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A GIFTED CHURCH "Variety is the spice of life." God loves variety. The fact that He created each of us unique, and not clones of each other, testifies to God's desire for variety. At the same time, God loves unity. The church is called to be united. Unity, however, does not destroy diversity. Paul wrote: "There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit, there are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all." 1 Cor. 12:7 Dr. Arlene Taylor http://www.arlenetaylor.org/ has studied church organization, spiritual gifts and religious participation in light of brain functions. As I mentioned in last week's comments, "One Body", research on the human brain indicates that each of us has a preferred brain mode, one of the four specialized quadrants, which is natural for us and enables us to function efficiently, joyfully and energetically. Everyone has at least one special giftedness and some have several gifts, according to the parable of the talents in Matthew 25:14-28. In light of brain dominance research, Dr. Taylor has shown that spiritual gifts can be related to preferred brain mode. At the same time, we need to keep in mind that God can give anyone any gift He pleases as the need arises, regardless of brain preference. According to Dr. Taylor, each quadrant has its own specialized knowledge, wisdom, and truth in relation to the characteristics of that quadrant. More specifically, a Basal (posterior) Left individual would be gifted in areas of administration, ministers in such activities as clerics, interpretation of tongues, serving others (especially in routine, detailed activities), and teaching (especially 'how-to' approaches). As a result of these clusters of spiritual gifts, Basal Left individuals would prefer to serve in their church in maintaining-type tasks: clerks, secretaries, librarians, treasurers, deaconesses, as well as serving on committees for baptisms, memberships, nominating and bookkeeping. Basal Lefts love detail and routine. God can use these preferences through the gifts He provides which draw upon innate abilities our Creator gives us. A Basal Right individual would typically be gifted in encouragement, faith, healing (especially laying on of hands due to their deep connection with people), helping others, working of miracles (due to their deep faith), hospitality, speaking in tongues, showing mercy, teaching, and pastoring. Such gifts develop relationships, connectedness, and edify the church Body. Due to the nature of these spiritual gifts, Basal Right individuals would prefer to serve in capacities where they can connect with people such as greeters, teachers (especially with children), peer counselors, musicians (especially those who give us music with passion and feeling), and they serve on committees for visitation, decorating, socials, potlucks, and community service. God is so wise that He gives us the gifts we need and draws us to serve Him in areas that we love to work in and are energized by if we function from our preferred brain mode. Similarly, Front Right individuals, due to their natural ability to see the big picture, are often prophets and prophesying, teaching (especially coming up with new slants on topics), faith by perceiving patterns in the Body of Christ, healing through inspiration, hope and energy, and they provide charismatic leadership. Frontal Right individuals are innovators and are good serving as advisors, problem-solvers, illustrators, decorating, family life and education programs, fundraising and outreach. Finally, Frontal Left individuals are known for having the "wisdom of Solomon" since they love collecting facts and knowledge, they are excellent evangelists due to their knowledge of doctrine and Biblical teachings and facts. They also have gifts of distinguishing spirits, preaching (such as the Apostles), leadership and directing, and contributing through raising money. Frontal Left individuals are excellent decision-makers and often gravitate towards preachers, evangelists, auditors, treasurers, heads of committees, and serve on committees relating to finances, buildings, and evangelism. The work that Dr. Taylor has done in identifying these patterns is exciting and useful as we each seek our roles in serving God and the Church. We need a "whole brain" approach in the church body and we need each other. If the church is missing one quadrant, the whole body of Christ would be handicapped. Jesus, when he spoke to the Samaritan woman at the well, said "The hour is coming and now is when the true worshippers will worship the Father in Spirit and in truth, for the Father is seeing such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth." John 4:23-24 A gifted church is one which worships in spirit and in truth. The research on brain dominance illustrates that an overall Left Brain approach in church will be doctrine-based, while a Right Brain approach is drawn to spiritual experiences based on grace. A healthy church would have a balance and welcome both approaches, treasuring all the gifts which God brings to His children. Unfortunately, churches tend to split into traditional churches (doctrine-based) vs. celebration churches (grace and Spirit-based). Such divisions separate Left and Right brain giftedness and may create a limited and handicapped church. The Left doctrine-approach will keep the Right Spirit-experiential individuals in Right Spirit and the Right Brain individuals will bring life, energy and vitality to the Left Brain doctrinal approach. God calls us to be united, to worship Him in spirit and truth, to be a whole-brained, one Body church, which embraces and utilizes the full range of gifts and talents which God blesses us with.
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