Defining your current gifting and capacity
If you believe that God has not finished with you, you have a responsibility to wait on him to discover what he has for you in this season of life. It may well differ from what you have been used to. Your previous energy and capacity have probably diminished. But that does not mean they have come to an end. So let’s look at what you have to offer. You may like to list them out and then ‘lay them before the Lord’. This can give the space and opportunity for him to confirm or adjust what you have written.
Be practical
As I approached retirement I took time over several months to list the things in which I had been involved. I then separated them into those that clearly would be discarded as they related to my specific employment and those things that I enjoyed and hoped to continue. I believe that God wants us to enjoy what we are doing. It reflects his father heart towards us just as we want our own children and grandchildren to enjoy life!
I also reflected on the gifting God had put within me, although a friend of mine encouraged me to expect other gifts to emerge and the balance of how I used those gifts to change. This advice was particularly helpful and I have found on many occasions that God has used me to bring some insight or wisdom into a situation I would previously have expected others to speak into.
Take control
One other piece of advice I was given which really helped was that I needed to take control of my future. I could not expect others to do this for me. I should not expect, for instance, the church leaders to come knocking at my door. It was for me to make myself available and to offer to serve, maybe specifying the areas in which I felt I could make a contribution.
Do it!
So, before next week’s blog I want to encourage you to sit down with a piece of paper (or at the computer!) and list a) those things you feel God has gifted you with b) those areas of life/activity in which you have been and could continue to be fruitful c) those things you enjoy doing and give you pleasure. Then, pray over those lists and see if you can find the faith to explore some of them a bit further as active ingredients of your current season of life. Don’t be passive – Do it!
Next time I will suggest at some specific ways in which you can be fulfilled and fruitful but I do want you to have thought it through for yourself before I make suggestions.