WHAT'S YOUR S.H.A.P.E.?

Years ago, I was introduced to Rick Warren's book: Purpose Driven Life. In it, he used an acrostic that he used to talk to people about how God had shaped them to serve Him in ministry. I used that acrostic in this message, that was preached at Grace Baptist Church in Westlake, OH on Sunday, August 23rd. Following the message, we handed out a ministry opportunity sheet, to encourage people to sign up for helping in various ministries, or at least getting more information about them. I was very encouraged that many, many people responded by filling out the survey. Some new people and some who have been here for a while, but have not been serving at all, are now going to step forward and give of themselves in ministry. Others have been serving, but are now going to give of themselves more, or change the direction of their service, in a way that fits the way God has shaped them to serve Him. That is exciting! May you be encouraged to study yourself, and see how God wants to use you, wherever you are, to glorify Him!

WHAT’S YOUR S.H.A.P.E.?

Please turn in your Bible to Ephesians 2. In the Bible in front of you, it is page 976.

We live in a selfish world, don’t we? A man from Illinois decided to travel to Wisconsin to go duck hunting. He shot and dropped a bird, but it fell into a farmer’s field on the other side of the fence. As the flatlander climbed over the fence, a dairy farmer drove up on his tractor and asked what was going on. The hunter said, “I shot a duck and I’m retrieving it.” The old farmer replied, “This is my property and you’re not coming over here!”Well, this made the hunter mad so he said, “If you don’t let me come over the fence I’ll call my Chicago lawyer and I’ll sue you.” The farmer smiled and said, “Apparently you don’t know how we do things up here. We settle disagreements with the Wisconsin three-kick rule. I’ll kick you three times, and then you kick me three times, and so on, back and forth, until someone gives up.”The man from Illinois liked this challenge because he thought he could easily take the old farmer. The Wisconsin Badger climbed down from the tractor and planted the steel toe of his heavy work boot into the man’s shin. The man fell to his knees. His second kick went directly to his stomach, knocking the wind out of him. The farmer than landed his third kick to the side of the hunter’s head. The disoriented man slowly got up and said, “Okay, you old codger, now it’s my turn!” To which the farmer responded, “Nah, I give up. You can have the duck.”

Why do we fight over things? The Bible tells us that it is because of our selfish motives. We want something and don’t have it, so few fight and quarrel. This is a part of our human nature. But, it is not what God created us to do. The Bible reminds us that we are each special creations of God; and that we are created to do special things for Him. And that would include resisting the urge to fight and quarrel and get our way; but instead to humbly serve other creations of God.Psalm 139:14-16 – “Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous – and how well I know it. You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the dark of the womb. You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.” – NLT

There are people who go through this life wondering if anyone cares. More than your spouse, more than your parents, more than your best friend, there is one that has cared for you from the very beginning: God. He made you; and He made you unique and special! He gave you your body type. He gave you your facial features. He gave you your personality. He gave you your life. And then, by the way, He also died for you, so that you might have eternal life – if you believe.

But that uniqueness that He has given you is not yours to use for your own special purposes. This is not for your enjoyment only. He made you unique, so that you could uniquely serve Him. Did you know that? You are in Ephesians 2, and there are some great verses that, perhaps, you have heard before; but I want you to notice a verse that often gets left out:

Ephesians 2:8,9 – “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”

Those are the verses many people have heard before. They are great verses. They tell us that the way we are saved is by grace, in other words, something we did not deserve. And that salvation, spending eternity with God in Heaven, is a gift, not something you can work for. If you could do enough good works, to receive eternal life, than you could boast about how great you are. But, that is not how God designed it.

Instead, because Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins, God offers eternal life as a free gift. However, we have to actually reach out and receive that gift. And how do we do that? As verse 8 said clearly: “saved through faith.” To receive the free gift of eternal life, we must accept what the Bible teaches about our sin, about God, about Jesus, and about how to trust in Him. That is a great message. But, many times, we leave out an equally important message, found in the very next verse:

Ephesians 2:10 – “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”

The word workmanship is from the Greek word poiema which literally means “work of art”, and is the root of our English word poem. I like how the New Living Translation says it: “For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.”

Let me get right to the main point of this morning’s message. I believe that God has shaped you in such a way, that you can use what He has already given you, to serve Him, to impact others eternally, for His glory! And I want to ask you to take the next several minutes, to think this through with me. But, I don’t want you just to learn something. I don’t want you to just leave this morning with a good feeling about being created uniquely. I desire that you would be motivated, to find out how God has shaped you for ministry, and then to be excited to either begin serving, or to continue serving, with a renewed passion.

This morning, I want us to see what the Bible has to say about how God has shaped us for ministry and I want to use an acrostic, using the letters that spell shape, to consider this truth. The shape acrostic was developed by Pastor Rick Warren of Saddleback Community Church in Orange County, California.

Please turn in your Bible to Romans 12. If you are using the Bible in front of you, it is page 948.

The first letter in the word SHAPE is S and that stands for:
Spiritual Gifts.
This is the first thing to consider as it relates to how God has shaped you to serve Him and others. Let me first, just make a couple observations about spiritual gifts. If you have ever studied or had discussions about spiritual gifts previously, then you know that there are many ideas out there about spiritual gifts. But, let’s focus on a few things that are clear:

I Corinthians 12:4-7,11 – “Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good…All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills.”

Let me make some observations here, about spiritual gifts, and these are in your notes:
· Everyone has a spiritual gift.
If you are a Christian, than you have a spiritual gift.
· They are given by the Holy Spirit
We don’t choose our gifts, but God chooses what to give us. Next:
· They are empowered by the Holy Spirit
These are not just physical abilities; but actual God empowered gifts
· There are a variety of spiritual gifts
We don’t all have the same gifts; and that was intended by God.
· The gifts are to be used for the good of the church
These are not for our own personal benefit, although there are benefits to using our gifts. They are to be used for God’s glory and in the lives of other people.

There are some lists of spiritual gifts in Ephesians 4, Romans 12 and I Corinthians 12. There are other places where some of these gifts and other abilities given by God are mentioned. Our purpose this morning is not to list and describe all of the gifts to you; but to make you aware that there are spiritual gifts and God has gifted you to serve Him. You are in Romans 12, so let’s take a look at one of those lists:

Romans 12:4-8 – “For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness.”

With this listing of some spiritual gifts, let’s make some other important observations:
· Use your gifts
God has given us our gifts so that we would use them. Important note: sometimes you don’t know what gift you have until you have discovered it through service. Did you know there are people who are not serving God in their church because they are waiting for their spiritual gift to be revealed? Don’t do that. Believe that God has gifted you, and it will be revealed in the right time. In most cases, it is revealed as people just simply get involved in something and serve. Try it!
I didn’t know God had given me the gift of being a pastor/teacher until He actually gave me opportunities to be in teaching/preaching situations. Then, not did I enjoy it, but other people recognized the gift as well. Next:
· Our gifts are gifts of grace
In other words, we don’t deserve these gifts, but God gave them to us. Keep that in mind as you think about what spiritual gift God has given you.
· You might be specially gifted in an area that everyone is to pursue
What does that mean? Well, if you have the gift of giving, that is great; and God will use you to a greater degree. However, the Bible is clear that we are all to be voluntary, joyful and sacrificial givers. If you have the gift of mercy, you will be used in a special way; but even without the gift, we are commanded by God to show mercy to others. Even if you don’t have the gift, God is asking you to pursue some of these things anyway.

Please turn in your Bible to Psalm 37. In the Bible in front of you, it is page 466.

The Apostle Paul was once a sinner who persecuted Christians, but he became a Christian, who gave everything he had to share the good news of Jesus Christ with others. He had the gift of teaching or preaching, communicating God’s truth in an understandable way. This is what he said:

Ephesians 3:7,8 – “Of this gospel I was made a minister according to the gift of God’s grace, which was given me by the working of his power. To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ.”

Paul knew it was a gift, that he didn’t deserve it, having received it through the power of God. He also saw the use of it as a grave responsibility, to use this gift to communicate God’s truth to those who did not previously know Him. So, what about you? Are you serving with the knowledge that God has greatly gifted you?

The next letter in our acrostic is H and that stands for:
Heart
Another word for heart could be “passion”. This is a little more difficult to figure out than a list of spiritual gifts. But, this is the motivation that God has placed inside of you, that can help you figure out what He has called you to do. One way to consider this is to just ask yourself:
· What has God laid on my heart to do for Him? Only you can answer that; but if you will sincerely ask that question and pray, God might reveal it to you. You see: God is the one who gives you the desires of your heart.

Psalm 37:4 –“Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart.”

Does this mean that if you follow after God, He will grant your ever selfish desire? No, I believe it means that if you follow hard after God, He will actually give you the right desires that are in your heart; so that you will desire what is good, and what is best. Another way to figure this out, is to listen to yourself. What do I mean?

Matthew 12:34 – “…For out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.”

What is in our hearts, comes out of our mouths. So, ask yourself this question as well:
· What do I talk about, that has to do with other’s needs or ministry for God?
If you will take time to listen to yourself or ask others to do some listening. Your heart for ministry just might be revealed as you talk about what excites you and what desires you have to do something for God. It was when I was 13, that I sensed in my heart that God was calling me into some type of full time ministry. But, later on, God gave me a heart for people, to pastor people, to teach God’s Word to people. And I began talking about, and having this incredible burden on my heart to serve God in that way.

Please turn in your Bible to Exodus 31. It is the 2nd book of the Bible.

Max Lucado, in his book Cure for the Common Life, writes: “Da Vinci painted one Mona Lisa, Beethoven created one Fifth Symphony, and God made one version of you. You’re it! You’re the only you there is. And if we don’t get you, we don’t get you. You’re the only shot we have at you. You can do something no one else can do in a fashion no one else can do it. You are more than a coincidence of chromosomes and heredity, more than just an assemblage of somebody else’s lineage. You are uniquely made…

But can you be anything you want to be? If you are uniquely made – now stop and think about this - if you’re uniquely made , can you really be anything you want to be? If you don’t have the sense that takes care of numbers, can you be an accountant? If you don’t have a love for the dirt, can you be a farmer? If you don’t have an appreciation and a devotion to kids, can you really be a teacher? Well, you can be an unhappy one, an unsatisfied one. You can be one of the 87 percent of the workforce that doesn’t like their work – one of the 80 percent of the people that says ‘I don’t use my talents on a daily basis.’ You can be a statistic…Can you be everything you want to be? I don’t think so. But can you be everything God wants you to be? I do think so. And you do become that by discovering your uniqueness.”

That is what thinking through this SHAPE is all about. How has God shaped me for ministry? Let’s continue with the next letter in the word SHAPE: A

Abilities
This refers to natural talents you were given at birth, or that you were able to develop, that can be used for serving God and others. Some people look down on themselves and don’t think they have any abilities. But, national studies have proven that the average person possesses form 500-700 skills. Maybe they aren’t what you consider to be important; but even little ones can be used greatly by God.
A couple things to recognize about our abilities:

· They are God given
Every ability we have, even if we want to argue that it was developed, was still given to us by God. In Exodus 31, we read about how God gave men abilities so that they could then turn around and serve God with them.

Exodus 31:1-6 – “The LORD said to Moses, See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with ability and intelligence, with knowledge and all craftsmanship, to devise artistic designs, to work in gold, silver, and bronze, in cutting stones for setting, and in carving wood, to work in every craft. And behold, I have appointed with him Oholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, And I have given to all able men ability, that they may make all that I have commanded you.”

God gave these men the ability to make these things, so that they could construct the tabernacle, where people would worship God. There are many other examples in the Bible of people using their abilities for God. In his book: Purpose Driven Life, Rick Warren gives a brief list: “Articistic ability; architectural ability, administering, baking, boat making, candy making, debating, designing, embalming, embroiderings, engraving, farming, fishing, gardening, leading, managing, masonry, making music, making weapons, needle work, paining, planning, philosophizing, macinability, inventing, carpentry, sailing, selling, being a soldier, tailoring, teaching, writing literature and poetry.” The Bible says:

I Corinthians 12:6 – “There are different abilities to perform service, but the same God gives ability to all for their particular service.”- TEV

And so it is with you. But, not only are these abilities God given:

· They are to be used for God’s glory

The Apostle Peter writes about using the abilities, these gifts God has given us, so that God will be glorified:

I Corinthians 10:31 – “…whatever you do, do all for the glory of God.”

I Peter 4:11 – “…whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies – in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ…”

We have got to remember that this is really what the idea of serving is all about. We serve with the abilities God has given us, so that we can point people to Him.

Please turn in your Bible to Romans 8. In the Bible in front of you, it is page 944. The next letter is P and stands for:

Personality
Some people are introverts and some are extroverts. Some think a lot and some feel a lot. But, regardless of your personality, one thing is for sure:
· It is God given
Sometimes we focus too much on why people are a certain way, and forget that God gave us our personalities, and that is one of the ways he has shaped us for ministry. The Apostle Paul, who we mentioned earlier, said this about himself:

I Corinthians 15:10 – “By the grace of God I am what I am…”
It is by God’s grace, that each of us has been given our personalities. Think about the different disciples of Jesus, and the various personalities they had. God used people who were outgoing and talkative and he used people that seemed to be introspective and given over to discouragement easily. Therefore, when we look at our own personality, we must:

· Be thankful and use it for God’s glory
It is tempting for us to question God as to why He made us the way he made us. I admit to you, that I have often wondered why God gave me the personality He gave me; and I have sinned in coveting other people’s personalities. I can’t do that. Paul wrote in:

Romans 9:20 – “But who are you, O man, to answer back to God? Will what is molded say to its molder, Why have you made me like this?”

God created you with your personality, so be thankful for it, embrace it, and use it to glorify Him.

There is one more thing to consider as you learn how you were shaped by God to serve Him. It is the E and it stands for:
Experiences
Sir Edmond Hillary on May 19, 1953, and his Sherpa guide, Tenzing Norgay, reached the top of Mount Everest. The first two people ever to literally be, on top of the world. After Hillary had climbed Mount Everest, be became an overnight celebrity. He was knighted by Queen Elizabeth. His name became a household word. He even became a spokesperson for Sears-Robuck and company. And his name appeared on sleeping bags, tents, and boot laces.And He could have lived in his little dwelling of success for the rest of his life.But he didn’t! What did he do? He went back to Nepal. Back to those people, the Sherpas, whom he had grown to know and appreciate and respect and love. And he was also using his fame to bring them help. In his speech some years ago, Hillary recounted how an elderly Sherpa from Khumjung village, the hometown of most of the Sherpas on his Everest ascent, had come to him a few years after that expedition and said, "Our children lack education. They are not prepared for the future. What we need more than anything is a school in Khumjung."So Hillary established the Himalayan Trust, and in 1961 a three-room schoolhouse was built in Khumjung with funds raised by Hillary. In its first decade the fund focused on education and health. Since then the trust has built 27 schools, two hospitals and 12 medical clinics, plus numerous bridges and airfields, and also reforesting valleys and slopes in the many areas of Nepal.He would spent more than half the year traveling the world, raising money for the trust and supervising the various projects undertaken with the funds he’s raised.And he has continued doing this for more than thirty years. The experiences of our lives lead us to find out how God has shaped us for ministry. Things we never thought we would do, because of unexpected experiences, we find ourselves doing. And this is how God designed it.

Perhaps you have already seen a theme for each of these aspects of being shaped for ministry? It is no different here:

· They are God given for our good

It is sometime hard to believe that, but all of our experiences are able to be used by God to help us to grow and to impact others for Him:

Romans 8:28 – “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good…”

Purpose Driven Life gives some good questions to ask yourself, about your life’s experiences:
1. Family experiences: What did you learn growing up in your family?
2. Educational experiences: What were your favorite subjects in school?
3. Vocational experiences: What jobs have you been most effective in and enjoyed most?
4. Spiritual experiences: How have you served God in the past?
5. Painful experiences: What problems, hurts, thorns and trials have you learned from?

Turn over 2 more books, in your Bibles, to II Corinthians 12.

Aldous Huxley said: “Experience is not what happens to you. It is what you do with what happens to you.” What will you do with what you’ve been through? Don’t waste your pain; use it to help others.” The other thing to consider about our experiences is that:

· They produce the power of God, working in and through us

The Apostle Paul went through some very touch life experiences; and one of those was some very serious physical pain. Some of you might have experience this in your life. Paul pleaded with God to take the pain away, but instead God said this:

II Corinthians 12:9 – “But he said to me, My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”

Part of finding your shape for ministry is to see how God has used past experiences, good or bad, to make you what you are; and to give you something to share with others, for their good. If you have been through a particular life experience, who better to minster to someone who is now going through the same thing…than you? Nobody!

Rick Warren asks: “Who could better minister to the parents of a Down Syndrome child than another couple who have a child afflicted in the same way? Who could better help an alcoholic recover than someone who fought that demon and found freedom? Who could better comfort a wife whose husband has left her for an affair than a woman who went though that agony herself?”

I realize there that are so many more things we could look at here, as it relates to being shaped for ministry. But, I think you have enough…enough to consider, to pray about, and to act on. Use this acrostic to evaluate how you have been serving in the past, how you are serving now; and to consider how you should serve in the future. It is possible that you are in the wrong spot, given the SHAPE for ministry God has assigned you. It may be that you are not doing enough, or that you are doing too much. It may be that you need to start a new ministry. I have had people come to me, over the years, and give me a burden that God has laid on their heart. When they do that, I ask them to consider that the reason God has laid that burden on them is because he wants them to do something specific for Him. What about you? Would you take time to pray and answer this question? As it relates to the message you have heard today:

WHAT IS YOUR NEXT STEP?

I am going to ask you to consider applying this message, in a particular way, right now. The ushers are coming to pass out a list to you. I encourage everyone to take one. What is the next thing, as it relates to ministry, that God is asking you to do. This is not a pastor’s job, to do everything. In fact, the Bible is clear. Instead of trying to do all the ministries, we are responsible to help you identify your shape for ministry and train you to be involved in serving God with us here. So, although God might call you to serve Him in other places or ways, there is at least one thing we can do for you as a church; and that is to let you know what kinds of service opportunities are available right here.