Everybody is a Genius.

“Everybody is a Genius. But If You Judge a Fish by Its Ability to Climb a Tree, It Will Live Its Whole Life Believing that It is Stupid”. Albert Einstein

Our Pastor quoted this fable today: “One time the animals had a school. The curriculum consisted of running climbing, flying and swimming, and all the animals took all the subjects.

The Duck was better in swimming—better, in fact, than his instructor—and he made passing grades in flying, but he was practically hopeless in running. Because he was low in this subject, he was made to stay after school and drop his swimming class to practice running. He kept this up until he was only average in swimming, but the average was passing so nobody worried about that except the duck.

The Eagle was considered a problem pupil and was disciplined severely. He beat all others to the top of the tree in the climbing class, but he always used his own way of getting there.

The Rabbit started at the top of the class in running, but he had a nervous breakdown and had to drop out of school on account of so much make-up work in swimming.

The Squirrel led the climbing class, but his flying teacher made him start flying from the ground up instead of from the top down, and he developed charley horses from overexertion at the takeoff and began getting Cs in climbing and Ds in running.

The practical Prairie Dogs apprenticed their offspring to the Badgers when the school authorities refused to add digging to the curriculum.

At the end of the year, an abnormal Eel that could swim well and run, climb and fly a little was made Valedictorian.”

So, what was the moral of the fable? Pastor suggested it was that we accept one another’s gifts and talents and quit expecting others to fit into our mold. And recognize that we need each other to use our own gifts and talents within the body of Christ. I agree. However, I think it can go further, more personal. I believe we should each focus on developing our strengths, gifts and talents and not beat ourselves up for our perceived weaknesses.

We are all gifted in something, so we need to stop trying to improve in areas we are not gifted in at the expense of what we are gifted in. For instance, if I am not gifted to do something, yet I keep attempting to make myself do it, I get so stressed out because that is not what God called me to do that I don’t have the time or energy to focus on what I am gifted at and what I am called to do.

That is not an excuse to quit trying to be the best I can be. However, I do believe it challenges us to each look at our talents and gifts and use them in the areas we believe God is calling us to. If we continue to attempt to do what we were not called to do, or to develop in areas that we are not gifted in, not only do we weaken our strengths and natural talents, we also prevent someone who is gifted in that area from stepping up to fill the need. We rob others of using their gifts.

Time to ask God what gifts and talents He has placed in us.

Time to ask God where He wants us to use them.

Time to ask God what we should let go of that He didn’t call us to do.

Simply put by Lori