Puppies, Bunnies, Frogs & Bugs

Two weeks ago in my 7th & 8th grade SS class of girls, we took a spiritual gifts survey. Now I've taken these several times before and they always come out the same, as it did again this time. Who I am has been ingrained in me since my birth, just the same as all of us.

I can look back at my earliest days of childhood and 80% or more of my memories involved animals. Mind you, not necessarily animals that I owned but animals that I was always finding, caring for and taking home with me.

There's no telling how many PUPPIES, BUNNIES, FROGS and BUGS I must have brought home over my childhood years. Honestly, the numbers must be huge! Within me, there lay this deep desire to "care for and lead" all these little animals.

When I began to hit somewhere around the 5th or 6th grade, I began to find myself reaching out to those who needed a friend, who were hurting or lonely. I found myself sort of shepherding people in and loving them. Inside, it felt like it was what I was supposed to do and I loved every second of it.

I didn't realize or begin to understand those days, that God had put the gift of a "shepherd" as well as the gift of "mercy/encouragement" in my heart. In the womb, God lovingly blessed me with these gifts. I'm guessing that in allowing me to nurture and care for all those little critters in my younger days, I began learning how to use the gifts that God had entrusted me with.

Although the nurturing of PUPPIES, BUNNIES, FROGS and BUGS are years ago, now God has entrusted me with human lives and I continue to thank Him for allowing me the blessings of my spiritual gifts. If God gave them to us, and He did, then it is our responsibility to use them for HIS glory.

How about you? Are you using the spiritual gifts God gave you for HIS glory? If you're not sure what you're spiritual gifts are, you can visit www.churchgrowth.org to take your own spiritual gifts survey. Follow the prompts and they will bring you to the questionaire. There are 108 questions, I believe, and immediately it will give you your results and then explain your gifts to you.

I encourage you to use the God given gifts you have been blessed with. When we are walking in His grace and mercy, using that which He has given us, our lives will be so much happier.

Now get out there and use those gifts! Someone's waiting to be blessed by YOU!