What You Do Best/body of Christ Rev : Discover Your Spiritual Gifts, Personal Style, and God-Given Passion

by Bruce Bugbee

• ISBN13: 9780310257356
• ISBN10: 0310257352
• Edition: Revised
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2005-03-01
• Publisher: Ingram Pub Services

Summary

Now with discussion questions and assessment tools to help you determine your unique ministry fit.By the coauthor of the Network course materials developed at Willow Creek Community ChurchHave you found fulfillment in life? Can you say your ministry is fruitful? God has created you to be both fulfilled and fruitful in a meaningful place of service. You can discover your God-given design and the role he created for you in and through the local church.In What You Do Best in the Body of Christ, Bruce Bugbee helps you identify your God-given spiritual gifts, personal style, and ministry passion. And he shows how they point to your unique role and purpose in the body of Christ when they are expressed together. Drawing from biblical principles, this book provides proven tools and a conversational approach that will help you fulfill God's will for your life. You'll discover:Your God-given Spiritual Gifts indicate what you're equipped to do competentlyYour God-given Personal Style indicates how you can serve with energy and authenticityYour God-given Ministry Passion indicates where you're motivated to serveTogether, they indicate what you do best in the body of Christ!You will also better understand God's design for the church and your role within it.You'll find plenty of helpful charts and self-assessments-plus insights into the fallacies and pitfalls that can hinder your effectiveness. Start learning today what God wants you to do, and experience more enthusiasm, greater joy, and real significance in your life and ministry.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	7	(2)
Introduction	9	(124)
1. Does God Have a Purpose for My Life-Really?	13	(10)
2. Who Does God Say That I Am?	23	(8)
3. What's the Big Deal about Spiritual Gifts?	31	(16)
4. What Are My Spiritual Gifts?	47	(14)
5. How Do I Relate with My Personal Style?	61	(14)
6. Where Is My Passion?	75	(18)
7. How Do the Pieces Fit Together?	93	(10)
8. The Heart of the Matter!	103	(12)
9. So What's My Next Step?	115	(18)
10. Pull Up Stakes and Follow Him!	133	(8)
appendices
1. A Word to Leaders	141	(4)
2. Spiritual Gifts Experience Assessment	145	(12)
3. Network: The Right People...in the Right Places...for the Right Reasons...at the Right Time!	157	(2)
4. One Life at a Time...One Church at a Time	159	(6)
5. Network Ministries International	165	(4)
About the Author	169

Excerpts

What You Do Best in the Body of Christ, Revised and Expanded
Copyright © 1995, 2005 by Bruce Bugbee
First edition published 1995. Revised and expanded 2005
Requests for information should be addressed to:
Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49530
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Bugbee, Bruce.
What you do best in the body of Christ : discover your spiritual gifts, personal style,
and God-given passion / Bruce Bugbee.— Rev. and expanded.
p. cm.
Rev. and expanded ed. of: What you do best. c1995.
Includes index.
ISBN: 0-310-25735-2 (pbk.)
1. Gifts, Spiritual. 2. Lay ministry. 3. Pastoral theology. I. Bugbee, Bruce. What
you do best. II. Title.
BT767.3.B84 2005
253—dc22
2004020588
ISBN-13: 978-0-310-25735-6
This edition printed on acid-free paper.
All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible: New
International Version®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society.
Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations marked NASB are taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE ©,
Copyright © The Lockman Foundation 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975,
1977, 1995. Used by permission.
The website addresses recommended throughout this book are offered as a resource to you.
These websites are not intended in any way to be or imply an endorsement on the part of
Zondervan, nor do we vouch for their content for the life of this book.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system,
or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy,
recording, or any other—except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior
permission of the publisher.
Interior design by Sharon Van Loozenoord
Printed in the United States of America
05 06 07 08 09 10 /?DCI/ 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
I never thought it would happen. But it did. It was a dream come
true. I designed and built my own home!
I was raised in southern California. Then, after nearly thirty
years, I moved to a small town in northwest Iowa. Among many
special friendships was one with a carpenter named Gary. Before
long, with his help, I was actually considering the possibility of
building a new home. A design was agreed on, costs were explored,
a lot was purchased, and the house was built. We moved in just in
time for Thanksgiving.
While in the Midwest, I discovered that there really are four
seasons. Following the snowy winter came spring showers, and it
was time to landscape our new home. I went to the nursery and
bought trees, shrubs, and flowers. The lawn was planted and the
yard was set.
While most of my plants did really well, some died. I went back
to the nursery and got more. I planted them. They died too. One
afternoon I was in the yard explaining to my neighbor (actually complaining
about) how frustrated I was with my plants. I showed him
how some of them were doing really well while others kept dying.
He made a brilliant observation. He said, “These plants won’t
grow here!” (At that point, I figured he must be a college graduate.
He was able, so graphically, to articulate the obvious.)
I said, “Really?”
He went on to explain. “These plants require direct sunlight.
Have you ever noticed that the sun never shines within three feet
of the north side of your house? They should be placed where they
can get the sunlight they need to grow.”
It seemed so simple. Yet someone had to explain to me how God
had made each plant with different requirements. A plant needing
direct sun will perish or flourish, depending on the amount of sun
it receives. Another plant, requiring shade, will have its potential
destroyed in direct sunlight. When I understood what the plants
needed, it was not difficult to find an appropriate place for them.
So, the “bad” plants I had purchased were not really bad at all.
They were simply planted in the wrong place. In short, I had
learned two important and related gardening lessons: First, know
what a plant needs to flourish. Second, place it in the appropriate
environment.
Created with a Purpose in Mind
In my thirty years of ministry, I’ve discovered that many people
have had similar experiences in their lives. Like poorly planted
shrubs, they often feel misplaced. Maybe you’ve felt that way too.
Take a moment to check the statements below that apply to you:
_____ I feel that I am capable of accomplishing more than
I am presently achieving.
_____ I sense that God wants to use me in a meaningful
way, but I’m not sure how.
_____My frustration and confusion about not knowing
just what to do makes me less confident and
competent.
_____ I desire to be more fruitful and fulfilled, making a
difference with my life.
_____ I feel there must be something wrong with me
because I still have not been able to figure out what
I should be doing.
_____ I wish I knew God’s will for my life.
_____ I am often asked to do things I am not interested in
doing.
If you checked any or all of the statements above, then this book
is for you. In the pages that follow, you will find some practical
insights and helpful tools to assist you in two of the most important
aspects of your life: Identifying the particular person God has
made you to be; and discovering how you can be fruitful and fulfilled
in a meaningful place of service.
Are you in an environment that is enabling you to realize your
greatest potential? Maybe like the plant, you are not a bad Christian,
but you are unaware of what you need, and you aren’t sure
of the appropriate position from which your life could make an
impact on others.
At times, I have felt that there was something wrong with me
because I was not growing or developing in ways that those around
me expected. Have you heard the saying, “Bloom where you are
planted”? What happens when you aren’t blooming? There must
be something wrong with you—right? No, not necessarily.
God has created and designed us with a purpose in mind. We
are “wired” to care about some things more than others. We have
been given spiritual gifts to competently accomplish ministry tasks.
We have also been designed with a personal style of relating to others
and the world around us. We have been given a passion.
When you know your God-given spiritual gifts, personal style,
and ministry passion, then you’ll know what you need to be both
fruitful and fulfilled in your life and ministry.
The Tension
Most of us know that we should serve God. We know that God
not only desires, but commands us to serve (Galatians 5:13). And
we want to obey. We have a genuine desire to honor him by fulfilling
his purposes and plans for our lives. But many of us don’t
know how to serve. While we want to serve and know we should
serve, it has been difficult to find the places where we are able to
make our unique contributions. Rather than constantly “replanting”

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Excerpted from What You Do Best/body of Christ Rev: Discover Your Spiritual Gifts, Personal Style, and God-Given Passion by Bruce Bugbee
All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.