Our Spirit-given Abilities to Serve God and Bless Others

Every one of us born-again Christians has God’s Holy Spirit living within us. The Spirit gives each of us different abilities, so we all have different ways of serving God. The apostle Paul reminded Timothy that “The Spirit God gave us gives us power, love and self-discipline,” to use the ministry gifts we have received. (2 Tim 1:7).

Paul also told Timothy, “Do not neglect your gift, which was given to you through prophecy, when the body of elders laid their hands on you.” Church tradition calls for elders to confirm a pastor’s gifting by laying hands on him during his ordination.

In non-church situations, however, gifted people receive confirmation through the expressed opinions of other adults. I remember clearly when a Christian writing course teacher checked over my assignments and said, “Jack, you have the gift of using words well. Keep writing and telling stories. God will be developing this ministry to make you a blessing to many people.”  That prophecy was realized decades later in the translation of the partial Bible into the Canela language. I was also confirmed in my word-oriented gifting when I was chosen to be a speaker at hundreds of fundraising banquets, and when I won writing contests, and sales mounted for my published books. Speaking and writing were confirmed as God’s ministry gifts to me.

My brother Henry has been a gifted carpenter all his life, and he has served God by blessing many people with his excellent construction work. My sister Janny worked for many years as a nurse, gifted to show love to patients as she met their physical and medical needs. The only writing my wife, Josephine, does is shopping lists, and signing birthday cards. Her spiritual gift is building relationships with people and blessing them with her friendship. Her ability to relate even across cultures was particularly valuable during our decades of spiritual ministry among the Canela people. In Brazil, we often flew over trackless jungles for many hours in a single-engine plane under the control of a Spirit-gifted pilot. We know people who have spiritual gift of generosity, often coupled with the ability to earn substantial income.

We all have gifts of the Spirit, which Paul reminds us “to stir up, or fan into flame” (2 Tim 1:6), and to use them to serve God through the ministry He involves us in. Paul goes on to say, “In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So, if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you.” (Rom 12:6).

We all need to identify the Spirit-given abilities and practice them with as much faith as God gives us to serve Him by meeting the needs of others.