It’s often said that the meaning of life is to find your gift and the purpose is to give it away. So how is it that we have people who indeed discover their gifts, share them with the world, and yet do not feel fulfilled? Instead, they constantly find themselves in a state of despair. Personally, in times where my hope seemingly depletes, I revisit one of my favorite scriptures- Matthew 6. You see, verse 21 teaches believers that “for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” And with each time I meditate on that verse, my mind gravitates to the word “packaging.”
There’s no doubt that one of the most recurring frustrations many of us face stem from finances. It’s precisely why in times you are serving as a vessel for God, you still question the decision to avail your temple. Imagine there are bills to pay coupled with your peers accumulating the worldly treasures you admire. Any frustrated believer who reads Proverbs 22:2 - “the rich and poor have this in common: The Lord is the Maker of them all” - may begin to question the Maker.
However, in the times of questioning, it’s important to believe that we all have a choice about how we package our gifts and ultimately share with the world. It’s in the packaging where we discover our treasures.
Let’s contextualize. There are two writers who stem from similar socioeconomic backgrounds. One decides to become a songwriter in a hit-or-miss world; the other works in an environment where career trajectory is predictable. Fast forward, the faith-inundated songwriter becomes a millionaire after years of trial and error. Understandably so, your exposure often determines the height of your success. Around the same time, the other begins experiencing discontentment for not being compensated enough. Both discovered their gifts; the difference in fulfilment boiled down to how the gift was packaged in the process of giving it away. How are you packaging?
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This message was originally shared on instagram here.