USING YOUR GIFTS TO HELP OTHERS

We've heard from a pretty reliable source that you're a gifted
individual.

The Bible makes it clear that God has given all of us special talents

and abilities he hopes we'll use to encourage the people around us.

Ask yourself a few questions: "What do I like? What am I good at?

What types of things interest me?" Those are probably pretty easy

questions for you to answer, but here's a tougher one: "How can I use

my gifts, talents, and abilities to help others in my school?" Here's
an

even tougher question: "Am I willing to do it?"

God didn't gift you so you'd leave those gifts unopened. He didn't

gift you so you'd open the gifts and use them just for yourself. The

truth is God gave you your gifts with the expectation that you'll use

them to make a difference in the world around you. And it just might

be that no place needs you to use your gifts more than your school
does.

Are you good at math? Maybe you can tutor someone who's struggling.

Are you a good athlete? What if you decided to ask the kid who

always gets picked last to be on your team in P.E.?

Are you good at encouraging others? How about finding the new

kid or the loner and inviting him to eat lunch with you?

Do other people look up to you? Think what could happen if you

rallied a bunch of your classmates and started a new movement.

Like a movement to treat substitute teachers with respect or treat

others the way you want to be treated or make the janitor's job
easier

by picking up your own trash.

What if you started a one-person movement? Like a movement to

use your God-given gifts, talents, and abilities to make a difference
on your campus.

**

Taken from "My School" by Kurt Johnston and Mark Oestreicher,

copyright 2007 Youth Specialties/Zondervan. Used by permission.