Your Gifts In Action

The gift of perceiving spiritual influences and distinguishing between truth and error.

The gift of apostleship does not mean that you are to become like one of the original twelve apostles. Instead let's look specifically to the example of Paul, who was also named an apostle. He was a missionary to the church. As a missionary apostle he was called out by God and sent to a specific people. He was able to cross cultural boundaries to reach people for Jesus Christ and form new Christian communities.

This is a special ability to distinguish betwen truth and error, justice and injustice, what is authentic and genuine and what is phony. You are able to "see through" people or circumstances to know what is real and what is an illusion, and you have the wisdom and courage to speak or reveal the truth.

Get of your soapbox and put away your bullhorn! Think of people, both introverts and extroverts, shy and outgoing, who can communicate the gospel message through word and deed. Are you able to share the good news of Jesus Christ in ways so that

people can see, hear, and accept it? Then you may have the gift of evangelism.

The gift of encouraging and motivating others towards spiritual growth and maturity.

The word used in the Bible is exhortation, but a more understandable term for us is the word encouragement. Do you come alongside persons to help? Do you work with the lesser able and undergird people to use and do their very best? This is not a "fix it" person but one who "travels with" another.

A supernatural trust and confidence in God's promises and power.

The Spirit-given ability to daily see God's will, coupled with the confidence to do it, is the gift of faith. It is living one day ta a time even when life seems out of control. To live fully in faith is to live each day as best you can for

who you are in that moment and to trust the rest to God.

Don't think that if you don't have this gift it means you can ignore the offering plate the next time it's passed! We all are commanded to give. We all have received so much from God that we can't help wanting to give in return. But those with the giving gift give freely, with a special measure and delight to further God's work in the world. You also don't have to be rich to have the gift. Remember the Bible story about the widow's mite (Mark 12:41-44)?

The ability to pray for and witness physical, emotional, or spiritual healing in others.

This is the ability to allow God to work through you as an instrument for the healing of illness and the restoration of persons' physical, mental, and spiritual health. (Note of caution: The cure does not depend on the receiving person's faith or the healer's amount of faith.)

The ability to interpret messages spoken in tongues for the benefit of the community.

Linguistics might be your bag! The gift of interpretation is the ability to translate when a foreign language is uttered. In a time when we must cross all cultural and language boundaries, this is an invaluable gift. In the case of ecstatic utterances, as when someone is speaking in tongues, the gift of interpretation can mean to interpret the nonlinguistic sounds so that the message is understood.

Insight into spiritual matters and the ability to understand and communicate theological truths.

Having the gift of knowledge is not being the champion on the popular TV show Jeopardy or a winner at Trivial Pursuit. Instead it is a supernatural ability to stretch beyond the facts and figures to search, make sense of, and bring together the teachings of God for people's lives.

The capacity to empathize with and show compassion towards those who

are suffering or in need.

There are many of us who easily show emotion, but the ability to empathize with others, stand in their shoes, and then act in ways that help them on their journey is the essence of the gift of mercy and compassion.

The capacity to perform supernatural acts that go beyond natural explanation, often to authenticate the message of the Gospel.

Are you ready for a miracle? Those with this Spirit-given power are able to act contrary to natural law or use natural law in extraordinary ways. This gift is displayed when God's hand miraculously intervenes in your presence in extraordinary ways.

This gift is also referred to as shepherding, but don't go buy a herd of sheep. Instead, pull out your abilities to be a spiritual guide, to sustain people on their journeys, and to work with

those who are at different places on the discipleship road.

The ability to receive and communicate messages from God for the purpose of edification, encouragement, or correction.

This gift does not imply that you should get a nine-hundred number and set up your own psychic hot line or go buy a pack of tarot cards! The word prophet means "forth-teller." Think of a prophet as one who can know past history, see present occurrences, and then understand the bigger picture. A prophet is called to instruct, warn, correct, and forecast the end result.

The desire and ability to serve others practically and support the needs of the community.

This gift should carry a warning: "This is not the business of the things we think we should do." But if you are one who assists and lends a helping hand in times of need, this may be your gift. Do you feel called to give leadership in the distribution of supplies in a disaster area, do the leg work for a group project, or make needed deliveries? Then you may have this gift of assisting and helping others.

The ability to speak in a language unknown to the speaker, often interpreted as a sign of the Holy Spirit's presence.

 The sign should read, "NOT FOR CHARISMATICS ONLY." The book of Acts in the New Testament records that on the Day

of Pentecost, the tongues spoken were different languages that normally would not have been spoken by the people (Acts 2:6). Other times tongues are understood as verbal utterances that praise God but are not understood by human ears. Whichever it is, it is a gift to be prized.

The capacity to explain and communicate spiritual truths effectively to others.

You don't need a college degree to have the gift of teaching. And just because you are capable of teaching doesn't mean you automatically have the gift. Spiritual teachers have the ability to clearly explain and effectively apply the truth of Jesus Christ. Remember, people watch teachers more than others to see if their lifestyles are consistent with their lessons.

The ability to discern and apply spiritual truths in practical situations.

Wisdom means putting what you know to work in your daily life and helping others to do the same. It is being in tune with the heart of God and then living that way. A person with the gift of wisdom weighs all the circumstances in complex situations to find the deeper truth.