God’s Imprint on Our Lives Fearfully & Wonderfully Made …we were made for God’s glory, pleasure & purpose “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” Psalm 139:13-14 Train up a child in the way he should go [and in keeping with his individual gift or bent], and when he is old he will not depart from it. Proverbs 22:6

Review  God is responsible for forming us, developing us, and fashioning us in our mother’s womb.  God has put the child’s parts together, as one who weaves cloth or who makes a basket. From conception to birth, God miraculously and with microscopic specificity, created us. From the splicing of our DNA through cell division, to the beating of our heart, God created us for a purpose  God fashioned us with great skill and care

Review  The chances of single cell life occurring on one planet exceeds the number of atoms in the universe! In simple terms, IMPOSSIBLE!  If our Heavenly Father created us, we should have an “attachment” to Him, like a child is attached to his or her mother  Consequently, every man, woman and child has a “God- shaped hole” in their heart that can only be filled by an intimate, living relationship with our Creator.

A Handiwork with a Bent! “For we are God’s [own] handiwork (His workmanship), recreated in Christ Jesus, [born anew] that we may do those good works which God predestined (planned beforehand) for us [taking paths which He prepared ahead of time], that we should walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us to live].” Ephesians 2:10 (AMP) “Train up a child in the way he should go [and in keeping with his individual gift or bent], and when he is old he will not depart from it.” Proverbs 22:6 (AMP) “Bent”: (noun) A natural inclination; strong tendency to react to something in a specific manner; disposition

Our “Bent”? What does it mean to “have a bent”? How does it help us? How does it hinder us? Charles Towne Landing: “Adventure”

Your Personality/Your Temperament How does God prefer to work in this world? Through whom does He desire to serve others and tell the Good News? “Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed and made appointment with them. And when they saw Him, they fell down and worshiped Him; but some doubted. Jesus approached and, breaking the silence, said to them, All authority (all power of rule) in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Go then and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Teaching them to observe everything that I have commanded you, and behold, I am with you all the days (perpetually, uniformly, and on every occasion), to the [very] close and consummation of the age. Amen (so let it be).” Matthew 28:16-20 (AMP) Does God want to use you? Do you know anyone just like yourself? Why did God make you singularly unique?

What do we know about the differences between the 12 apostles?  Phillip  Andrew  James  John  Peter  Nathaniel (Bartholomew)  Matthew  Thomas  James the Less  Simon the Zealot  Thaddeus (Jude)  Judas Iscariot  Mathias “So one of the men who have accompanied us during all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, beginning from the baptism of John until the day when he was taken up from us—one of these men must become with us a witness to his resurrection.” Acts 1:21-22  Paul The Apostles…12 Different People!

Your Personality/Your Temperament God has given you a temperament suited for your ministry. God give each of us a unique personality through which He accomplishes His purposes and plans. Your personality is defined as the innate temperament God gave you so that you could relate to others and respond to opportunities in a manner that matches what He has destined for you. God’s preferred method of working in the world is to do ministry through people…and God uses all different personalities to accomplish His purposes.

The Trinity What is meant by “God in Three Persons”? Does each member of the Holy Trinity have different role? A different function? A different uniqueness for advancing the Kingdom of God?  God the Father: Creates the Plan  God the Son: Implements the Plan  God the Holy Spirit: Administers the Plan The Father designed and organized how mankind would be redeemed (Galatians 4:4-5). He set into motion a complex set of events, actions, and prophecies which culminated in the life and death of a Savior.Galatians 4:4-5 The Son carried out the plan (John 6:37-38). He followed the Father's instructions to come to earth, even though that meant He would have to die.John 6:37-38 The Holy Spirit sees to it that every person feels a call toward God's saving grace (John 14:26, John 16:8; Romans 1:19-20). Furthermore, He transforms the lives and hearts of those who receive salvation through Jesus Christ.John 14:26John 16:8Romans 1:19-20

The Trinity “The Bible does tell us that God has shown himself to us in three distinct ways. First, he has shown us that he is our father. Like our earthly fathers (but in a far greater way), he brought us into being, and he loves us and protects us and takes care of us. But God also has shown himself to us in the person of Jesus Christ, who was God in human flesh and came to earth for a distinct reason: to make it possible for us to be with him in heaven forever. Our sins separate us from God — but by his death on the cross, Jesus Christ became the complete sacrifice for our sins. God also comes to us in a third way — by his Holy Spirit, who lives within us when we put our faith and trust in Christ.” - Billy Graham

In Christ We Have “Real” Personalities “There are no real personalities apart from God. Until you have given up your self to Him you will not have a real self. Sameness is to be found most among the most 'natural' men, not among those who surrender to Christ. How monotonously alike all the great tyrants and conquerors have been; how gloriously different are the saints.” – C.S. Lewis What do you think C.S. Lewis meant by that statement?

Hard or Soft Tendencies In relating to others day to day, we are shifted to one extreme or the other…being hard on others or soft on others; or being hard on problems or soft on problems. How would you characterize Jesus in terms of being “balanced”? When was Jesus hard? When was Jesus soft? Was Jesus hard or soft on people? Was Jesus hard or soft on people’s problems?

Finding Your Balance Point Sometimes we are relating to our spouse, sometimes our children, sometimes our friends, sometimes our co-workers…and in each relationship we may approach each differently and at different times, or we may leans one way or another in many of our relationships. We are not locked into a specific place but can adjust and grow and learn to find balance. We are going to conduct a “Hardside/Sofside Evaluation”. Example: Takes the lead Follower

Which Way Are You Bent? As God’s human creation, we tend to express our bent clearly. In all the personality tests administered in the market place, there are four natural bents that people display. By examining our inclinations, our strong tendencies, we can discover our own personal strengths, and in the process we can begin to recognize and value another’s personal strengths. Two tend to lean toward the “hard side” and two tend to lean toward the “soft side”. Almost without exception, our weaknesses are simply a reflection of our strengths being pushed to an extreme.

Discover Your Personality Strengths How can discovering more about our natural bents help us see the love of Christ in a clearer, deeper way?  The way Jesus dealt with others demonstrated that he had the strengths of all four basic personalities held in balance. Seeing those bents in perfection and practice in His person can both challenge us and draw us closer to Him that ever before.  We better identify and understand our imbalances and weaknesses and work toward bringing a healthier balance into our lives so we can minister more effectively.  We learn how He reached out to His Father’s diverse and unique “children” and that in turn we can better pray for more Christ-like responses to those whose paths we cross.

Personal Strengths Survey Instructions:  You will be presented with four boxes containing words and phrases.  Circle the words and phrases in each box that most seem to describe a consistent character trait of yours.  You will then add up all the circles in each box and then multiply each box total by 2.  Then you will graph your scores.  Then we will identify your strengths, your bent, your tendency in a fun and creative way that will help you see how God created you!

Personal Strengths Survey  The boxes are labeled “L”, “O”, “G”, and “B”. Determined Firm Purposeful Competitive Leader Self-reliant Adventurous Takes charge Assertive Bold Enterprising Decision maker Goal Driven Enjoys challenges “Let’s do it now.” Total x 2 = ____________ L For example: 8 x 2 = 16

Personal Strengths Survey  You will graph your “score” (for each box) and each person will be represented by a “line” with peaks and valleys. For example: Total LOGB ************** ************** ************** **************

The Lion This personality likes to lead. The lion is good at making decisions and is very goal-oriented. They enjoy challenges, difficult assignments, and opportunity for advancement. Because lions are thinking of the goal, they can step on people to reach it. Lions can be very aggressive and competitive. Lions must learn not to be too bossy or to take charge in other’s affairs.  Strength: Goal-oriented, strong, direct  Weakness: Argumentative, too dictatorial  Challenge: Doesn’t understand that directness can hurt others, hard time expressing sympathy

The Otter Otters are very social creature. Otter personalities love people. They enjoys being popular and influencing and motivating others. Otter can sometimes be hurt when people do not like them. Otter personalities usually have lots of friends, but not deep relationships. They love to goof-off. (They are notorious for messy rooms.) Otters like to hurry and finish jobs. (Jobs are not often done well.) The otter personality is like Tigger in Winnie The Pooh.  Strength: People person, open, positive  Weakness: Talks too much, too permissive  Challenge: Remembering past comments, follow thru with discipline

The Golden Retriever Good at making friends. Very loyal. Retriever personalities do not like big changes. They look for security. Can be very sensitive. Very caring. Has deep relationships, but usually only a couple of close friends. Wants to be loved by everyone. Looks for appreciation. Works best in a limited situation with a steady work pattern.  Strength: Accommodating, calm, affirming  Weakness: Indecisive, indifferent, unable to express emotional, too soft on other people  Challenge: Seeing the need to be more assertive, holding others accountable

The Beaver Organized. Beavers think that there is a right way to do everything and they want to do it exact that way. Beaver personalities are very creative. They desire to solve everything. Desire to take their time and do it right. Beavers do not like sudden changes. They need reassurance.  Strength: High standards, order, respect  Weakness: Unrealistic expectations of self & others, too perfect  Challenge: Seeing the optimistic side of things, expressing flexibility

Summary 1. Every child comes with an inborn ___________________ bent 2. Learning how to __________________ differences is crucial. 3. Lions need to learn that ____________ are more important than ____________. 4. Otters love to _____________. 5. Golden Retrievers have a difficult time saying __________. 6. Beavers actually read _________________________. value people projects talk no instruction books