There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work.
1 CORINTHIANS 12:4–6
In the winter, snow-capped peaks rise majestically over the wintry landscape, but all sorts of creatures face a challenge in surviving until spring. Wolves, coyotes, and mountain lions hunt or scavenge all winter. Deer and elk must forage for food. Most bears fatten up and hibernate, their heartbeat and metabolism slowing so that their reserves of body fat supply sustenance through the colder months. Some bats do the same, roosting together in caves. Squirrels stay awake throughout the winter, eating food they have stockpiled in a den or nest. So do pikas, a member of the rabbit family that lives in the rocks in high elevations. Each creature’s coping mechanisms for the harsh weather are suited to its strengths and weaknesses.
God is so creative, isn’t He? What care He has put into making each animal a unique creation! As Jesus said in Matthew 10:29, “Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care.”
God extends His creativity to us as well. The apostle Paul wrote about this at length in 1 Corinthians 12, comparing the church to a physical body. A whole and healthy body, functioning as God envisions, requires variety. “If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body” (vv. 17–20).
Our differences are not always a cause for concern or conflict. It takes all of us, using our gifts in various ways, to make His church whole and healthy. We can celebrate that!