making roads, old and new

At the end of the month, my congregation and I will be embarking on a year of spiritual formation and reorientation. Using the framework of
Bryan McLaren's book
'We make the road by walking', we'll be following
a semi-chronological biblical path, learning [or re-learning] the stories of our faith tradition and, along the way, acquainting ourselves with faithful followers of Old and New Testament times.
We'll be thinking, as we start each quarter, of beginnings:
*the beginning of all things, and the beginning of God's relationship with people...and our relationship to God;
*the beginnings of whisperings of God doing a new thing - and the promise of a longed-for Messiah;
*the beginnings of Jesus' public ministry through to his resurrection and ascension - new life for all;
*and, the beginnings of the church.

We'll be using - for the most part - McLaren's suggested
1 year lectionary. This will inform our worship, and hopefully fellowship and Christian Ed. opportunities with all-ages. Taking the plunge to go down a quarterly potluck lunch at the manse route, and hopefully see what the mood is for monthly study group engagement in some form or other.... There'll also be a weekly 'take-away' on the back of the service sheet, for folk to use [or not] for ongoing bite-sized spiritual reflection over the course of the week.
So, the more folk engage, the more, I hope, they'll grow in faith.

I've been involved with some RevGal friends in an ongoing discussion on a variety of approaches for using McLaren's structure. As such, I've created a page on this blog where, from time to time, I might make some practical comments/ provide some feedback on using this beyond small group or bible study approaches.
Interesting times. To follow that conversation, look along the tabs, and click on:
a year with 'We make the road'  [or visit the link here]
Curious to see what this very intentional year will bring.