You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb. ~Psalm 139:13
Make a careful assessment of who you are and the work you’ve been given, and then sink yourself into that. ~Galatians 6:4 (MSG)
Who am I?: The Personal Contribution Assessment (PCA)
From Socrates to Descartes to Zoolander, philosophers have continued to ask the question, “Who am I?” Just in case you are not familiar with Zoolander’s pondering his personal identity, for a good laugh we’ve included his reflective moment here:
Even though philosophers through the ages have pondered the mystery of self, today’s go-go-go culture does not encourage such reflective pondering. St. Augustine captures it well in Book X of his Confessions when he writes:
Men go abroad to wonder at the height of mountains, at the huge waves of the sea, at the long courses of the rivers, at the vast compass of the ocean, at the circular motion of the stars; and they pass by themselves without wondering.
For those who follow Jesus, pondering personal identity is an important part of not only understanding self, but God as well. One way we mature spiritually is to grow in our connection with Him through bearing His image in the world. In order to do this we need to discover the unique design He has created into each of us. This unique design can point us along the path into his special purpose for us in His kingdom work.
For various reasons, including lack of self-knowledge and the expectations of others, ministry leaders often discover they are spending large amounts of time and energy in areas that do not fit their personality or gifting. This means that a significant part of who they were created to be is also not being utilized for kingdom work.
The PRT offers a seminar that guides people through a process of discerning how their personality, values, spiritual gifts, and life experiences lead them towards living out their unique design in fulfilling God’s kingdom work in the earth. It involves Bible Study, reflection on life and ministry experience, various assessments, and dialogue with God and others. In the end, ministry leaders walk away with a vision statement that, as far as they can tell in the moment, expresses their unique call in ministry.
In January we helped to lead this seminar for mission workers from The Navigators and other mission organizations. What a gift to be able to come alongside these men and women of God who have been pouring themselves out across the States and around the world so Christ might be lifted up. Here are a few of the testimonies of their experience of our time together:
Leigh Ann’s welcoming, gracious spirit was a gift to me during the Personal Contribution Assessment this past week. The Holy Spirit worked through her to remind me that our Father designed me with unique and incredible purpose in His Kingdom, and He delights in me! He equipped Leigh Ann with just the right experiences and stories to deeply encourage my heart… and I praise Him for that. -Anna
The personality preferences work we did has given me new eyes to see why I have struggled in past work situations and new insights into what God has designed me for. I feel I am now on a good path to move forward! ~Hudson
I was struck deeply by our discussion of the “servanthood-stewardship” tension. I have been too far to the servant pole, to the detriment of implementing God’s design, pursuing His pleasure and seeing His results as He uses me. ~Nancy
There is an excitement and anticipation in my soul at the chance to tweak my job description to better reflect this design and the opportunities before me. And this all comes at a time in life when many of my peers are struggling with less confidence in being used by The Designer, and society wanting to put us on the aging shelf. ~Barry
If you know a ministry leader who might be helped by this seminar, we’d welcome them to join us and we’d be grateful for the opportunity to come along side of them. The next two PCA seminars in Colorado Springs are coming April 21-23 and July 21-23.
How about you? Have you personally discovered at some point of life that your work or service in ministry or context did not fit who God made you to be?
Rhythms of Rest 