Don’t leave your spiritual gifts in your garage. It’s time to get out the key and fire those babies up!