The Gift Giver | from the Bible #3 | Episode 17

 

From The Bible #3 

The Gift Giver 

Understanding our gifts and talents and skills come from God  + how to know if God has placed a calling on your life?  

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.

-James 1:17 

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Hello sweet friend! Welcome to the Faith, Writing and Coffee Chats Podcast! My name is Moriyah and I am a Christian, writer, book and coffee lover! Today I have with me a vanilla latte with a dash of cinnamon! I hope you too have a good coffee or drink with you! 

Today we are going to chat about the Gift giver and understanding that our gifts and talents and skills and calling comes from God. We will also discuss how to know if the calling you have on your life is from God and the few steps I use to figure this out for myself! 

So grab a cup of coffee or tea and let’s get into this topic! 

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The gift giver. 

How do we get our gifts? Those talents? The things we are gifted in? How do we have these skills? 

We know as Christians that it is God who gives us gifts and skills and talents. 

He is our creator. The creator of all of the universe and of all humans. He made us and put His breath of life into our lungs. He created us with intention and design. He made us with callings and talents on our heart. These are talents not just for ourselves but for Him and His kingdom and His glory. 

He has a plan for all of us. That plan often includes having a gift/skill/talent/desire/passion/dream/vision to be used for that plan He has for our lives. 

We can see a picture of this clearly in Leviticus: 

And Moses said to the children of Israel, “See, the Lord has called by name Bezalel [beh-zuh-lel] the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah; and He has filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom and understanding, in knowledge and all manner of workmanship, to design artistic works, to work in gold and silver and bronze, in cutting jewels for setting, in carving wood, and to work in all manner of artistic workmanship.

“And He has put in his heart the ability to teach, in him and Aholiab [ah-holy-ab] the son of Ahisamach [ah-hide-ah-mac], of the tribe of Dan. He has filled them with skill to do all manner of work of the engraver and the designer and the tapestry maker, in blue, purple, and scarlet thread,and fine linen, and of the weaver—those who do every work and those who design artistic works.

Exodus 35:30-35 (NKJV)

…and every gifted artisan in whose heart the Lord had put wisdom, everyone whose heart was stirred, to come and do the work. 

Exodus 36:2 (NKJV)

God has a plan for you and He has placed callings and giftings on your heart to do as He has called you. It doesn’t matter your age or situation. God has a plan and a calling on your life. Follow Him in His plan for you. 

There is a passage in Jeremiah that I love that illustrates this point perfectly! 

4Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying:

5“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you;

Before you were born I sanctified you;

I ordained you a prophet to the nations.”

6Then said I:

“Ah, Lord God!

Behold, I cannot speak, for I am a youth.”

7But the Lord said to me:

“Do not say, ‘I am a youth,’

For you shall go to all to whom I send you,

And whatever I command you, you shall speak.

8Do not be afraid of their faces,

For I am with you to deliver you,” says the Lord.

9Then the Lord put forth His hand and touched my mouth, and the Lord said to me:

“Behold, I have put My words in your mouth.

Jeremiah 1:4-9

I love this passage so much! It shows that God knows you. He has a plan for you. He has a calling for you. He will equip you and lead you and give you the words and tools you need to accomplish this calling on your life because it it from the Lord. It is His plan for you. His calling. It is a plan bigger than you. It going to be amazing but you have to trust in Him and follow Him wherever He leads you. You need to be obedient and follow after God. 

I’ve talked about it in previous episodes that we have a thing called free will. A choice to choose to follow God or not. A choice to follow God’s plan for your life or not. I talk about this more in the episode about The Thief Of Callings and Being Faithful if you want to check that one out! I go more in depth with that topic, but the point is, God has a calling for your life but you need to obey and follow Him. Use your gifts for Him. Follow where He leads. Choose Him and His plan over yourself. Use the gifts the Gift Giver has given you. 

But, maybe you are in a place where you are unsure of your calling and are unsure with the plan God has for you. Maybe you don’t know what you are gifted in. Maybe you feel lost and don’t know what to do. Or maybe you have a gift and talent but you don’t know if it is God’s plan for you. Just because it is a thing you want to do doesn’t always mean it’s God given. How do you know the difference? 

The best advice I can give you are four things. 

ONE: Pray. Pray for God to give you guidance and direction in what to do with your life. 

TWO: Be patient. God is never late. He is always on time. Maybe your timing is not His timing. Maybe He wants you to wait for a season before He tells you what you are supposed to do. Or maybe He wants you to come closer to Him (through prayer, reading His word, and spending time with Him) before He sets you on your course. 

THREE: Follow after and seek His peace. God is the God of Peace. Jesus is called the Prince of Peace. God leads in peace. He is not the God of stress or fear or anxiety. That is not of the Lord. He is of peace. Follow where He gives you peace no matter what that is. If that is to run in something or wait. If that is to start something or stop. Follow where He gives you His peace that surpassed understanding. 

This isn’t to say you will never be afraid. It’s noticing the difference from doing something rooted in God’s peace even in the face of fear or doing something out of fear and anxiety. 

Follow after God’ peace. 

FINALLY: How do you know the dreams and desires on your heart are from God? 

This answer can be best summed up in Psalms 37:4-5.

Delight yourself also in the Lord,

And He shall give you the desires of your heart.

Commit your way to the Lord,

Trust also in Him,

And He shall bring it to pass.

My mom described it as this. When you delight yourself in God—you are reading the Bible, praying, worshiping Him, delighting in Him—then when you do this and commit all your ways to God and trust in Him and surrender to Him and His plans, He will start to place specific dreams and hopes and desires and callings on your heart. They are callings given to you by Him. Callings that He delights in and wants in you. He created you for a purpose. Of course He would want to see that purpose be done in you. Of course He would want to answer you. 

When you do this, He will set these Godly desires on your heart and then will give you those desires and bring it to pass. 

Another way you can know if your dreams and desires are from God along with delighting in Him, praying, and following His peace is by asking the question: “does it line up with God’s word?” 

One of my dreams and desires that I’ve had since I was little is to be a mother and adopt.

Time and time again you see how God has a heart for children and for orphans. He is the father to the fatherless. The father of orphans. He loves children. We are called to have the faith of a child. Jesus calls the little children to Him. 

God has a heart for children. He loves children. He protects children. 

It’s feels like no wonder I want to adopt. No wonder that it was when I gave my life to God at seven that I started dreaming  and wanting to adopt. I actually didn’t realize that until just now. It was when I gave my life to God that I wanted to adopt. I never thought of it before but I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it since that time. 

Isn’t that so cool? 

God truly does give us dreams and desires. He really does give gifts to His children—to His people. He gives us talents and skills to do work for the kingdom. He has made us with design and intention. He has a plan for us. A wonderful plan.

Seek after God. Seek out His plan. Pray and read His word. Spend time with Him. Seek Him. Seek His peace. 

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the Lord…

—Jeremiah 29:11-14 (esv)