Discerning Gifts By Craig Ruhl
Craig Ruhl is the Managing Editor of Faith On Every Corner, he is also a writer and handles the business side of Faith On Every Corner, LLC.
When I was in high school, one of my complaints was–what in the world would I ever do with much of the education I was receiving? Seriously, I had no intention of ever being a chemist, poet, economist, or world history professor. I certainly would not need to speak and write in fluent French. But, to pass grade levels, graduate, and then attend college, the education system deemed these classes necessary. I just wanted to gain a liberal arts education and get on with life. My parents, particularly my dad, saw things differently. I would be the third generation of engineers, come hell, high water, and regardless of my aptitude and attitude on the matter. I did graduate high school and studied engineering in college. An average grade point and being a fairly talented football player helped. After two years at college, my grades and student behavior caught up with me. The dean of men and I had a heart-to-heart talk, and shortly thereafter, I enlisted in the Navy. My rebellion against being told what to study and how I was to make a life for myself, post formal education, caught up with me. I was literally adrift—a young man, a high school graduate, with two years of college, and not a plan for my future.
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It was during my time at sea that I gained some clarity on the direction I wanted my life to follow. I started to seriously consider what God had in store for me, and I sought His guidance in the matter. For me, wisdom and discernment didn’t come easy, mostly because I was not very good at listening for His voice. Even with sufficient time and an often-serene environment, my focus just wasn’t where it needed to be—on God’s voice. During this time, along with two shipmates, I started reading the Bible, seeking guidance. In our studies, the subject of spiritual gifts came up. Our discussion led us to think back to when we were young. What was there about us that was unique? In what aspects of our lives were we most comfortable? This introspection unearthed a different way of looking at myself. I wondered, could this be the way God sees me? I wanted to know more. On a sheet of paper, in one column, I started listing what I perceived as my skills. In another space, I wrote out my interests—those things that really turned me on and brought me the most satisfaction. In a third area, I tried to look at myself as God would and marked down what I felt he was telling me were the gifts he had granted me. Contemplating the completed chart, I determined what I considered the major gifts God granted me. It was a revealing process, one I repeated frequently over a period of almost two years. Unfortunately, I lost those papers, journals, and study notes in a home fire a few years later. I would love to review them now—almost fifty years later. But, today, my memory will have to suffice.
