WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT? As a follower of Jesus, exploring and exercising our spiritual gifts is a vital and exciting part of our spiritual journey. Paul writes, “There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord.” (1 Corinthians 12:4 NIV).

WHAT DO I DO? Here are some ideas:

• Teach. Small groups are a wonderful place to help members to discover, explore and put into practice their spiritual gifts.  You might consider taking time to do a study with the whole group to learn about spiritual gifts and how they really do work among the body especially in your local context.  Even if some of your participants know about the gifts they can really help to give first-hand testimony about their own gifts and how they have used them for the benefit of the local body and beyond.
• Inventory. Once you have done some teaching on spiritual gifts, it really is important to be sure to have them do a spiritual gifts inventory.  There are many spiritual gifts inventory tools on-line for free.  Be consistent and choose one so that everyone is using the same list and definitions of spiritual gifts.  Once everyone has completed the inventory, spend some quality time debriefing the results and give time for questions and further exploration.
• Utilize. It is now time to help participants launch and use their gifts.  It is important that, as a leader, you help facilitate opportunities for your group members to begin to utilize these precious gifts they have discovered.  Try and pair them with other believers who can walk with them in becoming a full partner in ministry as they learn to discover the joys of using their spiritual gifts.