Christian Education Electives for March/April 2023

You can choose from two classes for this round of electives (click "read more" for full descriptions). Classes meet from 9am to 10am each Sunday morning (we'll have a special combined event on Easter morning). Your registration is helpful to us in determining the locations for our classes.

Ephesians 4ff – Finding Joy In Living According To Design

Led by Bob Scott

This class will be a study in Ephesians starting in Chapter 4.

In the 1st half of Ephesians. Paul writes about the mind-boggling spiritual blessings enjoyed by those “God chose to be united to Christ from before the creation of the world,” i.e., to Christians!  We also read about God's previously hidden plan “to use the church to display his wisdom in all its rich variety to the unseen rulers and authorities in the heavenly places!” 

In the 2nd half of Ephesians the Holy Spirit, working through Paul, helps us understand how to “live worthy of the calling to which we have been called.” In other words, how do I live worthy as one God has so blessed and chosen to be his own? Or, we might ask, united Christ, how then should I live under the sun? You're welcome to join us as we seek to “live as children of light” and “making the most of every opportunity” to pursue joy by living according to design!

A Relationship "With" God

Led by Jim Shackleton

This is an elective for those who attend church regularly. Why is this introduction prefaced in this way?  Because …

All people inside the church face the challenge of the human condition (Genesis 3…we live with/in our sinful nature, and Galatians 5:17…the Holy Spirit leads our fight against this sin nature). Churchgoers face this unique challenge every day, and this elective will clarify and expose the mindsets and the motivations behind them. The desire is that you will learn about yourself, and this awareness will give you plenty to consider as you sojourn with our loving Lord.

Using teaching from Scripture and two books in particular, WITH (Skye Jethani) and JESUS THE KING (Tim Keller), we will look at the human condition of healthy and unhealthy mental and spiritual postures before our Lord, and how they have resulted in church joy… and church struggle, both recent and historical. As I’ve prepared this material, I (Jim Shack) have found this to be an incredibly insightful and helpful look into my own heart, and the grace of God.

This elective will have similarities to an elective taught last Spring, Reconsidering Our Relationship with Christ, while also including new material for those wishing for more in this area of personal understanding and growth.