The Spirituality of Parenting Children:  5 Conversations about Faith and Family Life

Taught by Rev. Dr. Brian Lays and Emily Heeg 

Sundays, November 1 - 29

Education Building Room 306

Parenthood is filled with joy, wonder, exhaustion, and constant change. In the midst of caring for children, it can be difficult to care for your own spiritual and emotional well-being.

This five-week conversation series is for parents seeking to grow in faith while navigating the realities of family life. Each week will focus on a different topic and stand on its own, making it easy to join whenever you're able. Through Scripture, honest conversation, and practical spiritual practices, we'll discover God's presence in the chaos of family life. 

Week 1 - When Life is Overwhelming

Week 2 - Anxiety, Worry, and Trust

Week 3 - Emotions are Part of Spiritual Life

Week 4 - Building Rhythms that Sustain Us

Week 5 - Hope, Resilience, and Community

Whether you're feeling overwhelmed, looking for deeper connection, or simply want to grow alongside other parents, we hope you'll join us for these meaningful conversations.

Click here to learn more about the nursery and Sunday School options for children.

The Theology of Work: Living Faithfully in Every Season of Work

Teacher: Michael Maiocco

Sundays, November 1, 8, and 15

Education Building Room 200/Thompson Parlor

We live in a world that constantly asks, "So, what do you do?"—and then uses our answer to decide how much we matter. It’s easy to get caught in the middle: either treating our work as an idol that defines our worth, or writing it off as meaningless filler while waiting for our "real" life to start.

This series offers a biblically grounded framework to help us untangle our Identity, our Calling, and our Work. Whether you're a student, an early-career professional, an at-home parent, caring for someone or something you hadn't planned on, or walking into retirement—this course is for everyone. Through teaching, guided reflection, and open discussion, we will look at what Scripture says about image-bearing, vocation, and daily labor in order to give us the tools to live and work faithfully.

Participants may also join via Zoom in a listen-only format. Look for a link a week before the class begins.

Michael Maiocco is from Flagler Beach, Florida, and has been married to Kristen since October 2017.

Michael works as a Creative at Compassion International, where he is part of the visual storytelling and creative strategy for partnerships with artists, churches, and influencers. He is driven by the conviction that the most important stories in the world deserve our most disciplined craft — and that what we see shapes what we love, and what we love defines who we become.

Michael’s interests are all over the place — he played baseball professionally, and these days he surfs, rock climbs, trains in Muay Thai, and plays the harp. He has a deep love for learning and holds an MATS, an MDiv, and a ThM in theology and the arts.

Ruth & Esther: Women Who Made the Way for Jesus

Teachers: Rev. Dr. John Ragsdale and Claudia Calhoun      

Sundays, November 1 - December 20

Education Building Room 302/303

Only two books in the Bible bear the name of women: Ruth, a foreigner taken into an Israelite family who becomes an ancestor of Jesus, and Esther, a Jew who becomes queen of an empire stretching from Egypt to India and the first person on record to fight anti-semitism. We will look at these two carefully crafted literary works and art that has been inspired by them.

Rev. Dr. John Ragsdale

After working in banking and finance for fifteen years, John responded to a call to ministry.  John attended Columbia Theological Seminary for his master’s and earned his doctorate from McCormick Theological Seminary in Chicago.  He served as the pastor of churches in Orange Park, Gainesville, Jacksonville, and Green Cove Springs, Florida, as the Executive Director of the Montgomery Presbyterian Center, and as Mission Coordinator for Leadership of the Presbytery of St. Augustine, retiring from full-time ministry in 2013. John and his wife, Sally, have two sons and live in Jacksonville, Florida, and Cashiers, NC. 

Claudia Calhoun

Claudia's background has been in teaching and practicing art, nonprofit consulting, and community volunteering.  She received a Master's degree in Christian Education in 2017 from  Union Presbyterian Seminary. There she began to connect how art can play a role in illuminating scripture and shaping how we see the world around us. Claudia and her husband, Jack, became members of Riverside after moving to Jacksonville from Lively, VA in 2020.

Christmas in the Four Gospel Homes: An Advent Study

Teachers: Rev. Dana Riley and Rev. Dr. Brian Lays

Sundays, November 29 - December 20

Education Building Room 200/Thompson Parlor

Join us for a four-week Advent journey through Christmas in the Four Gospel Homes. Using the imagery of four different “homes,” the book invites us to step inside each Gospel and experience the Christmas story through its unique perspective. As we explore Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, we’ll discover how each Gospel reveals a different facet of who Jesus is and why His coming matters. 

Participants may also join via Zoom in a listen-only format. Look for a link a week before the class begins.