Use It Or Lose It … Hello Hump Day readers. Summer is upon us and the heat is on. Even at 6500 ft our days are hot but our nights get down to 51 degrees and that’s nice, but it won’t last long so we use it or lose it. How many times do we say “I’ll get to it eventually” and the ‘eventually’ goes on and on and you didn’t use it but you lost it.

Here’s a story that was put out a few years ago in the New York Times. It’s kind of funny but…well just read what happened: A woman fell out of a second-floor window and landed in a slow-moving garbage truck. She was surprised to open her eyes and find herself half buried in stinky litter. A foreigner standing on the sidewalk saw the incident and quipped, “Another example of how wasteful Americans are. That woman looks like she’s good for at least another 10 years!”

OK, it’s a funny story, but it got me thinking of how many of us are wasting the gifts God has given us. Are we using what God has given us? Honestly, it’s more like we sit in the church pews each Sunday while our talents and abilities lie dormant—never utilized for God’s kingdom. Now that’s a terrible waste! The last I knew, God wants us out there and sharing the gifts we have to help others. Somehow, we forgot about it—or else we just don’t want to share our faith with others?

Peter had something to say in his time about using our talents in 1 Peter 4:7-11 [MSG]… “Everything in the world is about to be wrapped up, so take nothing for granted. Stay wide-awake in prayer. Most of all, love each other as if your life depended on it. Love makes up for practically anything. Be quick to give a meal to the hungry, a bed to the homeless—cheerfully. Be generous with the different things God gave you, passing them around so all get in on it: if words, let it be God’s words; if help, let it be God’s hearty help. That way, God’s bright presence will be evident in everything through Jesus, and he’ll get all the credit as the One mighty in everything—encores to the end of time. Oh, yes!”

Peter didn’t mince his words! Let’s remember that the truth is: God has given each of us a unique ability—a role to play and a purpose to fulfill—in his Kingdom. And to let our gifts lie dormant or even worse use it for the wrong reasons is nothing short of sinful. Like the foreigner in the story we too, must not be wasteful of the gifts God wants us to share.

Yet we hear over and over “I don’t have any talents; I am too shy to try; or I just don’t think I need to do this; or I have my own life to take care of. But God will not let us off in this endeavor. God says that whatever your talents and abilities such as: teaching, hospitality, administration, sports, medicine, singing, artistry—and so much more—God says I gave them to you for a reason so get out there and do something—put them to work so others know that I am God—who loves all people and wants to see them in my kingdom!

It’s true that many people are afraid to step up and get involved in the ministry of their church or share their faith with someone. According to a 2024 Pew Research Study, more than 1 in 4 Americans now identify as religious “nones,” which means they may know God but they are doing nothing about it.

Maybe we need to jump into a garbage truck and see the waste, the smell and the rot. One thing’s for sure—we’d want to get out and clean up! Kind of what God wants us to do, help to get rid of the rot and put the joy of God in people’s lives – don’t you think? So get out there, use it so someone doesn’t lose it! AMEN.