The surprising charisms of the Holy Spirit

by Nancy Ward

Pentecost by Girolamo da Cremona (photo credit: Getty Museum)

 What are your spiritual gifts? Has the Holy Spirit ever surprised you with the grace to serve in a way you never imagined?  Or taken your natural talent and empowered you to use it to honor God?

For me, writing was about personal fulfillment, if not fame. The Holy Spirit transformed my desires, helping me surrender that natural talent to the Lord. So my inherited talent became a charism dedicated to building up the Body of Christ for the glory of God.


The change happened after I filled out a questionnaire revealing my charisms of the Holy Spirit.  My spiritual life flourished, directing my natural talents more outward than inward.

Other gifts teetered on the line between “mine” and “God’s.” My gift of administration, defined as providing the planning and coordination needed to accomplish good things, was not exclusively directed outward.  I could accept the grace to seek the good of all involved in a ministry or project, or just as easily use this gift to get my way without consulting or honoring God.

I scored high on discernment, the ability to sense the spiritual struggles of others. But my low score on mercy equaled a very judgmental Christian, without the impetus for practical acts of compassion to relieve their distress.

The Lord develops new charisms to enhance the ones we have. I seek the charism of wisdom, that is, remarkable insight and creative solutions, to ensure my writing conveys God’s love effectively and consistently. The Holy Spirit surprises me with illuminating perception far beyond my ideas. I wrote about this in Holy Spirit Sandwich.


Continue reading at Nancy's blog  JOY Alive in our hearts.