Doing Discipleship Differently
Thresholds
of
Vocation
“Signs and Thresholds Along the Way”
Here we are. The next step on your discernment journey of Christian discipleship. Let’s begin with a clarifying question to help you move forward.
I AM
How can I participate in and practice a Christian life of faith as a baptized Episcopalian, conforming to Christ’s way of life and continually being transformed on my lifelong journey of faith?
A BAPTIZED CHRISTIAN
WHO WONDERS…
As stated on the previous page, we are focused on these five main steps, and right now, you are discerning. You have been identified by a leader in your church as someone who might want to engage your spiritual life on a deeper level. Or, you have identified yourself as someone who is looking for more as a baptized Christian, either inside or outside of the church.
As we move forward, remember you are discerning…listening…exploring for the purpose of calling and clarification…hoping for a greater depth of meaning, belonging, and purpose than you are currently experiencing.
You are wondering about deeper participation in the life of the church and your community and ways of practicing a Christian life of faith.
Following the Way and Exploring Dimensions of Your Spiritual Life
As a path forward to explore these wonderings, we will be using a tool developed within the Episcopal Church specifically for those who are discerning a deeper Christian Life of Faith. This tool is called “Signs and Thresholds Along the Way.” As it states:
A Christian life of faith is premised on being in relationship with God and with God’s people. We have assurances from those who have come before us that God wants us to have life and have it in abundance. We claim this fullness of life as we travel with God on a journey that has three dimensions:
- It is lifelong—unfolding chronologically across one’s life;
- It is life-wide—integrating formative events and experiences from across one’s contexts; and
- It is life-deep—making meaning influenced by culture, beliefs, attitudes, emotions, ideologies and values.
As we meander through life’s labyrinth, individually and in community, we gain insights and make connections between and across our experiences of faith in the church and in the world. Through them we glean a glimpse of the dream God offers. Sometimes the path to reach it is clear; other times it seems illusive. Fortunately for those of us who want help navigating our way, there are recognizable signs of maturing in our relationship with God. They are marks of our deepening knowledge and understanding, the shaping of our values and attitudes, as well as the honing of our practices and skills.
As we more fully embrace our identity as disciples and members of the Body of Christ, there also are thresholds that we can cross. These steps mark accepting increased responsibility to proclaim God’s loving, liberating, life-giving Good News (evangelism) and to help others to find their path as we pass on our faith (faith formation) (from page 2 of “Signs and Thresholds”).
There are four thresholds you will explore that are indicators of a maturing Christian life (p. 4 of “Signs and Thresholds”):
- Claiming: I am beginning to claim a new faith as I come to know God’s Story
- Engaging: I meet others who know God’s Story and engage with them in communion
- Sustaining: I wrestle with God and God’s Story and share my gifts to sustain my community and God’s Mission
- Cultivating/Catalyzing: I help others wrestle with God and God’s Story cultivating their faith and catalyzing their engagement in God’s Mission
They are designed to prompt reflection upon where you are in your personal faith and ministry development and suggest the knowledge, skills, and practices needed to follow Jesus at significant points in a faith journey. Together, the signs and thresholds are intended as a tool to aid discernment or self-assessment and are not an inventory for evaluation or judgment. Instead, the thresholds are simply containers that you use to get a sense of where you may be and where you may want to explore during your faith journey.
The format for each of the thresholds is the same; they start with a brief description of typical characteristics of someone at this point in their faith journey and then list signs that we hope they can confidently express within the faith community and in the world. We encourage you to read each description, reflect upon what the signs say about your personal faith and ministry development, recognize your strengths, and identify where you want to grow. They are offered with blessings for the journey.
Please explore and reflect on each threshold carefully as you discern signs in your life that help indicate where you are in your own spiritual life.
Formation 