PDL side


The Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren—A Synopsis (continued).

Chapter 30—Shaped for Serving God (pages 234-239)

Summary

God has designed (handcrafted) every believer and so planned his days and development (abilities, interests, talents, gifts, personality and life experiences) specifically for doing a unique (one-of-a-kind) ministry and mission for Him. A believer may discover God’s will (ministry and mission) for his life by identifying and understanding five of God’s assigned attribute (spiritual gifts, heart, abilities, personality and experience = the acrostic “shape”) that specifically apply to him. This chapter and the next will consider these five factors; the first two follow:

1. Spiritual gifts.

Every believer is assigned spiritual gifts to be used in his ministry/mission for God—talents or abilities that cannot be earned, since they are gifts. God’s ministering gifts are distributed to all within His family individually and in varying degrees and numbers. No one has a monopoly on any one or all of the gifts—God wants variety among and cooperation between believers. A believer receives spiritual gifts for other believers as other believers receive gifts for him. Why? It is so that believers will need each other. Believers are to discover their gifts, but they should never practice gift-envy (desiring another believer’s gifts) or gift-projection (expecting other believers to have one’s own gifts).

2. Heart.

A believer’s heart (the bundle of desires, hopes, interests, ambitions, dreams, and affections that determines the believer’s expressions, emotions and inclinations; and reveals the “real person”) is unique to him just as is his fingerprints, eye prints and voice print. A person’s heart is what determines what a person instinctively cares about and doesn’t care about, which are clues to be considered when attempting to understand God’s will for his life. Everyone is different in life. Every person has been so designed by God to have inborn interests in a particular area and can address the area as no one else can. It is the believer’s heart that will grant him passion in fulfilling God’s will. When a believer is serving God “with all his heart,” he will evidence the following:

· Enthusiasm (a deep love in the exercise of a gift in God’s service)

· Effectiveness (an ever increasing improvement in achieving objectives)

Quotes

“You are the way you are because you were made for a specific ministry.” (pg. 234)

“You are a custom-designed, one-of-a-kind, original masterpiece.” (pg. 235)

“Nothing that happens in you life is insignificant. God uses all of it to mold you for your ministry to others and shape you for your service to Him.” (pg. 235)

“Your spiritual gifts were not given for your own benefit but for the benefit of others, just as other people were given gifts for your benefit. . . . God planned it this way so we would need each other.” (pg. 236)

“Sometimes spiritual gifts are overemphasized to the neglect of the other factors God uses to shape you for service. Your gifts reveal one key to discovering God’s will for your ministry, but you spiritual gifts are not the total picture.” (pg. 237)

“Listening for inner promptings can point to the ministry God intends for you to have.” (pg. 238)

“Remember, the greatest things in life are not things. Meaning is far more important than money.” (pg. 239)

“Don’t settle for just achieving ‘the good life,’ because the good life is not good enough. . . . Aim instead for the ‘better life’ . . . what God gave you a heart to do . . . .” (pg. 239)

Scriptures

Job 10:8; Isaiah 43:21; Ephesians 2;10; Psalm 139:13, 14; 139:16; Romans 12:4-8; 1 Corinthians 12; Ephesians 4:8-15; 1 Corinthians 7:7; 2:14; Ephesians 4:7; 1 Corinthians 12:11; 12:29, 30, 7, 5; Proverbs 27:19; Matthew 12:34; Psalm 34:7; Proverbs 4:23; Deuteronomy 11:13; 1 Samuel 12:20; Romans 1:9; Ephesians 6:6; Proverbs 15:16.

Conclusion/Comments

God specifically designed each believer for a unique ministry (to believers) and mission (to the lost) that only that person can accomplish. In order for the believer to achieve God’s will in his life, he first must identify it. This can be done by examining five factors that make up the believer’s life, two of which (spiritual gifts and heart) are examined in this chapter.