The next
Turning the Gem Gathering:
Invitation to the Kingdom
Life
With Author, Pastoral Minister, and Podcast Host
Shannon Schmidt
June 6, 2026 — 6:30pm
@ Evanswood Church
2601 E Square Lake Rd, Troy, MI 48085
A key part of the invitation to the Jesus life is an invitation to the Kingdom life - a life where our imitation of Christ leads us to deeper communion with each other and a transformation of the world around us towards justice, liberation, and love. As disciples of Jesus, we cooperate with the Holy Spirit to transform the world around us into the first fruits of the coming Kingdom. Together we will discover God’s invitation to Kingdom life and pray for the courage to build the Kingdom on earth.
Previous Gatherings & Topics
Unsettling Our Faith:
Planting Seeds for a Decolonized Discipleship
Jason Miller-Villegas, DMin
May 16, 2026
Jason explored how Christianity in the U.S. has been shaped by settler colonialism, distorted historical narratives, and imperial ideas. Through land acknowledgment, storytelling, spoken word, discussion prompts, and practical examples, he invited the group to consider how faith can be re-rooted in truth-telling, reciprocity, humility, and solidarity rather than domination or extraction. The conversation touched on indigenous perspectives, hidden histories, restorative solidarity, backlash to justice work, and concrete practices for cultivating a more communal, liberating, and honest expression of Christian faith.
(This is our first attempt at an audio recording. Because of the conversational nature of our gatherings, some of the conversation in the room can be difficult to hear.)
From Overwhelm to Overflow: Reclaiming Lament as Covenant Speech
Shenay Shumake
May 2, 2026
Shenay Shumake taught on Psalms 42–43, focusing on moving from overwhelm to overflow through the practice of lament. She framed lament as “covenant speech”—an honest expression of pain, longing, and disorientation that still refuses to let go of God.
A major thread of the night was the story of the Sons of Korah, whose family history held both rebellion and mercy, yet who still became worshipers and sanctuary dwellers. Shenay connected that background to the psalm’s movement from orientation, to disorientation, to reorientation, showing how faith often includes seasons where God feels distant, life feels broken, and hope has to be practiced intentionally.
She also pointed to Jesus as both companion and answer in those moments of disorientation, and ended with a call to cultivate disciplined hope—to keep singing, remembering God’s faithfulness, and finding a “song” that helps steady the soul. The evening closed with table discussions reflecting on what stood out, what people were wrestling with, and what they were taking away.
The Price of Loving Like Jesus
LaShaun Phoenix Moore
April 18, 2026
LaShaun shared a powerful reflection on “The Price of Loving Like Jesus,” exploring the cost, courage, and complexity of Christ-like love through the story of her relationship with her mother. She spoke honestly about intergenerational trauma, estrangement, caregiving, forgiveness, and the hard-won reconciliation that came near the end of her mother’s life. The conversation that followed invited the community to consider how love can require both grace and boundaries, how forgiveness can free the one who forgives, and how we might choose compassion even in painful or complicated relationships. The evening offered a moving reminder that love like Jesus is rarely easy, but it can be deeply transformative.
Spiritual Typography
(part two)
Dr. Naomi Walters
April 4, 2026
In this session, Dr. Naomi Walters continued her talk on Spiritual Typography. We explored what each type looks like in worship, prayer, community, and everyday life — including the unique gifts each type brings to the broader Christian community, and the pitfalls each can fall into when taken to excess.
Overall, we learned that spiritual diversity is by design. It reflects the trinitarian nature of a God who both is diversity and creates diversity.
The goal isn't for each of us to perfectly balance all four types, but for our communities to make room for every type to flourish — so that together, we more fully embody the image of God.
Spiritual Typography
(part one)
Dr. Naomi Walters
March 21, 2026
Have you ever been bothered by the congregational pronouncement, “If that song didn’t bring you to tears, there’s something wrong with you?” Have you ever been befuddled when the book you recommended as profoundly meaningful lies untouched on a friend’s shelf?
Despite our tendency to view differences between us and those around us as indications that something is wrong with us (or more often, with “them”), the first session of this two-session series will introduce a spiritual typology that might give us language to name and understand individual and congregational spirituality types.
Promise & Pain:
Loving the Church we cannot escape
Cory Hendrickson
March 7, 2026
The Church can be baffling and beautiful, flawed and holy, wounding and life-giving — sometimes all at once. At this gathering, we made space for the complicated love many of us carry: a love that questions, laments, hopes, and stays.
Together, we explored what it means to remain rooted in a community that has marked us deeply, and to seek renewal in the midst of its imperfections.
Processing Lament
Shalini Bennett
February 21, 2026
Prayers of Lament are ways to approach God with the realities of sorrow, frustration, and angst that consume and distract us.
Shalini helped us better understand what lament is, why it's such a powerful way to turn to God, and showed us how we can practically put our words into a prayer of lament. We both privately and corporately practice this way of praying, and walk away with a new spiritual tool that helps to face the difficulties in our lives and the world around us.
Creation Care & Consumerism:
The Call of the Creation Story
Tatiana Schmidt
February 7, 2026
In Genesis 1:28-30, we read, "God blessed them and said to them, 'Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”
But what does this passage say about our purpose and way of being in the world today? Tatiana explored how God created the world and its inhabitants in love, and calls us to love creation by caring for animals, being mindful of our consumption habits, and advocating for the flourishing of all created things around us.
Special Events
Thank you so much for your attendance and interest in these unique events.
We are working on more offerings in the coming months
Along with our twice-a-month Turning the Gem live gatherings, The Open Table Collective offers other special trainings & seminars designed to lead to more individual and collective well-being and flourishing.
On this page you will see the next few special events coming up in 2026. Please come join us! You will not regret investing into your spiritual health!
Previous Seminars, Trainings, and Events:
THE TIMELINE EXERCISE SEMINAR W/ALAN LIM
One of the most transformative and powerful exercises a person can do is to look over their own life time and identify how God has shaped them over a lifetime. Alan Lim is an expert leadership coach and guide that will help each participant discover truths that can lead to transformation.
ENNEAGRAM & IDENTITY SEMINAR W/AARON MANES
The Enneagram is just one tool to help people understand how God has made, shaped, wired, and gifted them. Aaron Manes is an expert in the Enneagram and a wonderful coach in the process. Come join us to discover more about yourself and grow in your view of yourself, your neighbor, God, and the world.
LEADERSHIP & RULE OF LIFE SEMINAR W/DANNY COX
One of the most basic tools we believe each person needs to have in their belt is a "rule of life". If you don't know what a "rule of life" is then maybe this shorter seminar is for you. We will help each person write a personal rule of life and help with focusing ones values and direction of life. .