Spiritual Gifts

All posts tagged Spiritual Gifts

I Want THAT Gift!

Posted by Jim Thornber on December 1, 2013
Posted in: Christian Spirituality, Religion, Scripture. Tagged: , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

 “It is the one and only Spirit who distributes all these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have”– 1 Corinthians 12:11

gift_crop380wFor many people, the Christmas season is their favorite time of year. The time spent with family, the abundance of favorite foods, and of course the opening of gifts all make this holiday special.

When I was a kid, I was so keen on getting gifts I would often peel back the wrapping paper to get a peak at what was underneath (and I’ll bet you did, too). After all the gifts were unwrapped on Christmas morning, I would head outside to gather with my friends and compare gifts which, in Southern California, inevitably included a few new bikes, a skateboard or two and usually one remote-controlled car. However, it seemed to me that no matter how cool my gifts were, there was always some other gift my friends had that I envied. I guess they felt the same, because we usually ended up playing with the other person’s gifts more than our own.

What bothers me is how often I have this same attitude towards the gifts the Holy Spirit has wisely given to me. Instead of enjoying and showing gratitude for the gifts God has graciously given me, I find myself desiring “other” gifts – gifts I see in people that I, with self-proclaimed omniscience abounding, deem more successful than I am. I figure if I had their gifts then I, too, could have what they have: house, car, job, successfully published book, prestige. You know, all those items that are destined to perish. Continue Reading

Pastor Permission Giver

Posted by Jim Thornber on January 12, 2011
Posted in: Christian Spirituality, Publishing, Religion. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . 3 Comments

For four years I was a protestant minister AND a monk with the Brothers and Sisters of Charity. This is an excerpt from my  book Taking Off My Comfortable Clothes: Removing Religion to Find Relationship.

As a pastor, I like to tell my congregation that I want to be known as “Pastor Permission Giver.” I want to give people permission to use their gifts, talents and passions for God, regardless of what they are. I figured if God gave a person the gift to paint pictures, then there was some way for that person to glorify God through those paintings. Others might have the gift to learn languages, enjoy working with mentally handicapped adults (my mom has that gift), or write music. Whatever gift you have, it has not been given to you by mistake, and the Creator of your gifts has granted you permission to use your gifts and passions in His Church. And if the church you’re attending can’t find a place for you and your passions, THEN GO FIND ONE THAT WILL!  I did.

The Church has too often become a place where amateurs and beginners have no place to practice their gifts and talents. That’s a shame, because the Church should be the safest place in the world to practice our gifts, make a mistake, know you are safe, and try again. Continue Reading

Knowing My Assignment

Posted by Jim Thornber on May 21, 2010
Posted in: Christian Spirituality, Religion. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 7 Comments

“No one can receive anything unless God gives it from heaven.” John 3:27

I was sitting in church the other day when the pastor read this verse from John. Naturally, I respected his sermon by immediately tuning him out and writing my own notes. As most of you know, there are usually two sermons we hear on Sunday—the one the pastor preaches, and the one we preach to ourselves on the way home. For my own rude reasons, I didn’t even wait to get into the car before I was preaching to myself.

For me, the dilemma isn’t that I don’t know my assignment, but how to say no to those things I know are close to my assignment. For example, I know my God-given gift is to teach Scripture, but that’s a very broad canvas, so I’ll focus it. My gift is to teach Scripture to believers. That’s better, but let’s focus it further. My gift is to teach Scripture to adult believers. Ahh, that’s even better. But let’s go a step further. My gift is to teach Scripture to adult believers who have a passion to become sold-out disciples of Jesus of Nazareth.

Because I understand my gifts, I don’t have to say “Yes” to teaching children’s church or the invitation to be a youth minister. I’m not interested in going to China as a missionary, starting an inner-city work, or teaching social studies in the local middle school. Those are all close, but not close enough. Knowing my assignment means I can say “No” to those things that are not my heavenly gifts. Continue Reading

But Lord, I Want THAT Gift

Posted by Jim Thornber on December 21, 2009
Posted in: Christian Spirituality, Religion, Spiritual Gifts, Writing. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , . 3 Comments

“It is the one and only Spirit who distributes all these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have” – 1 Corinthians 12:11 (NLT)

For many people, the Christmas (or Chanukah) season is their favorite time of year. The time spent with family, the abundance of favorite foods, and of course the opening of gifts all make this holiday special.

When I was a kid, I was so keen on getting gifts I would often peel back the wrapping paper to get a peak at what was underneath (and I’ll bet you did, too). After all the gifts were unwrapped, I would head outside to gather with my friends and compare gifts which, in Southern California, inevitably included a few new bikes, a skateboard or two and usually one remote-controlled car. However, it seemed to me that no matter how cool my gifts were, there was always some other gift my friends had that I envied. I guess they felt the same, because we usually ended up playing with the other person’s gifts more than our own.

What bothers me is how often I have this same attitude towards the gifts the Holy Spirit has wisely given to me. Instead of enjoying and showing gratitude for the gifts God graciously gave me, I find myself desiring “other” gifts – gifts I see in people that I, with self-proclaimed omniscience abounding, deem more successful than I am. I figure if I had their gifts then I, too, could have what they have: house, car, job, published book, prestige. You know, all those items that are destined to perish. But by doing so, all I’ve really done is whine, tell God I don’t like my gifts and, in a not-so-subtle manner, suggest He made a mistake. Continue Reading

New Pastor, New Responsibilities

Posted by Jim Thornber on October 1, 2009
Posted in: Spiritual Gifts. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , . 5 Comments

Pastor Jim signLook at that picture. Yep, that’s me. “Pastor” Jim Thornber. Even though I see the title, I truly do not comprehend the immensity of it all.

In a previous article called Saying Goodbye To My Beautiful Title, I wrote, “It is amazing how complete is the delusion that titles equals significance.” I’m not any more significant now that I’ve got a title once again – I’m more responsible.

Before my election as pastor, only a handful of people looked to me for wisdom, advice, direction, guidance, vision, counseling, etc. Now an entire church is waiting for waterfalls of wisdom to come pouring out. And that thought makes me want to crawl into a hole and hide.

Being a pastor of a church is a calling that is bigger than any one person. No single individual can be the leader of a congregation. Therefore, the local church needs every member to use their gifts for the Kingdom’s sake or we will never fulfill the King’s agenda. As I try to wrap my brain around the enormous task ahead of me, I realize that now, more than ever, I need every gift and talent God has brought to this small congregation He has guided me to. And your church needs you, too.

After installation service, with Bishop Drake. A good looking couple, eh?

After installation service, with Bishop Drake. A good looking couple, eh?

After I found out I was the pastor of Cathedral of Praise, I wrote on my Facebook page, “Pastoring is not an arrival. It is just a pulling into the station of your destination where the real work begins.” There is a lot of work ahead of us in our small congregation. But even if you are part of a mega-church, you still have a part to play. I encourage you to find your part and use your God-given gifts for God’s glory. And believe me when I tell you, your pastor will appreciate it.

Scriptures That Bother Me — 1 Corinthians 12:11

Posted by Jim Thornber on September 18, 2009
Posted in: Christian Spirituality, Religion, Spiritual Gifts. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , . 4 Comments

But Lord, I Want THAT Gift

“It is the one and only Spirit who distributes all these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have” – 1 Corinthians 12:11 (NLT)

giftsFor many people, the Christmas (or Chanukah) season is their favorite time of year. The time spent with family, the abundance of favorite foods, and of course the opening of gifts all make this holiday special.

When I was a kid, I was so keen on getting gifts I would often peel back the wrapping paper to get a peak at what was underneath (and I’ll bet you did, too). After all the gifts were unwrapped, I would head outside to gather with my friends and compare gifts which, in Southern California, inevitably included a few new bikes, a skateboard or two and usually one remote-controlled car. However, it seemed to me that no matter how cool my gifts were, there was always some other gift my friends had that I envied. I guess they felt the same, because we usually ended up playing with the other person’s gifts more than our own.

What bothers me is how often I have this same attitude towards the gifts the Holy Spirit has wisely given to me. Instead of enjoying and showing gratitude for the gifts God graciously gave me, I find myself desiring “other” gifts – gifts I see in people that I, with self-proclaimed omniscience abounding, deem more successful than I am. I figure if I had their gifts then I, too, could have what they have: house, car, job, published book, prestige. You know, all those items that are destined to perish. But by doing so, all I’ve really done is whine, tell God I don’t like my gifts and, in a not-so-subtle manner, suggest He made a mistake. Continue Reading

Permission Granted

Posted by Jim Thornber on January 26, 2009
Posted in: Christian Spirituality, Religion. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

This is another excerpt from my hopefully-soon-to-be-released book Taking Off My Comfortable Clothes. The book is about the lessons I learned as an Assemblies of God minister living as a monk with the Brothers and Sisters of Charity at the Little Portion Hermitage. This excerpt is from my chapter Embracing My Illusions (Calling).

When I was a pastor in Tahlequah, OK, I used to tell my congregation that I wanted to be known as “Pastor Permission Giver.” I wanted to give people permission to use their gifts, talents and passions for God, regardless of what they were. I figured if God gave a person the gift to paint pictures, then there was some way for that person to glorify God through those paintings. Others might have the gift to learn languages, or enjoy working with mentally handicapped adults (my mom has that gift), or write music. Whatever gift you have, it has not been given to you by mistake, and the Creator of your gifts has granted you permission to use your gifts and passions in His Church. And if your church can’t find a place for you and your passions, THEN GO FIND ONE THAT WILL!  I did.

The Church has too often become a place where amateurs and beginners have no place to practice their gifts and talents. That’s a shame, because the Church should be the safest place in the world to practice our gifts, make a mistake, know you are safe, and try again. There are no unique talents and gifts in the Church. Whatever is on your heart, you can find someone to mentor you in that area of your heart’s desire. I may have been the world’s only Assemblies of God monk, but I was not the only monk in the world, and I was surrounded by people who knew my heart and understood my passions.  Furthermore, God was not treating me special because I was the only Protestant in a Catholic community. His goal for me at the Little Portion is the same as it is for you today — He wants you to become the best you can be by putting Jesus first in every part of your life.

So what is my purpose for including this chapter? I want to give you permission to follow your dreams, express your passion for living and do what you know God has called you to do. I want you shed the baggage of your illusions, find someone who has who has traveled a similar path and learn from their wisdom, and then go out and change your world because you have been changed by Christ.

Scriptures That Bother Me — Matthew 14:25

Posted by Jim Thornber on December 22, 2008
Posted in: Christian Spirituality, Religion, Spiritual Gifts. Tagged: , , , , , , , . 7 Comments

“Most people are bothered by those passages of Scripture they do not understand, but the passages that bother me are those I do understand.” – Mark Twain


Jesus Does Not Need My Boat

Matthew 14:25 says, “During the fourth watch of the night Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake.” This seems like a straightforward Scripture, but the part that challenges me is this: Jesus does not need my boat.

Our “boat” is anything we possess that enables us to do our job, fulfill our calling and arrive at out God-chosen destination. It could be our experiences, titles, education, salary, family connections or possessions. But Jesus, after making the disciples get into the boat and encounter a storm, walked across the water to be with them. Jesus did not need their boat.

Too often we (which means, of course, primarily me!) assume that God has brought us to this certain place, endowed us with these certain gifts, allowed us to experience those particular things because He is going to use them for this particular purpose. But we deceive ourselves when we think we have the plans of God all figured out. Jesus does not need our boat.

There was a time, of course, when Jesus chose to use our boat. In Luke 5:1-3, Jesus used Peter’s boat in order to teach the crowds that had gathered around Him. Afterward, Jesus instructed Peter to go back out and fish, even though they had fished all night and caught nothing. Their catch after obeying the Lord was so large it almost sank Peter’s boat (Luke 5:7).

Later in our walk with Jesus, He shows us He has other means of accomplishing the purposes of God for our life. He wants us to grow beyond the safety and security of our “known” talents and abilities. Jesus wants us to learn that just about the time we think we’ve got the methods and motives of God figured out, He purposely sends us into a storm so that He can scare the wits out of us by appearing in a form we least expect.

Sometimes the storm is a financial scare so He can appear in the form of our Provider. We thought we were providing everything for our family, but God reminds us that everything we have comes from Him (1 Chron. 29:14).

Other times we think it is our education or vocational connections that will land us that career we’ve always wanted, but then a call comes from someone we don’t know and we enter into a career we never imagined.

After four years of Bible College and two years of completing a Masters in Ministry, I’m finding that everything I thought I knew about being a pastor has brought me headlong into a storm that seems to be taking me further and further from the shore of church “ministry.” For some reason, I find that my life’s testimony is more effective on a construction site than in a church classroom, and unsaved men are changing their behavior because I walk into a room. However, I know it is not me they are responding to, but the Jesus within me.

Only now am I starting to realize that Jesus doesn’t need my boat-my education, teaching techniques, study habits, etc.-to lead me in His direction. And to tell you the truth, the vision I am now getting of God is scary, amazing, and unknowable all at the same time. I sometimes feel like I’m in the middle of a lake, pulling against the oars and drifting further and further from my goal. However, I know that one day I will arrive on the shore of His choosing, at the time of His appointing, to do the work of His anointing. We may not arrive there in my boat, but we will arrive there just the same.