Iliff and Saltillo UM Churches
August 10, 2003
“Identifying Gifts--Where Do I Begin?”
Romans 12:3-8
I Peter 4:4-11
INTRODUCTION: Story: A college student who had always lived in the city was visiting a ranch in Texas. She was fascinated by all the animals. She had never seen so many before so it wasn’t unusual when she blurted out, “What an unusual looking cow. Why doesn’t she have any horns?”
The rancher explained, “Well, some cows are born without horns and never have any. Others shed theirs, and some we dehorn. And some breeds aren’t supposed to have any horns at all. But the reason this cow hasn’t got any horns is because she ain’t no cow--she’s a horse.”(source unknown)
Identifying Spiritual Gifts--Where Do I Begin? Sometimes we have difficulty recognizing our spiritual gifts and don’t even know where to begin. We may conclude that we don’t have any and are not going to get any. We waste years thinking that we are not chosen to receive gifts or that we are not spiritual enough or any number of other erroneous ideas we have picked up over the years. All the while we are not as effective as we could be in the body of Christ. Let’s see how today’s scripture will help us in identifying our gifts.
1. Having the Gifts: We might say, “If I HAVE gifts where are they? How do I find them? How will I recognize a gift when I see it? In both of today’s scripture we find reference to [already] having gifts--not receiving at some time in the future. If we are a believer then the Holy Spirit has given us one or more gifts for the purpose of use in the body of Christ. We just don’t recognize it yet. Their purpose is for the common good of all--to bring maturity and completeness to the body of Christ.
Romans 12:6 Amplified Bible says, “having gifts (faculties, talents, qualities) that differ according to the grace given us, let us use them.”
The NLT says, “God has given each of us the ability to do certain things well.”
The KJV says, “Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given us...”
The NIV says, “We have different gifts.”
Our scripture in I Peter 4:10 NIV says, “each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others.”
The KJV says “As every [person] hath received the gift...”
The NLT “God has given gifts to each of you from his great variety of spiritual gifts.”
The Amplified “as each of you has received a gift (a spiritual talent, a gracious divine empowerment) employ it for one another as good trustees of God’s many sided grace...”
The Message Bible says, “Be generous with the different things God gave you...”
We have been given the green light to go ahead and look for our gifts and here are some ways we can do this:
2. Ways to Identify Gifts: We are impatient people. We want to find out instantly. With the things of God, usually things don’t happen at the touch of a “send” button like e.mail.
Someone once said, “Life is hard--try reading the instructions.”
1. Prayer and Study: The Lord will lead you to an identification of your gifts if you allow Him to guide you and direct you through searching the scriptures and through prayer. Proverbs 3:5, 6 says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight.” Pray and then spend time studying what God has already said on the matter in the Bible--read the instructions. Study the lives of Bible characters. You might identify with some more than others. You might say, “that sounds like me. That’s sounds like my gift too.”
2. Exposure to Various Ministries: Most of us think that when we volunteer to do a job we are signing a lifetime contract--sometimes we are afraid we will be “stuck” for years in something we hate to do. There are lots of short term things you can do. Volunteer for a variety of short term things such as helping out on a committee, helping someone teach a class. You might find out it is absolutely not for you. If so, try something different. It is a way of “job shadowing” where you can have an exposure to various ministries.
STORY: A new homeowner wanted to landscape his new house and he went to the nursery and picked out some trees, shrubs, and flowers. While most of the plants did really well, some turned brown and died out. The homeowner went back to the nursery and bought more plants. After awhile they died out too. Chatting with his neighbor one day he said, “I can’t understand why these plants won’t grow.”
The neighbor said, “these plants won’t grow there because they need direct sunlight.” Other plants got too much sunlight and needed more shade. The same is true for us in the use of our gifts. Sometimes people will say, “Bloom where you are planted,” but no matter how hard we try to bloom we are not blooming. Once identified, your gift may flourish if used in a different way. You may be trying to bloom in a ministry that is not right for you.
Max DePree says it in a different way. “A whale is unique as a cactus. But don’t ask a whale to survive in Death Valley! We all have our special gifts!”
Am I willing to pray and search the scriptures to find out God’s guidance but then go a step further to try out different ministries on a short term basis? Don’t be afraid to try out something you have never done before.
3. “Creative Restlessness”: Take note of “Creative Restlessness” that is going on within you. When you feel restless and uncomfortable but don’t know what to do about it, this is called “Creative Restlessness.” It is like your “nest is being stirred up” and you can’t quite pinpoint what God is telling you to do. There may be a sense of dissatisfaction for awhile. Be on the alert for new opportunities to open up. Be on the alert for new people to cross your pathway. Be on the alert for things to just come your way “out of the blue.” Creative restlessness eventually can move you to where you need to be.
4. Watch Where God Gives You Opportunities: Look for the obvious places. Someone once said, “Find a need and fill it.”
ILLUSTRATION: A group of seminary students were praying and asking God to reveal to them how they could help the victims of a devastating tornado in Louisville. They were still at the “prayin’” state when they should have been at the “doin’” stage. The first thing they could have done was just go help people pick up what was left of their material lives. We can just open our eyes to the obvious--that’s God’s way of opening up opportunities and our gifts to us. Find a need and fill it.
5. Naturalness, Success, Energy: Look for a certain level of naturalness in your work. From the beginning you should feel a sense of satisfaction and fulfillment even though you are inexperienced. Look for some success. You have a good feeling about it. You knew you did your best whether anyone else said anything or not. Discover what gives you joy and energizes you. God is not going to load you down with a gift that just drains you.
In a book, Finding Your Own North Star, by Martha Beck, a career counselor, she says that over and over her clients tell her how they feel drained and exhausted on their way to jobs, classes, medical appointments or social functions they think they MUST attend. The closer they got to the dreaded even the more they felt their strength ebbing away.
What kind of activities make you feel drained of energy? What kinds increase your energy levels? Does being with certain people seem to pep you up or drain you? Write down three types of activities that make you forget what time it is--when you look at the clock and it is 4:00 already, for example. Time has flown by and you were not even aware of it. This could be an indication that you are working within your giftedness. When things seem like the longest day of your life, you could be working outside your giftedness. Ask yourself, “What do I feel the most fulfilled doing--the most energized?
In what ways do you feel you are the most effective? You may also get a clue to discovering your gifts when you ask yourself this question. What do you LOVE TO DO for the common good of God’s family?
In relating to God’s family I love to_________________________.
6. Others Affirming You: If you were to ask others to name three of your strengths, what do you think they would say? Sometimes people will say, “You would be good at___________. God uses others to affirm us in our gifts. In what areas do the affirmations of people seem to cluster? That may give you an idea of your “gift mix.”
CONCLUSION: Can you identify more with the speaking or serving gifts? Can you begin to see your “gift mix” emerging?
If you have identified a gift or think you are at least in the ballpark, this week write a prayer to the Lord thanking Him for the gifts He has given you and asking Him for insight as to how you can use them effectively for His glory.
Thank Him for the strengths you are aware of right now. We have to value and appreciate our gifts. When you see a gift begin to emerge, follow it by taking a step of faith and God will reveal the rest over time.
Next week we are going to explore “Unwrapping Your Gifts” once you have identified them.
Let us Pray:
