Lead with Your Gifts

Lead with Your Gifts

                                                                         

1 Peter 4: 10-11

http://bible.com/111/1pe.4.10-11.niv

10Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. 11If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.

If you want to lead with honor, integrity, and quality it is critical to lead with your God given gifts.  When we lead with our gifts submit our lives and our leadership to God’s will.

We are all members of the body of Christ.  Each of us has a different role to play.  The best teams are not made up of all perfectly well-rounded individuals.  The team is well-rounded because each of us brings different strengths and skills.  So God has it in His plan that we all need to play a specific role with specific talent and gifts.  Romans 12 offers insight into our gifts and their use:

We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man's gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith. If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching let him teach; if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully. (Romans 12: 6-8 (NIV))

Take time to review your spiritual gifts.  The following link offers a tool to review your own gifts. http://www.lifeway.com/lwc/files/lwcF_PDF_Discover_Your_Spiritual_Gifts.pdf  This version is a self-scoring assessment.  I empower you to take the assessment and begin determining your spiritual gifts.

When I took the Spiritual Gifts assessment tool I found the following gifts were my top gifts.  The top gift was “Administration” - The special ability to identify the immediate and long range needs of the body of Christ and provide the organizational planning necessary to help them execute the work needed to increase the church’s effectiveness.   (Acts 27:11-20, 27-29; 1 Corinthians 12:28). I see this strength time and time again.  I have had many opportunities to engage this gift and it took time to realize that when God’s will was revealed all would go right.

Related to “Administration” my next gift is “Leadership” - The special ability to unite others around a common vision for the church and effectively communicate the goals for the future in way that influences and directs the body of Christ in a spirit of cooperation. (Romans 12:8; Thessalonians 5:12; Book of Nehemiah).  I call upon “Administration” and “Leadership” quite regularly in my work and career life.  I have come to rely on and believe in my intuitive sense about bringing people together to co-create a future.

The first two set the stage for my next two spiritual gifts of “Teaching” - The special ability to clearly and effectively discern and communicate biblical truth in such a way that people learn and grow in their walk with God.  (1 Corinthians 12:28; Ephesians 4:11-12; Romans 12:7).  From my earliest memories I have felt the call to be an educator.  For many in education it is not a job as much as it is a calling or vocation.  It is through this strength that I believe that I fulfill my overall call upon my life.

And finally “Faith” - The special ability to place one’s complete trust in the Lord and a willingness to act upon God’s directions with an extraordinarily unwavering confidence in His ability to help us in every situation. (Acts 5:1-11; 6:5-7; Hebrews 11:33-34; 1 Corinthians 13:2).  Early in life I did not engaged this gift fully.  But over the last 15 years I have come to engage my faith life in so many aspects of life.  Before each interview for a new job I would say a prayer that God’s will be done.  If this was the place where I was to be it was His will.  There were some really great schools and positions that I thought I had nailed the interview and when the call came that I was not the chosen candidate I placed it back into God’s hands. This last time I interviewed for a position at Longwood University.  I sat in my hotel room the night before the interview and said my prayer that if this would be the place that You need me to be, I place my faith in Your will.  And now I am in Farmville, Virginia at Longwood University.  And it feels as if I have been here forever.  We have found a wonderful Church family in New Life.  For many people placing complete trust pulls us away from that ever present “me” culture.  But we must place our unwavering trust in His ability to move us to where He needs us at this time.  And when it is right every aspect will be right.  Have faith and trust in the Lord.

In this 2 verse passage Peter is asking each of us to consider 5 conditions of our spiritual gifts:

•        Each one of us has at least 1 spiritual gift or strength.
•       Spiritual gifts are for service.
•       We are stewards of our gifts, not owners.  (In the “It’s all about ME” culture this is a difficult concept to deal with.  We are told constantly that we own and control our gifts and the directions to which we take our gifts.)
•       God is the source and sustainer of our gifts.
•       We use our gifts to serve the Lord.  (Adapted from John Maxwell).

When we misuse our gifts or deny that our gifts are given to us by God there are three primary outcomes:  We are disappointed and do not feel joy or contentment; the Body of Christ suffers; and finally God is not glorified.

Great things will happen when we submit our gifts and leadership to God’s will. 

Enjoy the following Songs:
"Yours" by Stephen Curtis Chapman
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nNMClVv88oc

"Love Take Me Over" by Stephen Curtis Chapman
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W8DiZhNVu1I

"The Lord's Prayer" by Michael W. Smith
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6zlQaMIzQJU