What are your gifts?

September 24th, 2025
by Craig Thiessen

A Note From Craig...

The title of this post is a question a lot of people ask. Some are pretty clear what their gifts are and they’re serving in line with them. Some are pretty clear on their gifts and aren’t serving because the doors haven’t opened for them yet, for whatever reason. Others know their gifts and aren’t using them to bless others simply because they just don’t want to (read Matthew 25:24-30 for a stark reminder of what God thinks of that general mindset). But some don’t know. They’re uncertain about what they’ve been put here to do and about what they can contribute to the body of Christ. This post is an attempt to help with that.

Your gifts

Drawing from some of what others have written on this, here are six things you can do to discern your gifts:

Pray. I mean, obviously, right? You should ask the Lord to make known to you how He has gifted you. Apparently, you can even express your desire to Him for particular gifts (1 Corinthians 14:1). Do all this discernment in prayer.
Study the biblical gift lists. Like I said on Sunday, these lists aren’t intended to be comprehensive lists. There’s overlap, and there are legitimate gifts that might not make an appearance in these passages. However, studying these can give us a sense of the general ways the Spirit empowers His people. The main passages to look at are Romans 12:3-8 and 1 Corinthians 12:4-11.
Self-examination. Tim Keller, in his commentary, suggests asking questions like these: What do I enjoy doing? What kind of ministry is satisfying and attractive to me? What problems do I most notice? Am I good at what I enjoy? Do people get helped?
Take a test. This is really just an extension of point 3, except with a bit more structure. There are a number of surveys online that will ask a series of questions attempting to discern your gifts. Here’s one example. Here’s another.
Ask others. Have a conversation with some people who know you well and have watched you in action. Ask them what they see in terms of your particular gifts and where they think you would serve most effectively. There’s no guarantee they’re right, but they may see something you haven’t seen yourself.
Try things! Often you don’t know if you’ve been gifted by God for some kind of work until you try it (not always- there are times when you definitely, 100% know that something is not what you’re made for!). I shared at the 11am service how, when I was young, I thought about pastoral ministry as something I might want to devote myself to. However, I was also convinced I would be a terrible public speaker. I was an insecure teenager who broke into cold sweats if needing to present to a group of people. However, I was invited to speak at a small Bible camp the summer I graduated from Bible College, and I said yes with fear and trembling. That week I spoke at the camp, I discovered that preaching the Bible was something that gave me life and seemed to be something that blessed others. I discovered God had wired me for this. It set my life on a new trajectory.

Your calling

Now, just knowing your gifts doesn’t ensure you’re going to be right where God wants you to be. It’s an important aspect, but when discerning God’s call on your life, it’s only one element. There are a few leadership groups in our church that are going through a book called “Leadership Essentials” right now. In one chapter, the authors (Greg Ogden and Daniel Meyer) outline an acronym for discerning God’s call on your life: “G-I-F-T”. Here it is:

G: Grace gifts. This is what I’ve talked about above. Need I say more? Probably, but I won’t. Moving on.

I: Insights and inspirations. This is about your passions. This maybe gets at some of the questions Keller encourages us to ask. What are the issues you notice and especially concern you? Do you find yourself asking, “why doesn’t anybody do something about that problem? It seems so obvious what needs to happen!” If you’re asking that, you might be that person! Ogden and Meyer write “there is some need or opportunity in your church, your community, your circle of influence or even in the world beyond about which you will have a burning insight and are inspired to act, a sense of passion that ‘for this I was made.”

F: Form. This is about your personality, temperament, and strengths. You are a unique individual, wired in a particular way. Understanding what makes you tick will help you see what kinds of ministries fit that wiring best.

T: Treasure. Ogden and Meyer again: “the way we amass and invest our money and possessions can suggest something about where our passion and gifting lies. These things tell us what we truly care about and what we’re good at.”

There’s a lot there to think about and reflect on and there’s much more that could be said. Hopefully this can provide some first steps if you’re unsure of your gifting and calling. May you prayerfully, with “sober judgment”, discern how God has gifted you and called you to make Him known in this world!

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