How does Heavenly Father want me to use my spiritual gifts?
Prepare Yourself Spiritually
Spiritual gifts are blessings or abilities that are given by the power of the Holy Ghost. As children of Heavenly Father, we all have spiritual gifts. God gives us these gifts so that we can serve others and help build His kingdom. He has commanded us to diligently seek out and develop our spiritual gifts.
Resources to Help You Prepare
These resources are to help you prepare for the “Learn together” section of the meeting.
-
Matthew 25:14–30 (The parable of the talents)
-
1 Corinthians 12:3–27; Moroni 10:8–18; Doctrine and Covenants 46:13–25 (Gifts of the Spirit)
-
Doctrine and Covenants 46:8–10 (Why we are given spiritual gifts)
-
Doctrine and Covenants 46:11–12 (Spiritual gifts are given to everyone)
-
Articles of Faith 1:7 (We believe in spiritual gifts)
-
John C. Pingree Jr., “I Have a Work for Thee,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2017, 32–35
-
“Spiritual Gifts,” True to the Faith (2004), 165–67
-
“The Gifts of the Spirit,” Gospel Principles (2009), 125–32
-
“Extraordinary Gift” (video)
4:24 -
“With All Your Heart” (video)
2:3
Questions to Ponder before You Teach
What spiritual gifts do you have? How have they blessed you and others, particularly in your priesthood service? How have the spiritual gifts of others blessed you? How have you identified your gifts?
Why is it important for the young men to know about their spiritual gifts? How can they use them as they fulfill their priesthood duties? How will this help them prepare for their future roles, homes, and families?
What can the young men do to prepare to learn? For example, they could read a talk, watch a video, or study a scripture related to this doctrine.
Meeting Outline
1. Counsel Together and Share Experiences
Led by a member of the quorum presidency; approximately 5–10 minutes
Lead a discussion about items such as the following:
-
Our quorum: Who is missing today? What visits do we need to make? Who should we invite to an upcoming activity? Who needs our help and prayers?
-
Our duties: What assignments do we need to make? What assignments have we fulfilled? How have we invited others to come unto Christ, and how can we invite others now?
-
Our lives: Remind the quorum of the discussion from the last meeting. What experiences have we had with applying what we learned? What experiences have we had in the past few weeks that strengthened our testimonies of the gospel?
If possible, discuss these items beforehand in a quorum presidency meeting.
2. Learn Together
Led by a leader or teacher or a member of the quorum; approximately 25–35 minutes
After studying the above resources and following the inspiration of the Spirit, you may select one or more of the activities below to help quorum members understand the doctrine.
-
Divide the quorum into groups, and assign each group one of the scriptures listed in this outline. Ask each group to make a list of the spiritual gifts mentioned in their passage and identify why God gives us spiritual gifts. Ask one young man from each group to share what his group discovered. Which of these gifts do the young men have? (If any of the young men have received their patriarchal blessing, suggest that they read their blessing later to find out which spiritual gifts they have been given.) Which gifts would they like to have? How could these gifts help them be more effective in fulfilling their priesthood duties?
-
Invite the young men to read the lists of spiritual gifts in 1 Corinthians 12:8–10; Moroni 10:9–16; or Doctrine and Covenants 46:13–25 and find a gift they are interested in learning more about. Give them time to study the gift they chose, using resources such as “The Gifts of the Spirit” in Gospel Principles (pages 125–30), “Spiritual Gifts” in True to the Faith (pages 165–67), or the Topical Guide. Ask them to share what they find. How can these gifts be used to help build the kingdom of God?
-
Ask the young men to list the different positions of a sports team (such as a soccer team or baseball team). How does each player contribute to helping the team win? Have them read 1 Corinthians 12:12–21, in which Paul compares the Church to a body. What do these analogies teach the young men about how we use our spiritual gifts to help build the kingdom of God? Share examples of spiritual gifts that you have noticed in the quorum members (for some examples, see 1 Corinthians 12:8–10 or the list in Elder John C. Pingree Jr.’s talk “I Have a Work for Thee”). Invite the quorum president to lead a discussion on how the quorum can work together using their gifts to serve others and help build the kingdom of God.
-
Invite each young man to review the list of spiritual gifts on pages 165–66 of True to the Faith and select one or more that he would like to develop. Ask him to explain why he chose those gifts. How do we develop spiritual gifts? Invite the young men to search Doctrine and Covenants 46:7–12 and “We Can Develop Our Gifts” in Gospel Principles, pages 130–31. Ask them to share what they find. What does Doctrine and Covenants 46:9 teach the young men about who can qualify for spiritual gifts?
-
Show one of the videos in this outline and invite the young men to think of and share a talent or gift they see in each member of the quorum (make sure that good qualities of each young man are shared). Invite the young men to read Matthew 25:14–30, or invite a quorum member to retell the parable of the talents. How does this parable relate to the gifts God has given us? How can we as priesthood holders use our talents to serve others and fulfill our priesthood duties? Invite the young men to write down their thoughts, and ask a few of them to share what they wrote with the quorum.
3. Plan to Act
Led by a member of the quorum presidency; approximately 5–10 minutes
-
Ask the young men to discuss any feelings or impressions they had during the meeting. What was meaningful to them? Is there something they can do personally or as a quorum to apply what they have learned?
-
Give the young men a few minutes to record what they will do in the coming weeks to act on their impressions. Invite them to share their ideas.
-
Remind the young men that they will have the opportunity to share their experiences at the beginning of the next meeting.