EASTERN SHORE PASTOR WRITES STUDY FOR YOUNG ADULTS

Eastern Shore pastor, the Rev. Alex Joyner, has written a new curriculum to help young adults and others who are trying to discover where God is leading them.  “Where Do I Go Now, God?” has just been released by Cokesbury and the United Methodist Publishing House.  The six-week study, which includes a DVD, helps participants reflect upon who they are, upon what they want to do with their lives, and upon God’s presence and care in the midst of their vocational journey.

“Learning to listen for God’s voice in the midst of so many other competing voices seems to me to be a major life skill,” says Joyner, pastor of Franktown United Methodist Church in Franktown, Virginia.  “It’s a lesson I’m continuing to learn.  My hope is that this study will invite young people into a vocational journey that is centered on the most important questions we can ask as human beings.”

A small group for college students called Restless Hearts, which Joyner led while he was campus minister at the Wesley Foundation at the University of Virginia, inspired this curriculum.  The title came from a quote by the early Christian writer Augustine of Hippo who once wrote that “our heart is restless until it finds its rest in [God].”  “I think many of us can relate to that feeling of restlessness and searching,” says Joyner.

The study explores a number of in-depth topics including:

• Inside-out: Expectations identifies the tensions that exist between an inner sense of values and calling and the expectations of others
• Passion and Vocation addresses listening to inner passions as a way of listening for God
• Trusting the Gifts explores trusting that God’s purposes move through one’s gifts
• Listening in the Shadows examines the roles that needs, anxieties, and places of brokenness play in helping people listen for God
• Somebody’s Calling Your Name explores claiming vocation while participating in acts of service and justice
• Taking Risks takes a look at how taking the risk to change is an invaluable tool for moving toward experiencing greater trust in God and greater awareness of God’s call

Bible study, group exercises, and exploration of spiritual disciplines like journaling help to develop the topics.  A DVD segment, featuring interviews with young adults, storytellers, and comments from Joyner, introduces each session. 

“I had a unique opportunity in my seven years of campus ministry to accompany students through their transition into being adults and mature Christians,” Joyner relates.  “What I learned from them in listening them into a new stage in their life informs this work.  It is a joy to offer it to others to use.”

In addition to his pastoral role, Joyner teaches at the summer Course of Study School at Perkins School of Theology in Dallas, Texas and is a frequent writer for the FaithLink adult curriculum series offered through Cokesbury.  He is a member of the conference Board of Ordained Ministry and chair of its Call Culture Committee.

“Where Do I Go Now, God?” is available at Cokesbury bookstores nationwide or by order through Cokesbury.com.  Click here to order.