On Thursday we talked about the three main purposes of our home group:
1) We desire to collectively grow as Learners, Lovers, and Givers.
2) We desire to be a community that is discovering and living out our gifting.
3) We desire to be a community in movement.
As we are growing collectively and striving to live out our unique calling we will be like the mustard seed (the smallest of all garden plants) that became the largest tree and offered shade to every area of the garden.
In order to help us discover our gifts I have a few websites and materials to check out.
This website has a short video that describes spiritual gifts, an in depth description of 20 spiritual gifts with questions to help you reflect on them and stories of how people are using them. It also has a short (21 question) gift test. This was one of the best (holistic) online resources that I found.
This is the original test that we asked people to consider taking and reflecting on. Give yourself at least 30 minutes to answer. There are 108 questions on this test.
I have not taken this test, but it has 140 questions and considers 28 different gifts in the analysis. This site recommends saving an hour of time to take the test.
***Please remember that tests are simply a starting point for you!! Finding our spiritual gifts is a process.***
This book covers practical strengths that we have and how they play out practically. There is an assessment that goes along with it but there is a fee attached to it. I have one copy of this book if anyone would like to borrow it.
A book that offers insight into how our core needs and strengths can be used for greatness and also are attached to our inherent sinfulness. It is very interesting and insightful. You will be challenged to understand yourself and core needs in new ways. I also have one copy of this book if anyone would like to borrow it.
**In the next post I will copy and paste my notes from Tim Keller's talk. I will also attach it to an email to our entire home group. If you have not heard this talk yet and would like to please contact Jason, Jeff, or Traci and we will work to get it to you.**
My hope with all of this is that we are starting a process of discovery that is freeing and meaningful for our group.
We love because God first loved us! What a privilege it is to be uniquely created for the work that God has for us.
2 comments:
Here is my outline:
Tim Keller Talk: Spiritual Gifts
Spiritual Gifts are the way that we do service in the church.
What is serving?
• The opposite of our consumer culture that says, you get your needs met at the lowest cost to you. Serving says, put the needs of the church and community ahead of us.
• Paradox… There are benefits to service, but if you serve in order to get the benefits, you won’t get the benefits because its not really service.
• The reason for service is because Jesus served you!!!
• Service drives the church and is done through spiritual gifts.
What are the benefits to service?
• Self-knowledge—We find out what we are good at and who we are.
• Community—As soon as you start to serve you start to get connected to others. When we come to get our needs met we leave alone
• Fulfillment—We find ourselves connected to something that touches people’s lives.
REMEMBER!! If you serve to get the benefits you won’t get the benefits! The reason to serve is not to get the benefits but is because Jesus served you.
What are spiritual gifts?
Spiritual gifts are abilities that are given to every Christian to build up the body of Christ. They are a way of building people up so that we are making the church what it ought to be. They are a way of serving the community rather than yourself.
• Spiritual gifts are infinite number: Eph 4, Romans 12, 1 Peter 4, 1 Cor 13 & 14
• 3 Categories: Most people tend to have gifts that reside in one of the categories. Only together can we really reflect everything that Jesus is.
1) Prophetic—Representing God to people; I’m coming to you and helping you understand God’s truth, word, or will—towards people from God
o Evangelism (ability to help people believe)
o Teaching (ability to help people learn)
o Prophesy (unusually dynamic and illumined truth telling)
o Speaking (ability to do evangelism, teaching, prophesy in a public speaking way)
o Knowledge/ insight/discernment (ability to tell truth from false)
2) Priestly—Represents others to God and the world; speak to God for people; advocates, sympathetic, come along side of people to help them deal with God and the world—
• Encouragement (Exhortation, motivating and counseling)
• Helps (ability to give real assistance without usurping, knows how to help someone with out replacing the person who is doing it)
• Healing (facilitating emotional and/or spiritual healing)
• Pastoring (knowing and getting what a person needs to grow, come along side someone)
• Serving (ability to meeting practical needs effectively)
• Sharing (ability to give your money in unusual ways)
• Mercy (ability to get into someone’s pain and when you are done they feel better /happy/ lifted up)
3) Kingly—Understanding direction and group needs; ability to get practical things done.
• Apostle (founder/entrepreneur/ plowing new ground)
• Leadership (vision casting, ability to get people excited around a specific vision)
• Administration (ability to get things done towards a vision)
• Wisdom, (Problem solving)
• Faith (ability to envision a goal very clearly)
What are some key points to recognize about Spiritual Gifts?
• Gifts come in clusters and modify one another!
• Your gift matrix is as unique as a snowflake: (Eph 2:8-10)—there are things that only you can do. There certain people that only you can help. You are God’s workmanship, you have been created to do things that only you can do.
• We need to understand the difference between gifts and fruit: Every Christian is supposed to have all of the fruit. No one has all of the gifts. Be careful not to mistake fruit for gifts. Gifts without fruit is like a tire without air. It is more important for you to develop your character than your gifts.
• We need to understand difference between gifts and talents: Talents that we use outside of the church might look different inside of the church. (i.e. You are the CEO of a company, doesn’t mean you will be have the gift of leadership)
• Avoid gift cop out: Every one of the gifts is also a job or task that every Christian is supposed to have. Don’t be so sure what you are gifted at, do it all. (i.e. mercy)
• Avoid gift projection: (i.e. Bill Bright, evangelism) Don’t assume that everyone else has to have your gift. Don’t feel guilty if you don’t have other’s gifts.
How do you discover your gift?
1) Ability—talent, what are you good at?
2) Affinity—passion, what do you want to do?
3) Opportunity—doors open, what can be done?
When these things come together you can have some assurance. Don’t come into the church starting with “I’m good at…” or “I will only work on…”
• When it comes to the church, start with OPPORTUNITY * It wasn’t until I had to try ________ that I found out what my gift is. Start with “What needs to be done?”
• When you start with opportunity you have a chance to find latent gifts and to get the benefits of service!
Thank you, Traci, for all the great wealth of information you've given us. I'm really excited to hear from our home group on Thursday night and I strongly encourage folks in our community to take at least one of the spiritual gift tests you linked to in the blog and in your email.
I think there's a place for everyone to serve in our community, and discovering your gifting is really a blessing. It's helped me figure out what place I have in being a part of the body of Christ in our community.
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