WATER OF LIFE

It’s time to revisit the spiritual gifts and see what God has shown me since my last blog on them almost two years ago: Spiritual gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit (3-1-08).

Do I have a gift of faith like the great men of faith or the ones in the Book of Hebrews hall of faith? I’m still not sure. I do have a boldness to share my faith with others so maybe I have a gift of evangelism. A year ago, what I thought were confirmations of a gift of faith now seem more like both a gift of faith AND evangelism:

“When I was around nine years old, my mother and I visited a Bible study on the east coast and a black lady pastor with a gift of prophecy prayed over me and said I had a gift of faith and would share it with many people. Some time after that my mom had a dream of me speaking/preaching about faith to a stadium or big auditorium of people. When I was in junior high, the youth pastor, who prayed with me to accept Christ, told my mother I had a gift of faith and would be using it to speak to large groups of people.” Childlike Faith (3-7-09)

Do I have a gift of prophecy or more likely discernment? Prophesy is “To speak before; to be interpret of God.” Discernment is “To separate; to differentiate; to make a distinction.” At this point I would say my gift is more one of discernment. “The Gift of Discernment is the supernatural ability to see through a lot of confusion and pinpoint problems and solutions from God’s perspective. Those with this gift are spiritually skilled at distinguishing truth from error, pure from impure motives, right from wrong, light from darkness.”

Are the problems I have in relationships maybe a sign of my gifting? For example, with Christians that don’t have the gifts of discernment or evangelism? I expect them to have the same sensitivity I have to “distinguish truth from error, right from wrong, pure motives from impure”, but that’s not the case and I’m dumbfounded when they can’t see someone’s impure motives. I’m also dumbfounded when fellow Christians don’t see their mission field right in their own family, workplace, and neighborhood. However, I “should avoid becoming critical of others by remembering that we are all «witnesses» but we are not all «evangelists»”.

I seem to have some of the problems listed with the gift of discernment. I do struggle with “how to express my perceptions, feelings or insights” and I can “be harsh when confronting others, instead of speaking the truth in love.” Yet I agree with one pastor who spoke on spiritual gift of discernment: “People grow in faith if they hear the truth.”

THE GIFT OF DISCERNMENT IS LITERALLY ATTACKED AND NOT WELCOME IN THE CHURCH SOMETIMES> PEOPLE WITH THE GIFT OF SERVICE ARE ADMIRED IN THE CHURCH BUT ONES WHO SPEAK THE TRUTH THEY DISCERN ARE SOMETIMES LABELED BUSYBODIES IN OTHER PEOPLES BUSINESS OR CHALLENGED BY SOMEONE SAYING ‘HOW CAN YOU KNOW A PERSONS HEART’? But that is exactly what the gift of discernment is! We have a sensitivity to tell whether a persons motives are pure or not. Obviously were not perfect in our use of our gift and people are quick to point out the times we were wrong but more often than not we were right, and it was just a matter of time (sometimes years) before others eyes are opened.

One outlet for the gift of discernment is Bible study groups. The problem I HAVE IS ARTICULATING THE TRUTH OR ERROR I HAVE DISCERNED> Putting it into words is difficult—let alone putting it in a loving way. In my experience, writing is the best vehicle for the gift of discernment, but many people disparage writing in preference to face to face conversation. WHICH PUTS THOSE OF US WHO HAVE A DIFFICULTY ARTICULATING AT A DISADVANTAGE< AND OUR MESSAGE BECOMES DISCOUNTED BECAUSE OF A LACK OF CLARITY AND UNDERSTANDABILITY>

The gift of discernment is a razor sharp ability to divide truth and error so we can be black and white, legalistic, and even perfectionistic. I seriously wonder why some Christians and leaders aren’t following the Bible (e.g. no women over men in leadership/teaching positions in the church)< BUT MY MOTHER POINTS OUT THATS A LAW MENTALITY< ITS ABOUT FOLLOWING THE Spirit. I also have to recognize whether something is a truth or personal preference. For example, I don't like mega-churches but there may be a role for them in God's plan.

Outside of a Bible study group, I express my gift of discernment through my blog. I written about many things I have discerned:

A person with a gift of discernment has a greater sensitivity. I don’t listen to secular music, I watch very few Hollywood movies, and rarely read secular books because that gets me into worldly thinking and dulls my sensitivity. “God blesses those whose hearts are pure, for they will see God.” Matthew 5:8

Avoiding worldly thinking is important to every Christian but protecting our sensitivity is especially important for those with the gift of discernment. It’s kind of like the witness vs the evangelist. The first focuses on loving non-believers and living the gospel but the person with the gift of evangelism takes it to the next level and finds the right timing and ways to tailor his message.

Everyone exercises all the gifts but God has given each of us a few special gifts to take to the next level. I don’t have the gift of serving or hospitality, but that doesn’t stop me from serving at church or sometimes hosting a small group at my house or even leading that small group. It’s just that that’s not where GOD HAS GIFTED OR ANOINTED ME SO I shouldn’t get down on myself even when the church tends to glorify those gifts over others. So not only do I struggle with my expectations of others having my gifts, I also struggle with expectations within the church to have the gifts I don’t have (service, hospitality, leadership, etc.).

If I do have a gift of evangelism it differs from what I see around me. I’m not an outgoing person so my style is a testimonial evangelism. I encourage them to become part of a church, but more-so I try to attract them to God, through seeing what He has done in my life and for who He is. He’s not a self-improvement program He’s a loving Heavenly Father. At this point, I don’t know if I have any other spiritual gifts but my blog has been a continuing outlet for my gift of discernment and my particular style of testimonial evangelism.

This entry was posted on Monday, January 11th, 2010 at 9:33 am and is filed under Christianity. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.