2026 Theme: Faith Like a Child
…But Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of heaven belongs.” And he laid his hands on them and went on his way.
~ Matthew 19:14-15
I have always loved the story of Jesus blessing and connecting with children. Using my Christian imagination, I often wonder what it was like for those kids to be seen, held, affirmed, and blessed by Jesus. In a culture and setting where children were most likely best seen and not heard, Jesus tells his disciples that we must become like children in order to embrace, embody, and inherit the kingdom of God.
This year our 2026 theme for the presbytery is “Faith Like A Child: Exploring the Gifts of Play, Wonder, Discovery, and Vulnerability.” There is so much for us to learn as we reconnect with what it means to practice our faith with a sense of awe, curiosity, celebration, and unwavering trust in the One who has known us as we were being knit in our mother’s womb. One book that has shaped my own faith formation is a book entitled, Dangerous Wonder: The Adventures of Childlike Faith by the late Michael Yaconeli. In this work, he invites us to connect with God with courage and curiosity. He says, “Curiosity is the shape of our hunger for God. We question God without apology, we march into the presence of God bringing our armfuls of questions—without fear—because God is not afraid of them. People are afraid. Institutions are afraid. But God is not.”
At each of our meetings we will emphasize these gifts of the childlike characteristics of play, wonder, discovery, and vulnerability. We will also remember the vows that ministers and elders take at ordination and installation services that ask, Will you serve with energy, imagination, intelligence, and love? This question is one for us all to consider as we seek to serve the Lord with courage and curiosity, with playfulness and problem solving, with discovery and discernment, with wide-eyed wonder and with love.
ABJ
#FaithLikeAChild #PlayWonderDiscoveryVulnerability