Tag Archives: evangelism

“Rooted in Jesus”

Adult Formation, Discipleship, Events, Jesus, Mission, Resources, Sermon, The Church, Worship, , , , , , ,

It’s only been a couple of weeks since (reportedly) 1,300 Episcopalians and friends met in Atlanta, Georgia for what was subversively called Episcopalooza or “General Convention with workshops, but no legislation.” The brainchild of Bill Campbell, former Executive Director of Forma: The Network for Christian Formation this conference brought together various cohorts within the Episcopal Church (and beyond) to explore formation, evangelism, preaching, leadership, mission, stewardship, and communications. A massive undertaking with a lot of behind the scenes work from many individuals, it was the Church at its best. Worship was extraordinary, workshops were inspiring and informative, creativity was abundant, and Jesus was proclaimed. Even the hotel staff got in on the action and “rooted for Jesus.”

It was too much to digest and while I got to see LOTS of friends and colleagues, I missed many opportunities to network or attend presentations because I couldn’t be at two (or three) places at once. Thankfully, many presentations were live-streamed via Forma’s Facebook page and many were recorded so that even those unable to be present could be fed by the experience. My take-aways and learnings:

Continue reading “Rooted in Jesus” →

Immersed in the Way of Love

Books Worth Reading, Discipleship, Jesus, Resources, , , , , , , , ,
 

The Way of Love

Over the past several months, The  Way of Love has always been on my desk in one form or another. As part of the Presiding Bishop’s Working Group to create resources for the Church  based on the seven practices of following Jesus. It’s been fun (and quite a ride) working with a creative bunch of Christian educators from across the Episcopal Church. I’ve created two particular resources for Church Publishing: The Way of Love for Families and An Intergenerational Gathering for the Way of Love. I was also excited to work with Mary Bea Sullivan of St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in Birmingham, Alabama in bringing her Living the Way of Love: A 40-Day Devotional to publication in record time.

Many have asked for children and youth ministry resources for The Way of Love. You can certainly adapt the Families and Intergenerational materials I created above to fit your needs. Gratefully, many of you have been creating your own, or tweaking what exists to fit your ministries. Keep checking back to The Way of Love “official” website where seasonal resources are continually being updated and offered. Much of The Way of Love is created for “open space” sharing, meaning if you have created something – submit it to The Way of Love email addressor through this form. Those of us (myself included) on The Way of Love Working Group will review and be in touch if this is something shareable on the website so others can learn and use also.

Are you aware of these newly posted resources? Chris Sikkema has been Traveling the Way of Love. His first episode focused on Bless. Join him in the second episode from Jackson Hole, Wyoming where he focuses on Rest. Love the Tetons!

Resources for Eastertide are now available, with a focus on Go. Here you will find images to use as well as ideas for evangelism – yes, going out into the world to spread the Good News of Jesus in the neighborhood. If you tapped into any Way of Love resource during Lent, there is a “Test Kitchen” of Life Transformed on Facebook, where you can share how you are practicing Go and hear what others are doing.

Receiving Jesus RGB

And stay tuned for a September book by Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde of Washington on Receiving Jesus: The Way of Love. It is available for pre-order now here.

“The Way of Love” for Families

Children's Ministries, Discipleship, Jesus, Parenting, Resources, Spirituality, , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Another initiative that was launched at the 79th General Convention was a “call” from Presiding Bishop Michael Curry for The Episcopal Church to follow “The Way of Love: Practices for a Jesus-Centered Life.” Since that day of its launch, social media has been abuzz with people asking about resources and how to engage with this rule of life. I was blessed to be on the early track of this launch, having been invited by Stephanie Spellers, Canon to the Presiding Bishop for Evangelism, Reconciliation and Creation (the pillars of The Jesus Movement) to join a group of Christian formation leaders in the Episcopal Church to flesh out how this might become a reality and a formation tool for growing disciples. As those of you who are Christian formation folk, you know that when you are given a challenge under a deadline and put in a room of like-minded folks amazing things can happen. With various individuals adding input and encouragement from across the Church, The Way of Love was launched. Continue reading “The Way of Love” for Families →

Care of Creation

Adult Formation, Children's Ministries, Curriculum, Earth Day, Faith & Culture, General Convention, Resources, Youth Ministry, , , , , ,

It its 79th General Convention held in July 2018, the Episcopal Church passed 19 resolutions related to care of the environment and climate change. Many resolutions cite their strong theological basis in their first paragraph(s). A013 begins, “As disciples of Jesus Christ, we recognize that the Earth is the Lord’s (Psalm 24), has been made in and through Christ (John 1) and we are placed in it as a garden planet (Genesis 2).” Similarly, A018 connects climate change to Christian mission and ethics: “Resolved, that climate change be recognized as a human-made threat to all God’s people, creatures and the entire created order, while particularly placing unjust and inequitable burdens and stresses on native peoples, those displaced by environmental change, poor communities and people of color.”

How are we to implement such resolutions in our churches and homes, let alone our national government? For one, the Episcopal Church has a government relations office that can help lobby for the care of creation. In our congregations, we can talk the time to study the issues, understand what we have the power to do and change, then plan a course of action. Below are resources that you may want to consider in your planning for the upcoming program year.

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For children: Continue reading Care of Creation →

79th General Convention Recap

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It’s been a little over a week now that I’ve returned from almost two weeks in Austin, Texas where the 79th General Convention of The Episcopal Church was held. This triennial gathering is how The Episcopal Church determines its budget and way forward in living out the mission of the Church (to reconcile all to God in Christ). If you’re an Episcopalian, you know what I’m talking about (hopefully).

It was a convention in which we put our faith into action; there was lots of energy around social justice. And while in Austin, Episcopalians practiced what we preach. In any case, these are my top ten “take aways” from the fifth General Convention that I have attended. I’ll be posting more (with resources) about each in the coming week – check back here! Continue reading 79th General Convention Recap →