Milestones is a way of forming faith around the events in our lives. By drawing attention to those events, we remember how God is present in our life and find a deeper relationship with God. In short, Milestones is about creating disciples through deeper relationships. Peace partners with Milestones Ministry to offer our Milestones Faith Formation. In their own words, here is how Milestones Ministry describes how milestones work:
Milestones Ministry brings an awareness of the presence of God to individuals of all generations through a vital partnership between home and congregation. Milestones Ministry provides a clear and usable model for congregations, homes, and community to connect faith formation resources with daily life experiences. The rich variety of Milestones Ministry does the essential ministry of the church: promoting Christian faith formation and outreach into the larger community. The outreach element is accentuated when the celebration of milestones is offered for the entire community and not just congregational members.
Individuals and larger households can participate in a way of life that marks special moments and honors them as important to the journey of faith. This model provides the means to implement the Milestones Ministry vision for passing on faith—a vision that places children of all ages in the center of the church’s concern and sees God’s redeeming work at play through home, congregation, community, culture, and creation.
Milestones incorporate a simple structure that includes naming, equipping, blessing, gifting, and reinforcing so that the Milestones Ministry event has a greater chance to take deeper root in lifelong faith formation.
At the heart of equipping people for their lifelong faith formation are the Four Keys. These faith practices are central to every milestone and integrated into people’s daily lives as well as the life of the local congregation.
The Four Keys:
- Caring Conversations
- Devotions
- Service
- Rituals and Traditions
These four daily faith practices are simple, doable, and practical. The Four Keys are used to open the imagination of individuals, families, small groups, and congregations with the gospel of Jesus Christ. They provide ways to nurture the Christian faith and reach out to others with the love of God in Christ. They serve as a catalyst for people to wonder about and play with a variety of ways to celebrate and practice the Christian faith in their daily lives.
To maximize its effectiveness, Milestones Ministry includes role modeling of the Four Keys in the congregational setting and incorporates opportunities for a follow-up gathering. The benefits of Milestones Ministry are more deeply rooted in the lives of people when they are able to gather again for a faith formation checkup. Therefore, each Milestones Ministry event offers a follow-up gathering that includes a Four Keys outline.