Book Review (Part II)
Discover Your God-Given Gifts
by Don & Katie Fortune
This is the second post of a two-part review of one of my all-time favorite books, Discover Your God-Given Gifts. If you missed it, you can read the first post here. The authors have presented their material in a straightforward, understandable way. They identify three categories of gifts or charisma in the Body of Christ:
● 7 Motivational gifts (natural) – Romans 12:6-8
● 9 Manifestation gifts (supernatural) – I Corinthians 12
● 5 Ministry gifts (leadership) – Ephesians 4:11
The focus of this book is the natural or Motivational gifts. Everyone has a gift! No one has been left out. The seven Motivational gifts are: Perceiver, Server, Teacher, Exhorter, Giver, Administrator, and Compassion.
Q. "Is it possible to have all seven of the motivational gifts in my life to some extent?"
A. "The answer is yes. We will see during the testing process that you have some scoring, no matter how little, in each gift. We are all endowed with enough of each gift to be able to operate in that area to some degree, when called on… Don’t ever let the knowledge of your particular motivational gift keep you from ministering in other areas. While it is true that… a compassion person would be aware of the hurting person sooner than others and move to meet the need, it does not mean that others are not able to reach out with compassion when it’s needed."—The Fortunes
According to 1 Peter 4:11, there are two distinctions within Motivational Gifts, leadership-speaking gifts (Perceiver, Teacher, Exhorter, Administrator) and practical-serving gifts (Compassion, Server, Giver). Each gift is of equal value.
Characteristics of the Administrator
(Self-Test)
We blogging Moms are a chatty bunch, so I’d like to summarize the authors’ description of the Administrator—a speaking gift and a "born leader." Other words that would describe this gift are facilitator, organizer, ruler, leader, superintendent. A person with this gift:
___1. Is highly motivated to get things organized.
___2. Expresses his ideas clearly.
___3. Prefers to be under authority to have authority.
___4. Will not take responsibility unless it is delegated.
___5. Will take the lead if no specific leadership exists.
___6. Enjoys working on long-term goals and projects.
___7. Is a visionary person with a broad perspective.
___8. Facilitates resources/people to accomplish goals.
___9. Enjoys delegating tasks and supervising people.
___10. Will endure criticism for the greater good of all.
___11. Has great zeal and enthusiasm for his projects.
___12. Finds greatest fulfillment in working toward goals.
___13. Is willing to let others get the credit.
___14. Prefers to move on to new challenges.
___15. Constantly writes notes to self.
___16. Is a natural and capable leader.
___17. Knows when to to introduce new methods.
___18. Enjoys working with and being around people.
___19. Wants to see things completed quickly.
___20. Does not enjoy doing routine tasks.
Problems of the Administrator include a) becoming upset when others do not share the same vision or goals b) developing an outer callousness due to being a target for criticism c) can regress to “using” people to accomplish own goals d) tends to drive self and neglect personal and family needs e) neglects routine home responsibilities due to his intense interest in his job.
Biblical examples of gifted Administrators include Joseph (Genesis 30-40); David; and James, the brother of Jesus.
Characteristics of the Giver
(Self-Test)
The authors say that of the seven motivational gifts, this is the least likely to be identified by the one who has it. This person has an "all-round" balanced personality, shares several traits of the server, can be a leader or a follower and has a love for the Word of God. However, the Giver is unique when it comes to the use of resources. A person with this gift:
___1. Gives freely of money, possessions, and love.
___2. Loves to give without others knowing it.
___3. Wants to feel part of the ministries contributed to.
___4. Intercedes for needs and the salvation of souls.
___5. Feels delighted when his gift is an answer to prayer.
___6. Wants gift to be of high quality.
___7. Gives only by the leading of the Holy Spirit.
___8. Gives to support others or to advance a ministry.
___9. Views hospitality as an opportunity to give.
___10. Handles finances with wisdom and frugality.
___11. Quickly volunteers to help where a need is seen.
___12. Seeks confirmation of the amount to give.
___13. Has a strong belief in giving tithes and offerings.
___14. Focuses on sharing the Gospel.
___15. Believes God is the source of his supply.
___16. Is very industrious with a tendency toward success.
___17. Has a natural and effective business ability.
___18. Likes to shop for bargains.
___19. Is definitely not gullible.
___20. Possesses both a natural and God-given wisdom.
Problems of the Giver
According to the authors, Givers do not have as many problem areas as some of the other gifts. Givers mainly wrestle with pride or lukewarmness—like the rest of us. Also, Givers may a) try to control how contributions are used b) tends to pressure others to give c) may upset family and friends with unpredictable patterns of giving d) tends to spoil their own children or other relatives e) may use financial giving to get out of other responsibilities.
Biblical examples of Givers include Abraham (Genesis 13-14, 22); Solomon; and Paul—who possessed secondary speaking gifts as well.
Summary of the Seven Gifts
Don’t recognize yourself in either of these descriptions? Space (and copyright) prevent me from quoting the entire contents of this book. However, following are a few words that characterize each of the seven gifts. It’s useful to compare them, and begin to grasp how marvelously God has structured the Body of Christ.
● Perceiver
__admonish__challenge__correct__dramatize__expose
● Server
__assist__detail__entertain__follow__help__wait on
● Teacher
__analyze__educate__learn__research__study__use logic
● Exhorter
__advise__counsel__encourage__guide__peruade__talk
● Giver
__acquire__budget__donate__entertain__evangelize__invest
●Administrator
__achieve__command__create__govern__lead__strategize
● Compassion
__be gentle__care for__comfort__feel__love__sympathize
Discovery Books Series
There are two other excellent books in the Discovery series including Discover Your Children’s Gifts and Discover Your Spouse’s Gifts. Check out the amazon.com reviews here. I’ve read all three paperbacks again and again. The information has been invaluable in helping me direct my children’s development, helping me to understand my mate, and helping me to work with others more effectively. Around the Mom blogosphere, you may have noticed a wonderful abundance of Exhorters, Perceivers, Administrators, and Givers!
What are your primary (and secondary) motivational gifts?
Photos courtesy of samuelcharlessolomonthethird, natmandu, Fatkatjr (Flickr)
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November 01, 2006
Personal Growth: Your God-Given Gifts (2)
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20 COMMENTS:
This is an interesting take on the spiritual gifts. I have not seen them so divided, though our pastor does focus only on the ones in the three verses and excludes all others. In a few weeks our What's the Shape of Your Faith study will be about our spiritual gifts.
Of the motivational gifts, I KNOW, KNOW, KNOW I do not have the gift of administration. It is so much that when I step into a position of administration I mess it up completely and have to step back for another to fix it. Its one of those areas the Lord works on my pride. I have the main gifts of Service and Works (not sure where those fit in here as I making pancakes and don't have time togo look them up). I know when I last took the test Knowledge, Wisdom, Exortion, Prophecy and Giving (except that I am bad at money, I think mine falls more into Works and less actual giving) came up higher and Teaching (crazy because I am a good teacher--I was trained to teach, but it is not a spiritual gift), Administration, and Leadership came up almost completely nill. Wow, I wrote a book. Sorry. THis is such a facinating subject and I love seeing what and how the Lord uses the gifts He has given me and others.
Hi- This is full of info ... I need to come back later when I have time to better absorb it all. A long time ago I took some sort of spiritual gifts test on-line where my highest score was on Perceiver --- but I don't recall much more than that.
E-Mom, are you an Exhorter? Administrator? Teacher?
-Tara
Interesting! I wasn't as high on the Admin. as I thought I might be. 12 for sure (and a couple that were "sort ofs"). I guess that's pretty high.
Hi e-Mom,
I was just over at Sting my Heart and saw that she awarded you the encourager of the month... I cannot think of anyone more deserving. I am constantly inspired and wowed every time I visit. Love you much, Lynn
This book sounds very intersting, I will have to look into getting it.
heather: Wow, you seem to have a keen interest in this topic! I'm glad you're planning to dive in further with "What's the Shape of Your Faith." I look forward to your upcoming post. (Yes, it's easy to confuse the three categories of gifts.) You may have a primary motivational speaking gift of Exhortation, with a secondary gift of Serving. (Or the reverse.)
BTW, how do you blog AND make pancakes, simultaneously? STONG evidence for the above assessment, my friend! :~)
tara: You're a perceiver? Cool! If so, you're visual, highly intuitive, smart, and very direct. Sounds like you????
Thanks so much for asking about me. :~) My strongest gift is Administrator. I have secondary gift of Giving which makes me more outgoing and fun (I hope) than your typical "Type-A" Admin. person. It all boils down to this: I'm a high achiever (Leader) but I'm also very creative with my hands (Follower). I like to think God has gifted me to serve Him in the best of all worlds. :~)
jennifer: As I "know" you, I'd say you're probably an Administrator. According to the authors, Administrators tend to be attracted to this information the most. That's because not only do we gain self-knowlege, we also learn to identify others' gifts. That translates into more effective teamwork when we're spearheading a project/ministry and we're looking for the right people to delegate various tasks to. Everyone wins!
Like me though, you may have a secondary gift that adds to your skill set. You'd have to take all the self-tests (easy) to discover where your other strengths are. I do hope you get one of the three books to find out. (The Children's book would be great.)
lynn: You're way too sweet. :~) I expect we'll be seeing Iris' pink button in your sidebar before too long. I'm delighted our "cyber" paths have crossed. It's been a simultaneous bloggity learning experience, hasn't it? Love you back!
ruth: I hope you do get this book!
You always have the coolest stuff on your site. Thanks for sharing
This book sounds like a "must read". I always enjoy discovering new things about myself that help me grow in the Lord.
This has been very interesting. Thank you!
I would say it is Exhorter as primary and Compassion secondary? Not sure though. They might be very equal for me personally :)
I always test high for teacher on the gift tests I have taken. I think next is perceiver.
But as I said on the previous post, these are "talents" that I have had since before I was a believer so I sometimes wonder if these are really my spiritual gifts or not.
e-mom, I am a server. I want to set up the chairs, put together the powerpoint, arrange the food to make it easy for people. I love hospitality. It is interesting though, because of Kent's position I must be stretch often though outside my comfort zone. My oldest son is a quintessential giver. It is interesting to see the interplay between his gift and his handicap from encephalitis and a seizure disorder.
killi: Nice to see you here again!
kathleen marie: I'm glad you found the information useful. The books are awesome.
eph2810: Exhorters are the most gifted with relationships and language... AND the most verbal. My Mom was an exhorter, and boy could she ever talk up a storm. No wonder you're so good with English! (She also had a fondness for law. Do you?) I'm wondering if your secondary gift might be giver or server, considering your job.
carrie: You do seem to exhibit the gifts of teacher and/or perceiver, as I understand them. Our daughter is also a "teacher." Like you, she's a scientist, and very smart. :-)
A little clarification: these 7 gifts are called "motivational" because in fact they are natural talents. They are present in all people, believer and unbeliever alike. They can also be observed in childhood. The 9 "manifestation" gifts listed in 1 Cor. 12 are only present in Christians. The former category is the subject of this book, not the latter. Blessings!
laurie: Yes, you sound like a server, and what an awesome gift! Servers tend to enjoy the beauty of nature immensely... and many love to garden. (My father is a server-giver.) I would imagine you and Kent compliment each other pretty well most of the time. :-) I didn't realize you had a handicapped son. His "giver" gift is a great one too!
E-mom...I'm an administrator. Bingo! :)
Thanks for visiting my blog for pastor's families. It is very new. We welcome you! :)
I have enjoyed poking around your blog. It is lovely....very lovely. I particularly love the segment on adoption. My dh and I have seven children, but/and my heart is pulled to adoption. :) I LOVE the Chapmans. Bless them!
Holly
www.seekingfaithfulness.wordpress.com
or www.thepastorsfamily.wordpress.com
Sounds like a great book. Reminds me of the 5 languages of Love.
I think it is so important to learn those things about your spouse and about yourself!
defineately think I'm more of the giver (the bargin shopper! That's me! hehe) than the leader (I get tired around people if I'm there too long... I like working in the backgrounds; hense my love of computers..)
This is a great post. I have a few gifts, God has been so gracious.
Lol, I'm certainly not a leader though :o)
threefold cord: With seven children, you're administrator gift comes in handy, no doubt! I've added your links to my blogroll. I'll be back to visit you soon.
amydeanne: Yes, you do sound like a Giver. I would have guessed that from your cool blog. (I have a secondary gift of Giving too.)
mrs blythe: Would you be a combination Giver-Server perhaps? If so, a lovely way to be!
Hi e-mom - I'm not sure where my gifts would come in. But I did seem to fit into most of the giver category, I do one or two serving things too, so I think you may be right :o)
mrs blythe: You can observe yourself over the next little while, to be certain.
This is a terrific post. I'm really eager to go through this more carefully, and I'm very eager to look at the spouses' resource too! Thanks for your sweet note!
laura: Thanks for stopping by this post! I hope you learn something helpful here. (((Hugs))).
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