The worlds of academia, business, the courts, government, the media, medicine, religion, and science are where many people invest their time, earning a living to provide for themselves and their family and utilizing the skills that God gave them.
God gave us occupations to serve others, to support ourselves and our families, and to allow us to express ourselves through our gifts and talents. His purpose is for each of us to flourish in our occupation as we interact with one another. Are you flourishing?
Human Flourishing
Human Flourishing is the theme of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship’s Following Christ 2008 conference (FC08), which will be held in Chicago, Dec. 27-31, 2008. The purpose is to invite professionals, academics and students to explore more deeply, in the context of their profession, the questions, “What is human flourishing?” and “Does it matter what I do?”
The conference has a very practical purpose, to explore how each of us can serve God through our life’s work. FC08 challenges us to contemplate, in the words of conference director Jon Boyd, “What would Jesus do if he worked in your job?”
Twelve discipline-specific tracks are featured at FC08, which will offer attendees opportunities to explore with others who have similar interests the faith-based implications of their careers. Each track features Christian leaders in a specific discipline who will offer thoughtful and challenging ideas about what it means to follow Christ in their profession. In addition, FC08 features three interdisciplinary tracks, plus Day Ahead events with nationally known Christian leaders who will provide further topical focus.
Plenary Speakers
FC08 also features plenary talks by world-class Christian thinkers and practitioners in a range of disciplines:
- Anne C. Bailey – Associate professor of history, SUNY—Binghamton, and dedicated to the study of African American history and African Diaspora Studies.
- Carmen Acevedo Butcher – Associate professor of English and Scholar-in-Residence, Shorter College, and author of works on medieval literature, Christian mystics, and linguistics.
- Francis Collins – Former director of the National Human Genome Research Institute at the National Institutes of Health and head of the Human Genome Project.
- Andy Crouch – Editorial director of the Christian Vision Project at Christianity Today International and author of Culture Making (InterVarsity Press 2008).
- MaryKate Morse – Professor of leadership and spiritual formation and the director of strategic planning and special programs at George Fox University Seminary.
- Jeff Van Duzer – Dean of the School of Business and Economics at Seattle Pacific University and associate professor of business ethics and business law.
- N. T. Wright – Bishop of Durham and former Canon Theologian of Westminster Abbey; taught New Testament studies for twenty years at Cambridge, McGill and Oxford Universities
Following Christ 2008 is focused on nurturing our heart, our soul, our mind and our strength. Over the holiday season in a downtown hotel in Chicago hundreds of Christians will come together with the intention of changing the world, not by calling a news conference or starting a protest movement, but by seeking God’s will to be expressed in their professions. Shouldn’t you be among them? For more information on FC08, and to register, go to www.followingchrist.org.
