1 Corinthians 12:12 – For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. (KJV)

While I was visiting a friend's home one day, she apologized to me because her dining-area table was covered with a half-finished jigsaw puzzle.

"My husband and I have been working on the puzzle for a long time," she said. "Sometime during the day, we take a few minutes to sit down and add a few pieces to the maze of a thousand different parts. It relaxes and focuses us," she continued.

I noticed that all the pieces were similar, except that one kind had indentations and the other protrusions. Noticing my interest in the shapes, she said, "We call this our spiritual puzzle. The protrusions represent our strengths, such as gifts, talents, and abilities. The indentations represent our weaknesses, such as faults, limitations, shortcomings, and undeveloped areas. It's amazing," she said, "how the pieces complement each other and produce a beautiful whole."

This idea of the spiritual puzzle reminded me of the church, which is made up of many members, but the many produce one body of Christ. Like the pieces of the puzzle, we all have different shapes and different personalities, but when we are gathered all together, we form one beautiful body of Christ. Each piece of the puzzle is important. If even one piece of the puzzle is missing, it is not complete. One person missing from the church leaves the body of Christ incomplete.

As Christians, each of us has the privilege of being a small part of God's great jigsaw puzzle. Let's not fail to enter our piece, whether indentation or protrusion. It is needed to complete the body of Christ.

Prayer: Lord, thank You for allowing us to be a part of Your church. Help us to remember how important each little part is to the larger whole. Whether indentations or protrusions, we are equally important to the total church. Amen.

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