JJ Barrows came to us real and in real life (via zoom), honest about her own brokenness, God and recovery. Life is hard, and these days especially so, whether you’re a Jesus-follower or not, and when we own that, we’re half-way home. She reminded us that there’s hope and healing that often comes without answers. Even for us.
Here, you can listen and watch. You’re welcome.
by Connally Gilliam and Paula Rinehart
Connally’s time with us was authentic, just as transparent as we’ve learned to expect. She led us through the four-chapter gospel, reminding us of God’s Big Story and how our personal chaos indeed fits into it. Even in the unprecedented ravages of the Covid-19 pandemic, His goodness shines when we have eyes to see. No, not denying reality but facing down the grit of the moment and discovering His immediate presence there with us in the middle. We commend the recording to you here.
Tim is a resident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, where he works on economic competition, cronyism, civil society, localism, and religion in America. He is concurrently the commentary editor at the Washington Examiner.
“The American dream is dead.”
This is the prevailing belief in many parts of the country. When your town has been gutted by opiod addiction, joblessness, and an aging population a pessimistic outlook makes sense. What makes less sense is why some areas have been ravaged so much more than others.
It’s an important question to ask. The unequal distribution of decline has played an enormous role in creating the gaping divisions impacting our worldviews, politics, economy, and now, even our health. Rather than speculate about something so critical, American Enterprise Institute resident fellow, Washington Examiner senior columnist, and author, Tim Carney, went right to the source for his latest book, Alienated America: Why Some Places Thrive While Others Collapse.
What he found was surprising.
The defining characteristic between people and places that thrived and those that didn’t wasn’t wealth, education, or a host of other more tangible factors, but community—particularly, church-centered community. Listen [link to talk] as Carney explains the profound role that strong institutions of community, including churches, can have in our civic life and very identities. This has big implications for how we live our life as Christians, how we engage with our church, and how we love our neighbors, even when we’re forced to be apart.
Tim was our first try at virtual Bring Your Own Brunch in our new world of social distancing and locked into Zoom.
The recording starts part way into Nan’s introduction, reflecting on peoples’ lived experience of community or lack thereof.
You can see this experience, too, but because of a glitch in the recording you’ll need to download it. Sorry. We’re learning as we go.
Jeff Saferite for 20s/30s Brunch in January 2020
If you made a resolution for the new year, there’s a pretty good chance that at least one of the goals you set concerns finances. Of Americans who make resolutions, almost 50 percent aim to save more and 30 percent want to stick to a budget. So it made sense for DC Nav20s to kick off the 2020 brunch season with a discussion on how to be good stewards of the money God has given us in order to maximize our service to the kingdom.
Jeff Saferite walked attendees through the question, “How can we live a radical lifestyle for Jesus, while also being financially responsible?”
For some, especially in this region with its high cost of living and escalating housing prices, imagining a life beyond apartment dwelling and scraping by can seem unrealistic. Thinking through finances often has far more to do with day-to-day living, stashing some cash for retirement, and—if you’re lucky—the occasional vacation splurge. Jeff invited us to think more broadly, with the goal of financial stability as a way to live into the kingdom of God and make kingdom-based decisions.
Barbara Bradley Hagerty spoke at the DC 20s/30s Brunch in November. She was a big draw, and she did not disappoint.
Barbara Bradley Hagerty, best selling author, internaltional journalist, contributor to The Atlantic, NPR regular for 18 years
It doesn’t always feel like we’re in the right role or point in our career. And it can be even more unclear where we’re supposed to be instead.
Pulling from her experience as a globe-trotting journalist, an almost-lawyer, and author, who has covered some of the most consequential national and international stories of the past few decades, Barbara Bradley Hagerty walks through some important questions we should be asking ourselves about calling.
It’s not all blind passion—though Barbara urges us to explore what really grabs and speaks to the desires God has planted in you—or striving to grab the brass ring. There are other key questions, and they aren’t all comfortable.
Listen as Barbara shares her story and consider, as she puts it, “You might be where you are because you’re the only person someone has.”
