Wise Sue

1 Corinthians 12:21-26 (ESV)
The eye cannot say to the hand, "I have no need of you," nor again the head to the feet, "I have no need of you." On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and on those parts of the body that we think less honorable we bestow the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, which our more presentable parts do not require. But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.

We all know that a body of believers needs to work together. There is not one member that is more important than the other. Some may do "greater work" (at least publicly) than others, but they must work together to accomplish the goal of spreading the gospel to those who haven't heard. For instance, the preacher is very important but so are the nursery workers. The nursery workers are volunteering to watch other people's children so that those parents might be able to hear the Word preached. Without the nursery workers the parents might be distracted by their kids and miss out on what God is wanting them to hear.

Or I could get more spiritual. Some people are gifted to teach. This could be one-on-one or in a classroom. Others may be gifted in wisdom. Now, usually the one who is teaching is seen teaching by others on a regular basis. But the one called to wisdom may not express that gift as often. I know a woman like that. I call her Wise Sue. She doesn't feel that she is wise, but I have had a number of experiences where she has spoken some very wise words to me in very specific times of need. And she has definitely kicked my butt many times with her words.

So, here is my question of the day: How do we encourage people who are part of the body of believers to step up, use their gifts, encourage the body through that gift, and reveal the glory of God through their gift? As the pastor of a church I feel it is part of my call to equip, develop, and encourage everyone in the body to express their spiritual gifts. How can I do this without having them take a test to find their spiritual gift and be academic about the whole thing?