Interviews done well can reveal what’s most important to a person, foster connection between people, and perhaps inspire new understandings of each other and the world. A secretive, but vulnerable interview between Jesus and Nicodemus early in Jesus’ ministry was one such encounter, and reminds us all of the importance of seeking and finding new birth into salvation life from Jesus.

Sometimes it feels like we can’t proceed into our lives of faith (or we want to control how others walk with us faith) unless we have really specific, glaring signs from God about what is going on. Much of scripture shows us that God walks with us in faith with less of a list to follow and more of a shared exploration of all God is doing on the foundation of values that can be built upon a number of ways. How can we understand discernment to bring us freedom in following God, rather than fear that holds us back from connection?

Discomfort and challenge are inevitable parts of life, but because they are difficult, we can often have trouble discerning how God is guiding us through them, and even using them for our growth and development. Embracing the experience of wrestling with God can help us experience more closeness with God and learning in our lives of faith.

Wisdom takes time to cultivate, and we may go through a period of fumbling about in all sorts of places trying to find it as given by God, but God has provided outlets in all aspects of life for us to find as we value listening for the Spirit over pride in ourselves.

When God has moved to bring more and more of the world into fellowship with God and each other, it has often yielded mixed reactions and uncertainty for those who already saw themselves as God’s people. It can be an inescapable part of the process that we have seasons of discerning what it “SEEMS” like God is doing. Can we use that to reach out and grow from God’s leading, or are we likely to retreat within ourselves?

In some of our most complicated and painful decisions, there is often a context around us of what “proper and powerful, maybe even religious people are supposed to do.” That may or may not actually align with the deepest, truest values God wants us to discern and strive towards. How do we humbly pursue that, even if it stretches us or costs us in the eyes of others?

Figuring out how best to make choices and move forward in action can be one of the more complicated aspects of life. People of faith generally hope that God’s values will influence their discernment and God may even guide it directly in some way. From even creation and the nature of humanity, God gave building blocks for this, that even in a state of brokenness, we can tap into for the thriving of salvation life.

There are times in life when things get “really real,” and we know we’ll have to adjust to incorporate that into our lives. These tend to be both exciting and challenging - like reaching a new stage of commitment in a relationship or having kids. Our faith can be like that, too, and our human condition will have some reaction of wanting to withdraw from these circumstances, but also wanting to figure out how to step up. How do we find God with us in these situations so we can say together, “OK, let’s go.”?

Our society is experiencing more and more elements of stress and anxiety. We can know God offers grace and peace, but then maybe worry that if we still experience anxiety we are failing in faith and God would abandon us. We can see that God does want to relieve us from these feelings and experiences, but not like someone yelling “just calm down” to make a heated argument worse, but like a companion who empathizes with struggle, and has meaningful ways for going all the way through whatever we experience, good or bad.

God’s gift of new life transforms the way we see the world around us and operate in it. Not only is that a gift for our own experience, but it brings profound transformation to others as we share what God has brought into our lives with others and make room for them to share with us, as well.

There are many groups and situations in our lives that make the question of what it takes to belong and who is an “insider” or an “outsider” a big focus. That can make any of us feel worried or under pressure about being “outsiders,” and thrilled and relieved when we are welcomed as “insiders.” God operates by a unique set of values and definitions for belonging in God’s Kingdom than we see in the world around us most of the time, and we can be encouraged where we have been welcomed to offer welcome to others, too.

Salvation life is an amazing gift of God’s grace, but we can also sometimes benefit from a reminder that it’s not an end point or something to take for granted. There is always more learning and transformation of the fullness of what God is offering that can be pursued - a lot like elite athletes, artists and others tend to always seek out more practice and ways to improve, even after seeming to achieve everything someone would want to.

Like reality show contestants focused on one particular outcome at the expense of almost anything else that might be taken away from an experience, we can sometimes get distracted from God’s values and what God calls worthy by competing priorities and expectations. Joseph and Paul give examples of how staying rooted in God’s metrics helps us experience salvation life in any circumstance.

God doesn’t just give us instructions about life, but actually lives profound values and character, and builds unbelievably gracious relationships with us that embody for us what salvation life is really like. How can we learn from that, and be inspired and empowered by it such that we follow in the same values and love and they redefine who we are, how we operate in the world, and the relationships we have with God and each other?

Camps and mission trips are often some of the most formative experiences we can have in our lives and our faith development. In lifting up memories of the impact such experiences have had in our church before, we may also see ways God is moving in opportunities for fellowship and service all around us now.

It’s a strange and fascinating reality that people can be experiencing circumstances most other people would see as generally positive, and yet feel worried and depressed about it, or what others would see as negative, but feel hopeful and resolute. We see this in the Bible, too, like with Jacob and Paul, and God can reveal a lot about the values of thriving salvation life in all situations through these experiences.

Jesus seems to have a pattern even when the disciples are really excited about something to encourage them to refocus on another value or priority he wants to make sure they don’t miss. How can we stay aware of the most important areas of focus from Jesus in our lives - in any circumstance we’re in? And how might that help us experience salvation life more fully no matter what?

Experiences in different settings and with different cultures can often help us discern better how we understand the world and make decisions holding faith in God and our own thoughts and feelings together.

We can go through a lot of experiences that are new, uncomfortable and/or challenging, and it’s not always easy to recognize how God is companioning with us through that and what it looks like to be faithful in unusual circumstances. There are stories in the Bible that give us examples of what to keep an eye out for, and find hope in, for how God will bring the salvation life that may be a bit different, but is just right for each circumstance.

Stories and examples of how people have encountered God and deepened their faith through artistic expression in a way that shapes individuals and communities.