Dangerous Book - How to make the Bible more (or less) dangerous

For some the Bible is a hammer. For others it is just a doorstop. It was never meant to hurt, nor be ignored. Is it possible that its real threat is to the status quo of your life? Not calling you to some otherworldly existence but helping you see the world you are woven into more clearly? Join us as we learn how to read this book - so it’s less dangerous, and discover some of the exciting possibilities it reveals - so it can be more dangerous!'

April 16: How the Bible Can Be the Better Kind of Dangerous - The Bible was written piece by piece over more than 1000 years, the last parts crafted nearly 2000 years ago. Its languages are no longer used, and the cultures that produced it are so far removed from ours by geography and time that nothing can be assumed. If we don’t take that into account we can do a lot of damage in trying to read and use it. So, how do we use the BIble so that it can be a powerful and meaningful source of life for us? Let’s find out! LIVESTREAM | PODCAST | SUNDAY PAPER | GROUP GUIDE

April 23: Dangerous Role Models - So, you want to be a hero? Or maybe just want a hero? Can’t say I blame you. Who wouldn’t? The Bible plays along with so many other cultures in creating superstars, but if that is a “I can’t believe it” or a “I can’t be that” disconnect for you, then it’s time for a closer look. Those heroes aren’t there to gawk at, or to make you feel bad about not being one yourself. They are there to give us a picture of what always has shaped us into the people of love, justice, and hope that God imagines. LIVESTREAM | PODCAST | SUNDAY PAPER | GROUP GUIDE

April 30: Dangerous Winds – How is your spirit? Are you running on empty a lot of the time? Or maybe you’re “fine!” What about those around you?  The U.S. Surgeon General named this as a moment of existential change. Turns out we aren’t the first generation to face threatening winds and respond with desperation, denial and despair. From cover to cover, the Bible reveals a Spirit that fills generations of empty tanks with power that didn’t (and doesn’t) seem possible, deserved or even desirable all the time. What spirit do we inherit from these ancestors? Could it be just the kind of dangerous we need right now? LIVESTREAM | PODCAST | SUNDAY PAPER | GROUP GUIDE

May 7: Dangerous Blessings - “Blessed are those who….” how would you fill in the blank? This “dangerous” book provides some possibilities that are pretty counter cultural. It challenges what it means to be human and how to be a human alongside others. So, what do you think “being blessed” means? Is it about securing the space around you, or could it be about creating more space for you and for those around you? Join us May 7 to discover what these dangerous blessings look like in our day to day lives. Have a blessed day! LIVESTREAM | PODCAST | SUNDAY PAPER | GROUP GUIDE

May 14: Dangerous People - Well, maybe not always dangerous, but movers and shakers, the people who make things happen. We think we know who they are according to the expected systems of power, and the Bible certainly played into the patriarchy of its era, but it also upended it. And if Jesus was a gauge for what threads in the fabric of our world really make a difference, then we can assume there is great power where others miss it. All that to say, what are we overlooking today? Around us and within us. Let’s check out some Dangerous People! LIVESTREAM | PODCAST | SUNDAY PAPER | GROUP GUIDE

May 21: Dare to Break Your Limits - Out of control, impossible, DANGEROUS! Those are the messages that you might hear if you dare to go where, or think and dream about what is beyond the expected. But what if the real danger is living within our limits? If the Bible has eyes, I’d say that they are often focused on the horizon - not to see it, but to see what lies beyond it. And if the Bible has hopes, I’d say one is to infect us with the audacity to believe that what we can’t see might be! LIVESTREAM | PODCAST | SUNDAY PAPER | GROUP GUIDE