From the moment you became a Christ follower you took on a special responsibility. Instead of living for your own glory, you get to glorify God. You can experience the joy of taking the blessings that He has provided and giving them back to Him for His honor.
Now, you might be wondering how you can glorify God with the talents He gave you. That’s a fair question. But before we look at how you can use your talents to glorify God, we need to examine what it means to be talented from God’s perspective.
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“Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves.”
Romans 12:10
Understanding Your Talents and Gifts
We serve a gracious God. While He has called us to honor Him in every aspect of our lives, He also has equipped us to accomplish His calling. He does that through two primary vehicles: our talents and our spiritual gifts. Often, we equate the two, but they really are different; and that difference is worth examining.
Talents are natural abilities that God has given to people regardless of their relationship with Him. Theologians call this “common grace,” a blessing that He simply pours out because He loves His created ones—even the ones who don’t acknowledge His goodness.
In contrast, spiritual gifts are bestowed by the Holy Spirit only on those who have accepted Christ as Lord and Savior of their lives (Romans 12:3-8; 1 Corinthians 12:1-11; Ephesians 4:1-16). The Bible makes it clear that God gives these gifts according to His plan and purposes. He also makes it clear that they are designed to build up the church.
But while talents and spiritual gifts are distinct, we can use both to make a difference for God’s kingdom. As a man who pursues Christ, you can discover how to use your talents to glorify God. You can learn how to glorify God with your works, along with your spiritual gifts.
How to use your talents for God’s glory
As you focus on how you can use your talents to glorify God, keep in mind that this is not an intellectual exercise. God gave you talents—as well as your spiritual gifts—to make a difference in the world. You are called to glorify God with the talents He gave you.
That’s a huge responsibility, but it’s also an awesome privilege. As you dig deeper into His Word, you’ll learn more about what He expects of you. In the meantime, here are four basics for using your talents to glorify God. (And, just to be clear, these same principles apply to understanding how to make the most of your spiritual gifts, as well.)
Discover your talents.
One of my favorite quotes is this gem from a Christian writer named Frederick Buechner: “The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.” In other words, the best way to find joy in life is to figure out where your God-given talents intersect the world’s needs. When you do that, you can glorify God with the talents He’s given you.
I believe that God speaks to His people in a variety of ways, including through His Word and through intentional prayer. So, consistent Bible study and time talking with Him are necessary for identifying your talents and gifts. I’m also convinced that He communicates through the voices of other, trustworthy believers. So, don’t be afraid to enlist family members and mentors in your search. Finally, He speaks through our circumstances, so pay attention to the doors He opens and how you can walk through them.
You also may be able to use specialized inventories and similar tools to identify your talents and gifts. The important thing is to remember that discovering what the Lord has placed in your hands is vital to learning how to use your talents to glorify God.
Put Your Talents to Good Use
Here’s an important truth about God: When He gives you talents, you’ll also get great opportunities to glorify God through the talents He gave you. Again, this is not an intellectual exercise. This is a practical application because the Christian life is based on action. You are called to serve others.
Your local church is a great place to start looking for ways you can use your talents to glorify God. Whatever talent God reveals to you, local churches have needs that you can help meet. At the same time, be alert in your community and look for chances to glorify God with your works. After all, the world needs the God-given talents you can provide.
Look for ways to partner with others
The Bible emphasizes that Christ followers are part of a body, and bodies are only healthy when all the parts are working together well. You can try to be a “lone ranger,” but that’s really not how God wired you or designed the church. Believers need each other, and strong partnerships allow us to use our talents to glorify God.
Some of these ministry partners may have the same talents (and spiritual gifts) as you. More likely, they have talents and gifts that complement what you have to offer. As you bring your talents to the table, God blends them into a powerful force for good in the world. By working together, you really can glorify God through the talents He gave you.
Express gratitude for your talents.
If you’re like me, you struggle with taking a lot of things for granted in your spiritual life, including your God-given talents. Instead of using talents to glorify God, we often lose focus and fixate on the benefits we can get from them. That’s the polar opposite of God’s purpose in giving us the talents!
Instead of looking at ourselves, we need to thank God for His grace and provision. As you learn to glorify God with your works, you should express your appreciation to Him. After all, you wouldn’t have those talents without Him, and they are meaningless if you disconnect the talents from the Giver of the talent.
Be a good steward of God’s talents
As you focus on how you can use your talents to glorify God, keep in mind that you’re a steward, a caretaker. The psalmist wrote that the world and everything in it belong to God (Psalm 24:1). He’s the Owner of it all. But He does allow us to use His possessions for His honor. A lot of times, we think about that in terms of money, but our talents (and gifts) fall into the same category.
Seeing yourself as a steward is a great way to stay humble and focused. It’s also an important part of learning how to glorify God with the talents He gave you.
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