If I speak in the tongues of men and angels, have the gift of prophecy, know all mysteries and all knowledge, have faith to move mountains, and give all I possess to the poor and my body to be burned, but do not have love, I gain nothing. (1 Corinthians 13:1-3)
Years ago, I was in a second-hand store where I saw a lot of abdominal crunch and elliptical training machines for sale. People obviously had been sweet-talked by infomercials into buying them, thinking they would make them buff like the models in the advertisement. They had used them for a while eventually given up. It just goes to show that tools don’t produce results; motivation does.
I thank God for spiritual gifts. They are essential ingredients in ministry. But they don’t heal the sick or give hope to the hopeless. It is the love of Christ in the hearts of those who have them that put these charisms to use for charity and for the common good. So let that love control us. Without it, even if we have all spiritual ability, we amount to nothing. But with it, we can do all things.
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