Lonah Chemtai Salpeter won a bronze medal in the marathon for her adoptive country, Israel, at the World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon, USA. Chemtai Salpeter came in behind Ethiopia’s Gotytom Gebreslase and Kenya’s Judith Jeptum Korir. Born in Kenya, Salpeter moved to Israel in 2011 as a maid. She fought for citizenship for years without success. In 2016, she won the Tel Aviv marathon; and that paved the way for her to receive Israeli citizenship. She would later represent Israel in the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
“Pay attention to the gift that God has given you. Work hard on it and develop yourself as well. It is your master key to life.”
Our text says that a man’s gift makes room for him. In context, the gift here means favour that someone dispenses. The New Living Translation makes it even clearer: “Giving a gift can open doors; it gives access to important people!” Proverbs 18:16 NLT. However, there is a secondary application to which we can put the text. A man’s spiritual gift or natural talent can indeed open difficult doors as Salpeter’s story shows. Her gift in athletics opened the door to citizenship of Israel. We have cases in the Bible to prove this as well. Nothing but his gift brought Joseph to stand before Pharaoh. His gift of interpretation of dreams changed his position from a common prisoner to that of an enviable ruler in Egypt. Daniel was another case. His gift distinguished him before several kings. Pay attention to the gift that God has given you. Work hard on it and develop yourself as well. It is your master key to life.