After experiencing three years of spiritual transformation, I entered into the Newbigin Fellowship hoping to develop a stronger theological foundation and a deeper insight into who God was calling to me be. Going in, I felt like I had a firm grasp on all the Christian basics. My mom was a minister, I had tagged along to seminary classes as a teenager, I grew into adulthood in a family where theological debates were not uncommon at family dinners, and I had logged many hours as a Sunday School teacher.
A few months into the Fellowship, though, I began to realize that God's story in this world is bigger, more incredible, and more wonderful than I had recognized before and that God at work in the world and in my life is more loving, wise, and patient than I had been giving Him credit for. As the year progressed further and we started discussing issues around faith and work, gender, sexuality, justice, and science, I learned more about how God reveals Himself both in scripture and in the world and gaining a better understanding of those revelations unlocked additional pieces of the puzzle for me that expanded my earlier realization. In the midst of wrestling through those questions with my cohort and other Fellows, I also learned more about myself especially in terms of how I relate to God and the people around me, and I felt challenged in the areas where I don't do that so well.
As many people do, I leave the Fellowship with new challenges and questions particularly around vocation and how I can live faithfully and wholeheartedly as the person God designed me to be, but I also leave feeling better grounded theologically, spiritually, and emotionally to process through those questions. In the other Fellows, I have also gained a supportive community I can continue to rely on in that journey.
- Hilary Winchell
Newbigin Fellowship Alumni 2012-13
Now accepting 2013-2014 applications: Deadline July 31st
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The Mission of The Newbigin Fellowship >
Musings on the Newbigin Fellowship