Would you like to discover how God has outfitted you to serve Him best? Would you like to evaluate how your gifts, abilities, and personality can enable you to play a unique role in His plans?

If you would, then let’s get started on the Discovery Trail!

On the discovery Trail, the term G.E.A.R. represents the whole complex bundle of potential carried within you. Your G.E.A.R. determines the appropriate ministry trail for you. Each letter stands for one of the four areas of the discovery process:

G = Gifts—spiritual gifts

E = Experience

A = Abilities

R = Resources—heart and personality

Special trail markers in the forest help designate paths and contribute to hiker safety. The following principles are the markers that will guide you as you take the Discovery Trail.

• Salvation includes automatic leading into service (John 12:25-26, Colossians 1:21-23).
• How God outfits me determines my best fit (Ephesians 4:7).
• The right match of G.E.A.R. to ministry brings fruitfulness and fulfillment (1 Corinthians 12:29-31).
• Membership in my local church assumes a commitment to service (Titus 3:8).
• Lay people are ministers of Jesus, too (1 Peter 2:9)

Your Spiritual Gifts

"How can I discover my spiritual gifts?" 75% of Christians in America wonder the same thing! According to a Barna Research news release (October 3, 1995), "less than one in four can identify a spiritual gift which they believe they possess."

Yet the Bible says that Every Christian is given at least one gift, that spiritual gifts are given to build up the church, and that the Holy Spirit is in control of the giving of gifts (1 Corinthians 12, Romans 12:3-8, Ephesians 4:11-12, 1 Peter 4:9-11).

Most spiritual gifts inventories either confuse natural talents with spiritual gifts or predetermine the gifts based primarily on past performance. We prefer to have you carry a childlike openness into the exploration of your spiritual gifts. Like a child at Christmas, you can confidently find the gifts with your name on them, unwrap them, and begin to utilize them for God’s glory.