Discovery Class
Reconciling Statement
The Discovery Sunday School class at Northwest Hills UMC welcomes, includes, and celebrates ALL people, regardless of race, nationality, gender, sexuality, societal or educational class, marital status, or physical or mental abilities. We are proud of our Wesleyan heritage, we value Bible study through reading and open discussion, and we seek to live out our faith in all interactions. We advocate for the full inclusion of people of all gender identities, expressions, and sexual orientations in our church and in the larger United Methodist Church, and we affirm everybody’s humanity, value, and beauty in God’s eyes.
Currently Studying
Scripture and the Skeptic by Eric Huffman
The Bible is the best-selling, most widely read, and most quoted book in history. It is also misunderstood, misquoted, and fiercely debated. If, as Christians believe, the Bible is the Word of God, why is it so complex and difficult to interpret in parts, yet simple enough for even children to understand in others?
Isaiah & God Is in the Manger
1/17/21 – 2/28/21 Isaiah Ch 49 -Ch 55
11/29/20 – 1/10/21 God Is in the Manger: Reflections on Advent and Christmas by Dietrich Bonhoeffer. These forty stirring devotions will guide and inspire readers as they move thematically through the weeks of Advent and Christmas, from waiting and mystery to redemption, incarnation, and joy.
9/27/20 – 11/22/20 Isaiah Ch 40 – Ch 48
With racial tensions as high within the church as outside the church, it is time for Christians to become the leaders in the conversation on racial reconciliation. This power-packed guide helps readers deepen their understanding of historical factors and present realities, equipping them to participate in the ongoing dialogue and to serve as catalysts for righteousness, justice, healing, transformation, and reconciliation.
Interesting Parables
Wise Up! Four Biblical Virtues for Navigating Life
by Alyce M. McKenzie invites the reader to step up to the divine customer service desk and exchange self-sufficiency, self-absorption, self-indulgence, and self-protection for the four virtues of biblical wisdom: the fear of the Lord (faith), the listening heart (compassion), the cool spirit (self-discipline), and the subversive voice (moral courage).
Keep Watch With Me: An Advent Reader for Peacemakers
by Claire Brown, Michael T. McRay is a collaborative daily devotional featuring diverse contributors: black, white, LGBTQ, Latinx, Palestinian, incarcerated, Native American, Australian, Americans, Irish, South African, clergy, laity, activists, authors, organizers, and more. The season of Advent, as the church prepares for the birth of Christ, is a penitential season of reckoning with our need and the needs of the world. Keep Watch With Me offers stories, reflections, prayers, and spiritual practices to sustain and challenge the faith of those who work for justice and peace, and long for the coming of God with us.
Galatians & Ephesians
Didn’t See it Coming
by Carey Nieuwhof reveals the seven core issues that take people out: cynicism, compromise, disconnectedness, irrelevance, pride, burnout, and the emptiness of success. Discover how to reverse the most significant challenges to your life, closing the gap between who you are and who you’ve always longed to be.