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Hollie said:
I know that for me personally, I often look at my gifts as not as important as those of others and I have come to realize that that is not the case. It distinctively says in 1 Corinthians 12 that the Holy Spirit equips us with our spiritual gifts that are uniquely definable only through us. Even though to us our gifts may seem weak or not as important than those of others, sometimes they are in fact the most necessary. God molded us all so that we could all contribute our unique supernatural abilities to the Body and serve more effectively for His Kingdom!
# 4 February 2009 at 12:26 pm

Kristen said:
I too have diminished at times the gifts God has given me saying they are just not as important as those of others. I have also confused my natural talents with gifts God has given me which caused much frustration. Once the distinction was made I found myself to be a much happier person.
# 4 February 2009 at 2:50 pm

shane said:
Gods gifts are by far(for me) the best way to reach people! I am a very outgoing, not shy person. God has givin me a great gift to use for his will. I find myself at work, school, or just any where trying to meet new people. And once I gain their respect I tell them how important God is to me and they are shocked that I am as outgoing and kind in this day and age. I think God is amazing in all ways, but his choices of gifts for us is key for us to reach others for him! And I think if u do not use your gifts, you are not in Gods will. I do not use some of mine as much as I should. I sing, but a lot of time it is for my own selfish reasons. “Do all to the glory of God!” I think we can all improve on this!
shane
# 4 February 2009 at 5:18 pm

Dave said:
I loved the Spiritual Gifts Assessment. I actually was surprised at some of the ones that emerged as some of my top giftings, but was excited to understand those and be able to start focusing more on certain ones. It is awesome to know God gives us these gifts to begin to cultivate and prepare for a specific thing to do for the kingdom. When those two meet, the gift and His purpose, something very special happens, and meaning to life becomes more clear.
God is so good!
# 4 February 2009 at 6:20 pm

Erica said:
I actually wasn’t surprised by the spiritual gifts assessment at all, but I think if I had taken it year ago, I would have been. Over the last few months I have been able to make a distinction between what I’m good at and what my strengths are and it has made me a much happier person. I’ve come to terms with the fact that I don’t have to excel at everything in order to be fulfilled. Of course, you find that fulfillment in Jesus, but it also takes everyone to work together…to be strong where others are weak. In order to benefit others, we need to learn to stop trying to be something we’re not. I think people who look like they have it all together really don’t. They just have realized to surround themselves with people who make up for what they lack.
# 4 February 2009 at 7:33 pm

Emily said:
God’s gifts and his call can never be withdrawn. That’s what the Bible says – so even when I feel like garbage about my performance I will remember that. Remember that God has uniquely designed us to serve Him in a specific way. When we get outside of our giftings it can get very frustrating. And when we don’t operate in our giftings like the guy in Matt. 25 didn’t it is very displeasing (to say the least) to God. I know I want to please God as much as possible and be useful for His Kingdom – I’m thankful I had the opportunity to take the assessment so now I can focus on the gifts God has given me.
# 5 February 2009 at 3:49 pm

Justin said:
When all Christians start operating in the gifts that we have, the world CHANGES. Imagine all of us working excavtly how God intended, with the whole Body moving and doing things together. There is absolutly nothing that we won’t accomplish. I think that is why God puts such a stress on the displeasure that it is when people don’t operate in their gifts. He knows what can be done, but leaves it up to us to know, recognize, and operate in our giftings.
# 6 February 2009 at 7:38 am

adam (author) said:
I love the reader-driven content! Awesome to see how God’s spirit speaks thru all of us.
Hollie & Kristen: great point on comparing oursleves to others – Paul tells us that this common practice is unwise.
Shane: welcome to adamdavisblog.com – right on about watching our motives for using our gifts. Motivation tests come when we are doing right in order to help us see WHY we are doing right.
Dave: Jazz won big last night & the Lakers beat the Celtics in OT – oh yeah and good stuff on clearer meaning of life when you look thru lens of our gifts.
Erica & Emily: both of you hit on coming to terms with our gift package (in different ways) and it has been a privilege to watch both of you on that journey. I feel like you both are coming into a new season of understanding of who you are in Christ. Keep it up.
And Justin: what are you talking about? Just joking – working together in our gifts makes positive impact on the world around us.
Thanks for contributing everyone.
# 6 February 2009 at 9:57 am

Katie Mullin said:
I meant to comment earlier, but we have been talking about this very same topic in my Full Life in Christ bible study at Redeemer. I think that 1 Cor. 12 sums it up about the spiritual gifts God gives us. Through the Bible study, I have learned not to be afraid to use what God gives me whether it’s the gift of healing, tongues, prophecy etc. I think the Church of the West tries to hide certain gifts and emphasize ones that look more elaborate. However, as the body of Christ this shouldn’t be so. All gifts should be emphasized and used according to His will so that the Body of Christ can operate as a whole.
# 6 February 2009 at 8:37 pm

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