Calling Upon Our Many Gifts and Abilities
Creating The Future Together
Part Three: Your Awakened Abilities Can Create the Future
“Each of us was born to bring forth something that has never existed: a way of being, a family, an idea, art, a community - something brand-new. We are here to fully introduce ourselves, to impose ourselves and ideas and thoughts and dreams onto the world, leaving it changed forever by who we are and what we bring forth from our depths. So we cannot contort ourselves to fit into the visible order. We must unleash ourselves and watch the world reorder itself in front of our eyes.”
— Glennon Doyle, author and activist
At Integral Christian Network, we offer a progressive, evolving understanding of Christianity, a dedicated community, and mystical practices that contribute to this reordering of the world. In addition, among other practices, we create this future through our awakened spiritual gifts. This series focuses on twenty-six gifts that may be currently recognized. There are certainly others, as well as new ones that are emerging among us.
My list of spiritual abilities differs from Paul's lists
The radical, first-century spiritual community founder, Paul, offered lists of spiritual gift abilities that were representative of the understanding of his day. I am offering an integral viewpoint that places some of these "gifts" listed in the New Testament in a more contemporary setting. I renamed some and eliminated others.
Earlier, I explained why I have eliminated the ability to interpret a prayer language. I have also eliminated miracles – not because miracles may not occur, but they are rare, except in some initial outbreaks of spirit-breath-consciousness. So, this is not widespread like the other abilities are.
Some gifts I have renamed, such as evangelists, which today are those who gather others into communities. Therefore, I prefer the term "gatherer" rather than "evangelist," which has been corrupted by traditional evangelicalism into a false narrative of "confess you are a sinner and believe Jesus is the only way to be saved from God's wrath."
Other spiritual abilities I add are Compassion, Deep Listening, Hospitality, Courage, and Transmission of Awakening. This makes a total of 26 spiritual abilities that I address, which you can see in full here.
Natural talents are abilities to do special things and can become spiritual gifts when used intentionally from a spiritual framework or an awakened consciousness. Some natural talents might be musical ability, carpentry, mechanical aptitude, and artistic skills. Natural talents are often the vehicle through which other spiritual gifts can be offered. For example, a Christian vocalist with a creative ability may also have the spiritual gift of encouraging others expressed through the vehicle of music.
Most importantly, other spiritual abilities not covered here are emerging within our ICN community and beyond. We hope some of these will be named as we continue to explore spiritual gift abilities.
It is helpful to be aware of the realm of spiritual abilities and how beneficial they are in our ICN mission of the loving evolution of Christianity and the world.
We may find some of these abilities more interesting than others, but it is good to value them all. Therefore, we will reflect on each of these spiritual gifts or abilities, some briefly, others more extensively because they are more complex. We will do it alphabetically so they can be more easily referenced.
These twenty-six only represent commonly recognized abilities, and we expect new ones to emerge. These new ones will come about as some notice an unnamed gift in themselves. Others notice a person who is helping us and the world with a special constellation of abilities that may constitute an emerging gift-ability that has yet to be named. Resonating prayer is a rich field of these very gifts.
The importance of spiritual gift abilities is widely recognized today in many strands of the Christian community. David Jeremiah, author of forty-six books and senior pastor of Shadow Mountain Community Church in El Cajon, California, writes, "You have inside you the capacity to invest your mental, emotional, and spiritual gifts in a way that glorifies God, impacts the world, and satisfies your own soul. I believe that, and I want you to believe it, too."
Rick Warren, American pastor and author, writes, "Your greatest fulfillment in life will come when you discover your unique gifts and abilities and use them to edify others and glorify the LORD. Your spiritual gifts were not given for your own benefit but for the benefit of others, just as other people were given gifts for your benefit."
As you reflect on the following gift abilities here and those in the next article, recognize the ones that may be yours. Most have several gifts, a cluster that helps others and the community as a whole to heal and evolve. Remember, "We have different gifts, according to the grace given us... let us use them in proportion to our faith" (Rom. 12:6). You are gifted in a unique way that is not comparable to others – so don't compare yourself to anyone!
Everyone Has A Cluster of Spiritual Gifts by Paul Fryer
Administration
This is the ability to help organize, plan, or coordinate a project or activity.
To those without this gift, it may seem boring or tedious. But that's because it is not your ability. To those with this gift, it is a joy to see things work in the harmonious way that only gifted administrators can accomplish.
The ability of administration empowers individuals in and outside of the Christian community to organize, plan, and coordinate various activities for helping organizations.
The gift-ability of administration empowers individuals to provide leadership, organization, and structure, ensuring that the evolving Christian path or helping organization can be effectively shared with the world while maintaining the integrity and well-being of that community. When exercised in humility and with a servant's heart, this gift can greatly contribute to the growth and vitality of the gathered Christian collective and beyond.
Cleansing
This is the ability to prayerfully aid in releasing another from oppressive negative energy.
Some interpret this as exorcism or "deliverance from evil spirits." I do not, because I consider the first-century understanding of evil spirits a primitive carryover from Zoroastrianism dating back to the early 2nd millennium BCE. So, in today's understanding, I believe "cleansing" frees someone from their psychic, emotional, and physical blocks to wholeness. I have done this successfully with others who thought they had an evil spirit a number of times over the years. The transmission of spiritual energy is the key to this and in Jesus' dealing with the "demons" of his day.
Community Founder (Apostle in New Testament)
This is the ability to begin new spiritual and life-enhancing communities.
We see this gift in the many spiritual, meditative, and helping communities offered globally today. ICN is one such collective, unique in that it was founded by a community of two people rather than a lone leader. The next stage after the founding stage is the growth stage, which we are beginning to enter now. Here, the community founders expand their leadership circle and encourage the emergence of many other creative circles throughout the community.
Compassion
This is the spiritual ability to offer empathy and help to those suffering pain or discomfort.
"Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind" (Phil 2:1-2).
“Compassion is even more powerful than courage. Sure, with courage you can conquer a world – but only with compassion can you heal and build it. ”
The action component separates compassion from pity, concern, condolence, sensitivity, tenderness, commiseration, or any other compassion synonym.
Compassion gets involved. When others keep their distance from those who are suffering, compassion prompts us to act on their behalf.
To have compassion means to empathize with someone who is suffering and to feel compelled to reduce the suffering. It's a fuller, truer definition than feelings alone and is a very biblical understanding.
They express love, grace, and dignity to those facing hardships and crises
and concern themselves with individual or social issues that oppress people.
Courage
This is the ability to help others to have strength and confidence in challenging circumstances.
"For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind" (2 Tim. 1:7).
This spiritual ability enables individuals to persevere through challenging circumstances, speak boldly about their beliefs, and face adversity with faith and resilience. While this concept is primarily associated with Christianity, courage is also valued as a virtue in many other religious and philosophical traditions.
Creative Ability by Paul Fryer
Creative Ability
This is the ability to express God's love and spiritual realities in an inspired way through the arts such as music, drama, dance, graphic arts, writing, painting, and crafts.
“Without tradition, art is a flock of sheep without a shepherd. Without innovation, it is a corpse.”
It also includes those who create new paths in evolutionary Christianity and in other spiritual paths.
We see the spiritual gift of creative ability first in the Bible, where "God has filled them with skill to do every kind of work done by an artisan or by a designer or by an embroiderer in blue, purple, and crimson yarns and in fine linen or by a weaver—by any sort of skilled worker or designer" (Ex. 35:35).
Marketplace Christians with the spiritual gift of creativity reveal the creative power and genius of God in the business world.
ICN is filled with creative people. It will be exciting to identify those creators.
“If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses. ”
Light When the Path is Difficult
Dedication
The spiritual gift-ability of dedication comes from a healthy, non-pathological place of openness and security as an unusually strong and unwavering commitment or devotion to one's spiritual beliefs, practices, or path. It often involves a deep sense of purpose in healing the world, and a willingness to invest time, effort, and energy into one's spiritual journey.
Deep Listening
This is the gift of hearing others in a profound and healing way.
ICNer Keith Schrag says that deep listening is "A way of joining with others without losing yourself." This both says what deep listening is and invites us to be aware of its potential shadow.
Harriet Lerner is a psychotherapist and author of numerous scholarly articles on the psychology of women and family relationships and twelve books, including The New York Times bestseller The Dance of Anger. From her extensive background, she pointedly asserts that:
"WHOLE-HEARTED LISTENING IS THE GREATEST SPIRITUAL GIFT
YOU CAN GIVE TO THE OTHER PERSON."
Which Path Is the Best for Me?
Discernment
This is seeing what is clearly life-giving or life-negating in a path, situation, statement, or environment.
The Greek word for the gift of discernment, diakrisis, describes being able to distinguish, discern, judge, or appraise a person, statement, or situation. This becomes a spiritual gift when it is done beyond rational thinking in mystical consciousness.
In his interpretation of this passage, John Chrysostom, an important fourth-century Church Father, says that these words mean the ability to tell who is spiritual and who is not.
“Don’t believe everything you think ”
I understand this as the spiritual ability to perceive what is life-giving or life-negating. This is understanding or knowing something through mystical consciousness rather than ordinary thinking consciousness.
True discernment only comes from those who operate with a humble attitude rather than the superiority of knowing better than others.
More next week about the remaining abilities on my suggested list.
You Have Come To Transform the World With Your Spiritual Gifts
Reflection
Which of these spiritual abilities may be yours?
Are there any you would like to explore more because they may be one of your spiritual abilities?
Which ones, while not your gifts, seem especially interesting to you.