(At the Living Room Summit you will learn from Andrea in her Living Room and the join her families at Mount Calvary to experience Building Bridges!)
with Andrea Fieldhouse Griner
with Andrea Fieldhouse Griner
“Don’t expect families to do in their homes what they have not practiced hands on in the congregation.”
– David Lynn
Mount Calvary Lutheran in Excelsior, MN takes this wisdom seriously. Andrea Fieldhouse Griner says, “We know that parents are the primary faith models. They genuinely want God’s love and faith to be central. All that our parents want to know is how to pray with their kids. They want to know the simplest stuff, but they generally feel ill-equipped when it come to church and faith-stuff.“
So… Mount Calvary found the times that work best for their families to gather: once a month on Wednesday night, for Building Bridges, and twice a year on Sunday mornings for Mt Calvary’s unique way of honoring Milestones.
On Wednesday nights, families enter and sit around one of the 2’x2′ tables scattered throughout the room. Here, they are invited into a variety of faith practices, conversations, and experiences. All of these are experienced as models for living faith every day as a family.
During Building Bridges, families unpack their own home altars from a box they brought from home.
They lay out colorful altar cloths, favorite candles, and collections of favorite items that remind them of God’s presence. They practice blessings, such as, “God be in my head. God be in my heart. God be to my left. God be to my right.” They practice reading stories to each other from various Bibles. They enter into faith conversations and practice a variety of ways to pray. Even the spiritual practice of silence – yes, even with very young kids – becomes a learned ritual.
At each grade level, parents and children gather twice a year for a variety of Milestones. The emphasis for Mount Calvary is teaching families to share blessings in the home.
Heartstrings are tugged, as young people dip their fingers into water of baptismal bowls and trace the sign of the cross on their parents’ foreheads saying, “Thank you for keeping your promise to God.” It is here that parents, with their children, learn ways to fulfill the very promises they made at baptism.
Mt Calvary goes far beyond what many congregations hope will translate into faith practices at home. Take home sheets, ideas on web sites, or book suggestions are not enough. Learning by doing and experiencing meaningful and loving connections while they are together in the congregation lead to the confidence and ability to repeat what they are learning at home. It is most fun to listen to the children tell you…
“We do this before we go to bed.”
“I set up our home altar right on my box.”
“My mom blesses me every day before I go to school.”
Want to learn more?
Two Options!
1. Come to the Living Room Summit! (see below)
2. Saturate your congregation with an introduction to this ministry by Andrea Fieldhouse Griner. Inquire about this possibility or schedule time with Andrea by contacting EveryDay
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