Our Stories
Live Strong
By Abigail Short | posted 11/29/2007
"Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms." (1 Peter 4:10 NIV)
Consider this: no matter how much effort he put in, the extremely talented, hard-working Michael Jordan couldn't become the "Michael Jordan" of baseball. His talents just weren't as well-suited for the baseball diamond as for the basketball court. Using that example, Tom Rath reports (in the book StrengthsFinder 2.0) how research has shown that people can accomplish more by developing the areas they're already good at than by trying to make their weaker traits stronger. He gives general categorizations of the strengths that each person already has, even if they haven't learned to name them yet.
After I determined my top five strengths, I was surprised by how much I learned about myself. Not only can I now describe why I like meeting new people (Woo), making people feel welcome (Includer), and being cheerful (Positivity), I can start recognizing that what I thought was "just my personality" is a valuable combination of assets available only in me.
I was also surprised by the deep spiritual questions I asked as a result of learning about my strengths. Though I was already examining my life when I took the StrengthsFinder test, I started to really wonder: What should my life look like?
I often feel guilty because I don't live up to this subconscious image of a "good Christian" I've developed over the years. Somehow I got the notion that if I really enjoy an area in which I'm serving, I might be using it as a cop-out for not serving in the ways a "good Christian" should. While there are certainly times when we serve because the need is great and not necessarily because we're gifted in that area, I believe that God takes pleasure in our unique abilities and delights in us when we use them well.
Observation makes it clear that not all talents are the same. Paul describes these variations as God's intentional work (see, for example, Acts 17:26 and 1 Corinthians 12:27-30), and Peter tells us in the verse above that we have received gifts, both natural and spiritual, so that we may "administer God's grace." I wish we could also receive a blueprint of how using our gifts should look in each of our lives, but at least we get instructions on what to do with them - "serve others."
I haven't figured out that blueprint for my life yet, but I felt a great burden lift from my shoulders when I gave myself permission not to look like everyone else. I don't have to serve God in every way that every Christian I admire serves him. My strengths are not less valuable, less important or less spiritual than anyone else's. And most important of all, I don't have to do anything to be a good Christian - because Christianity is primarily about being in relationship with our Creator, not about doing the right things. If I put my focus on loving God rather than on how I serve him, everything else will naturally fall into place.
Abigail can be reached at abigail@daughteroflight.com.
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"Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms." (1 Peter 4:10 NIV)
Consider this: no matter how much effort he put in, the extremely talented, hard-working Michael Jordan couldn't become the "Michael Jordan" of baseball. His talents just weren't as well-suited for the baseball diamond as for the basketball court. Using that example, Tom Rath reports (in the book StrengthsFinder 2.0) how research has shown that people can accomplish more by developing the areas they're already good at than by trying to make their weaker traits stronger. He gives general categorizations of the strengths that each person already has, even if they haven't learned to name them yet. After I determined my top five strengths, I was surprised by how much I learned about myself. Not only can I now describe why I like meeting new people (Woo), making people feel welcome (Includer), and being cheerful (Positivity), I can start recognizing that what I thought was "just my personality" is a valuable combination of assets available only in me. I was also surprised by the deep spiritual questions I asked as a result of learning about my strengths. Though I was already examining my life when I took the StrengthsFinder test, I started to really wonder: What should my life look like? I often feel guilty because I don't live up to this subconscious image of a "good Christian" I've developed over the years. Somehow I got the notion that if I really enjoy an area in which I'm serving, I might be using it as a cop-out for not serving in the ways a "good Christian" should. While there are certainly times when we serve because the need is great and not necessarily because we're gifted in that area, I believe that God takes pleasure in our unique abilities and delights in us when we use them well. Observation makes it clear that not all talents are the same. Paul describes these variations as God's intentional work (see, for example, Acts 17:26 and 1 Corinthians 12:27-30), and Peter tells us in the verse above that we have received gifts, both natural and spiritual, so that we may "administer God's grace." I wish we could also receive a blueprint of how using our gifts should look in each of our lives, but at least we get instructions on what to do with them - "serve others." I haven't figured out that blueprint for my life yet, but I felt a great burden lift from my shoulders when I gave myself permission not to look like everyone else. I don't have to serve God in every way that every Christian I admire serves him. My strengths are not less valuable, less important or less spiritual than anyone else's. And most important of all, I don't have to do anything to be a good Christian - because Christianity is primarily about being in relationship with our Creator, not about doing the right things. If I put my focus on loving God rather than on how I serve him, everything else will naturally fall into place. Abigail can be reached at abigail@daughteroflight.com. |
