As many of you are aware, a new program has come to St. Michael’s Anglican Church called Network. Network is a program that encourages people to discover their individual Spiritual Gifts, and then to discern how to use those gifts in community to make a difference in the world. Hey. We can all get behind that, right? If Network sounds appealing to you but you missed the first retreat, please do not worry. I will continue to offer this program regularly in the future.
One concept that is taught in this program is very important to us as Christian disciples – the concept of interdependence. Some definitions can be helpful here. Someone who is dependent relies on someone or something for aid or support. Someone who chooses to be completely and totally dependent has difficulty maintaining relationships because eventually those relationships become too taxing. In short, complete and total dependence (on someone or something other than God) is not the Christian model.
Then there is that word that is so fashionable in this day and age: independence. When we first toss around the idea of independence, it sounds really good, especially in our culture. We are so thankful that we live in a free and independent nation. We are taught that independence is a wonderful trait to have, and that all should have it. If we are not seen as independent, we are looked down upon as someone who falls short. Too much of a good thing, however, can be bad. People who are too independent can become very self-centered and can also have a problem establishing and maintaining relationships. They are their own person and living in relationship can be very difficult. I believe this is one of the major reasons why the divorce rate is over 60%. We have taken independence too far.
Finally, there is another term and it is a term that I believe best describes who we are to be, both as individual disciples of Christ, and as a community of faith – interdependence. Interdependence means that we are mutually dependent on each other. It means that we all have gifts to offer the Body of Christ, and each person uses those gifts for the good of the Body so that Body as a whole can do even greater things. Look at what Paul says to the Romans: "In Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all others." (Romans 12:5) Paul is saying here that the Body of Christ is a body of interdependent people all using different gifts to accomplish one purpose – furthering the Kingdom of God in this world.
Interdependence can break down in one of two ways. First, we can lose interdependence when we take our spiritual gifts and try to hoard them for ourselves and our own purposes. Spiritual are gifts that are given to us by the Holy Spirit to be used for the good of the Body of Christ. Second, we can lose interdependence when we do not respect the individuality of each member of the body and try to make the Body of Christ into a cookie-cutter group of disciples who are all the same. This is not what the Body of Christ is all about.
In closing, as many of us are going about the important business of discerning spiritual gifts, let us not lose sight of the main reason that we discern spiritual gifts in the first place – for the edification of the Body of Christ. As we discern what our spiritual gifts are supposed to be, let us not forget the most important question that we have to ask: How is God calling us to use them in community for the glorification of His amazing and powerful Kingdom?
