June 22, 2026 – Daily Devotional
“As each has received a gift, employ it for one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace” – 1 Peter 4:10
We are each called to share God’s love and bring hope to the world. God has given us gifts for this heavenly task. We each have been given unique gifts because God created each of us with purpose. When we are willing to use these gifts, God is proclaimed to our neighbors, to our community, and to the world.
We often struggle with the notion that God has given each of us gifts to share. I have had many conversations with people who feel they don’t have gifts to share. This could not be further from the truth. The scriptures are clear: “Each has received a gift.”
This past week, I was blessed to be with our youth at our summer mission camp, Youth Force. Before we left for camp, my oldest daughter, Ella Kate, made a batch of chocolate chip cookies for me…my favorite! She made these cookies as a beautiful reminder of my time in mission with my mother. My mother was not a pastor, preacher, Bible study teacher, nor did she help repair homes. My mom did not do many of the other things we often think of when we hear about the gifts God has given. However, I can tell you that many of my mission trip experiences were made special because of the work my mother did for our mission in advance.
One of her real gifts was cooking. My mother would often help run the kitchen for church events and our youth mission. My favorite thing she would do is bake cookies. My mother would make cookies for mission experiences, and it did not matter how large the mission team was. If we were taking twenty students to Mexico, she would make cookies. If we were hosting Youth Force with 200 students, she would make cookies. I cherish the memories of these cookies at the end of a long day of work. They were a gift of homemade joy.
My mother never put a roof on a house or built a wheelchair ramp, but she helped each team accomplish their goals through her gift of cooking. I am not sure she saw her culinary skills as a gift from God, but she did not hesitate to use her skills to bless others.
Each of us has been given gifts that help to share God’s love and bring hope to the world. Let us share our gifts with others…especially those with chocolate chips.
– Rev. Keith King, Pastor of Worship
