Wesleyan Accent is World Methodist Evangelism’s online magazine of practical resources in the area of discipleship, evangelism, leadership and theology. Through articles, book reviews, and interviews, WME features leading and emerging voices of the Wesleyan Methodist world.
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And everything that is hurt, everything
That seemed to us dark, harsh, shameful,
Maimed, ugly, irreparably damaged
Is in Him transformed.
I doubt there is a more used and less understood word in the contemporary church than “missional.” Missional is not about being better at being Kodak in a digital photograph world.
The question remains. Do we really know the High God? How would our lives change if we really understood the fact that the God made real in Jesus Christ – the God of the world – loves each tribe and nation equally? How would that understanding change how we looked at other tribes and clans – even in our own
J. C. Albert has to be one of the greatest followers of Jesus I’ve ever met. I met him in India in 2012. He was the most open, loving, friendly guy and he had these wonderful stories to tell of adventures with Jesus. He has visited and shared the good news of Jesus Christ in nearly 3,000 tribal villages in
Now that we’ve celebrated God’s decision to put on flesh and bone and move into the neighborhood, we’re left with the question, what do we do now?
At our downtown ministry this week, I watched a precious soul rock an invisible baby while “Away in a Manger” was being sung and I was overwhelmed by the values of God and his preference for the poor. It is completely antithetical to our human nature to seek after and invest in the hidden places where the poorest of the
“The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.” We all have something in each list. Tonight, I want to remind you that life is a complex mixture of all three kinds of experiences…good to celebrate, bad to grieve, and ugly to heal.
The word became flesh and lived among us.
The King of all creation was born as a lowly, disregarded nobody-baby. In part, that was because Mary and Joseph were nobodies. Joseph was a craftsman from the small town of Nazareth in Galilee. Mary was a young woman with an apparently questionable character. Still, they were the nobodies God wanted to use, and that was a surprise.
God creates. God redeems. Christian faith is deepened and enriched when we get the order right. This is especially true in the arena of evangelism, where our focus is often on individuals and our fervent hope that they might come into relationship with Jesus Christ. There is no doubt this is an extremely important focus. Yet something significant is lost
“The will to win is not nearly as important as the will to prepare to win.” – Everyone from Vince Lombardi to Bear Bryant to Bobby Knight is cited as the source of this quote. The wisdom found in it has outlasted the origin. Everyone wants to win. It doesn’t matter how you define winning – career success, relationship goals met,
Maybe as we proclaim the good news that will bring great joy to all people, we ought also to recall the words of our Prince of Peace, who told us that God blesses peacemakers. Maybe in this season of peace and beyond, we need to ask how might we become more active in our peacemaking?
Word and deed come together, as intimately entwined as breathing in and breathing out. Deciding which is more important depends on which you did last.
I have a delicious no-fail sourdough bread recipe! It involves a three-step process spread over one and a half days. The key to the recipe is to give the bread dough time to “yeast” – Sue Monk Kidd’s word for allowing bread to rise. Kidd tells of making the bread with the assistance of her five year old daughter, Ann.
Waiting is hard. Many of us are tempted either to wait passively, like the foolish bridesmaids, or to take over and attempt to save ourselves by our own effort. Advent challenges both our complacency and our self-sufficiency.
Into this climate of fear and apprehension, Christmas enters,
Streaming lights of joy, ringing bells of hope
And singing carols of forgiveness high up in the bright air.
The world is encouraged to come away from rancor,
Come the way of friendship.
So, while we can and should sing of Christ’s return throughout the year, Advent presents a key opportunity to declare with clarity this crucial doctrine in our faith. And as Wesleyans we have a gem in Charles’ hymn, “Lo! He Comes With Clouds, Descending.”
By establishing the habits of observing other people’s sufferings, of taking time to notice the pain and fear around them, we teach our children a genuinely Christian ethic. And in this, my hope is that they become adults who care about justice and equality for everyone. My hope in conversations like this is to sensitize my children to the lived
Following Jesus is always easier when there are angels around. We have a significant spiritual experience. We make a commitment. We’re bold and excited. We think, I can do this. I believe this.
There may be others around us who are feeling that same way. They’ve taken on a new spiritual challenge. Made a new commitment. Maybe even their initial
One of the things that I love most about God is how God can take our small efforts, the things in our life that we don’t believe are good enough, and make them truly amazing. He can take our small, human efforts, and perform divine miracles with them. He can make the impossible, possible. Listen to what happens in John 6:
In just a few days, Christ followers around the world will celebrate Pentecost, a remarkable day on the Church calendar, but one that doesn’t always get the attention it deserves. Pentecost was a Jewish festival, so on the day we will soon observe, people from all over had gathered in Jerusalem. Before he left them, Jesus had instructed his followers
One of the privileges and responsibilities too many Methodist Christians ignore is witnessing. We take the way some Christians do it as the norm and that turns us off. We close our minds to the fact that some may never hear unless we share. I was blessed to chair the Committee of the World Methodist Council for 12 years. This
James Rowe is a prolific music composer, and yet most of us have probably not heard of him. He was born in Ireland and worked for the Irish government before immigrating to the United States in his late 20s. Eventually, he became a full-time writer, composing hymns and editing music journals for publishers. One of my favorites songs among his
Words like “holy” and “holiness” are off-putting to many. One reason people resist the language of holiness is because they sometimes associate it with legalism. Sadly, some of the denominations and traditions that talk a lot about holiness have perpetuated this problem. They make the rules; you keep the rules. It’s a way to define what makes a “good Christian”.
When you pursue a PhD in the British system as I did, you have to defend your thesis (dissertation) in what is called a “viva.” It’s a nerve-wracking several hours spent fielding what seem like endless questions from two examiners. Neither of your examiners are allowed to see any of your work before they receive your thesis. And your supervising
My friend, George (Chuck) Hunter, has told a thrilling story – one of those lively vignettes of Methodist history that gives us our vision for now and the future. A great Methodist leader named C. C. McCabe was the leader of new church extension for the Methodist Episcopal Church in about 1881. He was a prodigious planner, strategist, fund-raiser, and
As a teenage follower of Jesus, I suffered from a terrible affliction. It was an ailment that primarily reared its head in communal gatherings. I was heavily involved in things like Chrysalis and camping ministry. My malady would arise whenever there was a time of testimony…I came to realize that I was suffering from a terrible disease called testimonius-enviousness. I
For Those who Believed in Christ as a Child, The Straight Highway This is the final article in a series on offering help for writing an effective light story. Check out the first one here, and the second one here. If you miss the opening scene of a book or movie, you often will not understand or appreciate the rest
In the last year of his life, John Wesley wrote in a letter something profound, “I am glad brother D—has more light with regard to full sanctification. This doctrine is the grand depositum which God has lodged with the people called Methodists; and for the sake of propagating this chiefly He appeared to have raised us up.” * Wesley saw
I read T. S. Eliot’s poetry, even though I have to struggle to read and understand it. I keep reminding myself that what he expresses is worth the arduous effort and energy I might exert in reading him. One of his geniuses is his creation of power-packed phrases and images. Here is one of them: “For most of us, there
Have you ever considered how amazing it is that God asks his people to participate in the work of the Kingdom? He doesn’t need our help. He could do it without us. So why would he ask flawed and broken people to join in? Wouldn’t it be easier if God just handled it all on his own? Scripture tells us
We have been pondering the way Jesus’s resurrection can crack through our worry. An important perspective on hearing Jesus’ word, “Don’t be anxious,” is to know that he is certainly saying Don’t borrow the trouble of worrying about your ability to live the Christian life. This is something most of us have thought little or nothing about. Yet, I think
The Process of Conversion and Choosing Words that Connect Stories have the power to move people. Authors, the movie industry, educators throughout history, and Jesus have used this method of communication. In my prior articles (here, here, and here), we discussed crafting our testimonies and identifying the three paths most saving faith journeys take. As you begin to create a
There have been a few occasions in my life when, almost immediately after meeting and greeting a person, they asked, “What are you worried about?” Persons often wear themselves on their faces. In my last article I reflected on Tennessee Williams’ image, violets cracking rocks. In his teaching, Jesus used an equally powerful image: “Consider the lilies… how they grow;
“For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive by the Spirit.” 1 Peter 3:18 The “grave” is defined as a place of burial for a dead body, typically a hole dug in the ground and marked by a stone
Scripture Focus: Then the governor’s soldiers took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole company of soldiers around him. They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, and then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on his head. They put a staff in his right hand. Then they knelt in front of him and
Easter is the punctuation mark of the Christian Faith: the death and resurrection of Jesus, God’s Son as his gift of salvation for all who will receive it. Easter stirs an image in my mind: violets cracking rocks. The image was connected with the work of Tennessee Williams, one of America’s greatest dramatists. In their commentary about his life and
Regardless of what type journey took you to Jesus, here is help for writing an effective Light Story. Every person who has been transformed by Jesus has the desire to communicate God’s grace in a way that others will be curious and motivated to seek Jesus themselves. This desire to communicate Jesus is one fruit of the Spirit’s presence in
Followers of Jesus have a distinctive style. There are many marks of the Methodist Style. We have considered A Catholic Spirit and Heartfelt Religion. Let’s look now at one other distinctive mark, our worldwide parish. It is gathered up in Wesley’s popular saying, “The world is my parish.” That word captures the style of the Methodist movement—a concern for all
A few years ago, on a beautiful summer day, our family gathered by the rally track to cheer on my nephews in their race. We spent the entire day on a treeless hill, fully exposed to the sun. By evening, the effects were undeniable—our uncovered skin had turned red. Just like the sun leaves a mark on us, so does
