Category: Wesleyan Accent Blog
What If I Get Nothing Out of Lent? by Jeff Rudy
March 30, 2017
And so, among other things I’m giving up for Lent, I’m trying to give up the search to find some other hidden meaning. Perhaps I won’t get anything out of it. We don’t enter into the Lenten season practicing disciplines in order to achieve a particular return. It’s not an investment. Fasting and praying are not disciplines that we engage in in order to “cash in” on some prize later.
Thy Will Be Done by Justus Hunter
February 8, 2017
Unless we hold God’s will as Christ held his Father’s, our gifts corrupt. They grow into the most sinister of idols, more powerful than the Baals.
Kodak, Hirsch, and the Future of the Church by James Petticrew
January 11, 2017
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.
A Blue Christmas: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly by Jorge Acevedo
December 19, 2016
“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.
Expectant Waiting by Kevin Watson
December 1, 2016
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.
Lo, He Comes with Clouds Descending by Matt Sigler
November 30, 2016
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.”
One Thing White Evangelical Parents Can Do by Tom Fuerst
November 28, 2016
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 experiences of others. My hope is that our children grow up able to hear, rather than disregard, the fears of others.
Deliverance Through Thanksgiving by Maxie Dunnam
November 24, 2016
It’s so easy to forget. It’s so easy to lose touch with the source of life…how we got to where we are; all the blessing that have been poured out upon us. It’s easy to think that we are where we are today because of our own efforts.
The Power of Thanksgiving by Jean Watson
November 22, 2016
The land where I did not want to be was becoming the land of my blessing.
When the Wine Runs Out by Michelle Bauer
November 5, 2016
The “wine” that we bring to any situation will eventually run out. It’s not a matter of “if” but “when.” We will get tired. We will get frustrated. We will start to doubt our ability to pull something off. We will want to quit. Some of us have amazing amounts of discipline and will power and can push ourselves for a long time. Others of us have a track record of petering out at the first sign of difficulty. But eventually, we all run out of whatever we brought to the party.