Not only was this book designed to help believers identify and understand their giftedness in Christ, it also was written to teach them how to exercise their giftedness. So much has been written on the subject of gifts, but nothing to my knowledge has ever addressed the combination of spiritual gifts and personality types.
Many people are confused because they only hear about one or the other. As believers, we need to look at both of these motivations and how they affect our behavior.
Spiritual gifts are the supernatural motivations we receive at our new birth in Christ. Our personality types are the natural motivations we receive at conception. Both of these complement one another. However, there are times when these two motivations also can contradict each other.
There are Christians who have conflicting motivations. This may seem odd, but it is simply the unique way that God works in the lives of His children; hence, we are uniquely created! Every child of God is endowed with unique gifts that motivate and influence everything he or she does.
We are God’s “jewels”—diamonds in the rough that He is in the process of molding and shaping for His glory. Each chapter in this book also offers a jewel of insight for us so that we can learn to display God’s handiwork through our lives.
Exercising our giftedness—spiritually and naturally—helps us fulfill our calling in life. This is because God gave us spiritual gifts in order to glorify Him. We will never be happier than when we identify and use our giftedness for His purposes.
As we grow closer in our relationship to the Lord, we discover that our unique personalities affect our relationships with others. Identifying and learning how to control our personalities can make the difference in the quality of our lives. This is where we learn that human behavior science needs to complement God’s truth in the Scriptures. Remember that science and the Bible are both God’s revealed truths.
Human behavior science is the formal study of why normal people do what they do. It is the science of human behavior developed from research. It has been categorized so that we can better understand others and ourselves. However, it should never take the place of the Holy Scriptures. Behavioral science provides practical insight into how we can solve our problems with others, but this cannot be done successfully if we choose to leave God out of the equation.
Most of the problems we face involve people, especially those closest to us. Discovering our giftedness, along with understanding biblical conflict resolution, is valuable in helping us to learn how to solve interpersonal problems God’s way.
This book runs on two tracks by answering two vital questions: Where do we fit best in the ministry of our church? And how do we avoid and resolve conflicts once we get involved in church? We shouldn’t study one without the other. Both are imperatives which help us improve our effectiveness for Christ.
You may want to use this book as a leader’s guide to prepare and teach a class or small group. You may also want to simply use this book for your own personal development. Regardless of your interest, you are to be commended for pursuing this study. It could be one of the most enlightening, challenging, and encouraging studies you will ever have. |
