spiritual gifts...
mel sent me this online quiz 'find out your spiritual gifts' and i am finding the results of this interesting. i score highest/strongest in faith and discernment and i'll just share my top four gifts, according to the quiz. i think they are actually kind of right on. it's neat.
Faith - The special conviction God gives to some to be firmly persuaded of God's power and promises to accomplish His will and purpose and to display such a confidence in Him and His Word that circumstances and obstacles do not shake that conviction.
The divine enablement to act on God's promises with confidence and unwavering belief in God's ability to fulfill his purposes.
People with this gift:
- believe the promises of God and inspire others to do the same
- act in complete confidence of God's ability to overcome obstacles
- demonstrate an attitude of trust in God's will and his promises
- advance the cause of Christ because they go forward when others will not
- ask God for what is needed and trust him for his provision.
1 Corinthians 12:7-11
Mark 5:25-34
Acts 27:21-25
Hebrews 11
Romans 4:18-21
Discernment / Distinguishing of Spirits - The special ability God gives to some to know with assurance whether certain behavior or teaching is from God, Satan, human error, or human power.
The divine enablement to distinguish between truth and error, to discern the spirits, differentiating between good and evil, right and wrong.
People with this gift:
- distinguish truth from error, right from wrong, pure motives from impure
- identify deception in others with accuracy and appropriateness
- determine whether a word attributed to God is authentic
- recognize inconsistencies in a teaching, prophetic message, or interpretation
- are able to sense the presence of evil.
1 Corinthians 12:7-11
1 John 4:1-6
1 Corinthians 2:9-16
2 Chronicles 2:12
Psalms 119:125
Proverbs 3:21
1 Kings 3:9
Hebrews 5:14
Evangelism / Evangelist - The special ability God gives to some to proclaim the Gospel of salvation effectively so that people respond to the promises of Christ through conversion to Christianity.
The divine enablement to effectively communicate the gospel to unbelievers so they respond in faith and move toward discipleship.
People with this gift:
- communicate the message of Christ with clarity and conviction
- seek out opportunities to talk to unbelievers about spiritual matters
- challenge unbelievers to faith and to become fully devoted followers of Christ
- adapt their presentation of the gospel to connect with the individual's needs
- seek opportunities to build relationships with unbelievers.
Ephesians 4:11-16
Matthew 28:16-20
Acts 2:36-40
Acts 8:5-6
Acts 14:21
Acts 8:26-40
2 Timothy 4:5
Exhortation (Speaking Gift) - The special ability God gives some to help strengthen weak, faltering, and fainthearted Christians in such a way that they are motivated to be all God wants them to be.
The ability to help others reach their full potential by means of encouraging, challenging, comforting, and guiding.
The divine enablement to present truth so as to strengthen or urge to action those who are discouraged or wavering in their faith.
People with this gift:
- come to the side of those who are weak in spirit to strengthen them
- challenge or confront others to trust and hope in the promises of God
- urge others to action by applying Biblical truth
- offers advise, an outline for a solution, or a program for progress
- motivates others to grow.
(see also Encouragement )
1 Timothy 5:1-2
Hebrews 3:13 (King James Version)
Hebrews 13:22
1 Thessalonians 5:14 (King James version)
while i do find a lot of this in line with what happens, it's not exactly what i am motivated by. like... i love god, and i love people, and mostly i just want people to know and feel love, and to live like they are loved so that they can love as freely. i don't have ulterior motives to drive people toward christ, although that might disappoint people that are very deliberate about doing that... i more like hope people can understand the life of christ and if they form a relationship, then they do. but, even if they don't... it's like important to know the bottom line, which, again, is love and loving. that is all god wants to say, really. love, be loved. if we're operating in that mode, what evil can we do to one another? (it's hard to do sometimes, but.)
sometimes i find myself in that spot , though, helping people toward that - even when it is sometimes hard for me to love someone that really gets on my nerves. life is full of that kind of challenge! i try, though. thank god for resources that sometimes have to be used in order to get us through. healthy ones, i mean.
Faith - The special conviction God gives to some to be firmly persuaded of God's power and promises to accomplish His will and purpose and to display such a confidence in Him and His Word that circumstances and obstacles do not shake that conviction.
The divine enablement to act on God's promises with confidence and unwavering belief in God's ability to fulfill his purposes.
People with this gift:
- believe the promises of God and inspire others to do the same
- act in complete confidence of God's ability to overcome obstacles
- demonstrate an attitude of trust in God's will and his promises
- advance the cause of Christ because they go forward when others will not
- ask God for what is needed and trust him for his provision.
1 Corinthians 12:7-11
Mark 5:25-34
Acts 27:21-25
Hebrews 11
Romans 4:18-21
Discernment / Distinguishing of Spirits - The special ability God gives to some to know with assurance whether certain behavior or teaching is from God, Satan, human error, or human power.
The divine enablement to distinguish between truth and error, to discern the spirits, differentiating between good and evil, right and wrong.
People with this gift:
- distinguish truth from error, right from wrong, pure motives from impure
- identify deception in others with accuracy and appropriateness
- determine whether a word attributed to God is authentic
- recognize inconsistencies in a teaching, prophetic message, or interpretation
- are able to sense the presence of evil.
1 Corinthians 12:7-11
1 John 4:1-6
1 Corinthians 2:9-16
2 Chronicles 2:12
Psalms 119:125
Proverbs 3:21
1 Kings 3:9
Hebrews 5:14
Evangelism / Evangelist - The special ability God gives to some to proclaim the Gospel of salvation effectively so that people respond to the promises of Christ through conversion to Christianity.
The divine enablement to effectively communicate the gospel to unbelievers so they respond in faith and move toward discipleship.
People with this gift:
- communicate the message of Christ with clarity and conviction
- seek out opportunities to talk to unbelievers about spiritual matters
- challenge unbelievers to faith and to become fully devoted followers of Christ
- adapt their presentation of the gospel to connect with the individual's needs
- seek opportunities to build relationships with unbelievers.
Ephesians 4:11-16
Matthew 28:16-20
Acts 2:36-40
Acts 8:5-6
Acts 14:21
Acts 8:26-40
2 Timothy 4:5
Exhortation (Speaking Gift) - The special ability God gives some to help strengthen weak, faltering, and fainthearted Christians in such a way that they are motivated to be all God wants them to be.
The ability to help others reach their full potential by means of encouraging, challenging, comforting, and guiding.
The divine enablement to present truth so as to strengthen or urge to action those who are discouraged or wavering in their faith.
People with this gift:
- come to the side of those who are weak in spirit to strengthen them
- challenge or confront others to trust and hope in the promises of God
- urge others to action by applying Biblical truth
- offers advise, an outline for a solution, or a program for progress
- motivates others to grow.
(see also Encouragement )
1 Timothy 5:1-2
Hebrews 3:13 (King James Version)
Hebrews 13:22
1 Thessalonians 5:14 (King James version)
while i do find a lot of this in line with what happens, it's not exactly what i am motivated by. like... i love god, and i love people, and mostly i just want people to know and feel love, and to live like they are loved so that they can love as freely. i don't have ulterior motives to drive people toward christ, although that might disappoint people that are very deliberate about doing that... i more like hope people can understand the life of christ and if they form a relationship, then they do. but, even if they don't... it's like important to know the bottom line, which, again, is love and loving. that is all god wants to say, really. love, be loved. if we're operating in that mode, what evil can we do to one another? (it's hard to do sometimes, but.)
sometimes i find myself in that spot , though, helping people toward that - even when it is sometimes hard for me to love someone that really gets on my nerves. life is full of that kind of challenge! i try, though. thank god for resources that sometimes have to be used in order to get us through. healthy ones, i mean.