Read It, Learn It,
Live It, Share It
"For the gifts and the call of God are irrevocable." - Romans 11:29
I love
birthday parties. The excitement on the children's faces as their friends and
families gather around them. For this one day every year, 100% of the attention
is squarely on them. King (or Queen) for a day. Sometimes there are clowns,
sometimes pony rides, sometimes firetrucks and sometimes Chuck E Cheese, but
regardless of the fanfare and games, every child looks forward to the time they
can open their gifts. They get to sit in the big chair and every eye is upon
them, as gifts are given one by one. Some are in small packages with bright
bows, some spherical and bouncing (we all know a basketball regardless of how
it's wrapped), some long and flat boxes wrapped in Barbie or Superhero paper
and then there are the less popular soft packages (you know - the clothes). Paper is ripped from the boxes and strewn about on the floor in a heap. Oohs and ahhs express the approval of the toys, sports, electronics and games. When all is said and done, the gifts are piled on the table and the children are back to the pony rides, firetrucks, cake and icecream. The gifts sit in that pile until their unpacked and moved upstairs to the childs room. Then one by one they are pulled out, used and put away for a period of months or maybe a year. I can assure you, to this day I do not have a single gift from my childhood birthday parties, other than the Bible that my best friend gave me, and the cross that my parents gave me.
Do you know what I mean when I say God has given you gifts? Most people understand this concept as something inside of their personality that has always been a part of them. There was no fan-fare, no attention getting, squealing and clapping, no brightly colored wrapping and no shredding of paper or bows. No, the common perception of God's gifts are those boring things inside that makes us who we are. Your perception is partially correct if this is the case. Spiritual gifts are from God and are inherent in each of our personalities. But, they are far from boring.
Many people have mixed feelings about spiritual gifts. "Those are only for the charismatic churches, not for me." or "I've looked, and prayed and I just don't know what mine are." or "God didn't give me any spiritual gifts." The answer to all of these is the same: their all wrong! We see in scripture - 1 Corinthians 7:7, "I wish that everyone was as I am. But each has his own gift from God, one this way, another that" that we are all endowed with gift(s) from the Father. Although many will waste the gift He has given, He is not selective in His generosity. Some will ask, "What are the gifts of the spirit?" They are found spread across the New Testament books of Romans, 1 Corinthians and Ephesians. Often associated with charismatic churches because of the root greek word for gifts - Charismata (Charisma).
Apostle, Prophet, Evangelist, Pastor, Teacher, Service, Exhortation, Giving, Leadership, Mercy, Word of Wisdom, Word of Knowledge, Speaking in Tongues, Interpretation of Tongues, Prophecy, Works of Miracles, Healing, Discernment of Spirits and Convicting Faith.
Also considered gifts from the Lord: Worship, Craftsmanship, Interpretor of dreams and Caregiver.
You have a gift from God in one of these areas. Perhaps it is untapped and underdeveloped or perhaps it is simply under utilized for His purpose. There is no age limitation and there is no returning the gift to Wal-Mart and exchanging for a new bicycle. He doesn't make mistakes, nor does He lie. If He gave you a gift, you have to accept that in His sovereignty He did it for a reason. God has given you this gift because He has ultimate knowledge and understanding of exactly how it will in turn benefit His kingdom. It is that burning desire within you that screams, "If I could do anything for God with no obstacles what would it be."
I suggest that you start to think along the lines of understanding the gift that God gave you. Start this way: Make a list of all of your strengths and desires. The things you are really good at. You can do this, you know yourself better than anyone, but there are those times when you might want to ask someone very close to you in confidence for their input on your strengths. Once you have this list, go back over it and rate your strength on each one (perhaps on a 1 to 4 scale). Make another column and go back over it one more time with the perspective of happiness and joy. Rate each one on whether it brings you joy (again you can use 1 to 4). Now, does any single item stand out in both categories? Is there one that stands out from the others in the strength category? Look over the list and determine where your strengths lie. Take your strongest trait and write it in large black letters on a sheet of paper. Tape it to your mirror. Now every morning, say a short prayer to God thanking Him for this gift, ask Him to anoint this gift within you and to help open opportunities for you to serve Him with this strength.
You are now on your path of using your God given gifts for His Kingdom. Take the time to do this today. Just imagine the opportunities that God will place in your path awaiting your presence. Be blessed my friend.
No comments:
Post a Comment