School of Kingdom Living
Shortly after I became the chair of Dallas Willard Ministries—sort of by default, a friend settled her laser beam focus on me and asked, “Do you really want to do this?” She had heard me talk being tired. She knew I felt inadequate and inexperienced to do this.
I looked down into my lap and oddly did not think about this. Instead I said, “The most important thing I can do with my life right now is help people grasp and buy into living their life in their kingdom of God here and now.” (That italicized phrase is the tagline for Dallas Willard Ministries.) Much to my own surprise, I was all in!
Living in this present moment in the strong and unshakable Kingdom of God has created a friendship with Jesus I never could have imagined. I love living and teaching about how we can sense God’s presence all day long, whether that be experiencing peace in the midst of chaos or partnering with God in adventures that astound me. In this companionship with God, the Holy Spirit does the heavy lifting. This life with Jesus has grown primarily through my relationship with and reading of Dallas Willard’s understanding of living in God’s Kingdom here and now.
At DWM, we’ve ventured out in a few projects to help people embrace this idea. And now, the best is in the making!
The School of Kingdom Living is an 18 month experience of joining with others who want to connect with God and move into this radiant life of partnering with God. Our 4 gatherings occur at my favorite place on the planet, Mater Dolorosa in Sierra Madre, California. In those weeks together, Keith Matthews and I will teach, release students to process with God and gather again for processing together. We plan to go deep rather than broad, using Dallas’s books as central texts. We’ll focus on these four topics:
- God: What is God really like? What is God’s opinion of me? How can I hear God?
- Kingdom of God: Jesus’ View of the Kingdom, of the Gospel, the Sermon on the Mount, Discipleship as Transformation
- Holistic Formation: Discipleship as Character Growth, Dimensions of the Person, Knowing Yourself, Cycle of Transformation
- Spiritual Practices in Everyday Life: Living with Jesus as Your Daily Teacher, Spiritual Disciplines as Connecting with God, Rhythm of Life, Discipleship the other Six Days of the Week
So in this wisbit, I’m asking for your prayer that people will be immensely blessed by this effort. Keith and I both spent hours (amounting to months and years!) immersed in absorbing this material at Dallas Willard’s side and can hardly wait to share it with others.
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Grace and peace,
Jan
