Purpose Driven Life Day 32

Day 32, June 1st, "Using What God Gave You"

    - "What you are is God's gift to you; what you do with yourself is your gift to God." (Rick Warren).  God deserves our very best. He deserves 110%. We need to make the most of what God has given us. We should not worry about the abilities we don't have and focus on the abilities we do have. "When you attempt to serve God in ways you're not shaped to serve, it feels like forcing a square peg into a round hole." (Rick Warren). I experienced this when I was a teacher. Teaching is not what I am called to do, at least not at the high school level. I was forcing myself into a position that did not fit. We have to develop our shape to its full potential but first you have to understand what your shape is.

DISCOVER YOUR SHAPE
    - Ephesians 5:17 says, "Don't act thoughtlessly, but understand what the Lord wants you to do." Never accept a position without first praying to God about it. I have learned from experience on this and for my next job after I graduate, I will be praying and fasting for guidance from God. God will guide you and show you where he wants you.
*Begin by assessing your gifts and abilities*

     - Start by making a list of your abilities. Then ask other people what they think you are good at. Tell them to be honest with you and not try and tell you what you want to hear. "Spiritual gifts and natural abilities are always confirmed by others." (Rick Warren). Ask the people who are close to you what they think you are good at, they know you better than yourself sometimes. Look at areas of your life where you have been successful at in the past. The best way to discover your gifts and abilities is to experiment in different areas of service. What better way then to experiment then at your local church. You can discover what you like and do not like by serving in different areas of ministry around the church. We all have dozens of hidden abilities and gifts we haven't discovered because we haven't tried. It is important to volunteer in an area you are interested to understand if you enjoy that area or not. If it doesn't work out its not a failure, its an experiment. Just like with me and teaching. I now know I don't want to teach, its not a failure, it was an experiment. By teaching I discovered I wanted to be a physical therapist assistant.
*Consider your heart and your personality*
     - It is important to get feedback from those that know us best. Ask yourself, when do you feel fully alive? What do you enjoy doing? When does the time fly by? For me the time flies by at clinical's for physical therapy. I enjoy myself. Time flew by when I was with my ex. Time flew by when I hung out with his niece and nephew. What does this tell me, this tells me I will enjoy being a wife, I will enjoy having kids, and physical therapy is the career field I'm designed for.
*Examine your experiences and extract lessons you have learned*
     - "Forgotten experiences are worthless; that's a good reason to keep a spiritual journal." (Rick Warren). Having a spiritual journal has been so beneficial to me but I'm going to be honest I need to review it more so that I learn from my mistakes. We rarely see God's purpose in our pain. How often does this happen to you? I know for me it happens a lot. I rarely see God's purpose in my pain but I know there is a purpose. Pastor Brent Purvis at Cascade Hills Church in Columbus, GA said, the answer to prayer is often found in a problem. Often times the problem gets bigger but God is a never changing God. Somethings are answered differently, He may send us on a different route but we need to continue to ask God for what we want. His methods are not up to us. Sometimes God feeds us the same thing over and over until we are fully dependent on him. In my life I see this often. I have been praying for a spouse sense before I can remember. I'm almost 28 and have no one even on the horizon. I thought I was with the guy I was going to marry and then bam, God took him away from me. God answered my prayers with a problem but there is still a purpose in the pain. John 13:7 says, "Jesus replied, 'You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand.'"

ACCEPTING AND ENJOYING YOUR SHAPE

   - We need to celebrate and accept the shape that God has given us. We also need to recognize our limitations. "When we try to overextend our ministry and reach beyond what God shaped us for, we experience stress." (Rick Warren). Teaching caused me the most stress I've ever had in my life. I had stress headaches constantly. Hebrews 12:1 says, "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God set before us." Satan will try to steal the joy of service from us in two ways:
   1. By tempting you to compare your ministry with others
   2. By tempting you to conform your ministry to the expectations of others
It is so important that we not compare ourselves to others. It's so hard to accomplish this with social media. Galatians 6:4 says, "Pay careful attention to your own work, for then you will get the satisfaction of a job well done, and you won't need to compare yourself to anyone else." When we compare ourselves to others we will always be able to find someone who seems to be doing a better job than us and we will become discouraged. We will so always be able to find someone who doesn't seem as effective as us and we will become full of pride. People who do not understand your shape will criticize you and try to get you to conform to what they think you should be doing. We need to avoid comparisons, resist exaggeration, and seek only God's commendation. If you are having trouble with comparing yourself to others, get off social media.

KEEP DEVELOPING YOUR SHAPE 
    - It is important that we cultivate our gifts and abilities, keep our heart aflame, grow our character and personality, and broaden our experiences so we our more effective in our service. If we don't use our skills we will lose them. We need to use the ability we have and God will continue to increase it. We need to stretch ourselves and learn all we can. We need to take advantage of every training opportunity. Go to that leadership conference. Volunteer at that soup kitchen. Read the personal growth books. Develop yourself to be the best shape God has given you.

Point to Ponder: God deserves my best.
Verse to Remember: "Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth." 2 Timothy 2:15
Question to Consider: How can I make the best use of what God has given me?