Many years ago I started using an acrostic called SHAPE to talk about the five things that make you, you. SHAPE is the way God wired you for your life. Every area of your life is influenced by the way you’re shaped.

Your SHAPE is made up of your Spiritual gifts, Heart, Abilities, Personality, and Experiences. These are the five things that make you who you are.

No one else has your particular combination of gifts, talents, and passions. Why do you think you have your particular makeup? Because God gave it to you for his glory. If all Christians liked to do the same things and were good at the same things, we would accomplish a lot less for the Gospel in the world.

So God made you unique, and there’s nobody else like you. Your SHAPE is yours alone. Why does this matter?

Your SHAPE reveals God’s purpose for you.
You find out what God wants you to do with your life by discovering how he shaped you. But here’s the thing: God won’t force you to do his plan. You can waste your life. You can use it on all kinds of personal, self-centered things and end up totally miss God’s purpose for you. In fact, most people do. That’s a tragedy. And it’s also why so many people are so frustrated! They’re trying to be something somebody else wants them to be rather than what God wants them to be.

Your SHAPE equips you to serve God.
God has a life mission for you that nobody else on this planet can do. Maybe you’ve missed that mission. Maybe you’ve missed serving God. But you can start today and make the rest of your life the best of your life. God will never ask you to do anything in life that he hasn’t already given you the ability to do.

Your SHAPE prepares you for a life in heaven.
If you’re a follower of Jesus, this life is preparation for the next life in heaven. God says, “This is a test. I’m testing you to see what you will do with what you’ve been given on Earth. Based on that, I will determine what I give you to do in heaven for eternity.”

Your SHAPE shows God’s glory.
When you use your SHAPE and do what God made you to do, it not only feels good, but it also makes God smile. We are only fully alive when we live connected to God and according to the way he created us. You know what makes God smile? When he looks down and sees you and me using the talents that he gave us for his glory.

Isaiah 43:7 says, “Bring to me all the people who are mine, whom I made for my glory, whom I formed and made” (NCV). God made you to enjoy you!

Next time you’re wondering why you are the way you are, remember that God gave you your particular SHAPE. Take time to discover and live in your SHAPE. Your SHAPE will help you understand God’s purpose for you, serve God effectively, prepare for life in heaven, and show God’s glory!