Currently, I am on a journey to pinpoint my gifts. What’s the soundtrack to this adventure? Believe me, I am trying desperately to conjure my inner rock child with an"Eye of the Tiger" perseverance pep talk, but it's not currently running on replay in my mind -- but the charming children's story of "Are you my Mother?" is seeping through my brain, as I search for my spiritual gifts.
If you haven't heard of this story, it's a tale of a little baby bird who searches for his mom and curiously asks each animal that comes across his path if he belongs to them. He asks the neighborhood cat, the cute little dog, and even the backyard hen if he is part of their family. P.D. Eastman, the author of this famous children's story, literally says that the bird flew right by his own mother and didn't even know it was her! Truthfully, the little baby bird didn't know what his mother looked like because he hadn't even seen himself yet.
Did he have a mother? Did he have the same gifts? I have to find her. I will! The baby bird declared his mission and set up to accomplish this impressive task. Insert a different protagonist of a gal in her thirties and a mission of wanting to accurately discover the gifts she has been given to impact the world around her -- and you now have a sneak peak into my current adventure. Join me!
WHAT IS A GIFT? Let's back up. It's important to remember that a gift is absolutely free. It's literally something that is not earned or deserved. It's offered, and you and I have the choice to take it and use it. Spiritual gifts are gifts, first and foremost. My mind drifts to the parable Jesus mentions in Matthew 25. It's a story about a man who calls his servants together to entrust bags of money to them before he leaves on a long journey. Interestingly enough, he has three servants and gives all three of them a different number of resources. To one servant, he gives five bags, to the other, three bags, and the last servant, one bag.
to whom much is given, much is required.
We aren't told the entire backstory of these servants’ lives, but we are told that each servant received according to his own ability (verse 15). Why did one servant get five bags and the other guy only get one? I'm not 100% sure, but I can trust that the Author of these gifts had a specific reason. I think about my own life and my interaction with others. Have you ever met someone who can just handle several tasks at once or produce an entire feast out of what is leftover in their pantry? It's like everything they touch multiplies. Maybe you've met that person that can do that ONE THING really well. Maybe you're the person that is somewhere in the middle. No matter which servant you represent, know that His promise is accurate: to whom much is given, much is required.
AMOUNT OF RETURN: Back to the servants’ dilemma: What should they do with the gifts that were given to them? It's a bit easier looking at this story from an outsider's perspective, but put yourself in their worn-out shoes. I'm sure their questions abounded: Was this like a bonus? Do I use these resources for whatever I want? Is our Master expecting this money back? Is this a trick? I think it can be assumed that the servants were to do something valuable with what was given, for in a future interaction with their Master, all three servants recount what they did with the resources by using the word "entrusted".
entrust (verb): to charge or invest with a trust or responsibility; confide, delegate, assign or allocate.
And that's what happened. Fast forward some amount of time <<crazy enough, the servants were not told how long they had to invest their resources or even if they should invest>>, and their Master returns and calls all three of them together to see what they did while he was away. Maybe performance evaluations trigger that gut-wrenching fear, so instead, think of this moment as our favorite childhood past-time: SHOW AND TELL.
IT'S NOT REALLY ABOUT THE MONEY:
Can you see it? I could totally see myself excitedly sitting front and center talking about the amazing trip I took to the Bahamas and how those resources helped me see the world. You can guarantee I would have that snazzy tourist t-shirt and the killer tan, as I recount my journey to the employer who had just given me a handful of free resources. I’m confident that he would have just shaken his head, as I missed the point. Why? That free gift instantly became all about me. Thankfully, two out of the three servants had a much better track record.
One servant invested five bags and got ten. His gift doubled.
The other servant invested two bags and got an additional two. His resources also doubled.
One servant did nothing to invest what was given but safely buried his in the backyard. He hadn't used his gift. It just sat there -- for days, months, perhaps even years.
I can imagine he looked outside his window and thought about using it.
I can expect that he probably had a little fear about using what he had been given.
How was he supposed to use it? Would he misuse it?
THE POINT: The point of this story is to remind us that we are not to just sit on on our gifts. Our gifts can't just benefit us. Maybe you're like me and you catch yourself mulling over ways you'd love to use what you've been given for you. Maybe you struggle using your gifts because there is fear there. It's an honest gut-instinct that you're going to have to fight. God has given you a list of gifts that He wants you to use to invest in the world around you. Trust me, there is nothing wrong with living life to the full or doing what you love to do. God called us to an abundant life, and He even reminded us of that fulfilling promise in the Gospel of John: I have come so that you can have life and have it abundantly. Check it out in John 10:10.
The bigger picture is to actually use those gifts for HIM while you wait for your Master to return. He gave you those resources—those gifts were hand-picked for you. Sometimes it shows up in the form of a physical investment; sometimes it's in the way you are wired. Sometimes those gifts are to benefit His own people and are to be used within the body of believers. Sometimes He has given you abilities and opportunities to help reach the world for Him.
THE SEARCH:
I think one of the reasons why my mind keeps shifting back to that story of the baby bird searching for his mother is because he just happened to fly right past what he was looking for without even recognizing that he missed it! He had his mind fixed on finding something that he didn't know what IT looked like. How easy to make that same mistake!
No matter where you are in your journey, don't be so busy in looking for a specific gift that you miss what has already been give to you. Just like the master gave his servants the resources, God literally has given you what you need. It's probably more obvious than what you realize. Know that what God gave you may be different than what He gave your best bud, your sales force teammate, your brother or sister, or even your employer.
The great news is that the master's response to his servants who used those resources abundantly was this: Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful with a few things. I will put you in charge of many things! Talk about a praise-worthy goal! It's way better than any Bahamas trip.
I'm taking this as a cue to pause and ask God to reveal what He has given me. Do you know who I am? said the baby bird's mom. Yes, I know who you are. You are my mother!
Friend, I know who you are. You are a God-breathed, life-giving servant of the King! Ask Him to reveal what resources He has given you and how He wants you to use them for His kingdom.
NEXT UP: LIST OF SPIRITUAL GIFTS. Check out what I am learning in my research about each spiritual gift. I'd love to share what I'm learning. Click HERE to view the complete list of Biblical gifts and their categories. I hope this helps jumpstart your adventure!
