Our new series will also focus on formation, and will use a lot of the same language as our current Sunday teaching series: “Change is Possible”, but the framing of our series will be a different way to think about our formation. When we think about spiritual growth, we all have a picture in our mind. Often that picture includes effort on our end, and returns on God’s end. So if we read our Bible, show up to church, go to small group, pray regularly, then we SHOULD experience God in specific ways. God should feel close. God should give us spiritual insights on a regular basis. God should fix our problems and make our lives better. When we don’t experience God in that way, well then it must be because our efforts aren’t good enough. So we try and try and try, almost like we are running on a treadmill, hoping for a specific outcome, and there is no end to our effort in sight. 

This picture falls short of what Paul teaches about formation in Ephesians. Each week of this series, we will journey through the book of Ephesians, and learn a new picture of formation. A picture that postures us as recipients of a beautiful inheritance that was lavished on us, rather than one earned by effort. Our formation begins with a gift, and it continues to take place through our faith and not necessarily through our efforts. Emotional experiences, wonderful insights, or an easy life don’t always mark our formation. It isn’t purposed solely for our benefit, but rather for the benefit of the whole body.  Below you will find the themes for each week and their perspective scriptures. The weeks of this series will alternate between teaching and Community Group Bible Study.