Exploration 2013: full of hope

I attended Exploration 2006 in Jacksonville, Florida as a seminary student small group leader on behalf of Methodist Theological School in Ohio. I had never attended an Exploration discernment event before, and I remember feeling just so darn hopeful that there were hundreds of young adults from across the nation (and world!) being so thoughtful and introspective about a call of ministry. It helped little old me, in the midst of my own discernment, understand that yes, the United Methodist Church and the people who wanted to serve were a part of a great movement - a movement that supported deliberate contemplation, honest responses to God's call upon lives, and pursuing education in order to best live out one's call.

I remember standing in the middle of the exhibit hall, woozy from lack of sleep and intoxicated by the sheer amount of energy among all of these young adults willing to fearlessly examine what God was asking of them. (Side note: I am totally an introvert.)

I remember talking to a young woman about her anxiety around pursuing a call to ordained ministry as an elder, and we talked about how our calls are our own, and yet they also belong to God. The people we love will walk alongside us as we live into our calls. Over the past few years, I've watched her continue to claim her call to ministry, and she is now a provisional elder in West Ohio. This happened because of Exploration.

I had the privilege of being a part of the design team for Exploration 2009 in Dallas, Texas. We spent many, many hours in conversation about how best to shape the event so that young adults could have access to the resources they needed as they discerned God's call in their lives. I appreciated so much that we are a denomination that values education, mentoring, cross-generational relationships and the work of the local church and campus ministries in shaping and forming current and future leaders.

Exploration 2011 took place in St. Louis, Missouri. Again, just a remarkable event. It was a humbling honor to help host the event with my colleague and friend, the Rev. Juan Huertas. It was an exhausting and exhilarating weekend.

United Methodist Communications Exploration 2011 Slideshow

On Sunday morning, during closing worship, I remember standing beside the stage. I had simply no words - I was humbled by the choir that had assembled less than 48 hours before, and that was sharing in love. I was speechless at the willingness of these young adults to simply be present with themselves, with God, with community, and move towards lives of meaning by following a call. I was awed by the movement of the Spirit in that room. I found myself crying tears of joy, and I remember walking on stage with tears of joy running down my face, just feeling at peace with the privilege of being in that room, with these people, and that they were sharing of themselves in such an honest way. God moves in such unexpected ways.

We're working on Exploration 2013 now - it's going to take place in Denver, Colorado. I am giddy with anticipation, and I cannot wait to see what God has in store for the young adults who will come from near and far to be open to the movement of the Spirit within.

I care so much for all of you. The desire to help people - especially [ but certainly not only! :) ] young adults - discern what it is God is calling them to is something I feel so strongly about it is like I can touch it. I want to be a part of that - to help, to serve, to connect. This is why I am a deacon in the United Methodist Church. My call is to help cultivate leaders, to help people discern what it is God has in store for them, to connect them with the educational options that will expand their minds and souls. Exploration is about this, too. We can't wait to see you in Denver.

Spark12 - Application Posted!

It's official...

We've been tweeting....

We're on Facebook....

We've got buzz...

We have an application! 

(Yahoo!)

Ready to apply?

Spark12 is looking for creative, innovative projects that push the boundaries of what we think of when we consider ministry at work in the world. Spark12 supports justice oriented, community-based projects proposed by young people who are actively looking for a way to move that dream into reality.

If you are a young adult (18-35) who has been looking for a way to get your idea off the proverbial ground, you may want to see if Spark12 is for you. If you are no longer a young adult, please consider sharing this possibility with those you know.

We are looking for people who are able to provide a vision with some depth - you'll need to be able to clearly explain how your project will transform the world. In addition, we expect you to have the drive and focus to turn your vision into reality.

Starting something new is always hard work but we know it can be easier when people are willing to walk alongside you for a while.

The application is available now. Submit your project idea by June 29, 2012. Inspire us with your vision.

Learn more at www.spark12.org.

Contrast

The snow is coming! The snow is coming! It has been a rather mild winter here in Ohio, but today I am looking out the window at the beginning of a lovely snowfall. Today's rain is expected to turn to ice and then get covered by a couple of inches of snow by morning. Lovely to look at...but nerve wracking if you have to drive.

Februarys are often a mix of contradictions here in Ohio. Whenever I see snow in February, I think of an annual event at the school where I serve. Methodist Theological School in Ohio has an annual scholarship competition each February on our campus. Prospective students come from all over the nation to compete for the Harding award. Every year, it seems like we have great weather all February...until a bunch of prospects drive and fly in for the Harding competition. At that point, there seems to be some weather conspiracy that converges upon the campus. One year, we had an ice storm that effectively shut down the surrounding area. Another year, we (very) slowly drove to dinner over roads covered with several inches of packed snow. This year, I hope for uneventful weather! But no matter what happens, it will be good to meet with a group of enthusiastic prospective students and watch as they connect with their future classmates and colleagues.

The contradiction in weather continues in my mind. I am headed to Las Vegas in just a few days for the Relevance LEAD 2012 conference -  a gathering of one hundred participants that includes young clergy, young lay leaders, and others who are working with young adults in the United Methodist Church.

The expected weather forecast next week? 60s and sunny. That's crazy. Just crazy!

Life is full of contradictions, though. Our ministries take place in a culture that scorns our efforts to transform the world. We have grandiose ideas about our personal calls to ministry...which are flipped upside down when we are confronted with God's will for our lives. We go to school to pursue our dreams...and then learn about new possibilities we never could have even conceived of without the gathered community of study and faith.

I am hopeful that the contradictions in my life push me to continue to respond to God's call on my life in a holy and authentic way, and I hope for the same with you.

Relevance X 2012 and Relevance LEAD 2012

I'm posting to invite you to two events...IN VEGAS! Both events take place at the same time, so you choose the event that fits your needs.


Relevance LEAD 2012: Create. Innovate. Transform
Thursday, February 16 - Sunday, February 19, 2012
University United Methodist Church, Las Vegas, NV

LEAD is a gathering of one hundred participants that includes young clergy, young lay leaders, and others who are working with young adults in the United Methodist Church. LEAD will bring together the collective wisdom of those that want to transform and grow young adult ministry in the church for the ultimate transformation of the world with the love of Jesus Christ. 

• As of December 6, 2011, there were about 30 spaces left.
• Registration to Relevance LEAD includes access to Relevance X. 
• Press Release about Relevance LEAD 2012 available here. (PDF)

or....

Relevance X 2012: Immerse yourselves. Love hard. Care for those who persecute you.
Friday, February 17 - Sunday, February 19, 2012
University United Methodist Church, Las Vegas, NV

More than an event you attend, this conference is a movement that focuses on empowering young adults (18-35) through worship, service, uniting our voices, and actively creating change in our communities. While no shortage of commentary continues to address the exodus of the under 35 crowd in today's mainline denominations, those who plan and gather at Relevance will be creating and telling a different story.

• 20% off discount code available here.
• Article about Relevance X 2011 event available here. 
• Press Release about Relevance X 2012 available here. (PDF)

Relevance Ministries is the official young adult ministry of the Desert Southwest Conference of The United Methodist Church.

Full disclosure: I will be speaking at Relevance Lead with @pastordj about a new project scheduled to be made public by February 1, 2012. I will be sure to post about the project here on the blog once final details are in place. Full speaker list posted here.

I'm excited about these conferences. It will be a breakneck weekend...because I will be flying back to Ohio on Sunday night in order to be back at MTSO in time to meet the MTSO Harding Scholarship participants on Monday afternoon. Good stuff - days full of leadership cultivation, conversation and recruitment. Pretty happy.

We Are Thanking the Lord

Matins

Now we are awake
and now we are come together
and now we are thanking the Lord.

This is easy,
for the Lord is everywhere.

God is in the water and the air,
God is in the very walls.

God is around us and in us.
God is the floor on which we kneel.

We make our songs for God
as sweet as we can

for God's goodness,
and, lo, God steps into the song

and out of it, having blessed it,
having recognized our intention,
having awakened us, who thought we were awake,
a second time,
having married us in the air and water,

having lifted us in intensity,
having lowered us in beautiful amiability,

having given us
each other,
and the weeds, dogs, cities, boats, dreams
that are the world. 

What Do We Know: Poems and Prose Poems by Mary Oliver

From A Place For Prayer, November 25, 2011

New Year

It's been quite the fall. This fall was full of travel, memories, work, conversations and fruitful service. The weeks leading up to Thanksgiving felt like a sprint towards the closing of the season and preparation for a new rhythm of work and service.

This Thanksgiving has been bittersweet in some way. One relative passed away on Thanksgiving morning after a long battle with cancer. I am watching another relative slide away from awareness of the present time, and that has been very difficult to watch. (For the record, I was the kid who cried when reading Flowers for Algernon in the sixth grade.) But every Thanksgiving season - for all of us - can hold in tension the joyful and the difficult.

I've preached before about how living one's faith takes practice - practicing being in community, practicing spiritual disciplines, practicing prayer. It is funny to think about our faith this way. I remind myself sometimes that while Sundays come up over and over again, each and every week (imagine that!), holidays such as Thanksgiving and Christmas arise just once a year. Therefore, even as we sink into familiar rituals and actions, we encounter layers of experiences from years past....and these experiences only come around once a year.

I received a Common English Bible in the mail this week; it was an unexpected surprise. I received it in return for filling out an online survey a couple of weeks ago. I flipped it open at random, and was confronted with Luke 8:40-56. This is the story of the bleeding woman who touched Jesus' cloak. In the middle of this story, we are interrupted by Jairus' daughter's miraculous healing. In both instances, there is an undercurrent of trust, and faith. A good theme to lean on.


This coming Sunday marks the start of a new year - the beginning of Year B in the Revised Common Lectionary, and the first Sunday of Advent. It is a season of renewal, and a fresh start, and I look forward to seeing what lies ahead. Advent is a time of waiting, of being present, of anticipating the familiar while also being ready for the fresh, new murmurings of the Spirit. O come, O come, Emmanuel.

---------------------------------------

Thankful: This year, I am thankful for deep and abiding friendships with colleagues across the conference and across the connection. I did not expect to deepen so many friendships over the past few months, and I am thankful for the movement of The Divine within our lives, surprising us when we least expect it.

An excellent article about Claremont Lincoln University's interfaith work.

Two Schools, Three Religions (So Far)
Claremont Lincoln University is a collaboration between two established schools: the Claremont School of Theology and the Academy for Jewish Religion, California, which trains future rabbis, cantors and chaplains from all branches of Judaism, although Orthodox Jews do not accept the academy's ordination. A Muslim institution, Bayan College, is in the works: it will be part of Claremont Lincoln, established through a partnership between the Islamic Center of Southern California. Administrators say it will be one of the first schools to train Sunni and Shiite imams entirely within the United States.

It is helpful to read an article written from a secular perspective. Also, there is a helpful statement about diversity initatives in the school:

Claremont is trying to attract more conservative students, not just liberal believers who frequently sign up for interfaith efforts. In doing so, both students and faculty are confronting the fact that no religion has one set identity.

It also references the Association of Theological Schools how individual schools are responding to needs in the world:

...says (Dan) Aleshire (executive director of the Association of Theological Schools): “A lot of theological schools are perhaps ahead of some of the thinking in their respective denominations or ecclesiastical communities,” he says. “They are more ready for this kind of intellectual and pastoral engagement, where the people in the denominations are less sure about it.”

 I find it interesting that so many of our prospective students are asking questions about our Master of Divinity with a specialization in Interreligious Contexts. I appreciate students' understandings that we live in a diverse world...