Redemptive Gifts

  • empath
    Boundaries,  Boundary Lines,  Burden-bearing,  codependency,  Discernment,  emotional health,  Identity,  Redemptive Gifts

    The Empath Survival Kit: Loving Constructively

    Empath is a relatively new term to enter our vernacular. The dictionary defines empath as (chiefly in science fiction) a person with the paranormal ability to apprehend the mental or emotional state of another individual. Signs of an Empath The term has come to mean those people with the spiritual gift of burden-bearing, at least in a Christian context. Are you a burden-bearer? Those of us with this gift can sense the suffering of others and are often motivated to sit with them in their slough of despair. Please note that I am not talking about empaths as intuitives. I am discussing this, not from a New Age perspective but from…

  • ruler
    Redemptive Gifts

    The Unruly Ruler: The Challenges of Leadership

    It took me a bit to decide how I wanted to write about the redemptive gift of ruler. While any unsanctified gift can lead to incredible harm, the ruler, if immature, leaves a lot of pain in his or her wake. Ask anyone if they have been injured by someone in authority and stories begin to pour forth. Don’t get me wrong. Rulers are no better or worse than anyone else. But by their very nature, they have a tendency to take charge. A ruler often influences more people than most of the other gifts. Because of this, the ruler gift, if unsanctified, has the power to negatively affect lives…

  • givers
    Featured,  Givers,  Redemptive Gifts

    The Thrifty Givers: A Study in Constant Motion

    Some of my favorite people are givers. They just seem to know how to have fun and for a sanguine exhorter like myself, fun is a necessity of life. In fact, if I could choose a redemptive gift for myself, I would have wished for that of a giver. They know how to get things done and so many of their plans come to fruition. Behaviorally, however, givers often have a hard time figuring out what their redemptive gifting really is. They don’t fit into categories easily. But like the other giftings, you can always count on one or two giveaways. The main giveaway for the givers is that they…