The way many people process life and matters of ultimate
reality have changed, and represent an increasing number of people in Middle
Tennessee. Here’s a sampling of those changes…

God Peace, Doctrine Truth, Christianity
Christ, Blue
Green,   Church Community,  Worship Centers Coffee Shops, Holiness Compassion, PC Mac,
Teaching Conversation, Membership Friendship, Functionality
Beauty, Books
Blogs
Knowledge Freedom, Answers Questions, Religion
Spirituality, Doing Being
Style Substance, Outreach Missional, Plastic Digital, Heaven
Earth
Exclusive Universal, Certainty Wonder, Consumerism
Activism, Polished Real
Excellence Authenticity, Programs Doing Life, Homogeny Diversity
Orthodoxy Love,  Accountability Acceptance

The working question for June 13 is: What does this change mean, and how do I and my faith community
respond?

~~

About Jim Palmer: After
receiving his M.Div. from TEDS, serving on staff at Willow
Creek Church,
and planting/pastoring a non-denom church for six years, Jim left professional
ministry and immersed himself in a world of non-religious people. As an author,
he has been chronicling his journey out of organized religion: Divine Nobodies: Shedding Religion to Find
God (and the unlikely people who help you) and Wide Open Spaces: Beyond Paint-by-Number Christianity. Jim’s new
book will be out the end of 2008. Through trial and error, Jim pioneered a form
of church for non-religious people, which functions as a social network in the Nashville
area.

Two groups have increasing contacted Jim through his writing:
people interested in knowing God but turned off by organized religion, and
people in ministry who desire to connect with them. The half-day gathering
on June 13 is meant to stimulate conversation among pastors, church
planters, church staff, and key volunteers around the topic of how churches
can better relate to people who want to know God but currently wouldn’t
consider the idea of "going to church."

Jim and friends will share and guide our conversation and interaction for the
gathering. Each participant will receive two
free books: Divine Nobodies by Jim Palmer, and Authentic Relationships
by Wayne Jacobsen. A light lunch will be offered. The cost is a $50
minimum donation. Because the gathering is designed to be interactive,
participation is limited to the first 25
people. Please register by email before
June 1 by contacting Jim at: jim@divinenobodies.com
Each participant will be given preparatory assignments, and a dedicated Internet forum will be
utilized for participants before and after the June 13 gathering. For
directions to the gathering, go to www.hfumc.org (contact me for more church info)