There’s a shadow to everything, A shadow to religion, A shadow to being a certain race and a certain status in the world. And the shadow of any of these positions that might put a person in a place where they feel that they’re somehow elevated to a certain level that other people aren’t. There is a real danger of a kind of exclusivity. It’s the shadow of religion. It’s a shadow of a club. It’s a shadow of everything.

And the danger in it is that you’ve done something that you don’t realize you’re doing. It may give you a sense of feeling that you’re valuable in your eyes and the eyes of the friends around you. Maybe in the eyes of the whole world. But the core thing that it excludes. When you’re looking at others as less than you and you take this stand that you’re better than they are, you’re cutting off the flow that God has placed inside of you. To take whatever gifts you might have that have elevated you to a higher level.

Use them for others that are not in that same level. That’s the goal. Not exclusively, and not for the people around you. But think about it. If God has gifted you in some way with, let’s just say, even physical beauty, or with a status, or with talent, or with some kind of gift that shines above other people’s gifts, and you’re with somebody like that, and they’re looking at you or acting as if they’re so much more valuable in the eyes of the world than you are, you know that you’re not going to make a connection with that person. But if they’re using that gift to give you pleasure or to give you wisdom, or to give you knowledge, or, you know, a performer that performs for the beauty of moving people by their art, or a person that is teaching and moves a student into a better place because of their wisdom, that’s inclusivity.

And nothing is more attuned to the gospel than for you to be called with whatever gift you have, to use it for other people. You know, not that even you have to say, I’ve changed them by what I’ve done. No, that you offer it as a gift. And gifts are wonderful, unifying, beautiful ways of expressing what it means to be human. Your life is a gift to those around you and to those you want to include in your circle of influence in life. So enjoy sharing today.