Jesus, Continued... by J.D. Greear

Author:J.D. Greear
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: ebook
Publisher: Zondervan
Published: 2014-09-01T00:00:00+00:00

The circle labeled “ability” refers to what you are naturally good at; “affinity” to what you feel passionate about; and “affirmation” to ways people have testified that God has used you. Where all three circles converge is typically an indication of a spiritual gift.

Often, spiritual gifts coincide with natural abilities you already have. God takes a natural talent and “supercharges” it for his purposes. For example, my gift of exhortation coincides with a natural ability I have for coaching, public speaking, and persuasion. Evidently, Paul was a great thinker and leader before he became a Christian, having been selected to apprentice under the highly respected Jewish leader Gamaliel (Acts 22:3). His special calling as an apostle and teacher coincided with his natural abilities to think and lead and write.

There are exceptions, of course. Sometimes, God gives spiritual gifts that have little to do with natural abilities, in part to highlight that power in ministry comes from God, not from our talents. For example, I know a young woman in our church who is terribly shy around people, yet God has given her an unusual ability in evangelism. It makes no sense. But watching how effectively she brings other people to Jesus directs your attention away from her abilities to the God who is using her. On the flip side, I know some great orators who just can’t preach God’s Word effectively, even though they know and understand it well. It kind of baffles me. I also know selfish, materialistic people who, upon their conversion, became the most generous, giving people in our church. (Think Zacchaeus; he went from unscrupulous tax collector to a guy who joyfully gave half his income to the poor!) I know of several great preachers who had terrible stage fright when God called them to preach. As one saying goes, “Sometimes God calls those he’s gifted; other times he gifts those he’s called!”

In The Purpose Driven Life, Rick Warren uses a tool similar to our three circles. We discover the Holy Spirit’s plan for us, Rick says, by discovering our “S.H.A.P.E.”:3

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