My story: In 2021, I lost both of my parents suddenly to Covid within 10 days. As a worship leader, I was immediately struck with how little room our faith communities provided for grief, let alone a framework or language for offering Christian lament. Interestingly, my children became my worship leaders, teaching me the rhythms and practices of daily lament, as we grieved together.
Proposed Workshop Content: Like adults, children and youth experience loss, trauma, transition. They encounter deep disappointments and grief, sometimes even the loss of a family member, or friend, or a special pet. Like us, younger generations often learn to inhabit the liminal spaces of waiting, disappointment, illness, moving, divorce, and so much more. We live in a world full of bullying, violence, racial injustice, poverty, and discrimination. But do we, as God’s children, no matter our age, know that we can approach God honestly with our pain and confusion? Do we realize that God invites us to practice daily rhythms and rituals that allow us to lament with one another, no matter what age, in community?
In this workshop, we will discuss the following:

• a brief theology of lament as a spiritual practice for worship and daily life that enables us to approach God and community with honesty, vulnerability, and authenticity
• an exploration of how we might make room for lament in our faith communities and at home
• new language to aid us in practicing lament with children and youth together utilizing the Psalms of lament and biblical examples (Job, David, Hannah, Jesus)
• practical resources drawing from culturally diverse faith communities and experts (over 22 interviews I conducted in 2023) in this field to facilitate and create practices of lament through rhythms and rituals.

Pop culture influences the clothes we wear, the music we listen to, the attitudes we hold, and even the language we use. In fact, the average American spends two hours per day consuming digital media! Yet church educators are often unsure how to leverage television and film in their adult faith formation groups. Through this workshop, we will examine three real-life groups who have successfully used shows like “Ted Lasso,” “The Good Place,” and “Good Omens” as a catalyst for faith formation. Participants will then consider their own context: what shows would speak to their congregation, what setup would be most appropriate, and what buy-in would be needed. Finally, participants will learn how to design and execute an 8-session adult small group study that explores faith through the lens of popular television or film.

This workshop will help participants dig deeper into trans and queer approaches to the Bible in ways that can help them transform their teaching, preaching, and personal interpretation/devotional practices. The workshop goes “beyond the basics” by skipping over the traditional “clobber passages” and questions of “what the Bible says about LGBTQ people.” Instead, it will use unexpected passages to help participants understand how trans and queer approaches can inform how they read and teach any story or text from the Bible. These approaches are heavily informed by current, cutting-edge work being done in trans and queer Biblical Studies, including but not limited to the workshop leader’s work on queer approaches to Paul’s letters and the New Testament. The workshop will be highly interactive in order to show participants how they might incorporate these methods into their work with adults, youth, or children. Instead of telling them what a queer or trans approach to a text is, the leader will challenge participants to learn and embody these approaches using guided examples and collaborative learning techniques. Participants will leave feeling empowered to dig deeper into the Bible using these approaches and skills–and with resources that help them adapt and apply these reading techniques to their many different contexts for faith formation.
Although this workshop is pitched as “beyond the basics”–in order to be a resource to LGBTQ leaders and allies who have already done the equivalent of “Inclusion 101”-type workshops–the workshop welcomes folks with all levels of experience–with the note that we will not be going over basic concepts of gender, sexuality, or usage of pronouns.

When a new family comes into our faith community, we typically invite the adults(parents) to a New Members class. There they learn all about our faith community and being Presbyterian. Yet, when youth and children come into faith communities, we send them off to Sunday school, Youth group, or Mid-week programming without an opportunity to learn. The assumption is that they will get it in Confirmation! This workshop will give you some ideas on how to have an intergenerational gathering to welcome the whole family into the faith community!

Over three workshop blocks, this in-depth Bible study will dig below the surface of the seven I AM declarations in the Gospel of John. The sayings, such as “I AM the Bread of Life,” “I AM the Light of the World,” are remarkable, yet appear in no other gospel. Why? Who is the audience? What is the context? How does the author use familiar concepts and settings to hammer home the importance of Jesus and God being one? Over and over the writer of John uses these particular images to reveal the reality of God come to earth through Jesus. Bring your Bible and join us as we explore together these rich statements and more. This workshop is a continuation of workshops 100 and 300.