DCLA Day Three and Four

by Michael Novelli   |  June 29 2009    04:37 PM

Throughout the event Scott Erickson painted murals that represent key elements of the stories. The picture in this post is represents God’s kingdom. I love the style of his work.

DCLA day three began with Learning Labs focusing on loving others. Several youth workers shared with me that their students were really connecting with the content from the Labs. I led Bible Storying workshop in afternoon. I worked hard to try and fit my content into 75 minutes! This was a smaller group than Friday’s workshop-10 people. I was thrilled with this size group because it allowed for more dialogue and interaction. The group really engaged in the Storying experience, sharing creative, deep and wonderfully insightful observations. I left this session so encouraged!

The evening focused on stories from Jesus life. Mandee Radford (from the music group Alathea) shared powerfully about God’s Kingdom. She said, “Jesus flipped everything around, The kingdom of God is less like a palace or a castle but more like a group of people sharing what they have...having a meal together on a hill.” She went on to connect this with the feeding of the five thousand. Then, Marquis Laughlin gave a riveting telling of the story of Jesus’ trial and death.

Day Four was a shorter day. Following the morning Labs was the final Big Room Session. My favorite moment of this session was when Mandee pointed to the thread of the Holy Spirit being present and active throughout the biblical story. She did a wonderful job of connecting us from the current story of the Day of Pentecost all the way back to God’s Spirit hovering over the waters in Creation. Then she gave the observation that God’s Spirit often rests on those who you’d least expect... like humble shepherds. She pointed to shepherds throughout the Bible–and the most important shepherd, Jesus the good shepherd.

I really enjoyed being a part of DCLA. I am greatful that Youth Specialties allowed me to have a voice in this event and was willing to try something new. My hope is that students gained a sense of their role in of the amazing Story of God.