Gifts from the Unexpected

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In the conversation for Sunday, April 8, 2018, Pastor Kim Nowlin shares with us that God has gifts of love for us that come in unexpected ways. Kim also encourages us to develop habits and adjust our perspectives so that we are in a more receptive posture to receive these gifts.

Sacred Reading 00:00-13:40, Conversation 13:40-55:36

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights.
James 1:17a (NIV)

Sacred Reading
A note about the recording of the Sacred Reading:
The reader will pause between each of the four readings. The pauses have been left in the recording so that the listener can experience the rhythm of the gathering and even participate in the reading. Below are the guidelines for each of the four readings of the practice. 

  • Read: Read the passage and receive it as God’s message to you.
  • Reflect: Read the passage again and look for the word or phrase that the Holy Spirit highlights to your heart.
  • Respond: Take the highlighted words and make them a prayer.
  • Rest: Rest your heart on God’s promises.
Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.
If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do.
So don’t be misled, my dear brothers and sisters. Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow.
James 1:2-8, 16-17 (NLT)