At the midpoint of its five-year grant initiative, Shine Everywhere is demonstrating how research, partnerships, and innovative resources are helping congregations better support families in sharing faith at home. Shine Everywhere is shaping the future of Shine: Living in God’s Light Curriculum and deepening the connection between faith practices at church and at home.
Shine Curriculum is a joint publication of Brethren Press and MennoMedia. MennoMedia received a grant on behalf of Shine from Lilly Endowment Inc. through its Christian Parenting and Caregiving Initiative.
An important milestone has been the completion of comprehensive surveys of congregations and families who use Shine Curriculum. In spring 2025, Shine received responses from 264 congregations and 254 families, providing insight into the realities facing churches and households today.
Across both surveys, several themes emerged. Families and church leaders alike reported that time pressure is the biggest challenge for parents as they share faith with their children. Respondents expressed a strong desire for resources that are relational, practical, flexible, and doable, to help families cultivate faith through conversation and everyday practices. The surveys also confirmed that Shine’s long-standing distinctives—Bible story focus, a peacemaking lens, and space for questions—remain deeply valued.
As Shine Everywhere reaches its midpoint, one of its most significant developments is the growing integration of at-home faith formation into Shine Curriculum itself. Beginning this fall, Shine’s newly redesigned curriculum will include at-home resources for every age level, marking a lasting convergence between Shine Everywhere and Shine Curriculum. This shift ensures that the at-home emphasis developed through Shine Everywhere will continue past the life of the grant, becoming a permanent feature of Shine’s approach to Christian formation.
Throughout the project, Shine Everywhere partner congregations have played a vital role in shaping resources and practices. Through coaching, experimentation, and feedback, congregational leaders are learning effective ways to equip parents and caregivers as primary faith nurturers.
Partners report that the most effective approaches include introducing at-home practices in person, doing an at-home practice at church first, and seeing the distribution of at-home resources as an opportunity to build relationships. Leaders also are learning to listen more deeply to parents’ spiritual hopes and to create low-barrier opportunities for connection and encouragement.
“Shine Everywhere continues to show us that when churches listen well and offer simple, trusted tools, families are eager to grow in faith together,” said Shana Peachey Boshart, Shine Everywhere project facilitator.
Full survey reports are available at https://shineeverywhere.com/join/surveys
For more details about Shine Everywhere and to stay connected, visit https://shineeverywhere.com/about
Purchase Shine Curriculum from Brethren Press at www.brethrenpress.com
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