Your Spiritual gifts Heart’s desire Abilities Personality Experience for God’s Service Six meetings in a small informal group, enabling people to discern their gifts for God’s service. Your SHAPE for God's Service - Session 2

Session 2: Aims for this session To look more closely at your life EXPERIENCES To see how God has used those experiences in the past and how he might use them in the future R Your SHAPE for God's Service - Session 2

What have I learned from experience? What one thing have you learned in the past few years by the practical experience of doing it? Did you find that learning by ‘doing’ and practical experience is an effective way of learning and growing? R Your SHAPE for God's Service - Session 2

Which of my actions and experience count as service to God? Think of the main things you have spent your life doing? Choose one which you think counts as serving God or Ministry Choose one which you do not think of as serving God C Your SHAPE for God's Service - Session 2

Which of my actions and experience count as service to God? What was it that made you decide a particular activity was not service for God? Can everything we do, be for God’s service? C Your SHAPE for God's Service - Session 2

‘Teach me my God and King’ A Prayer by George Herbert (Handout 2A) Teach me my God and King, In all things thee to see; And what I do in anything To do it as for Thee. A servant with this clause Makes drudgery divine; Who sweeps a room, as for thy laws, Makes that and the action fine. (reflect on verse 1) Your SHAPE for God's Service - Session 2

Recommended Reading The Practice of the Presence of God By Brother Lawrence – a 17 th century Carmelite monk C Your SHAPE for God's Service - Session 2

How God Uses Our Experience Your experiences have played a big part in making you the person that you are. They have shaped you into the unique person whom God longs to use to serve him in particular and special ways. Let’s look at some of these experiences and help each other to understand how they have shaped us. Handout 1 Personal Reflection C Your SHAPE for God's Service - Session 2

A Positive Spiritual Experience Look at Question 2 on the back of Handout 1 PR where you were asked to think of one positive spiritual experience you’ve had in your life. Move around and sit with someone you do not know or don’t know very well. Decide who will be Person A and Person B C Your SHAPE for God's Service - Session 2

A Positive Spiritual Experience Person A: Briefly describe your positive spiritual experience, what you learned and how it might help you serve God in the future (sections 2a), 2b), and 2c) on Handout 1PR) Person B: When you’ve heard your partner’s story respond with comments on how you think this experience might help your partner serve God in the future. Write down the comments you received in the space under Question 2d) on Handout 1 PR Now switch roles... C Your SHAPE for God's Service - Session 2

Our Experience of God Our relationships with people come from our experience of them. It’s much the same with our relationship with God God at work in our lives Other Christians talking or writing about their experiences. Traditions handed down over 2000 years worldwide. Knowledge shaped by the Bible – of stories of peoples’ experience of God and their reflection on this experience. C Your SHAPE for God's Service - Session 2

Our Experience of God None of this is surprising since we believe in a God who chose to reveal himself most clearly through the life, death and resurrection of a human being, in the incarnation of Jesus Christ. God chose to share our human experience and reveal himself through it. C Your SHAPE for God's Service - Session 2

Our Experience of God God wants us to use our everyday experience of life as ways to get to know him better. Pause at the end of each day and ask yourself: 1. Where can I see God in all this? 2. How might God be at work here? 3. What is God trying to show me? Ask the Holy Spirit to give you insight in this practice which will help you grow in maturity as a Christian and deepen your relationship with God. C Your SHAPE for God's Service - Session 2

What Does the Bible Say About our Experience? Look at Handout 2A section 2 Scripture Verses Read the verses Reflect in silence then comment. R Your SHAPE for God's Service - Session 2

Romans 8:28 “We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” (N.I.V.) Do you believe that God can bring some good for you out of all situations and experiences, however terrible they are? Have you experienced this? (You may like to draw on your written reflections on a bad or painful experience – Handout 1PR, question 2) Your SHAPE for God's Service - Session 2

2 Corinthians 1: 3-5 “Praise be to the God and Father of Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows.” (N.I.V.) Can you recognise occasions when God used you to help or minister to people who were going through what you had already been through? Can you see God using your experiences to enable you to understand other people, be more compassionate, be able to encourage, to advise and to help them? Your SHAPE for God's Service - Session 2

Romans 5: 2b - 5 “And we rejoice in the hope and glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.” How do you feel about St Paul’s words here? Your SHAPE for God's Service - Session 2

Being Alongside Someone, Sharing Their Experience Look again at your ‘Personal Reflection’ sheet(1PR)- your experience when you were alongside someone who was going through a difficult situation. With your partner briefly tell each other about the experience and the main ways you behaved – what you did and say to the suffering person. Listen carefully. Give feedback on any strengths or qualities in your partner which you think are shown up by the story. Write down the feedback you received in the space under Question 1 on Handout 1PR C Your SHAPE for God's Service - Session 2

The Dangers of Experience Experience can give wisdom, humility, compassion, maturity and depth of character...but it also has it’s dangers. Brainstorm ways life-experiences might become a barrier or blockage to our serving God. R Your SHAPE for God's Service - Session 2

Life experiences... a) Some experiences scar us then damage or distort the way we behave and the way we treat or respond to other people. Examples? b) We have lots of experience doing something for a long time so much so that we get into a rut – we stop learning, growing or discovering better approaches. We become inflexible. Have you done this? Did you manage it or change it? R Your SHAPE for God's Service - Session 2

c) If we are experienced or good at something we might become complacent, bossy or arrogant. Then we devalue or ignore other people’s experience. Have you found yourself doing this? d) We tend to stick to doing things we are experienced at – it’s safe and comfortable. This affects how we serve God – we only offer to serve him in ways which we feel competent and experienced. We don’t want to fail or to look a fool. R Your SHAPE for God's Service - Session 2

e) Sometimes God wants us to launch out in faith and try something completely new. As we dare to do this, our faith and trust in God will grow. Often he will develop new gifts and abilities in us to cope with the new situation. Sometimes it may feel like failure or foolishness. Sometimes we do fail and then we learn more of the Christ-like virtue of humility. God doesn’t abandon us and he will lead us through. R Your SHAPE for God's Service - Session 2

What Can We Learn From This? We’ve looked at all the ways which God uses our experience. We’ve thought of the range and depth of our experiences to see if it might point towards ways God might use us. We need to keep doing this at different intervals in our lives- and be open to trying something new. Keep eyes and ears open to new experiences and way which God may lead you. R Your SHAPE for God's Service - Session 2

Pray Write down a couple of insights you have gained about ways in which God can use your experience. Choose one and turn it into a one-sentence prayer by thanking God for it aloud. Thank God for the experiences which have shaped and grown you. Pray for insights to emerge through the Personal Reflection exercise and for the Holy Spirit’s discernment. R Your SHAPE for God's Service - Session 2

Personal Reflection Looking at our Personality Handout 2 PR – Personal Reflection on Your Personality. Member’s Notes for session 2 : Experience C Your SHAPE for God's Service - Session 2

Personal Reflection on Your Experience & Handouts Give Handout 1A: An explanation Give Handout 1PR: Personal Reflection on your Experience Give out Members Notes: Session One Give out Folder, Cover Page and Resources and Reading Your SHAPE for God's Service - Session 2

Questions? Your SHAPE for God's Service - Session 2