Thriv’era | We Are Thrivers | “Good, Better, Best”
Thriv’era…
challenges us to move with thoughtful purpose toward a deepened sense of identity—that we are spirited, creative, and connected people, called to be present, grateful, generous, and missional with our lives.
Together, we are exploring what it means to live into these rhythms in ways that help us bring some good to each moment, something better to each day, and our best to each other as we encounter the world together.
We are Thrivers
As image-bearers of the Divine, we are being formed by rhythms that help us live more awake, more whole, and more available to love. We receive life as gift. We make room for wonder. We widen the table. We return to the present moment. We gather the good. We open our hands. We take the next faithful step. And as we do, grace takes root in us and moves through us—shaping lives marked by presence, love, courage, and hope.
Reading Into the Rhythm
Before we gather, spend a little time with these portions of the Thriv’era manuscript. Read slowly. Notice what catches your attention, what raises a question, or what seems to name something already stirring in your own life. You don’t need to master the material—simply let it become part of the conversation you bring with you.
- A First Word: The Deep Longing
- Chapter 1 — the section surrounding Who are you? What are you doing here?
- Chapter 3 — the concluding section that introduces the seven rhythms
And if you find yourself wanting the fuller story, keep reading. Part One is meant to be taken as a whole, and you’re welcome to follow it wherever it leads.
| WELCOME | SETTING THE INTENTION |
Pause for a quiet moment to settle in. Notice your breathing. No need to change it—just notice it. Then reflect together:
- What drew you to this group?
- When you hear the word thrive, what comes to mind?
- Where in your life do you most long for “good, better, best”?
CATALYTIC MOMENTS
From the universal to the particular
Life is often shaped by catalytic moments—events that shake us, wake us, and make us ask deeper questions. Some are global and widely shared. Some are deeply personal.
The Universal
We all live in a world marked by disruption, grief, transition, conflict, and change. Wars, economic crises, pandemics, injustice, and cultural upheaval affect not only nations and communities, but also our inner lives.
The Particular
We also each carry our own stories. For me, catalytic moments came through a hike, a crash, a death, and a slow invitation into rebirth. For others, they may come through illness, loss, transition, conflict, therapy, disappointment, awakening, or a question that will not let us go:
Who are you? What are you doing here?
Catalytic moments do not automatically make us thrive. But they do confront us with the possibility of change.
Reflection | Your catalytic moments
Reflect for a few quiet moments and think about your own life.
- What is one moment, season, or event that changed you?
- Was it something sudden, or something that unfolded over time?
- Did it bring loss, clarity, confusion, courage, or a new beginning?
- What question did that moment raise in you?
- Looking back, how did it begin to shape who you are becoming?
If you feel comfortable, share one catalytic moment from your life with the group. You do not need to tell your whole story—just enough to name the moment and why it mattered.
THE THRIV’ERA MOVEMENT
Catalytic moments often lead to clarifying moments. Clarifying moments invite courageous movement. And those movements, over time, begin to form us.
One way to imagine the movement is this:
Catalytic moments + clarifying moments + courageous movement = a life reshaped by rhythm
That is where the seven rhythms of Thriv’era come in. They help us ask:
What does it mean to thrive as spirited, creative, and connected people, called to be present, grateful, generous, and missional with our lives?
ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS
Who are you?
A question of identity
This is not just a surface question. It is a spirited one.
- Who are you beneath the roles you play, the pressures you carry, and the stories others tell about you?
What are you doing here?
A question of purpose
- What is yours to bring?
- What good are you here to do?
- What kind of presence are you called to offer?
Where are you going?
A question of vision
- What does a more whole, aligned, and fully alive life look like?
- What kind of future are you becoming?
How will you get there?
A question of mission
- What rhythms, practices, and next faithful steps will help you live the life you are being called into?
THE PATH OF THE GROUP
Eight conversations | 90 minutes each
- Thriving — Good, Better, Best
- Spirited — It’s the Breath
- Creative — Inside the Marble
- Connected — We All Belong
- Present — Be Here Now
- Grateful — Gather the Good
- Generous — Enough Is Enough
- Missional — Off the Map
HOW THE GROUP WILL FLOW
Each gathering will usually include:
- Welcome / Check-in
- Centering
- Scripture Connection
- Story / Reflection
- Conversation
- Practice
- Manifesto
- Refrain
- Intention
- Blessing
You do not need polished answers. The goal is honest presence, lived experience, shared reflection, and small practices that help the rhythms move from page to life.
THE SEVEN RHYTHMS
We Are Spirited | Guiding Narrative
As image-bearers of the Divine, we are spirited people—alive by gift, not by striving. We thrive as spirited people by receiving each breath as grace and living awake to the Spirit who inspires and animates all life.
We Are Creative | Guiding Narrative
As image-bearers of the Divine, we are creative people—designed by grace to participate in God’s ongoing making. We thrive as creative people by discovering our identity and purpose, honoring the sacred impulse to make, and cultivating wonder, imagination, and innovation for the sake of love.
We Are Connected | Guiding Narrative
As image-bearers of the Divine, we are connected people—formed for generative, life-giving relationships. We thrive as connected people by practicing intentional kindness and hospitality, and by building trust and respect that sustain community.
We Are Present | Guiding Narrative
As image-bearers of the Divine, we are people of Presence—fully alive to the gift of here and now. We thrive in the Present rhythm by practicing sabbath: creating margin, welcoming silence, listening deeply, honoring thin places, and immersing ourselves in what this moment has to teach. Presence gathers what distraction scatters, giving us clarity, richness, and quiet centeredness.
We Are Grateful | Guiding Narrative
As image-bearers of the Divine, we are grateful people—blessed not only to receive but to be a blessing. We thrive as grateful people by practicing gratitude as a heartfelt discipline, remembering with joy and thanksgiving that all we have is a gift of grace. As we gather the good, gratitude becomes steadiness.
We Are Generous | Guiding Narrative
As image-bearers of the Divine, we are generous people—free to live open-handedly and open-heartedly. We thrive as generous people by seeking lavish, life-giving interactions with the world, releasing the abundance held by the few so that the scarcity endured by the many may give way to a feast of blessing where all have enough.
We Are Missional | Guiding Narrative
As image-bearers of the Divine, we are missional people—created to participate in God’s healing work in the world. We thrive as missional people by joining movements that generate hope, unity, and wholeness for all people.
A THRIVER’S MANIFESTO
As children of God, we are being formed by rhythms that help us live more awake, more whole, and more available to love. We receive life as gift. We make room for wonder. We widen the table. We return to the present moment. We gather the good. We open our hands. We take the next faithful step. And as we do, we become people through whom grace moves—bringing some good to each moment, something better to each day, and our best to each other.
A THRIVER’S REFRAIN
As a child of God, I am learning to live in the rhythms of life and more life.
A THRIVER’S INTENTION
Gracious God, you have created us in your image, breathed your Spirit into us, called us into deeper belonging, and filled our lives with gifts of grace. As we begin this journey together, awaken us to what is most real. Form us through these rhythms into people who live with presence, gratitude, generosity, and purpose. Help us bring some good to each moment, something better to each day, and our best to one another. In the name of Christ, Amen.
A THRIVER’S BLESSING
May you thrive as a spirited child of God, alive by gift and not by striving.
May you thrive as a creative child of God, making room for wonder and bringing love to life.
May you thrive as a connected child of God, widening the table through kindness and hospitality.
May you thrive in the Present rhythm, becoming more awake to the gift of here and now.
May you thrive as a grateful child of God, gathering the good and remembering grace.
May you thrive as a generous child of God, living with open hands and an open heart.
May you thrive as a missional child of God, taking the next faithful step into hope, unity, and healing.
And may the life of God move through you—bringing some good to each moment, something better to each day, and your best to the world around you.