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Thanks for visiting my diary. I've been journaling since 1984 and have chosen to share some of my entries online. They are not all positive thoughts, but I hope that reading them might be a blessing to someone who needs encouragement.
If you are just coming to my diary for the first time, please read my introductory entry, where I share some background that is important if you plan to follow this diary regularly.
Please also visit my music page, where you can hear samples from my debut CD, I Believe, which features songs written based on experiences shared in this journal.
Gifts show friendship or affection. Spiritual gifts are natural abilities.
James 1:17 Every generous act of giving, with every perfect gift, is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.
Gifts are for today because Jesus does not change. All I have is a gift. The greatest gift is Jesus. Abundant life involves the Spirit. We must do His work. Everyone has a gift.
1 Peter 4:10 Like good stewards of the manifold grace of God, serve one another with whatever gift each of you has received.
We must not be greedy. We must minister the gifts. (Romans 12:6 and Ephesians 4:8)
How do I receive?
James 4:2-3 You want something and do not have it; so you commit murder. And you covet something and cannot obtain it; so you engage in disputes and conflicts. You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, in order to spend what you get on your pleasures.
Matthew 21:22 Whatever you ask for in prayer with faith, you will receive."
Luke 11:9 "So I say to you, Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you.
John 14:14 If in my name you ask me for anything, I will do it.
Ask according to His will. It is His will that I receive the Spirit for His work, not so that I can show off. Coming to Him with boldness is coming with courage, not being afraid.
Matthew 7:7 "Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you.
Don't put the gift before the giver.
Gifts come from the Spirit; ministries come from the Lord; works come from the Father. (1 Corinthians 12)
The gifts of faith are prophecy, ministry, teaching, exhortation, giving, leading, and showing mercy. These are talents given at birth. Growth depends on response.
Prophecy is speaking with insight, especially when enabled by the Spirit.
Ministry is service, or meeting needs.
Teaching is the ability to explain and apply God's truth to the church, understanding the Word.
Exhortation is giving an appeal.
Giving is having a spirit of generosity.
Leading is standing in front, or being a model.
Showing mercy is sympathizing or acting upon another's misery.
Matthew 25:14-30 "For it is as if a man, going on a journey, summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them; to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. The one who had received the five talents went off at once and traded with them, and made five more talents. In the same way, the one who had the two talents made two more talents. But the one who had received the one talent went off and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master's money.
After a long time the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them. Then the one who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five more talents, saying, 'Master, you handed over to me five talents; see, I have made five more talents.' His master said to him, 'Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.' And the one with the two talents also came forward, saying, 'Master, you handed over to me two talents; see, I have made two more talents.' His master said to him, 'Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.' Then the one who had received the one talent also came forward, saying, 'Master, I knew that you were a harsh man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed; so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.' But his master replied, 'You wicked and lazy slave! You knew, did you, that I reap where I did not sow, and gather where I did not scatter? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received what was my own with interest. So take the talent from him, and give it to the one with the ten talents. For to all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. As for this worthless slave, throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'
PRO 18:16 A gift opens doors; it gives access to the great.
Don't be afraid to use your talents. Use them to glorify God.
Gifts of the Spirit are given "as he wills". Ministried are set by God. Believers who embody the gifts are given by Jesus. These are for a specific calling and are permanent.
Romans 11:29 for the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.
Gifts of the Son
Apostles are messengers of God. Many see the apostle as someone who is to complete the Canon.
A prophet is a spiritually mature spokesman with a special message for the church or the world.
Evangelists preach or witness and bring people to salvation or stir up Christians.
Pastors are "shepherds". They help with spiritual needs.
Teachers bring spiritual growth.
Enabling gifts equip the saints to continue the work of the ministry, edify the body of Christ, and bring perfection in Christ. Enabling gifts are given to professionals. Ministering gifts are given to the lay people.
EPH 4:11-13 The gifts he gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of t he full stature of Christ.
Signs will follow each believer. Gifts happen because they are necessary. They do not confirm the character of the believer but the Word of God. Character results from the fruit of the Spirit.
Differences between fruits and gifts are:
Gifts are functional; fruit comes with a life of integrity. Gifts are given as the Spirit wills; fruit grows from planting seeds of righteousness. Gifts are complete when they are given; fruit is developed.
The gifts of knowing are wisdom, word of knowledge, and discerning of spirits.
The gifts of power are faith, working of miracles, and healing.
The gifts of inspiration are tongues, prophecy, and interpretation.
Gifts can be taken away.
Ephesians 5:18 Do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery; but be filled with the Spirit,
Be filled with the Spirit for your life. Have an overflowing testimony of joy and song in your heart. Jesus has overcome. Be able to give thanks in all situations. Have a teachable spirit birthed through brokenness and humility. Submit to one another.
Ephesians 5:19-21 as you sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs among yourselves, singing and making melody to the Lord in your hearts, giving thanks to God the Father at all times and for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Be subject to one another out of reverence for Christ.
The word of wisdom is a supernatural revelation of divine purpose, a declaration of the mind and will of God, an unfolding of His plans and purposes, or a word about His plans, as in Acts 6:8�10.
ACT 6:8-10 Stephen, full of grace and power, did great wonders and signs among the people. Then some of those who belonged to the synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called), Cyrenians, Alexandrians, and others of those from Cilicia and Asia, stood up and argued with Stephen. But they could not withstand the wisdom and the Spirit with which he spoke.
The word of knowledge is a supernatural revelation of facts from the divine Mind, enabling the believer to know things he could not have known. Jesus had a word of knowledge about the woman at the well with five husbands. It is very specific.
Discerning of spirits is an operation of the Spirit to discern good from evil, as in Acts 16:16-18.
ACT 16:16-18 One day, as we were going to the place of prayer, we met a slave girl who had a spirit of divination and brought her owners a great deal of money by fortune-telling. While she followed Paul and us, she would cry out, "These men are slaves of the Most High God, who proclaim to you a way of salvation." She kept doing this for many days. But Paul, very much annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, "I order you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her." And it came out that very hour.
Faith is an assurance or a divine confidence that God is going to work all things for our good in spite of the circumstances. Natural faith is in people or in things. Saving faith is for salvation and is for everyone. Faith which is a part of the fruit of the spirit is developed through exercise. An example of the gift of faith is found in Acts 28:3-5.
Acts 28:3-5 Paul had gathered a bundle of brushwood and was putting it on the fire, when a viper, driven out by the heat, fastened itself on his hand. When the natives saw the creature hanging from his hand, they said to one another, "This man must be a murderer; though he has escaped from the sea, justice has not allowed him to live." He, however, shook off the creature into the fire and suffered no harm.
The working of miracles is a supernatural intervention in the course of nature, a suspension or superceding of natural law as we know or perceive it.
Healing is the supernatural power to heal disease and emotions.
Prophecy is utterance in a known tongue. Prophets must be able to discern what is from God. Prophecy is from God to men for edification, comfort, and exhortation (encouragement). (Jeremiah 23)
Tongues are utterances in a language unknown to the speaker. They are for a sign to the unbeliever, personal edification, and to be interpreted for edification of the whole church. Do not use this gift if no one can interpret. AIf no one can, the speaker must pray for the ability to interpret.
Interpretation is the speaking of the meaning of tongues. It may or may not be word-for-word.
The working of the gifts destroys the work of the enemy.
Instructions for Using the Gifts�(#` �
Desire them earnestly. (1 Corinthians 12:31)
Judge. (1 Corinthians 14:27-33) Is it in line with the Word? (Revelation 22:18-19) Who receives the glory? (1 Corinthians 3:6) Is it ministered in love? (1 Corinthians 13) Is the minister willing to be tested? (1 Corinthians 4:3) Does it bear witness with your spirit? (1 John 4:1)
Do not quench the Spirit. (1 Thessalonians 5:19)
Hold fast to the gift. (1 Thessalonians 5:21)
Do not neglect the gift. (1 Timothy 4:14)
Stir up the gift. (2 Timothy 1:6)
Operate in love.
Be mature in understanding. (1 Corinthians 14:20)
Remember, "God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of love, power, and a sound mind."
Do it in order. (1 Corinthians 14)
Stay on the altar. Be continually shaped in Christ. Stay humble; remember grace. Let all be done in love.
Romans 12:1-9 I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God--what is good and acceptable and perfect.
For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. For as in one body we have many members, and not all the members have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another. We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us: prophecy, in proportion to faith; ministry, in ministering; the teacher, in teaching; the exhorter, in exhortation; the giver, in generosity; the leader, in diligence; the compassionate, in cheerfulness.
Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good;
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