Ambidextrous

For the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, yet one body. (1 Corinthians 12:14-20 ESV).

Several months ago I began to notice some symptoms of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome in my left hand. I felt reasonably sure it was CTS since I have had the issue in my right hand years ago and with surgery seen a complete recovery. What I failed to remember was how important my left hand was to daily activity. After all, I am not ambidextrous; I am predominantly right-handed. Well, as you may surmise, that was proven to be the wrong attitude with the passage of time and the worsening of condition in my hand. (By the way, for those of you who may feel the need to encourage me to go to a doctor and get it repaired, I have an appointment at the time of this writing.) Truthfully I forgot one of the most basic principles of our nature. There really is nothing in our body that doesn’t affect other parts. God designed us as a whole with many parts. The same is true with the spiritual body we are a part of as God’s children. Every member is vital to the best functioning of the whole. Our “left hand” is just as vital as the “right hand.” Our reading today makes that very clear. Each gift is a divine enablement that God gives to ordinary people like you and me to build His body so we can function the way God wants us to function. This is why we’re called not to just discover our spiritual gifts, but to develop them as well. God wants to use our ordinary life to build into the life of others. The danger with the spiritual gifts is that we just intellectualize them. But at some point, we have to take a risk and “jump in the water.” Taking inventories, and learning about the gifts is only a prerequisite. We have to get involved in a ministry and in relationships. Even after the doctor addresses my issue with the nerves in my left hand, if I fail to use it, what good has been accomplished? It’s my hope and prayer that as we discover and develop our gifts, we’ll experience the joy and fulfillment that comes with doing the good works God created for each one of us to do.