Six New Things – Week of August 30, 2021

Stories are sources of: refreshment; transformation; inspiration; community-building; friendship; and tradition. ONE Stories, "provide mirrors to our innermost selves and open windows to other worlds" - and Steeped in Stories: Timeless Children's…

For Afghanistan

Thanks to Bishop Patricia Lull of the Saint Paul Area Synod (ELCA) for sharing this Great Idea. We've expanded on her ideas, but will be happy to include other resources, as well; please advise. Bishop Lull writes: [As the US began pulling…

Six New Things – Week of August 23, 2021

Peace and conflict; love and faith; travel and place: six resources to deepen, broaden, and grow in our spiritual journey. ONE Spiritual growth comes through humility, openness, and exploration. The Peacemaker's Path: Multifaith Reflections…

Diversify Your Back-Pack Fillers

Thanks to Macmillan Publishers for this Great Idea! As young people, teachers, staff, and parents gear up for heading back to an uncertain school year, let your congregation be a place of prayer, blessing, and gifting to set a tone of hope…

Reset: Leading through Transformation

Faith+Lead's Rev. Lee Ann Pomrenke offers some helpful tips for A Hard Factory Reset - both personal and congregational. Her ideas will almost certainly spark additional ones as conversations unfold. Basically, Pomrenke suggests that congregational…

SIX NEW THINGS – WEEK OF AUGUST 16, 2021

It must be almost Fall: everything is about worship and curricula: ONE What would it be like if women built a lectionary focusing on women's stories? Imagine a year of worship grounded in A Women's Lectionary for the Whole Church (Church…

Faith Practice Baby Steps

Thanks to Jill Benson, DWELL Curriculum Coordinator, for inspiring this Great Idea! A lot of folx are feeling burnt out, stressed, stretched beyond their resilience, and/or at the end of their ropes. Many folx are either contemplating retirement,…

Six New Things – Week of August 9, 2021

Who doesn't have big, big questions, right now?? ONE The Girl with Big, Big Questions (Beaming) discovers that some of her questions make people uncomfortable, so she stops asking them - for a while. Then she learns that her curiosity can…

Back-to-School Bash – with a VBS Twist!

Thanks to Jayne Andrews and ResourceUMC for sharing this Great Idea. Fall is approaching quickly. As families gear up to get back to school, remind VBS participant families of upcoming church programming with a Back-to-School Bash! While…

Take a Walk; Say a Prayer

Thanks to Nicholas Tangen for sharing this Great Idea in the SparkHouse blog. As congregations "imagine strategies for returning to worship and in-person community life", Nicholas Tangen wonders about the meaning of gathering in the neighborhoods…