Apoplexy or Apocalypse?

He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:6 NIV

When I staffed our ministry exhibit at a fair, I attended the Steve Green vocal concert. A thousand fans enjoyed the repertoire of this musical minister. Earlier, he had autographed my copy of his CD and had visited our exhibit.

At the concert, I glanced at the open laptop computer of the man next to me. Instead of enjoying the program, he was typing a Bible study of Revelation, and was having trouble with the spelling of “apocalyptic.” He attempted several versions, but kept getting the spell-checker red underline. Finally, he accepted an alternate spelling the program offered: he clicked “apoplectic,” and it was automatically inserted.

I was becoming apoplectic myself, stifling my giggles during the music. Apologizing for my visual eavesdropping, I whispered to the writer that perhaps the word he wanted was for end-time major events, not for cerebral hemorrhage.

Amphibious, ambidextrous, amschmibius, amschmidextrous...

After the concert, I opened my Bible to the text Mr. Green had written in his autograph. It was “he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 1:6 NIV

I’ve been writing stories and articles since elementary school. At age 14, I sold my first articles to a newspaper, and in university, I studied writing and print communications, which has been my career. My skills are by no means “complete,” but God is not finished with me yet. Nearly all my writing and editing has been for Christian publications and institutions.

One ministry subscriber wrote that the apostle Paul should have listed Christian writers with evangelists and teachers. Paul was a gifted writer. When there was no word to describe a concept, he invented one. He was colorful, intellectual, logical, and above all, directed by the Holy Spirit. God did some of His best work in Paul!

What are your gifts? Have you asked God to bring you the experiences and insight to develop your gifts to full potential? Will you allow Him to carry you to completion in Christ Jesus? How will you use your gifts today to expand the borders of His kingdom?