Through the Waters
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Through the Waters is the blog of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) Christian vocation ministries. Because the ministry of Christian vocation affirms the need for all baptized Christians – including Presbyterians - to identify and claim their call to discipleship in each decision and life choice, this blog is designed to serve as a resource for youth and young adults, as well as those in ministry with them, to assist the Holy Spirit in God’s movement in this journey through the waters. Take some time to read and think about your own responses to the questions posed here. For additional resources, we suggest that you visit our website.
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Living Into the Gifts
Are you living like a fruit duct taped to the vine?
This was a question that has stuck with me even a couple weeks after Pathways at Big Tent event in Indianapolis, IN earlier this month. Steve Wilde was one of the presenters and the one who left this impact on me.
I can’t do justice to his message in telling it like he did but the main point is this: some of us are trying to be something we’re not. We’re living into something that we’re not. We’re hiding our true selves. Because we may not naturally be an orange, it’s something that we want to be so we fake it. We can’t grow falsely, so we use duct tape to make it seem like we’re attached to the vine. But, as Steve’s visual image portrays in this photo, it’s pretty clear that it’s not real.
I can identify times in my own life that I would have given anything to be an orange. Truth is, though, I was given the gifts of an apple. Since the apple gifts were not as popular or as bright and shiny, I hid those and became more orange-like. I didn’t fool anyone. In fact, I wonder now what God thinks about those gifts I had been given being hidden from view just to be something I’m not.
Duct tape. It’s a wonderful thing but shouldn’t be used to make us into something we’re not!
How have you been using duct tape in your own life?
What gifts have you been hiding and, therefore, causing not to grow?
How can you live as the fruit you’ve been created, flourishing on the vine?
What are ways that you can be attached, really attached, to Christ as the vine?
- Posted at 3:07 p.m.
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