Most of us like to give and receive gifts. Gifts bring us joy and are one of the ways we express love to our family and friends.
What about spiritual gifts? It seems like this topic should be self-explanatory, but sometimes the concept of spiritual gifts can be a bit confusing. What are spiritual gifts? Who gives these gifts to us? Who receives these gifts?
To shed some light on the subject, let’s take a look at how we, as humans, give and receive gifts to each other.
We take special care to choose the right gift:
Take a moment and picture a very special person in your life; a person who you love and respect and hold very dear. Imagine that you were picking out a gift for this person to help express your love and appreciation or celebrate a huge milestone in their life. (And money is not an issue in this scenario, so dream big!)
If you are like me, choosing the right present for someone can be painstakingly slow! We may think, plan, and even agonize over our decision for days (or weeks!) We might consider the person’s likes, dislikes, hobbies, personality, and talents. The desire of our hearts is to choose something meaningful that will please our loved one and bring them joy. We hope they will love it, use it, and treasure it. We hope they will realize that we gave from the heart, as an expression of our love.
Finally, we settle on the perfect gift. We wrap it with care and nervously hope it will be well-received.
Spiritual gifts: God’s blessing to us!
Just as we give presents to our loved ones, God chooses to bless us with heavenly gifts. He loves us, adores us, and longs to give good gifts to His children.
Some of these gifts are given to each of us who are born-again believers. Our salvation is a precious gift, freely offered — and it must be joyfully received. We ALL have the gift of grace. And we ALL have the gift of eternal life. These are glorious gifts He has given us and they are to be treasured!
Ephesians 4:7 – “But unto every one of us is given GRACE according to the measure of the gift of Christ.”
Unique spiritual gifts: All for His glory!
Our Heavenly Father has also given us individualized, unique spiritual gifts. These gifts are specifically chosen to compliment our personality and talents. The difference here, however, is that these gifts are for the benefit of those around us, and ultimately, to bring honor and glory back to the one Who gave us these gifts!
I.Cor 12:7 – “But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal.”
These spiritual gifts are for the “perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, and for the edifying of the body of Christ.” (Eph 4:12)
Just as we painstakingly choose the perfect gift for our loved one, God also does so for us. He created us and knows us far more intimately than we know ourselves. And the whole purpose in giving us these gifts is so that we can USE them. He wants us to bless others, all the while pointing back to Him.
Are you using your spiritual gifts?
Do you know what your spiritual gift is? Or is your gift still wrapped in UPS packaging on the back porch? Maybe you know what your gifts are, and they are proudly displayed — on a high shelf, collecting dust. Worse yet, did you label yours as “useless” and throw them away? It must grieve our Heavenly Father when we do not treasure and use the gifts He has blessed us with.
Avoid the comparison trap:
Have you ever watched a roomful of children open gifts? Usually it goes pretty well, but occasionally there will be some moaning and groaning going on as the gifts are passed out.
“Why did he get FIVE gifts and I only got TWO??”
“Why is her gift so BIG and my gift is so SMALL??”
And then, once the gifts are open, more ungratefulness may follow. “I already have one of theeeese.” “I don’t like this dress — it’s itchy.” And on it goes…
May we never get caught in the comparison trap; looking around and analyzing who got what gift, who seems to have more gifts, and why theirs looks bigger and more important than ours. When we look around the room with a heart of comparison, we will forget to be thankful for our own gifts. Ultimately, it must grieve the Giver of all gifts and blessings to look on and see His children in such a state of discontentment.
Also, imagine how awful life would be if we all had the same gifts! Praise God that we are fearfully and wonderfully made!
It’s not too late!
If you are not using your spiritual gifts as they are intended, it’s not too late to start now! If you do not know what your gifts are, sincerely pray that God will reveal this to you. (We cannot use our gifts effectively if we do not know what they are.)
So, if your gift is on the back porch, go get it! If it’s on a high shelf, dust it off! If you threw it away, start digging until you find it. Identify the gifts God has given you and put them to use, glorifying His Name and edifying the church.
Rebecca Bauman is a happily-married, stay at home mom to four beautiful daughters. Before entering motherhood, she worked as a registered nurse. Although she hopes to pursue nursing again in the future, she feels blessed to be able to enjoy this time with her girls. She loves a good cup of coffee, (well, LOTS of coffee), spending time with friends and family, laughing, and fresh air. For now, in between “mommy moments,” she hopes to develop her writing in order to bless and encourage other women, particularly in the areas of health, fitness, and well-being.
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