Empowering Connections Through Spiritual Conversations
A recent gathering at Redeemer Lutheran Church and Preschool in Salem, Oregon, shows how faith conversations can help build relationships and empower Christians to be a hopeful presence with their family, friends, and neighbors.
On Saturday, January 31, Jennifer Prophete, director of The Hopeful Neighborhood Project (HNP) and National Good Neighbor Day, conducted a workshop on The Spiritual Conversation Curve. Forty-eight members from eight area LCMS churches attended to hear Prophete speak on how individuals can get better at having spiritual conversations.
Prophete’s presentation highlighted how well LHM’s Spiritual Conversations in the Digital Age (SCDA) resources work in helping people become more comfortable in talking about faith and Jesus. “What impressed me the most in this workshop is how many people were hungry to hear about how to share their faith,” says Prophete. “They were energized to know they didn’t need special skills to talk about Jesus. They just needed to understand the insights highlighted in the SCDA Curve to feel equipped.”
The Curve is a research-based resource that helps Christians identify if others are unreceptive, receptive, or seeking, in respect to the Gospel. Its power is in its simplicity, reminding us to adapt to the spiritual needs of the other person rather than them adapting to us. In this way, we can lean into rather than veer away from these conversations. By gauging a person’s “spiritual posture,” we can speak with grace and sensitivity, keeping our faith discussions open and comfortable as God works to create and sustain faith. Go to lhm.org/curve to find out more.
Congregations play a key role in equipping Christians to live into their vocations as neighbors. In this respect, hosting a Spiritual Conversation Curve workshop is a perfect tie-in. Workshop content is designed to help attendees view their spiritual conversations, when they occur, with an attitude of attentiveness that is natural and suited to the situation, thus resisting the urge to declare the Gospel when it’s not appropriate to the conversation. For more information on hosting an LHM workshop of SCDA or Households of Faith, please go to lhm.org/requestaspeaker.
For expertise on empowering neighborhoods and enhancing communities, please contact Prophete at hopefulneighborhood.org/coaching. There you can get a free starter kit, schedule an introductory call, or email an HNP coach with your own questions. “Working with Christians to enhance their presence and improve their communication in their local neighborhoods is important,” Prophete says. “Both HNP’s and SCDA’s resources are wonderfully helpful tools to do this.”