Gifts Unspeakable

 

COLERAINE INDEPENDENT METHODIST CHURCH

WOMEN’S MEETING – 6 MARCH 2025

SPEAKER: DEIRDRE MULLEN

Gifts Unspeakable

First, the gift of love.

The value of any gift is in the giver. 5 gifts to think about:

The unusual gift, the unloved gift, the unexpected gift, the unwanted gift, the unspeakable gift.

Unusual gift – the most usual gifts are flowers and chocolates. King Charles apparently was given a number of unusual gifts. What is the most unusual gift you have been given? 33 years ago at my husband’s first church a lady gave me a gift wrapped in brown paper and tied with string. I was told to put it in my bag. When I opened it up I realised it as a piece of meat.

Unloved gift – a clock was given to my father on his retirement. He had expected a gold watch rather than the clock. For years he was a supermarket manager and he felt that the clock did not reflect his lifetime of service to the company. It was unappreciated and unrewarded.

Unexpected gift – something you do not expect, something out of the blue. Maybe keys to a car or an armchair.  When I was a child I received an unexpected gift from American – a pink frilly dress!

Unwanted gift – much more common at Christmas when there are queues to customer services in shops. People wanting to return items to the store. Many dog shelters have abandoned dogs after Christmas too. Owners don’t want them as they are too expensive and need to much attention.

Unspeakable gift too wonderful for words. Unloved, unexpected, unwanted. Paul in 2 Corinthians 9 verse 13 said “thanks be to God for his unspeakable gift.” John 3 verse 16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life.” God’s gift was unusual. Christ was fully man and fully God. He was the son of Mary and the son of God. Christ was totally sinless, no-one else has been that. He was tempted by Satan but he overcame. Pontius Pilate declared him as sinless. 2 Corinthians 5 verse 21. God made him that knew no sin to become sin for us. God’s gift was also unexpected. The Jews were looking for someone to come and save the Jewish nation. On Palm Sunday they tried to make him King. Christ came into the world for the whosoever. Jesus said “go and make disciples of all nations” – that includes me. God’s gift is often unloved by many people in our world. They have little or no time for God. To people who are atheists God is dismissed. 2 Timothy 3 verses 1 to 4. God’s gift is often unwanted by people who trust only in themselves, in their good works to get them to heaven or by their possessions. Isaiah 53 verse 3. A rejected man. God’s inexplicable gift is offered to every one of us.

Secondly, your love for Christ

Maybe your love for Christ has grown cold. Perhaps as you have got older other things have become your priority – health for instance. Maybe you have become busy and it is difficult to set aside your time for Christ. Maybe you are just tired or weary. Hebrews 12 verses 1 to 3.

First notice we are told – let us throw off every weight. Athletes seeking to run in a race have to be disciplined. They train in all weathers, strengthen their bodies and aim to take off any excess fat. When it comes to the race they will take off all unnecessary clothing. When we run the Christian race we have to discipline ourselves by reading the bible and praying. Ever sin has to be thrown off. There may be past sins that trouble us or even present sins. Things we do that shouldn’t be done. There may be secret sins that no-one else knows about.

Second notice we are told – let us run with perseverance and patience. Athletes have to develop stamina. They must keep on running. As Christians we need to keep on running with perseverance and patience. To not give up in spite of discouragements. Mathew 10 verse 2. Keep on going even when there are difficulties.

Third notice we are told – let us fix our eyes on Jesus. The goal is to win the race, to achieve the prize. We must be focused. We are not to focused on family, spectators or other runners. Christians have to focus on Jesus and not be distracted by the world around us. There are so many things that get our eyes off Jesus. We should meditate on Christ and on his life. He was tempted and tried but he overcame, even to death on the cross.

Finally – using our gifts for God

The example of Maizie Smyth. Use whatever we have for God even if it is not important.

Maizie was born in Broughshane. She had a sister Isobel and a brother John. Every day she helped her parents on the family farm. On Sunday the chores were done early and the family walking or cycled to church 4 miles away. After lunch they attended Sunday School and returned to church again in the evening. She knew she was a sinner but it was not until her first year at secondary school when 2 Faith Mission Pilgrims held a mission near her home that she came under conviction of sin. The lady Pilgrim took as her text John 10 verse 9 “Jesus said I am the door, by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved.” Maizie knew God was speaking to her but she put it off. She was afraid to take that step. She still had her chores to do when she got home and in particular put the hens into the shed for the night. One little hen refused to go in through the door. Maizie chased the hen around for 10 minutes and realised that she was like that little hen. She went into her bedroom and asked the Lord to be her Saviour. She trained to be a secretary and started a job in County Down. During the week she boarded in Belfast and returned to the family home at the weekend. She started to grow as a Christian attending a local church where she taught Sunday School. Maizie didn’t realise that God would one day call her to be a missionary using Luke 12 verse 15. At that point Maizie surrendered her all – her work, her family and her finance. She went to bible college in Glasgow. Maizie felt God was calling her to work in Southern Ireland as she was not good in languages. At school the English teacher didn’t put her forward to sit the exam as it would be a waste of government money. God called Maizie to serve him in Africa and the Democratic Republic of Congo. She had to learn 3 languages in her service. Psalm 32 verse 8. In 1978 Maizie landed in Congo. She helped teach the 600 boy soldiers stationed near where she lived during the rebellion and eventually had to leave Congo as it became dangerous for all missionaries to remain. She was willing to go where God wanted her to go. She was tasked with creating a hymn book in 3 languages for the people of Congo which Every Home Crusade printed. I had the privilege as part of my work with Marie Curie to nurse Maizie during her cancer at her home in Broughshane. God will help you with whatever gift you have.