Bishop's Day of Formation Resources
Jenifer Gamber
Jenifer Gamber, this year's guest speaker, is the author of three books on Christian formationLearn more about Gamber and her books on her Amazon.com author page.
It Begins with Listening
Working with Youth and Young Adults
Patricia Matthews and the Abide young adult group, Christ Church, Little Rock
What Is 'Abide'?
by Elizabeth Henry
My generation has come of age at a tumultuous time. The very systems that maintain our livelihood—the climate and the economy—are at risk. Fear, anxiety, and injustice are rampant.
People crave connection and meaning, but instead we are tempted daily with the empty calories of consumerism and complacency. It’s easy to throw up my hands in defeat. And yet, God calls us to hope in the midst of despair. A beloved Wendell Berry poem ends with the words “Practice resurrection.” Those words are an invitation to try another way.
For a handful of young people at Christ Church, the Abide group has been one way to practice resurrection and cultivate hope.
We gather to tease out questions, chew on stories. We challenge each other to explore the depth of our faith tradition through spiritual practices like prayer, fasting, Sabbath-keeping, and humor. We dance between the holy and the mundane, knowing we cannot separate the two.
We ask ourselves questions like, “Where would Jesus have shopped for groceries? How do we build careers that are life-giving and meaningful? What does it mean for Christ Church to be rooted on an urban block in a Southern city? What happens when you try to slow down in a fast-paced world?”
We don’t have answers. But we gather together … we hope … we practice resurrection.
To learn more about how the Abide group was formed and how you can better respond to the needs of young adults in your congregation, download a PDF of the trifold brochure.
Journey to Authenticity
St. Paul's, Fayetteville
You can also download a PDF of the presentation notes.
Formation Curricula Overviews
Church Publishing also has charts that list and compare the myriad formation curricula available for each age group. You can download them below.Children's Formation [PDF]Youth Formation [PDF]Adult Formation [PDF]