You may notice a common theme lately in my posts. They are all building on each other to one goal… to help you overcome road blocks to reaching your potential. Be sure to read about getting un-stuck, overcoming fear, discovering your purpose, and facing hard things.
The other day a phrase came to my mind that wasn’t my own. It was a phrase I’ve never heard or contemplated before. It was in a moment of feeling down and doubting my ability to change.
“Live in your gifts.”
OooooK? Whatever that means…
I’ve heard the common phrases
“Living in fear.”
“Living in sin.” “Living in squaller.”
I wonder why all the “living in” phrases commonly spoken are negative. NONE of these are something we want to be living in.
What SHOULD we be living in?
Living in righteousness. Living in service. Living in joy. Living in Christ.
“Living in our gifts.”
When we doubt our ability to do something it is because we are looking at it through the lens of our weaknesses rather than our strengths. When this is our mindset we are “living in our weaknesses.” If we only had our weaknesses to work with then we would probably fail every time; good thing we’ve been given gifts!
What is your mindset? Do you live in your weaknesses or do you live in your gifts?
When you have a task ahead of you do you first recognize all the reasons you might fail or do you see all the reasons you might succeed?
When faced with a struggle do you fall back on a weakness or a strength?
Do you face challenges with doubt or do you face them with confidence?
If asked to write a list of weaknesses and a list of gifts, which list would be longer?
A time I chose to live in weakness.
Several years ago I was pulled aside by my Bishop (minister) and asked to teach a course on Family History to help others do their genealogy and discover who their ancestors were. I have never been so shocked to be asked to do something in my life (except maybe that time when I was mistakenly asked to be a choir director with zero musical experience).
I immediately went into a weakness mindset.
Never had I ever found one solitary ancestor from my family tree. Never had I ever explored any genealogy website including the one I was supposed to be teaching about, www.familysearch.org. The only thing that I knew about family history was that I probably had a family. I was pretty sure I had parents because I was claimed by a mom and dad; wasn’t that good enough?
The bishop must have recognized how the color completely left my face. I tried to speak but I hadn’t taken a breath in the seconds that I had sat in stunned silence, so when I tried to protest nothing came out. I had to say something before he could mistake my silence as agreement. What I wanted to say was, “NO WAY!!!!” What I did say was, “I don’t know anything about family history.” Apparently that wasn’t a big problem and he quickly gave me a solution. He said he would delay the class for 6 months. In that time I could do the research and learn what I needed in order to teach the class. I don’t remember agreeing but I guess I did because I went home and cried.
If there was ever a good example of living in your weaknesses, it was me in that moment, and for the next 6 months. All I focused on was all the reasons I could not teach that class. I had no knowledge, no desire, no experience, no interest, no NOTHING. How would I teach this class?
I had 6 months until the first class so I did what made complete sense; I did nothing. I convinced myself that this idea was so completely absurd that somehow something would happen so I would not actually end up teaching this class. I did not for one millisecond take into consideration that this was something the Lord wanted me to do. I was sure this was just a decision made in desperation because there was no one else available.
I waited each Sunday for the miracle to happen. The class would be cancelled. Someone else would move in that had taught genealogy before. I would be more needed in a different role.
There would be a miracle, just not the one I was expecting.
Two weeks before the class was to start I realized this might not be a joke. When the class was announced at church I wanted to sink off the pew into a puddle of despair. The teacher’s manual and training resources were sitting in the exact spot I had left them 5 1/2 months earlier covered in dust. What was I to do now? I had wasted all the time given to me to prepare and I still had to teach the class. I was just going to have to tell the Bishop I couldn’t teach the class. I went over the conversation in my head a million times but in the end I couldn’t bring myself to talk to him.
Had I only recognized all the reasons I COULD teach this class I wouldn’t be in this predicament. I had plenty of experience teaching and it was actually, as others told me, one of my gifts. I loved teaching. I also was very comfortable on the computer and found it easy to navigate websites and teach myself things. I was naturally confident in learning new things and sharing what I learned. I didn’t focus on these gifts though. Oh, and somehow I missed the fact that when the Lord needs something of you it doesn’t matter what your weaknesses are He fills in the blanks with His strength.
I don’t know why the Lord didn’t just leave me to fend for myself since I neglected my opportunity to prepare. Good thing He is much more merciful than I am. The moment I dusted off my teacher’s manual and opened my computer miracles followed.
I remembered my gifts and I was filled with confidence and direction from the Spirit. With in 30 minutes of opening my computer I found an ancestor for the first time in my life on a family line that had been at a dead end for years. I had no choice but to teach with more humility as a newbie to newbies and we all learned together. I loved learning something new as I prepared for each class and was able to overcome my own fears when it came to doing family history work. I was later surprised to find out that when other congregations in our area had been struggling to have success with their classes it was suggested they model their class after mine.
The most beautiful miracle was that because of this class I was able to find hundreds of ancestors to add to my family tree. This is an especially big deal to myself as a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints since we believe that those who have passed on without knowledge of the gospel of Jesus Christ can still choose to accept His gospel and we can do the saving work for them (like baptism by proxy) in our temples.
I look back and am so grateful the Lord helped me snap out of dwelling in my weakness and do something with my gifts. I gained and strengthened more gifts in the process because that is how generous our Heavenly Father is.
Living in our gifts.
Is there something you are bombing at, have put off, or are afraid to do because you are seeing it through the lens of weakness? Here are several different ideas to help you change your mindset and see things through the frame of the amazing gifts you’ve been given.
1. Pray to know what your gifts are and keep a running list when they come to you. I keep a list on the journal app on my cell phone so I can read them often.
2. Add to the list by asking those close to you what gifts they see in you. If you have a patriarchal blessing the Lord has told you some of the gifts he’s given you as well.
3. Read about gifts in 1 Corinthians 12:1-12 or Moroni 10:8-18. Remember there are numberless gifts, the ones listed in scripture are just to get you started.
4. Think back to joyful times in your life. What gifts were you using?
5. Think about what things come naturally to you.
6. Once you identify your gifts pray for ideas and opportunities to use and grow your gifts each day.
7. Act immediately. Don’t wait when an idea to use a gift comes to your mind. The more you listen and act the more ideas will come to you.
8. Record experiences in using your gifts.
9. Focus on using your gifts to bless others.
10. Set goals based on your gifts.
11. If you have fear in using a gift pray for courage to overcome that fear.
12. When you find yourself berating yourself because of weakness immediately start thinking of your gifts and how you can use one that day.
13. If you have a particular weakness that is bothering you pray to know the gift that will help you overcome that weakness. Ask for that gift.
14. Pay it forward. When you notice someone’s gift tell them and thank them for sharing it.
Here is a beautiful promise as you put forth the effort to live in your gifts.
“You have special spiritual gifts and propensities. I urge you, with all the hope of my heart, to pray to understand your spiritual gifts—to cultivate, use, and expand them, even more than you ever have. You will change the world as you do so.”
Russell M. Nelson
