FRIDAY 11:00 AM - 12:15 PM

BREAKOUT SESSION 1

Shifting Your Posture: Embodying Worship (Fellowship Hall)

Presented by Erin Mieskowski (she/they)

As a worship leader, the phrase “stand if you’re able” didn’t feel quite inclusive enough for me. So, in 2019, I introduced the phrase “shift your posture” in my worship space as a more accessible alternative. I soon realized that phrase digs theologically deeper than I thought. Initially, “shift your posture” was a physical invitation but the meaning has expanded since then. Postures can shift physically, mentally, emotionally, and all of that is worship. Join me for a conversation on the different postures we can take as worshipers and worship leaders and how we can support the people we serve in shifting their own worship postures and practices.

Amplifying Queer Voices: Storytelling through Podcasts (Sanctuary)

Presented by Gaines Taylor (he/him)

What's something you would tell all the listeners who are still in the closet or looking for a safe community?" is the question we ask every guest on Refuge Radio. Podcasting is about telling stories, and we've chosen to tell stories of our queer siblings to give hope to those still in the closet, in unsafe family units, or in toxic communities. We want to show that there are safe spaces and people don't need to stay in unhealthy environments. If you're interested in, or even just entertaining the idea of starting your own podcast, join me for this session on storytelling through podcasts.

FRIDAY 1:45 PM - 3:00 PM

BREAKOUT SESSION 2

Worship & Storytelling from an Ethical Perspective - (Sanctuary)

Presented by Katie Simbala (she/her)

We will explore the ways storytelling can help you and those you are leading in worship connect deeply with the songs you sing together.

Together at the Table - (Fellowship Hall)

Presented by Pastor Jacob Tipantasig-Wolverton (he/him)

Dinner was always a sacred time in my family. Love, laughter, and memories were made at the dinner table. It can be a sacred experience where hearts are made whole. The table can also be a place where pain is experienced, especially for LGBTQ+ individuals who have been excluded from the table, especially the Lord's Table. In this session, we will explore ways that hearts might be made whole as we discover that all are welcome at God's Table, not one person is excluded, but all are included. This session will be designed around Fresh Expressions where we will learn, discover, and share together new ways of thinking as we gather in community together. "Fresh Expressions makes space for denominational leaders and pastors to use both traditional services as well as innovative forms of church to live out Christ’s mission. One does not replace the other, but rather creates a mutual benefit for both—a “mixed economy of church.”' As LGBTQ+ individuals, we will learn how we might be able to reclaim our place at the table through creative approaches to worship, church, and living in community.

FRIDAY 4:30 PM - 5:45 PM

BREAKOUT SESSION 3

Maker’s Meet-Cute - (Fellowship Hall)

Presented By Janna Ford (they/she)

This workshop is a conversation around the healing power of art and how understanding our history and struggles can lead to more power, beauty, and diversity in the art we create and the stories we share with the world.

Bring your creative inner child, excitement to collaborate on a group art activity, and wonderment for learning about fellow artists to this tactile creative convo. This art workshop and discussion will be led by Janna Maxine Ford (they/she).

Trauma-Informed Reclamation - (Fellowship Hall)

Presented by Kel Ravenscraft (they/them) and Brian Smith (He/Him)

Reclaiming our spirituality, church space, and rituals looks different for all of us depending on our experiences. For many in the lgbtq community, we have been exposed to harmful and traumatic situations due to our identity. And yet, we find ourselves here hoping to claim community and know that the Divine has called all of us good within our identities, not in spite of.

How do we re-order our communities and even our own lives if we still want to include church (or some other kind of spiritual community like this one) when it has been a source of harm in the past? Can it be something we reclaim while simultaneously acknowledging and holding this space accountable?

This session will begin to cover four main domain’s of complex trauma’s impact: somatic response, agency, meaning, and relationships. It will also cover how to embody regulation, action, and connection as one chooses in their own time to make meaning. It will explore how church can potentially still be a source of community to help our healing process and re-order our relationships with ourselves, others, and the divine.

This community of Q Worship Collective, as it exists in this space of trauma, is engaging in the crucial task of facilitating space for the reordering the collective imagination of people towards a sense of healing that is non-linear but wholly supportive.

*in this session, we will not be sharing our own stories of trauma or require you to share anything that you are not comfortable with. Everything we do in this space is consent-driven. You have complete agency to participate or not participate to your own comfort level. This session is intended to be informative of embodied spiritual responses to trauma. It will include a ritual and open space at the end to respectfully explore how our collective imagination is a source of one side of healing. We believe that healing is never a true destination so much as it is a journey.

SATURDAY 11:15 AM - 12:30 PM

BREAKOUT SESSION 4

Developing Your Own Dance Language - (Fellowship Hall)

Presented By Gabriel Mudd (he/him)

Love dancing? Want to express yourself in worship?

Lets work together on your movement language worship, be free in your body and in your spirit!

Decolonizing Affirming Worship - (Sanctuary)

Presented by Luther Young, Jr. (he/him)

We strive for worship that is affirming of queer people. But in doing so, we often inadvertently alienate many of our queer siblings, especially people of color. This session invites us to explore how we can decenter whiteness in our affirming worship spaces, music, and theology.

SATURDAY 2:15 PM - 3:30 PM

BREAKOUT SESSION 5

A Liturgy for All Bodies - (Fellowship Hall)

Presented By Kimmothy Cole (they/them)

Ritual is a space of transformation. When ritual is a space to practice inventing the new world, we are empowered to shape the way that new ideas and practices come to life in our communities. Using their book A Liturgy for All Bodies, Kimmothy Cole will lead participants through a process to reimagine ritual from the ground up as a place for experimentation, play and collective visioning.

Reclaiming Worship - Songwriters’ Panel - (Sanctuary)

Presented by Jess Grace Garcia (they/them), Mariah Keener (she/her) and Heatherlyn (she/they)

This will be an opportunity to share songs that we have written or rewritten and get constructive feedback and encouragement for how to move forward. So many of us have been doing this on our own or behind closed doors. Please come and collaborate with us.