Kathie Lee Gifford: Westerners are ‘terrified’ of the gifts of the Spirit 

Four-time Emmy Award-winning actress Kathie Lee Gifford believes many Christians in the Western world have greatly misunderstood the gifts of the Spirit.

Gifford appeared on “Life Today” with guest host Sheila Walsh where she expounded on her beliefs concerning the spiritual gifts listed in 1 Corinthians 12:8-10 of the Bible. The verses list the gifts that include: Wisdom, knowledge, faith, healing, miracles, prophecy, discerning of spirits, speaking and interpreting tongues.

“There’s so much misunderstanding about the gifts of the Spirit,” Gifford said. “There’s so much mystery surrounding it and there shouldn’t be. Because once you understand — once you meet the people that have these gifts, and you see the way that they use them for the Kingdom of God, any bias you have about it is dispelled because you see what’s done in the name of the Lord Jesus.”

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“You cannot say, ‘This is not God.’ This is redemption, this is healing ... and nobody’s getting the credit for it but Almighty God,” she continued. 

Gifford was on the program to speak about her latest book, The Jesus I Know: Honest Conversations and Diverse Opinions about Who He is. In her most recent writing, the author of over 25 books documents her journey of exploring faith cultures around the world. She penned her conversations with celebrities, famous personalities, religious scholars and others — all of whom she talked to about Jesus.

I was delighted to join @LifeTodayTV to talk more about my book, The Jesus I Know. Tune in on 12/28 and 12/29 to catch the conversation. I hope it’s a blessing to you. pic.twitter.com/4Dh84YeVt2

— Kathie Lee Gifford (@KathieLGifford) December 27, 2021

“I think for way too long, that we as Westerners have been way too terrified of the gifts of the Spirit when actually, when you read about them, when Paul talks about them, we’re all supposed to have gifts of the Spirit,” she told Walsh, who nodded in agreement. “They’re supposed to be different, used like different parts of the body for one good work, but we’re all supposed to use them. And people go, ‘Oh, Jesus doesn’t do that anymore, God doesn’t do that anymore.’ Really?” 

“Jesus said, ‘Greater things than this, you will do in my name when the Holy Spirit comes, but I have to go so you can do them.’ He didn’t put a time frame on that. We do!” Gifford declared. “We’re the ones that box God in, that relegate Him to three dimensions, that stick him on a shelf and say, ‘Well, that’s what God does.’ Let’s open our eyes and our ears and our hearts and our souls to the great works the Holy Spirit is doing in the lives of brothers and sisters all over the world.”

The multi-gifted author, filmmaker, actress, playwright, and singer regularly uses her platform to talk about Jesus and in her new book, she encourages others to talk about Christ as well.

The book features 25 conversations about Jesus with famous people including journalist Megyn Kelly, actress Kristin Chenoweth and musician Brian Welch.

In a previous interview with The Christian Post, Gifford explained why she has such a carefree spirit and won’t subscribe to the constraints of religion. 

"I don't follow the rules because part of me innately understands that they're man-made and they're usually garbage; lots of times, they're garbage. I try to follow God's rules because those are meant for my own blessing. But man's rules are often not to protect or bless us, but to control us,” Gifford told CP.

"So I break rules," she noted. "Why? Because I just answer the call of God in my life.”