Amid the various calls for missional renewal within the North American Church, an often neglected aspect of that conversation has to do with the nitty-gritty stuff of how we might actually converse with friends, neighbors, co-workers, even family members in a fresh and helpful way. Our culture presents new questions and challenges for Christian witness, but also opportunities. This is precisely what Rob Strong, a pastor at Grace Community Church near Boston, MA and author of The Big Guy Upstairs: You, Him, and How it All Works, seeks to address in the workshop below.
Whether you are someone who has questions about the Christian faith, are considering the best ways to engage friends who have questions, or are a leader looking for a resource to help equip others to relationally invent in rich conversation with their neighbors – we think you’ll find value in this workshop.
Workshop Description:
“I’ve never been to church.”
“My son looked at me the other day and asked, ‘Mom, what religion are we?’ I had no idea what to tell him.”
“I have no intention on going to church ever again.”
“I believe in a god. Just don’t bother me with the other stuff.”
“I don’t know what to tell my kids about God. I do, however, want to give them the space to figure him out.”The conversation has changed.
These are actual quotes shared on the sidelines of a recent youth soccer tournament. While we as church leaders wax and wane over fine details inside the church, the world around us has shrugged and said, “Who cares?” Like a groundswell across our country, beginning in New England, we are seeing the earliest signs that we have our first emerging generation that does not have any interest in the church, they feel no guilt about it, and they have no intentions on being a part of it. Now what do we do with that? New songs, new buildings, new sermon series just don’t cut through the noise anymore. This breakout will wrestle with these realities and our ability to reengage with our very own culture. It begins with a fresh way to talk about God.
The audio download of this workshop is available HERE and is available for free all day today, 12/30/13 (discount automatically applied when you add the workshop to your cart).
**If you find resources like this helpful, there are many more available here. You might even want to grab a bundle all at the same time.**
Missio Alliance Comment Policy
The Missio Alliance Writing Collectives exist as a ministry of writing to resource theological practitioners for mission. From our Leading Voices to our regular Writing Team and those invited to publish with us as Community Voices, we are creating a space for thoughtful engagement of critical issues and questions facing the North American Church in God’s mission. This sort of thoughtful engagement is something that we seek to engender not only in our publishing, but in conversations that unfold as a result in the comment section of our articles.
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