Ephesians 4:7-13

 We are looking at Life Stages in the sermon series this month. Life is like golfing. There was a young golfer who played got matched with an elderly partner for 9 holes. To his surprise the old man played fairly quickly. Finally, they reached the 9th fairway and the young man found himself with a tough shot. There was a large pine tree right in front of his ball - and directly between his ball and the green. After several minutes of debating how to hit the shot the old man finally said, "You know, when I was your age I'd line the ball right over that tree and it was always a hole in one." With that challenge placed before him, the youngster swung hard, hit the ball up, right smack into the top of the tree trunk and it thudded back on the ground not a foot from where it had originally lay. The old man offered one more comment, "Of course, when I was your age that pine tree was only three feet tall."

 The challenges of life change in different stages. The infant and child has the challenge of staying alive. The youth stage is about finding your identity. And the 20’s are a time when people try to match their gifts with their vocation.

 None of these stages are easy to complete. What I hope for in these messages is that if you have tried one of these stages and it didn’t work out, that grace and encouragement from the Word of God will help you try the stage again.

 I just got a sweet email this week from someone who is still working through this question and in his 30’s, working in a car repair shop. He writes, ‘You don't have to be a "religious professional" to have a Christian job. Yet, I still think that there has to be something more than being the body shop guy.  How much impact can the body shop guy make? But, I am trying. I am reminded of how others have put themselves (or found themselves) in my path.  How they have made a difference for me.

 There are three problems that 20 somethings have to conquer. Do you know what your God given skills and gifts are? Do you know yourself? Do you know if you learn by reading or learn by experimenting, or learn by participating? Many people have very little clarity on the basic frame that God has built into their life. Secondly, do you know who wants what God has made you to give? How do you find the company who needs you? And lastly, at the very point in life that you are trying to determine what is good for you, the Lord says, its all about them. The point of gifts and vocation is about them and we want it so much to be about us. Self centeredness warps character and it’s a key failure of a lot of 20 somethings.

Half of all people never really understand how God built them. And of those who do, half don’t find someone who needs them. And of those who do, half are so focused on success that they never see that success comes through service.

 We’re going to look at Paul’s words to the Ephesians today. I hope you find new energy to discern your gifts and vocation and conquer the challenges on life’s stages.

 The human body is incredibly adaptable. The whole fight over stem cells comes from the fact that basic cells in our body can take over when we are wounded and they can grow the necessary repair tissue. Fetal cells are particularly gifted and can rush to any part of the body and generate whatever is needed. At times that adaptability can work against you. I truly believe through the work of Isabel Briggs and David Keirsey that half of all people really have never understood their skills and gifts. But because we are so marvelously adaptable, they learn to live in that condition with all of life seen dimly as though through glasses with an oil and grease on them.

 So there are people here that as soon I speak about God giving us gifts, immediately tune out because you feel that is just happy talk. We use profiles here and after you have taken a profile, I can tell you what circumstances you work best in. For example , there are four degrees of independence in working relationships. Some people want to be told every single thing. Fred, if you got that done, then I wish you would work on this. Sara, help Fred with that. Another type of person needs the general task outlined and then they want to figure out all the strategies and ideas to make it happen . And then there is a completely independent type. Put them down and leave them for 6 months.

 Sometimes we fail in our jobs because of this one simple dimension of personality. If you were in a job with a boss that wanted to tell you every step and you are really just looking for the general direction – then you are not going to function well. We can pray about what gifts God has given us, we can fail with them and feel guilty, we can act out our feelings in appropriate ways, but the Bible assumes that God has made you in a specific way and your job is to discover who you are and look for a need that uses those skills. I see people time and time again who give up on knowing themselves or give up on finding the niche that uses them.

 Ephesians pictures God from Psalm 68 as a general who has conquered triumphantly . He comes to us with a storehouse of gifts. This treasury is opened and gifts that we never thought we could lay hands on are suddenly ours. They are so rich and fair that we don’t even feel comfortable owning them.

 One of the ways we sin is to understand our gifts and use false humility to pick them up. One of my gifts is standing up like this and drawing your attention for the purposes of worship, prayer, and learning. And when I was young, I confused the gift with the sin of pride. I felt that someone who stands up like this should not enjoy it. Your gift will make you feel uncomfortable because it is so rich.

 Now friends, think of it. If all pastors truly felt uncomfortable being the ones to stand up, you would be in for some fairly boring services. If I didn’t enjoy this, I would get out of this line of work. Pride is getting up and calling attention to say that I am great. The gift of leading worship is getting up and calling attention to the grace of God. In both cases, someone has to enjoy getting up.

 Last week, I spoke about the tremendous need for support from the Christian family. That is why the church is referred to with such an intimate metaphor. We need the affirmation of others as we try to find out our gifts. We need the support of others in the face of jealousy. We need the support of others when we are working for a job who doesn’t like our gifts. Charlie Hummel was president of Barrington College and later had quite an effect on my life. He talked a lot about special grace. Charlie understood that many people are hurting and feel trapped. They hurt because either they don’t know how God has constructed them or they have not found a place of ministry that affirms what their gifts are.

 Charlie had this idea of Special Grace. He believed as do I that you cannot work differently from how God has made you. But of course while we are discovering in our 20s and late when we get into jobs that don’t want us as we are created – how do you cope? Charlie said that you can always get through by coming to God for special grace.

 I’m not sure this idea is in the Bible as different from regular grace. But over the years, it has given me incomparable comfort to know that I can always ask for Special Grace. And I’ve come to God at times and asked.

 The purpose of this storehouse of gifts is that we become the mighty people of God to spread God’s message of peace across the world. God has triumphed. Just like Aslan in the Chronicles of Narnia, we have been called to new life and then to take our gifts and race off into the world to change things and invite others to life in Christ.

 The stress of Ephesians is ministry. The gifts empower us to serve others. But especially when you don’t know what your gifts are, you are more focused on getting ahead. You are jealous of the success of others and fearful that you never might find your own success

 You may remember that some of the people of Israel on the long escape from slavery took more manna than they could eat. They were told to take what they needed, but they were so focused on their need and vulnerability that they took just for the next day too. And bugs came during the night and ruined the food.

 If you are struggling with gifts and job and placement, I know that it is one of the harshest moments of life. It seems unreasonable that Paul would take away the excitement of building your success plan with these treasures. But they will rust in your hands if you forget that they are given to equip you for love.

But don't miss the closing words in 4:16 which carry the emphasis: for the building up of itself in love. "Love" comes in the emphatic final position.

So at the Communion Table this morning, I want you to visualize dishes placed on it. In the Feast of Grace,, there is safety for all children and all those who never experienced safety when they needed it. There is the new identity as sons and daughters of God for those in their teens and people who have never felt accepted in life.

And for those in their 20s there is a treasure of gifts waiting for you to discover them, take them from the table, and use them in the ministry of love. God invites to invest your life as part of the people of God to bring reconciliation to the world. Amen