Ten Things to Love about Forming Us, NDPC’s Weekly Meet-Up for Parents 

NDPC’s parenting class, Forming Us, meets every Sunday morning from 9:45 – 10:35AM. Anyone who is dedicated to raising children is welcome to participate.

1. We keep it real – Whether you’re showing up with bed head or a cranky child in your lap, shedding tears, or sharing a personal insecurity or doubt about where God is, we welcome you to show up as you are, and to share the full, messy truth about your life and faith and parenting.
2. Deepening community – We began this class out of a hunger to get to know other NDPC parents better. It has been a joy to create and sustain more connection over the long haul.  The felt solidarity, especially during the pandemic, has been nothing short of sanity-saving.
3. We keep it simple – So much about contemporary life, parenting, and even religion can feel overwhelming.  As an ethic of care for tired, often frazzled parents, we try to make it as simple as possible to show up, to participate, and even to lead our class.
4. No pressure, no guilt – Life with children can make it very difficult to show up to anything with consistency.  We love it when you’re able to join us, and we miss you when we don’t get to see you, but we value your freedom to come and go as you’re able.
5. Mix of content – We sometimes plan month-long series, like recent ones on Raising Anti-Racist Kids, or the Enneagram in Parenting.  We often process what’s going on in the larger world.  And every month or so, we really just like to check in and hear how everyone is doing.
6. Common ground and diverse perspectives – While we share much in common, we enjoy learning from parents with different personalities, faith backgrounds, and parenting approaches.  The wisdom of our collective is rich, precisely because we don’t all think or act alike.
7. We stay relevant and practical – When you’re in the trenches of parenting, sometimes you don’t have the bandwidth to read whole books or discuss abstract ideas.  Our class gives space to discuss whatever is happening in our real, day-to-day lives, whether it’s how to not go crazy during the pandemic, how to approach prayer with our kids, or how to communicate mindfully within our extended families.
8. Mix of guiding voices – As no one among us in an expert on parenting, we take turns guiding conversation about concepts, questions, and topics that hold interest, leading as much from our struggles as from our strengths.  The community is so gracious, receptive and wise, it is delightfully easy to lead our class.
9. Organic discernment – One of the gifts of meeting together over the long haul is that we don’t feel pressure to get it all in in one class or series.  We listen to the needs and interests among us over time, and plan topics accordingly, but with fluidity to change course if special needs arise.  The same thing is true for planning social gatherings and service projects; they arise organically.
10. You don’t have to be a parent! – We love being joined by adults who are not caring for young children.  We welcome their perspective and endeavor to make the conversations open and inclusive enough that anyone can show up and feel a part of the community.

–Kimberly Broerman, Forming Us co-facilitator