For years, I wondered how the different parts of my life fit together.
Many of you know that I am also a flight attendant. I have always felt comfortable in that role, and I have loved so much about that career. But for a long time, I also felt like there was something missing. I wanted to understand the gifts God had given me and, more importantly, how He wanted me to use them.
In my late twenties, I was blessed with an incredible Bible study made up of about ten women from across Atlanta. Week after week, we would share our prayer requests, and mine was almost always the same: God, show me my gifts and show me how to use them for You.
At the time, I had already spent years serving my sorority. I knew I had gifts I could offer there, and I loved giving back to a group of women that had given so much to me as a collegian. But I still wondered what it looked like to use those gifts specifically for God.
It wasn’t until my family returned to PTCUMC in 2023 that things began to click.
I connected with Pastor Sean about helping schedule our Sunday morning serve teams, and almost immediately, I found myself drawing from experiences I had gathered in completely different parts of my life. I created a model for our Sunday teams based on something I had used in sorority life. I leaned on hospitality skills and customer service training from more than a decade as a flight attendant. I began thinking about how every person who walked through our doors could feel seen, cared for and like they belonged here.
Suddenly, the things I had been doing for years didn’t feel unrelated anymore.
For all the years I wondered whether God was hearing my prayer, He was preparing me.
He was using experiences I already had. He was sharpening gifts I didn’t yet know how I would use. He was preparing me for this church, these people and this mission.
And I am incredibly grateful that I now get to use those gifts in service to Him.
As we come to the final Sunday of our No Sidelines series, maybe the question isn’t simply, “Where can I serve?”
Maybe it is, “How has God already been preparing me?”
What comes naturally to you? What experiences has He placed in your life? What do people consistently come to you for? What gift have you wondered how God might use?
There are so many ways to serve at PTCUMC, and they don’t all look the same. Some happen on Sunday mornings, while others happen quietly throughout the week. Some involve hospitality, teaching or technology. Others use organization, creativity or simply noticing what needs to be done.
Your gifts may look completely different from mine. But they were given to you for a reason.
As we wrap up No Sidelines, pay attention to where God may already be working in your heart. He may have been preparing you for this moment long before this series ever began.
Where is He leading you next?
