Why Did God Make You?
Why is knowing and using your spiritual gifts important? Your spiritual gifts define who you were made to be and what you were made to do. No one can be happy or fulfilled unless he discovers his spiritual gifts and uses them in the place and manner in which God designed for them to be used.
God has made you for a special purpose. He has made you to fill a specific role in a specific time and place. I believe every child of God has the ability to impact the world with his gifting. Didn’t Jesus say He would give us power (Acts 1:8)? This is the same power that caused the lame to walk, the blind to see, the dead to be raised. This is the same power of the Shekinah glory of God that parted the Red Sea, caused the walls of Jericho to fall down, and empowered David to kill Goliath. Very few people ever find the purpose for which they were made. It is an astounding experience to be where God made you to be doing what He made you to do. It not only gives you a sense of fulfillment and happiness, it gives you confidence knowing you are where God made you to be.
How does a person find his gifts? Some theologians try to limit spiritual gifts to a list compiled from Romans 12 and I Corinthians 12 along with some other passages. I do not believe the gifts listed in these passages were ever given to reflect all gifts. I believe these are only a few of them. God has made you so incredibly unique with a gift or a mix of gifts that only He can show you your gifts. I know there are some very good spiritual gift tests to help a person find his gifts. They can be helpful but you can never find your gift without the leadership and direction of the Holy Spirit. Be assured if you are trying to find your gift, God will lead you to it.
What exactly is a spiritual gift? It is a God given ability, which requires development, designed to be used to build God’s kingdom. This ability comes with a desire to use the gift. I have several abilities but I do not have a passion for them. I can build a house but I am not passionate about it. This is not one of my gifts. I am passionate about translating ancient inscriptions and religious symbols. I have the natural inclinations for languages but I have thousands of hours in study and research to develop that gift.
A spiritual gift gets you out of bed in the morning and keeps you up late hours in the night. It drives you to go when you have no more energy. It gives you passion and hope. It is your reason to live! Once you discover your spiritual gift it will consume you. You will eat, live, and breathe it. You will live with purpose and passion. There is nothing more fulfilling than living in your gifts!
I could write for hours about spiritual gifts but I try to keep these articles short. Let me share with you an example of a person who found and used her spiritual gift. I pastored a small church in a small town in northern Indiana for eleven years. I taught several weeks on spiritual gifts and challenged our people to find and use their gifts. As I looked at some of the people I prayed, “Lord, you’re going to have to help me here. I don’t see any gifts at all in this person.” One of those people was a sweet little lady who was very quiet. Her name was Gladys. I had no idea what she could do to contribute to God’s kingdom except pray. I tended to tell people if they couldn’t do anything else they could pray. It was foolish of me to think prayer is a last resort! Prayer is the responsibility of each believer.
About a week later Gladys informed me she knew what her spiritual gift was. She said it was love. I smiled and gave her my affirming approval but I was thinking, “That’s not a gift! We are all supposed to do that!” That Sunday Gladys began going around the church hugging each person and telling him she loved him. Some people thought it was strange at first but Gladys soon transformed our church! She brought an incredible spirit to our church. Everyone who ever visited Temple Baptist Church in Dunkirk knew Gladys. A visitor may not have known who I was but no one ever forgot Gladys.
I remember one Sunday a visitor came with a scowl on his face. It was clear that he was not comfortable in our church. After the service was over he quickly headed out the door. He walked by Gladys without a hug! She began to chase him down. He ignored her and kept going. She chased him across the parking lot saying, “Hold on, you didn’t get your hug!” By now many people were watching. The man was so embarrassed that He had to stop and get a hug from Gladys and hear those magical words, “I love you.”
The next Sunday this man was back. Before I could start the invitation he was down the aisle. He came forward to accept Jesus into his life! Gladys’ gift made an eternal difference in this man’s life. Not just his but numerous others! This is just one example of one Christian using her gifts.
What could happen in more people were like Gladys? What could happen if instead of just one part of the body doing what it was made to do, half of the people in the body of Christ used their gifts? One little 70 year-old lady changed the world by using her gifts. What are you doing with the gifts God has given you? If you need help finding and using your gifts please get help from your pastor. If you don’t have a pastor who can help you please contact me and I would be glad to help you.
Many people feel our research of the Early Church does not apply to our lives today. Our research of the Early Church has allowed us to discover the secret to their success! The Early Church turned the world upside down for God! They were a community of believers who loved and cared about each other. They led happy and full lives. What was their secret? This is what I have been writing about. They had one purpose and vision. They used their gifting, passion, and style to build God’s kingdom. It is just that simple. I will write more next week about this subject.
© Dr. Steven L. Smith 2016
God has made you for a special purpose. He has made you to fill a specific role in a specific time and place. I believe every child of God has the ability to impact the world with his gifting. Didn’t Jesus say He would give us power (Acts 1:8)? This is the same power that caused the lame to walk, the blind to see, the dead to be raised. This is the same power of the Shekinah glory of God that parted the Red Sea, caused the walls of Jericho to fall down, and empowered David to kill Goliath. Very few people ever find the purpose for which they were made. It is an astounding experience to be where God made you to be doing what He made you to do. It not only gives you a sense of fulfillment and happiness, it gives you confidence knowing you are where God made you to be.
How does a person find his gifts? Some theologians try to limit spiritual gifts to a list compiled from Romans 12 and I Corinthians 12 along with some other passages. I do not believe the gifts listed in these passages were ever given to reflect all gifts. I believe these are only a few of them. God has made you so incredibly unique with a gift or a mix of gifts that only He can show you your gifts. I know there are some very good spiritual gift tests to help a person find his gifts. They can be helpful but you can never find your gift without the leadership and direction of the Holy Spirit. Be assured if you are trying to find your gift, God will lead you to it.
What exactly is a spiritual gift? It is a God given ability, which requires development, designed to be used to build God’s kingdom. This ability comes with a desire to use the gift. I have several abilities but I do not have a passion for them. I can build a house but I am not passionate about it. This is not one of my gifts. I am passionate about translating ancient inscriptions and religious symbols. I have the natural inclinations for languages but I have thousands of hours in study and research to develop that gift.
A spiritual gift gets you out of bed in the morning and keeps you up late hours in the night. It drives you to go when you have no more energy. It gives you passion and hope. It is your reason to live! Once you discover your spiritual gift it will consume you. You will eat, live, and breathe it. You will live with purpose and passion. There is nothing more fulfilling than living in your gifts!
I could write for hours about spiritual gifts but I try to keep these articles short. Let me share with you an example of a person who found and used her spiritual gift. I pastored a small church in a small town in northern Indiana for eleven years. I taught several weeks on spiritual gifts and challenged our people to find and use their gifts. As I looked at some of the people I prayed, “Lord, you’re going to have to help me here. I don’t see any gifts at all in this person.” One of those people was a sweet little lady who was very quiet. Her name was Gladys. I had no idea what she could do to contribute to God’s kingdom except pray. I tended to tell people if they couldn’t do anything else they could pray. It was foolish of me to think prayer is a last resort! Prayer is the responsibility of each believer.
About a week later Gladys informed me she knew what her spiritual gift was. She said it was love. I smiled and gave her my affirming approval but I was thinking, “That’s not a gift! We are all supposed to do that!” That Sunday Gladys began going around the church hugging each person and telling him she loved him. Some people thought it was strange at first but Gladys soon transformed our church! She brought an incredible spirit to our church. Everyone who ever visited Temple Baptist Church in Dunkirk knew Gladys. A visitor may not have known who I was but no one ever forgot Gladys.
I remember one Sunday a visitor came with a scowl on his face. It was clear that he was not comfortable in our church. After the service was over he quickly headed out the door. He walked by Gladys without a hug! She began to chase him down. He ignored her and kept going. She chased him across the parking lot saying, “Hold on, you didn’t get your hug!” By now many people were watching. The man was so embarrassed that He had to stop and get a hug from Gladys and hear those magical words, “I love you.”
The next Sunday this man was back. Before I could start the invitation he was down the aisle. He came forward to accept Jesus into his life! Gladys’ gift made an eternal difference in this man’s life. Not just his but numerous others! This is just one example of one Christian using her gifts.
What could happen in more people were like Gladys? What could happen if instead of just one part of the body doing what it was made to do, half of the people in the body of Christ used their gifts? One little 70 year-old lady changed the world by using her gifts. What are you doing with the gifts God has given you? If you need help finding and using your gifts please get help from your pastor. If you don’t have a pastor who can help you please contact me and I would be glad to help you.
Many people feel our research of the Early Church does not apply to our lives today. Our research of the Early Church has allowed us to discover the secret to their success! The Early Church turned the world upside down for God! They were a community of believers who loved and cared about each other. They led happy and full lives. What was their secret? This is what I have been writing about. They had one purpose and vision. They used their gifting, passion, and style to build God’s kingdom. It is just that simple. I will write more next week about this subject.
© Dr. Steven L. Smith 2016