Adult Formation
Formed: Practicing Our Way into a Bigger Story with God Together
How are churches forming and equipping adults in times of cultural upheaval? In the face of competing stories, church leaders can help others lean into God’s expanding story. But what story are we telling about God? In this community, we will first explore the story of God’s abundant life-producing love that Jesus shows us and how that story forms us. We will then engage, share, and generate creative and practical ways churches can cultivate adult transformation.
COMMUNITY SCHEDULE
We are excited to have Rachel Howell and Steven Carrizal lead us through an interactive workshop and learning lab experience centered around adult formation.
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 12
10:00 a.m. | “Our Stories of Formation”
11:00 a.m. | "Formed through Story"
2:00 p.m. | “Formed through Scripture”
3:00 p.m. | “Formed by Practice”
4:00 p.m. | “Formed through Mission”
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 13
8:45 a.m. | “Formed by Experience”
9:45 a.m. | “Formed by Community”
Facilitators
RACHEL HOWELL
Rachel Howell lives in Searcy, Arkansas, working in campus ministry and in church planting. She and her husband, Alan, lived in Montepuez, Mozambique from 2003-2018 with their mission team, working in church planting, leadership training, teaching, and sustainable development efforts among the Makua-Metto people group. Rachel has one master’s degree in historical theology and another in Old Testament and will soon complete a certificate in spiritual direction. Her research interests include making atonement and hermeneutics conversations practical for everyday life, and her goal is to help the church live into better stories as they move between creation and new creation.
STEVEN CARRIZAL
Steven Carrizal has served as associate minister at Altamesa Church of Christ in Fort Worth, Texas since 2010. He has been in full-time congregational ministry since 1991, also serving as youth minister in churches in Houston and Denton, Texas. He is a graduate of Abilene Christian University with an undergraduate degree in youth and family ministry and a graduate degree in Christian ministry. Steven is passionate about the spiritual growth of adults of all ages as they go along the journey as disciples of Jesus.
session information
Come join us to learn how to deepen adult formation in your church. We will facilitate a workshop environment where community members will collaborate as both teachers and learners, asking deep questions about the spiritual formation of adults in our churches. Together we will explore how adults are formed by story, scripture, practice, mission, experience, and community. Each session will include reflection on a presentation and generating ideas for implementation, culminating on Friday morning with each participant formulating a plan of action to fit their context.
Session 1: “Our Stories of Formation”
Adults are constantly being formed, whether intentionally or otherwise. Although churches often focus more resources on the shaping of younger ages, spiritual formation doesn't end at 25 or at 40 or at 65. In this session we will discuss our experiences of growth and formation. We will chart the variety of understanding and perspectives and discuss the need for deeper resources.
Session 2: “Formed through Story”
What is the Gospel? In our tradition the phrase “to obey the gospel” has been a way of talking about baptism, but what narrative about God-in-the-world is behind the assumptions we've inherited? What story are we in with God, and what is God really like? In this session we will wrestle with different takes on the story of God in the world and how different stories actually form us differently.
Session 3: “Formed through Scripture”
How have we been taught to describe the trajectory of Scripture as a whole? While our fellowship and others have a history of emphasizing Acts and Paul's letters, we need a coherent hermeneutic for all of the Bible. When we center the Resurrection, the trajectory of Scripture shows a narrative from Creation to New Creation. In this session, we will explore how a New Creation trajectory for interpreting scripture actively forms us by inviting our daily participation.
Session 4: “Formed by Practice”
What spiritual practices are forming adults in our churches? While prayer and scripture reading are important for maintaining strong faith, churches can help adults expand their experiences of hearing and responding to the prompting of the Spirit of God. In this session we will explore intentional practices for deepening personal and community growth with the Holy Spirit.
Session 5: “Formed through Mission”
As we grow into a New Creation story with God, we realize that God's mission is to make all things new. God is healing the world and redeeming the cosmos, and God wants this dream to be realized through our participation. In this session we will explore how we are formed as agents of New Creation, carrying God's work of reconciling all things with us every day, extending the invitation to belovedness everywhere we go.
Session 6: “Formed by Experience”
Sharing and hearing the experiences of others helps form our imaginations going forward. We have brought our different experiences with us, and our time together has given us a shared experience from which we can collaborate to share ideas, new and old, tried and untried, to evaluate and adapt. In this workshop session, we will build off each other to generate a catalog of ideas, questions, and strategies produced from our sessions together.
Session 7: “Formed by Community”
We aren't formed in isolation, but instead we are continually in community with other church members, as well as with our ancient brothers and sisters whose stories are recorded in Scripture and also those who lived in the centuries in between. With that cloud of witnesses in view, we will listen and discern together how to design strategies for adult formation. In this session we will coach each other to synthesize actionable plans for adult spiritual formation and create connections for following up with each other.