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Kay Warren could be the prototype for anyone who wants to learn about hearts that beat for God. In her story I see five passion principles that can inspire us to dream big and think beyond our fears, in the process discovering our own unique, emotional heartbeats for God. They are: 1. Know what drives you. For Kay Warren, that is God and her desire to use everything he has given her to bring glory to his name every day of her life. 2. Know who you care about. For Warren, it clearly includes those impacted by HIV/AIDS. 3. Know the needs you will meet. For Warren, it includes spiritual, emotional, and physical needs. 4. Know the cause you will help conquer. For Warren, it is the desire to dramatically decrease the spread of HIV/ AIDS in the world through care, education, and medicine. 56
A main take away for me is this point by Erik Rees: the key to spiritual transformation is meeting God in vulnerability – the inclination is to show presentable parts – that’s like going to the dentist and only showing him your good teeth. Trust God to meet our shame, weaknesses and sin with his love. I want you to know, you are not alone in those feelings. As a pastor, I have worked with so many people who share the same longing. I have discovered that people truly want to be who God made them to be—and genuinely desire to do the work he is calling them to do. Most simply don’t have the tools to get there. The fascinating thing to me is that literally everything God makes is unique — every human, animal, flower, tree, and every blade of grass. He didn’t clone anything. Even identical twins possess their own individual uniqueness. That ought to tell us that our individuality is a sacred trust — and what we do with it is our gift to God. Our best contribution in life — our “utmost for his highest” — can only be made as we allow God to finish his work in progress and perfect our uniqueness. To live without discovering our uniqueness is to not really live. I think God is heartbroken when his children miss out on the potential he has placed inside of them. From these passages, we can pull together a list of twenty spiritual gifts: Administration Apostleship Discernment Encouragement Evangelism Faith Giving Healing Helping Hospitality
Uncovering Your S.H.A.P.E. fulfilling our Kingdom Purpose means discovering how God wants us to minister in the paths and relationships of the daily lives he has given us. For all of us, it means determining that we will let God use us to impact eternity and leave a heavenly legacy on earth. God doesn’t create anything without value. He is the ultimate craftsman. And he designed you specifically to fulfill a unique role in his ultimate plan to establish his kingdom on earth. Even though each of us has made mistakes that make it more difficult for him to perfect, we still are a special work of the Creator’s hands. He even takes time to know about our day-to-day lives. In fact, he is smiling right now, rejoicing as you seek to discover the masterpiece you are to him. Experiences: Those parts of your past, both positive and painful, which God intends to use in great ways.
I used to think that God’s gifts were on shelves — one above another — and the taller we grow, the easier we can reach them. Now I find that God’s gifts are on shelves — and the lower we stoop, the more we get. F. B. Meyer Passion is the fuel of life. It is the great source of energy and drive. It’s what makes us explore new vistas, develop new relationships, and seek solutions to perplexing problems. Bob Buford, HalftimeOr consider what Max Lucado says about uniqueness in his book, Cure for the Common Life: Da Vinci painted one Mona Lisa, Beethoven created one Fifth Symphony, and God made one version of you. You’re it! You’re the only you there is. And if we don’t get you, we don’t get you. You’re the only shot we have at you. You can do something no one else can do in a fashion no one else can do it. You are more than a coincidence of chromosomes and heredity, more than just an assemblage of somebody else’s lineage. You are uniquely made. . . . But can you be anything you want to be? If you are uniquely made — now stop and think about this — if you’re uniquely made, can you really be anything you want to be? If you don’t have the sense that takes care of numbers, can you be an accountant? If you don’t have a love for the dirt, can you be a farmer? If you don’t have an appreciation and a devotion to kids, can you really be a teacher? Well, you can be an unhappy one, an unsatisfied one. You can be one of the 87 percent of the workforce that doesn’t like their work — one of the 80 percent of the people that says “I don’t use my talents on a daily basis.” You can be a statistic. Another assignment I remember from that college art class involved using a potter’s wheel to create something from clay. I spent three weeks trying to master the use of the wheel, with little success. My pitiful excuse for a bowl resembled nothing that could be called art. The cute girl in the class, however, could make beautiful pots. The clay seemed to come alive in her hands, as her skillful fingers molded it into any shape she desired. She was able to make the wheel spin at the perfect speed and apply just the right pressure to the clay.
Uncovering Your S.H.A.P.E. Overall, your life is not as balanced as you would like it to be. Fulfillment is hard for you to find. You admit you don’t have a clear-cut strategy for your life. You may even feel most of the time that you are just surviving. Many people walk through life confused. If you are here, thank God for putting a tool in your hands that will replace your confusion with his clarity and confidence. b b b b b Now that you know where you are today, the next question is, Where would you like to be by the time you finish reading this book? What is the one thing you long for God to do in your life as you spend time with him? To capture this moment, write God a note in the space below, asking him to help you see how special you are and the specific purpose he has just for you. b b b b b Dear God, For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.Filled with Scripture and real-life stories, S.H.A.P.E. presents a series of challenges that will guide you through the process of discovering your personal blend of Respond in faith. Identify two action steps you can take in the next month to unwrap your gifts and start using them with others. (Hint: Start by serving those closest to you!) 1. Tap into the secrets of what makes you who you are—passions, talents, experiences, temperament, and spiritual gifts—and you'll discover the path to a life of unimagined purpose, impact, and fulfillment. Instead of trying to reshape yourself to be like someone else, you should celebrate the shape God has given you.
our day-to-day lives. In fact, he is smiling right now, rejoicing as you seek to discover the masterpiece you are to him. The Bible says, “For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago” (Ephesians 2:10, NLT). This verse helps us understand that if we want to discover our mission or purpose in life, we first need to look at the masterpiece God has made us to be. While self-help books tell you to look within, I’m saying the key to living the life you were meant to live is to look to God and ask him to help you discover your uniqueness. Once you discover who you are, then you can start figuring out what God has planned for you, the specific way he designed you to make a difference in the world for him. Another translation of Ephesians 2:10 uses the word workmanship to describe our uniqueness. It’s from the Greek word poiema, which literally means “work of art,” and is the root of our English word poem. You are a work of God — and nothing but the highest and best comes from his hand. Like the artist who takes scrap metal and turns it into an amazing sculpture, God takes our lives and fashions them into a masterpiece. Allowing someone else’s opinion to stop you from seizing and sharing your gifts will create nothing but disappointment and sorrow in your heart. Give yourself permission to be who God gifted you to be, regardless of what others have said. The Bible says, For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago (Ephesians 2:10, NLT). Why Does God Give Spiritual Gifts? In 1 Corinthians 12:7, Paul says, “A spiritual gift is given to each of us as a means of helping the entire church” (NLT). The spiritual gifts God 34If you were to meet John Baker, you would see an average guy who took everything God had made him to be—the positive as well as the painful—and chose to use it for God’s glory. With God’s help and leading, John has made and continues to make a kingdom difference by fulfilling his unique Kingdom Purpose. Will you accept the challenge to find and carry out your Kingdom Purpose? Remember, the Bible says, Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go (Joshua 1:9).
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