The Called and Gifted Retreat Discerning Our Spiritual Gifts to Do God’s Will

Discerning our spiritual gifts helps us to understand God’s plan for us. While some gifts may be obvious, others take more time and effort to discover. Laurie Gold learned during her Called and Gifted interview that she has a charism of teaching, which she has used as a facilitator for Bible studies for women of the parish. She also began taking classes on spirituality, which led to her becoming a spiritual director.

“I have learned more about myself in the process than I could in any other way in my life,” Laurie says.

Laurie and her husband, Mike, spearheaded the earlier retreat that hosted 180 attendees. On Feb. 26, 2022, the Stewardship Committee of the Tri-Parish will offer the Called and Gifted Retreat 2022 at Holy Family Parish Hall.

The Called and Gifted retreat comes from the Catherine of Siena Institute. Participants are given the opportunity to take the “Catholic Spiritual Gifts Inventory,” wherein they answer questions about themselves to ultimately learn what charisms they have. Then, they are invited to partake in an interview process to discern where they might practice these new gifts, whether in their parish ministries or beyond. The idea of the retreat is to learn about our God-given gifts, in an effort to discover how we might serve God and His Church. There are 24 gifts, or charisms, including teaching, writing, hospitality, music, and leadership.

“The ultimate goal is to engage our parish to use their spiritual gifts to do God’s will,” Mike says.

There is a distinction, however, between charisms and talents. Where a talent is something you can develop on your own, a charism requires the graces given at Baptism, something God gives to us. This may be why you could discover a gift you didn’t know you had.

“It is a gift we receive but can only be used to be given away,” Mike says. “It is something that passes through us.”

After the one-day workshop, participants are encouraged to meet with an interviewer to discern where they might “try on” their newly discovered charisms. This might mean trying out different ministries and roles within the parish. Laurie says this can take some effort but ultimately leads to the discernment of where one is meant to be.

“It’s amazing the clarity that can come with trying something and not having it work, and then understanding it’s not what God’s plan is for you and His Kingdom,” she says.

Both Laurie and Mike are excited about what this may bring to our faith community. The hope is that participants find themselves inspired and ready to bring their charisms to their individual parishes, thereby strengthening and growing our parish ministry efforts and beyond.

The workshop is free for all tri-parish members. For more information or to register, please contact the parish office at Our Lady of Lourdes, 320-632-8243.

Laurie and Mike Gold are the organizers for the upcoming Called and Gifted Retreat.