Yesterday, our pastor invited me up to the pulpit/cafe table to have a little discussion.  It was preplanned, so it wasn’t like I didn’t know about it, but the only thing I knew I’d say that morning was my opening line of humor. It went a little something like this:

Pastor, I’ve been thinking about what I was going to say when you asked me to join you.  I’ve been studying S.H.A.P.E. and spiritual gifts for a while, and so I’ve been investigating what exactly is my SHAPE, and then this morning while I was shaving, it came to me.  My S.H.A.P.E. is round.

It got the good laugh I was hoping for, so the rest of the time I just spouted off what came to mind, and I hope it made some sort of sense.  The morning was enjoyable, with encouragement from my Sunday School classmates, and later from my wife.  I borrowed a bit from the skit that was performed during our worship selections, as I told a semi-biography and not knowing what my spiritual gift was until I started being a real-live grown up church member, and then my gifting became apparent. 

A mix of teaching (which is really a love of studying) with a bit of prophesy (truth telling) is where I feel the Holy Spirit using me the most.  I pray that it edifies and builds up the body when I open my mouth, and words come out.  Because sometimes, before that mouth opens, I have no idea what I’m about to say.

Same thing happened at small group last night, when the DVD stopped playing, and I jumped up (not literally, didn’t want to shake the foundations of the house) and started expounding on Spiritual Gifts… but that is another post.