Starting With Gifts

Summer has a way of inviting us to slow down, look around, and notice what is already present. Too often, we begin with what is missing. We focus on the problems to solve, the resources we lack, the challenges facing our church, our neighborhood, or even our own lives. Yet the Apostle Paul offers a different vision. Writing to a diverse and sometimes divided church, he reminds them that God's Spirit has already placed gifts among them. "To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good."

This summer, we are exploring what it means to begin with gifts rather than scarcity.

At Shepherd of the Hills, we are reimagining church as a vibrant hub for spiritual growth, community partnership, care for creation, and God's justice. That vision does not begin with what we need. It begins with recognizing the gifts God has already entrusted to us: the wisdom of elders, the creativity of young people, the generosity of neighbors, the beauty of our property, the strength of relationships, and the Spirit's work already unfolding in our community.

Asset-Based Community Development teaches us that every person has gifts, every association has strengths, and every neighborhood holds hidden possibilities waiting to be discovered. The work of faith is often learning how to see them.

As summer unfolds, consider these questions:

• What gifts has God placed within you?

• What strengths do you see in our congregation?

• What gifts are present in your neighborhood?

• How might God be inviting us to weave those gifts together for the flourishing of our community?

The future begins not with what we lack, but with the abundance God has already given.

May this be a season of noticing, gratitude, and possibility.

In Him, Pastor Matt