Monday, Feb. 12, 2024
The Rev. Rob Stevens
An Invitation: Living a life of faith
You’re invited!
Are you interested in learning/discovering more about St. John’s? The Episcopal Church? Your faith? This Lent I will be facilitating an Inquirer’s class: Living a Life of Faith that will provide us a chance to ask questions and to learn from each other…and hopefully a little from me. There are two class times offered: 1. Immediately following the 10am service in the sanctuary and 2. 5pm Sunday evenings in Thaxter Hall. Both sessions will be 75 minutes long. Classes begin this Sunday, the 18th of February. This is intended for everyone, whether you have been at SJC your entire life or just arrived! It is also the preparation for those wishing to be confirmed, received, or reaffirmed by the bishop when he visits on April 14th. (We will cover all of that in the first session and it is not a requirement. “All may, none must.”)
Living a life of Faith. What does that mean? What are the practical realities that are avenues or obstacles to a life well lived and characterized by faith? We will explore these and other questions during our time together. The headings for each week are Belonging, Believing, Becoming and Bestowing.
Belonging…At the heart of each of us is a desire to belong. In this session, we will address the big questions such as “What does it mean to belong?” “Whose responsibility is it to belong?” And also some practical questions concerning our community such as, “How do you become a member of St. John’s” and “What does membership mean?”
Believe… “I believe” is a powerful statement and one that has a plethora of intentions and meanings. This week we will explore the many beliefs we hold as Humans, Christians and Episcopalians. We will also examine how our beliefs are formed and how they shape our lives and behaviors.
Becoming…What are practical examples of a living faithfully? We will explore developing a “Rule of Life” and other methods that may help to integrate our faith and life. What are ways to “become” more of our authentic selves in our communities? What does a maturing faith mean?
Bestowing…A major hallmark of a life of faith is service. We will examine the many ways that we give. Our time, our talent and our treasure are gifts that we have the privilege and responsibility to bestow. We will look at the posture of bestowing and explore practical possibilities of giving.
Please bring your questions…this is designed to be an opportunity for all of us to learn more about what God might be up to in our lives, individually and as a community. I look forward to this Lenten journey and hope you will join me.
Peace,
Rob