Spiritual Gifts FAQs #13

Q 3. "Are there some sort of spiritual gifts 'mentor match' type of groups we can contact and find a mentor that has/had the same spiritual gift as me?"

Typically “mentor match” pairs or groups happen within a church where spiritual gifts ministry is a priority. People are actively encouraged to take a gifts assessment and are also provided with instruction and support for understanding what their gifts mean—especially in the context of God’s design, purpose, and calling for their lives. Spiritual gifts results are collected and stored in the church’s database—and groups or mentorships are formed from that information. The reason this works within a church (or ministry) context is that there is usually some training and built-in accountability for these types of mentoring pairings.

I have found that matching people with the same spiritual gifts can be helpful. However, I have also found that providing a spiritual gifts coach (more likely those with gifts of Discernment, Wisdom, Shepherding) who has a deep understanding of each of the gifts can be highly effective in mentoring someone with gifts quite different from those of that coach. The important thing is that a mentor/coach be trained and supported and that there is a clear mutual understanding of the role of the mentor/coach in the life of the mentee.

(For more on gifts, check out the Resources page at GodGiftsYou.com. Take the free assessment and see what gifts God has bestowed on you to contribute to the whole.)

Shirley Giles Davis, author of the God. Gifts. You. Your Unique Calling and Design workbook, Your Unique Design Class Guide, Your Unique Design Facilitator Guide, and Gifts-Calling-Purpose blog, is a consultant, coach, facilitator who has worked with faith-based organizations, nonprofit agencies, and leaders in a diversity of fields for over 30 years. She has been a spiritual gifts mentor/coach for hundreds of individuals.