St. Gabriel Episcopal Church Cherry Hills Village, CO
Purposeful Retirement: Discovering God's Call for the Third Chapter of Life
Thursday, Aug. 11 11:00 a.m.
$25.00
USD/Ticket
Held on August 11, 2016.
Retirement, or the years leading up to it, is a time filled with tension and new questions:
How should I fill my time?
How do I navigate uncertainty, financial worries, or changing health needs?
How can I avoid the temptation to withdraw or “just live for myself?”
What should my role be in serving a younger generation?
How can an older generation offer an alternate voice in a youth-driven culture?
Does God have a greater purpose for my later years?
More than 100 people joined us at “Purposeful Retirement: Discovering God’s Call for the Third Chapter of Life,” a half-day event exploring the unique role retirees play in God’s mission. It featured a keynote presentation by Amy Hanson, author of Baby Boomers and Beyond: Tapping the Ministry Talents and Passions of Adults over 50.
The event also explored:
The history of retirement in America
A theology of retirement
Ways to discern God’s call
The power and potential of intergenerational friendships
Contributors
Amy Hanson, Ph.D. is a speaker, writer, and consultant with a passion to help older adults discover a life of Christ-centered meaning and purpose. At the age of 23, Amy became the full-time active adult minister at Central Christian Church in Las Vegas, Nevada, where for five years she led a ministry of over three hundred adults fifty and older. Her ministry experience led her to write Baby Boomers and Beyond: Tapping the Ministry Talents and Passions of Adults Over 50.
Peter Menconi is a nationally-known speaker and head of Mt. Sage Publishing. Pete practiced dentistry for more than 20 years in private practice, the U.S. Army, and a mission hospital in Kenya. He is also a writer who focuses on intergenerational and aging issues. In 2010, he published The Intergenerational Church: Understanding Congregations from WWII to www.com.
Rev. Chris Ditzenberger is the pastor of St. Gabriel's Episcopal Church in Cherry Hills Village, where he has served since 2005. A Littleton, Colorado native, he is a graduate of Gordon College, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary and the Protestant Episcopal Theological Seminary in Virginia. Prior to ordination, he worked in Washington, DC at the intersection of ethics and public policy.
Lynn Bell is a Cultural Transformation Leader with the Legacy Center and Coach at Marshall Goldsmith Stakeholder Centered Coaching. She trains, writes, coaches and speaks globally for nonprofit and for profit organizations on workplace issues such as work/life balance, leadership, workplace relationships, diversity, values, and creativity
Brian is the VP of Formation here at DIFW and also leads our 5280 Fellowship program. Prior to landing at DIFW, he served in pastoral ministry for thirteen years and at Denver Seminary for four years. His vocation includes moving ideas out into life through relationships and conversation – whether that applies to God, work, the Church, good beer, or Liverpool Football Club. He married way out of his league, and spends most of his free-time being parented by his two daughters.
Jeff Haanen is a writer and entrepreneur. He founded Denver Institute for Faith & Work, a community of conveners, teachers and learners offering experiences and educational resources on the gospel, work, and community renewal. He is the author of An Uncommon Guide to Retirement: Finding God’s Purpose for the Next Season of Life and an upcoming two-book series on spiritual formation, vocation, and the working class for Intervarsity Press. He lives with his wife and four daughters in Denver and attends Wellspring Church in Englewood, Colorado.
Breakout Sessions
Intergenerational Relationships
We rub shoulders with people from various generations every day, but how well do we really understand each other? Maybe you’ve wondered why your children or grandchildren see life differently than you do. Pete Menconi explores the life events and values that characterize each generation and the way they connect in the family, popular culture, and church.
Led by Peter Menconi
The New Normal
Aging isn’t easy, but it can be good. Amy Hanson shared insight regarding the physical, mental, and spiritual transitions boomers face in their later years and offers strategies to adjust to “the new normal.”
Led by Amy Hanson
Embracing God’s Mission–at Any Age
What does it look like to hear God’s voice as you prepare for retirement? How do cultural assumptions about retirement influence our views of “the good life?” In this workshop, Brian Gray, Jeff Haanen, and Chris Ditzenberger led a participative conversation about discerning our calling in the various seasons of life and what that means for people of Christian faith who want to serve in God’s mission well throughout their life.