We have been surprised a number of times in the various churches in Nairobi that we have been to in recent months, notably the first time we saw we saw gifts to the church being blessed. Traditionally Kenyans eat with spoons, so when a member of the congregation gave a large number of spoons to the church, these spoons were blessed by the pastor for the members’ future use.
I admit that initially this struck me as strange, but, on reflection, I think they are on to something. Very clearly the attitude was that all gifts, even spoons, are gifts from the Lord, and are to be used in ways that bless the Lord through the members of the church. Nothing is to be taken for granted or used carelessly, it is all His provision and to be used accordingly!
Coming from a materialistic culture, it has made me realise how much I take for granted that most things can just be bought, used and, sooner or later, thrown away.
So this week we blessed some new dustbins that a member had given to the church to help keep the compound clean…
So, the next time we go shopping - whether for food, household goods, clothes, cash from the hole in the wall, or whatever - how about we come back home and dedicate their use to God’s glory?
