How to Use Church Commons
A commons for worship, formation, and faithful life together
Church Commons is designed to be practical, adaptable, and communal. The resources here are not meant only to be read. They are meant to be used: in worship, in small groups, in leadership teams, in training settings, and in seasons of discernment.
There is no single right way to begin. Different churches and groups will enter from different places depending on their needs, their leadership, and the season they are in. This page is here to help you find a good starting point.
Start with the question in front of you
A simple way to use Church Commons is to begin with the need or question your community is carrying now.
If you are preparing for gathered worship, begin with Worship.
If you are looking for resources to guide a group, a board, or a leadership team, begin with Formation.
If your community needs a larger frame for understanding its season or calling, begin with Frameworks.
You do not need to understand the whole site before using it. Start with the part that best matches the work in front of you.
Use the site by section
Worship
The Worship section is for gathered prayer and liturgical life. It includes seasonal resources, orders of worship, prayers, and other materials designed to help communities worship together in accessible and faithful ways.
This is a good place to begin if you are:
- planning worship for a congregation or group
- looking for seasonal liturgical resources
- seeking shared practices of prayer, confession, thanksgiving, communion, or sending
Formation
The Formation section gathers resources that help people grow together in faith and wisdom. It includes conversations, communal devotions, equipping materials, and training tools.
This is a good place to begin if you are:
- leading a small group, board, class, or team
- looking for discussion guides or reflection resources
- helping leaders grow in clarity, trust, and shared purpose
- looking for structured learning resources for use with others
Within Formation, different resources serve different needs:
Conversations are guided discussion tools designed to help groups talk honestly, listen well, and move forward thoughtfully.
Devotions are written for communal use. They are meant for small groups, leadership teams, classes, and other gathered settings rather than for private individual reading.
Equipping is leader-facing. It offers guidance and tools for pastors, elders, facilitators, teachers, and others who are helping people grow.
Training is designed for direct use in learning settings. It includes materials, pathways, and tools that can be used with participants in classes, cohorts, workshops, or formation processes.
Frameworks
The Frameworks section offers larger streams of thought and practice that help communities understand where they are and what kind of faithfulness is being asked of them.
This is a good place to begin if you are:
- navigating a season of transition or change
- seeking language for discernment
- trying to connect leadership, formation, and public witness
- looking for a larger vision to guide a process or season
Current frameworks include:
Seasons of Shalom — a way of noticing where a community is and what kind of response is needed now.
Righteous Risk — a framework for courageous, thoughtful leadership in moments that require trust, experiment, and faithful action.
Public Discipleship — a way of thinking about Christian life not only within the church, but in public witness, shared responsibility, and the common good.
Use resources together
Church Commons works best when its resources are used in real settings with real people.
A worship resource can help shape prayer for a gathered community. A conversation guide can help a board slow down, reflect honestly, and make wiser decisions. A communal devotion can help a small group or leadership team deepen trust. A framework can help a congregation name the season it is in and imagine what faithfulness might look like next.
The point is not to move through the site as a library. The point is to use what is here in ways that support worship, trust, clarity, courage, and shared life.
Adapt with Care
Church Commons is meant to be flexible. Many resources can be adapted to fit local needs, schedules, and settings.
At the same time, adaptation should serve the purpose of the resource rather than weaken it. If a conversation is designed to create honest listening, give it enough time and structure to do that. If a communal devotion is meant to be shared aloud, do not reduce it to private reading alone. If a framework is meant to guide discernment, use it patiently rather than as a shortcut to quick answers.
Use what is helpful. Adapt with care. Let the resource serve the life of the community.
A few good ways to begin
If you are not sure where to start, here are a few simple entry points.
If you need something for gathered prayer, begin with Worship.
If you are leading a board, team, or small group, begin with Conversations or Devotions under Formation.
If you are developing leaders, begin with Equipping.
If you are planning a class, cohort, or workshop, begin with Training.
If your church is in a season of change, uncertainty, grief, or imagination, begin with one of the Frameworks, especially Seasons of Shalom.
Return as needed
Church Commons is not meant to be used once and set aside. Communities often return to the same kinds of needs in different ways over time: worship, grief, trust, leadership, discernment, imagination, formation, and public faithfulness.
Come to the site as your context requires. Start where the present need is clearest. Use what strengthens the common life of your people. Return when a new season calls for a different kind of help.