Shape Week 2-Finding a Fit

As a kid, I can remember trying to put a puzzle together and getting so frustrated when I couldn’t get the right fit for a specific piece. I would even try to jam pieces into places they clearly didn’t belong, just because I wanted to complete the picture. My impatient personality was not willing to wait for the distinct surroundings necessary to compliment the bumps, gaps, and shape of a single puzzle piece. In the same sense, each of us is molded with specific experiences, gifts, abilities, personalities, and desires that have shaped us to fit a specific role in God’s big “picture.”

Like a puzzle piece possesses “bumps” along its edges, we experience pain in our lives that may alter our shape, and create a “bump along the road.” These bumps are not to be disregarded, however, as they may fill a gap in someone else’s life. As Philippians 2:13 states, “For it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill His good purpose.” Nobody likes to go through difficult times, but when we allow God to use what has re-shaped us, He can find a fit and use for our experiences that will fulfill a greater purpose.

In addition to the bumps of a puzzle piece, it’s important to note that each piece possesses gaps. As 1 Corinthians 7:7 states, “But each of you has your own gift from God; one has this gift, another has that.” We are not perfect people. Likewise, we shouldn’t try and fit our “piece of the puzzle” into an area where we are lacking. An important part of using your gifts, abilities, personality, and heart is to know what does, and what does NOT suit you. If you are not good at something, don’t try and make it “fit.” Rather, shift your focus to the desires God has already instilled in you that coincide with who you are!

Finally, finding the fit in a puzzle piece is completely dependent on placement. You can have the perfect “shape” to complete a puzzle, but if you do not have the correct placement, the puzzle piece is not fulfilling the purpose it possesses. Likewise, it’s so important that we find the areas in which God has called us to serve. The world is full of areas lacking in practical, spiritual, and personal needs. Thus, it is our duty, as Christians, to fulfill these needs utilizing the shape we have been given.

Taking it a step further:

Step 1: Identify the things that have shaped you. What have you been through, and what have you learned? Ask God, “How can You use the things I’ve been through to fulfill a greater purpose?”

Step 2: Shift your focus to what fits your shape. Never attempt to fulfill a ministry need if you are clearly the wrong person for the job. Rather, take into account your spiritual gifts, your abilities, your personality, your experience, and your heart to determine a ministry that suits who you are.

Step 3: Develop your ministry. Whoever God has shaped you to be, begin to utilize your abilities, gifts, experiences, and desires. Constantly look for ways in which God can use you to fulfill His desires. 

Written by: Tamara Sturdivant
Edited by: De Ann Sturdivant