“I believe God made me for a purpose, but he also made me fast. And when I run I feel His pleasure.” -Eric Liddell, Chariots of Fire (1981)
How do you know your spiritual gifts? How do you really know?
Have you ever done one of those spiritual gift surveys? I’ve done quite a few. If you’re like me and have done more than one, you’re probably even more confused. This survey said I have the gift of administration and teaching! But wait, this survey says I have pastoring and prophecy. I just did another one that says I have the gift of praise and of service. I’m so confused!
There’s a fundamental problem with all of these surveys. No, there’s more than one problem... They’re made by man. They have to categorize gifts. They use different gifts in some than in others (do we use the list in 1 Cor 12, Rom 12, or Eph 4? The Pentecostal or Mainline groupings?). They assume the power of GOD in a person’s life can be discerned by a list of standardized questions.
Don’t hear me wrong, I’m not anti-spiritual-gift-questionnaire. But I think there’s a less flawed method. Or at the very least a qualifier of sorts. --> The body of Christ.
If you’ve ever had someone within the body come up to you and speak clearly and deeply into your life, and in so doing they recognize and affirm a particular gift in your life, take it to the bank. Just because a piece of paper that bases its belief on how you see yourself calls you a prophet, if nobody sees that gift in you, it’s probably not there.
So should we go around asking each other? I suppose you could. But I’d trust unsolicited advice more than putting someone on the spot to name something.
Instead, I’d promote sharing what God shows us regarding others more often, but with a word of caution. Don’t just become a happy encourager, telling everyone you see that they are God-gifted to do whatever you see them do. Watch, pray, confirm in your own heart with God, and then by all means go tell someone in the body you have a relationship with about the gift that you see in their life. Your affirmation may be incredibly freeing for that person. To be told I’m good at something I love, better yet gifted by God... wow, sign me up!
2 comments:
I agree very much that the body of Christ is important in affirming one's gifting. The next step is to be about the business of using the gift. Then ask if the body if they are still convinced of the gifting. By that point, you should be convinced as well. Tim
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