Unka Glen

brailoftheheart asks: Hey Unka Glen, would God give someone a gift, and take it away, if he wants, for the person’s benefit or good?? I read somewhere in Romans that the gifts and calls of God are irrevocable, but a couple friends of mine think God takes away gifts. Does he? I’m really not sure now.

Unka Glen answered: There are two theories on spiritual gifts. The first is that God gives you gifts to make you unique, so you’ll have something special about you, so that you can feel good about yourself, and feel that you’re a special little snowflake, and in this way you will know why you aren’t doing a bunch of things you otherwise should be doing— it’s because it isn’t within your giftedness.

Then there’s the other theory.

In this second way of looking at things, you are special because Jesus shed His blood for you, and nothing else can compare with that, so nothing else is required for feeling special. In this view of things, we should be thankful for the shedding of blood and forgiveness of sins, and that thankfulness begs a certain question within us: “what can I do for you, Lord”. 

Now it turns out that the VAST majority of Christians are lost somewhere between this forgiveness, thankfulness, and a desire to serve. Just those three steps into the walk are where most Christians are stuck. Many simply can’t accept that they are fully forgiven, others can’t be thankful for their forgiveness, because they’re focused on being obedient enough to be worthy of that forgiveness (like that’s ever gonna happen), and when it comes to serving God, well that’s just a place where few find themselves.

And for the record, I’m not talking about full-time ministry, at all. I’m talking about anything, from helping out with Vacation Bible School, to driving an old lady to church, to setting up chairs for Sunday service, to short term missions, you name it. Anything that moves the Kingdom forward is important. 

And in this second view of things, when you find yourself serving, you will be given the gifts you need to fulfill that mission. It makes sense then, if God puts you on an entirely different mission, then he would give you different gifts to face that challenge. 

Romans 11:29 says, “God’s gifts and His call are irrevocable.” I think the simplest way of breaking that down, is to say that God’s plans for us aren’t changed by our sins. They aren’t changed by any circumstance. When you’re gone doing your thing, He’s still ready to proceed with His plans for your life. God’s calling for your life may change (in fact it will likely evolve over time), but the fact that you are called will never change.

At some point in your walk, it becomes less about the choice between right and wrong, and more about the choice between good, and right.

It may be good to go to China to spread the Gospel, but the right thing is to follow where God leads, and who knows, that little 8 year old kid you talk to today in sunday school class, could become the next great missionary to China. Take ahold of the gifts that God offers to fulfill whatever mission He has before you. It’s ALL important.

tridouble9 asked: How do you discern your spiritual gifts? I have friends that tell me one thing, online (and slightly unreliable) quizzes that say another, and my own thoughts that thinks something else. How do I know? Once I do find my gifts, do I practice and/or find discipline within my gift? How should I go about using my gifts in a healthy and God-glorifying manner? Thanks a lot :) Have a wonderful day!

Unka Glen answered:  Maybe it would help to come at this thing from a different angle. When I got started in ministry, I was blessed to join a staff of truly gifted people. I’m talking about some of the most effective preachers I’ve ever heard, and trust me, I’ve heard a lot. So early on, I mentioned to them that I wondered if I had the gift for preaching that they had.

I’ll tell you what they told me: forget your gifts, focus on your weaknesses. If you have a giftedness, that’s just one area where you thankfully don’t need work. So stick that gift in your back pocket, and get to work on your weaknesses. You don’t need to worry about capitalizing on your gifts, they will manifest themselves when you need them, that’s what gifts are all about.

By contrast, they suggested I look at my spiritual life like a boat. You can have the strongest possible motor, but if you have the smallest possible leak in that boat, it’s going to eventually sink you. Your gifts may be powering the boat, but they aren’t strong enough to overcome even the smallest weakness, and left unchecked, that weakness will take you out. Furthermore I discovered, as I focused on my weaknesses, that something new was happening within me. 

First, I noticed that I got into a much more humble frame of mind than I would be if I was focusing on my giftedness. Then I noticed that I was learning all kinds of cool stuff as I was contending with my weaknesses. I was beginning to better understand how sin worked in my life, and that gave me insight into how sin works in everyone else’s life. This humility and this insight both began making me MUCH more effective in speaking to people about the Lord.

Today I would say that humility and insight into people’s struggles are the two most effective ingredients in reaching people for the Lord.

I have certian strengths, and I suppose you could say I have certain gifts, but I don’t coast on those areas of my life, and neither am I limited to only doing what my gifts would allow for. Neither do I need a false sense of confidence from knowing my gifts. I don’t trust in my gifts, I trust that continually fighting my weaknesses with God’s help qualifies me to continually speak about God’s help in fighting weaknesses.