PLAYING TO YOUR STRENGTHS
Almost four years ago, Amanda and I made the decision to leave my staff position in a church in the suburbs to start a church in our West Cleveland neighborhood. The name of that church ended up being Gateway West.
One of the requirements to be church planters was a extensive assessment process. We had a ton of surveys, inventories, interviews, projects, tests, and applications to complete to determine if we had what it took to start a church. Somehow we passed. I did not particularly enjoy the overall process but I'm a big believer that it is an essential part of church planting.
One of the biggest benefits for me personally was to learn about my personality, strengths, growth areas, tendencies, etc. in a bit more formal way. One of the tools they used to determine this was the Strengths Finder 2.0.
Many of you in business will recognize this tool but for the rest of you, Tom Rath, the author, suggests that we often spend too much time trying to change our "weaknesses" instead of building on our "strengths." He says that we are actually doing a disservice when we teach kids that they can be anything they want to be. This simply isn't true. We are gifted to succeed in specific areas.
I'm not writing to promote the tool but you are welcome to check it out. Instead, I'm using this long introduction to explain a change I'm making based upon MY strengths. Upon completing the inventory, Strengths Finder 2.0 gives you your top five (out of 34) strengths and then provides detailed information on how to build on those particular strengths.
I recently reviewed the results of my inventory and had a bit of an aha moment. Honestly, I hadn't even thought about the results since I did my assessment back in the fall of 2008. I know. Kind of sad. So, my aha moment was that my number one strength was activator.
I know. Kind of weird word. It simply means that I like action. I'm the kind of person that makes things happen. I can't stand inaction. I get bored sitting around. I have the ability to plan out action steps to accomplish a task. I don't like just talking about something. I'm like, "Let's go get something done." Sure that has its downsides to it but I can see how this strength plays into my role as a missionary and as a pastor. In my teaching and counseling, I always try to give people practical steps to apply Scripture to their lives. I can take a project and break it down into manageable steps. I can take our vision to our people and say, "This is where we are going."
I know you aren't suppose to have favorites per se but my favorite book of the Bible is James. And the reason is because it is such a practical book. It's not just theory. It deals with everyday life of people who have trials. That's me and most of the people I know. And I love James 1:22. He tells us that we aren't just supposed to hear the word of God. We are supposed to do it. We've got to put it into action. If we don't then we are just deceiving ourselves. And in chapter 2, James tells that our faith has to be worked out in action. Being a follower of Jesus means
So, I've decided to play to my strengths and change my "catchphrase" from Ghramm Cracker Crumbs to hearing AND doing. I was chided recently that I've only been giving my leftovers when I send out the "crumbs." My goal is to consistently share God's Word in practical ways both on Sundays but also via my blog and weekly email to the folks at Gateway West. I don't want the people I care about just to hear and know God's Word but to live it out in their everyday lives.
So, are you playing to your strengths? Are you putting your faith into action? What has God been telling you? What are you doing about it?
Father, my desire and prayer is that You will use my strengths for Your glory and for the good of those around me. Amen!
Many of you in business will recognize this tool but for the rest of you, Tom Rath, the author, suggests that we often spend too much time trying to change our "weaknesses" instead of building on our "strengths." He says that we are actually doing a disservice when we teach kids that they can be anything they want to be. This simply isn't true. We are gifted to succeed in specific areas.
I'm not writing to promote the tool but you are welcome to check it out. Instead, I'm using this long introduction to explain a change I'm making based upon MY strengths. Upon completing the inventory, Strengths Finder 2.0 gives you your top five (out of 34) strengths and then provides detailed information on how to build on those particular strengths. I recently reviewed the results of my inventory and had a bit of an aha moment. Honestly, I hadn't even thought about the results since I did my assessment back in the fall of 2008. I know. Kind of sad. So, my aha moment was that my number one strength was activator.
I know. Kind of weird word. It simply means that I like action. I'm the kind of person that makes things happen. I can't stand inaction. I get bored sitting around. I have the ability to plan out action steps to accomplish a task. I don't like just talking about something. I'm like, "Let's go get something done." Sure that has its downsides to it but I can see how this strength plays into my role as a missionary and as a pastor. In my teaching and counseling, I always try to give people practical steps to apply Scripture to their lives. I can take a project and break it down into manageable steps. I can take our vision to our people and say, "This is where we are going."
I know you aren't suppose to have favorites per se but my favorite book of the Bible is James. And the reason is because it is such a practical book. It's not just theory. It deals with everyday life of people who have trials. That's me and most of the people I know. And I love James 1:22. He tells us that we aren't just supposed to hear the word of God. We are supposed to do it. We've got to put it into action. If we don't then we are just deceiving ourselves. And in chapter 2, James tells that our faith has to be worked out in action. Being a follower of Jesus means
So, I've decided to play to my strengths and change my "catchphrase" from Ghramm Cracker Crumbs to hearing AND doing. I was chided recently that I've only been giving my leftovers when I send out the "crumbs." My goal is to consistently share God's Word in practical ways both on Sundays but also via my blog and weekly email to the folks at Gateway West. I don't want the people I care about just to hear and know God's Word but to live it out in their everyday lives.
So, are you playing to your strengths? Are you putting your faith into action? What has God been telling you? What are you doing about it?
Father, my desire and prayer is that You will use my strengths for Your glory and for the good of those around me. Amen!
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