I like stories with twist endings you don’t see coming. The director M. Night Shyamalan is famous for putting together some movies with great twists.
One of those movies, Unbreakable, has a lot of parallels to the Christian walk. Everyone who’s received the Holy Spirit has also received custom-designed talents and abilities from Him for the purpose of serving Him and His kingdom.
I’m not going to give away the movie ending, but it’s about an ordinary guy who finds out he’s got some special powers which enable him to be much more than an ordinary guy. Amazed but confused about how to use his gift and what to do next with it, he asks a mentor of his, “What am I supposed to do?” Knowing the nature of the gift involves interactions with people, the mentor gives it to him straight: “Go to where people are. You won’t have to look very long.”
Sure enough, he followed the advice and went to a public place, where his interactions further brought out his special abilities. That practice helped him improve his ability to harness his talents and use them productively.
If you want to serve the Lord by using your God-given abilities, you might have trouble getting started. It can be frustrating to know you’ve got something special but not know what to do with it. The most important thing? Start using those abilities. God’s not going to be mad at you for not getting it perfect the first time. Even if you’ve only got a faint notion of how they can be employed, give it a go…each experience will help you get a better sense of how to put them to good use. The practice and familiarity gains you proficiency and confidence, and that’s when things really start moving.
“Do you know what the scariest thing is? To not know your place in this world, to not know why you’re here.”