Everyone's Gifts Are Important

 If the only tool in your belt is a hammer, every problem looks like a nail.

Abraham Maslow

I heard this quote one day and later realized that it reflects how we go about most things in our lives. We tend to see circumstances through our own lens, which is relatively small, and we react the only way(s) we know. The opposite is true as well. When have multiple “tools” in our “belt” we can better determine an appropriate solution to any given problem.  

Not every problem is a nail. There are many kinds of troubles. I may have a health issue, my neighbor a spiritual crisis, and my colleague a financial struggle. Each of these is significant, but each is unique and requires a different solution.  

Since your strengths are different than mine, I need your input in tackling a problem. I can contribute my knowledge and experience to one person's struggles, while someone else may have different resources they can provide.

So why do we compare ourselves against each other, trying to be better than another person? That's not how God made us. 


He gave each of us different gifts and abilities that we might complement one another and work together to support each other. We were made in order to put God on display together, not to compete against each other. Just as the tools in the picture to the left are used for different purposes, so are we as individual members of God's family. Each of us has a vital role to play in God's plan, not just in our churches, but in the world as a whole. Whether it's in our families, our workplaces, or our neighborhoods, God has a special role for each of us. 

Have you ever struggled with comparing yourself to someone else,
seeing them as more significant than you?  Perhaps you're there now. If you've been there, how did you resolve it?  Share it here, that we might all benefit. Let's talk about it!