This three-part series is led by Dr. Gary Nelson.

September 11: “Resident Aliens” (I Peter 1:13-25) Sometimes it feels like to be a person of faith puts us at odds with the world around us. In truth we are. We walk to a different set of core commitments and values that sometimes places us on the other side of arguments- sometimes we see things very differently because of the God we serve. Over the next three weeks we will explore this strange idea of being Resident Aliens both at home in our world but at the same time a stranger.

September 18: “Rooted and Purposeful” (I Peter 2:9-12) Peter is writing to a people in the first century who are facing persecution. In times like those that the early followers of Jesus faced it was easy to lose hope. Peter wants them to be encouraged and he does so by calling them to reflect and grasp onto the Identity they have as disciples of Christ. He realized that out of our identity will flow our actions and our sense of mission. We explore the core of what we root ourselves in- our identity in Jesus Christ.

TBD: “Finding the Centre” (I Peter 4:12-19; 5:6-11) Henri Nouwen one time made a bold statement to a class of graduating students of Tyndale Seminary. He was calling them to maturity as a followers of Jesus told them that to mature as a followers of Jesus will mean that will you be led into some places you don’t want to go. He said “It means the road of downward mobility in the midst of the an upward mobile world. Your life is not going to be easy, and it should not be easy. It ought to be hard. It ought to be radical; it ought to be restless; it ought to lead you to places you’d rather not go.” We end this series focusing on challenge of being a follower of Christ in a complex world.