Characteristics of Spiritual Gifts

These are not ALL the characteristics, but these are some of the most over-arching ones. I like these as I have come to see them as pretty accurate.

Characteristics of Motivational Gifts

The Characteristics of the Gift of Prophecy:

1. A strong need to express themselves verbally.
2. A strong ability to discern the character and motives of other people.
3. A wholehearted involvement in whatever they are doing.
4. Very open to correction.
5. Extremely loyal.
6. Willing to suffer for what is right.
7. Very persuasive in defining truth.

The Characteristics of the Gift of Service:

1. Sees and meets practical needs.
2. Frees others to achieve.
3. Disregard for weariness.
4. Difficulty in saying "No!"
5. Alert to likes and dislikes.
6. Strong desire to be with others.
7. Need for approval and appreciation
8. Likes short-range projects.
9. Meets needs quickly.
10. Tendency to feel inadequate and unqualified for spiritual leadership.

The Characteristics of The Gift of Teaching:

1. Strong desire to present truth systematically.
2. Requires thoroughness.
3. Needs to validate information.
4. Checks out the teacher.
5. Great delight in researching.
6. Tendency to avoid illustrations from non-biblical sources.
7. Needs to clarify misunderstandings.

The Characteristics of the Gift of Exhortation:

1. A motivation to urge peoples to their full spiritual maturity in Christ.
2. An ability to see root problems in a person.
3. Prescribes steps of action.
4. Turn problems into benefits.
5. A desire for face to face discussion in order to determine and insure a positive response.
6. Desire to gain spiritual insights through personal experience.
7. Desires to bring harmony between diverse groups.
8. An enjoyment with those eager to follow steps of action.

The Characteristics of the Gift of Giving:

1. Able to see resources
2. Desire to feel a part of the work.
3. Desire to give high quality.
4. Hope the gift is an answer to prayer.
5. Desires to give secretly.
6. Prefers to give without pressure of appeals.
7. Concern that giving will corrupt.
8. Exercises personal thriftiness.
9. Gives to motivate others to give.
10. Ability to see financial needs that others overlook.
11. Confirms amount with counsel.

The Characteristics of the Gift of Organization:

1. Ability to see the big picture and visualize final results.
2. The ability to break down the major goals into smaller, achievable tasks.
3. Motivated to organize that for which they are responsible.
4. The ability to know what resources are available and needed to reach a goal.
5. The ability to know what can and what cannot be delegated.
6. Tendency to remove self from detracting details and focus on ultimate goals.
7. The willingness to endure reaction.
8. A need for loyalty and confidence from those who are being directed and served.
9. A tendency to assume responsibility if no structured leadership exists.
10. A desire to complete the task as soon as possible.
11. A joy and fulfillment in seeing all the parts come together and others enjoying the finished product.
12. A desire to move on to a new challenge when the previous task is fully completed.

The Characteristics of the Gift of Mercy:

1. Ability to feel an atmosphere of joy or distress in an individual or group.
2. Attracted to and understand people who are having mental and emotional distress.
3. Desire to remove hurts and bring healing to others rather than to look for the benefits of the hurts.
4. A greater concern for mental distress than physical distress of others.
5. A sensitivity to words and action which will hurt others.
6. A tendency to react harshly when intimate friends are rejected.
7. An ability to sense genuine love and a greater vulnerability to deeper and more frequent hurts from the lack of love.
8. A need for deep friendships in which there is mutual commitment.
9. A need to measure acceptance by physical closeness and quality time together.
10. An enjoyment and unity with those who are sensitive to the needs and feelings of others.
11. A tendency to avoid firmness unless he sees how it will bring benefit and eliminate greater hurt.
12. A closing of the spirit to those who are insincere or insensitive.