Take My Hand: The Gospel And The Blues by Steve Beard

It was in the forsakenness of that hour that Dorsey chipped away at the piano and wrote, “Precious Lord, take my hand …” In the sorrow of the desolation and flood of his loss, the song that inspired Dr. King was the dove that Dorsey released in search of dry land, the flight of hope. It was his blues: “I

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Warming The Soul With Celtic Traditions by Tammie Grimm

For as long as I can remember, my family has celebrated St. Patricks’ Day like many other Irish-American families: corn beef and cabbage, homemade Irish soda bread, green dye in everyone’s beverages all served on Mom’s best Irish linen tablecloth. Typically, the sound of The Chieftains or Tommy Makem and The Clancy Brothers can be heard on my parent’s stereo.

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Deathless Death: Take Me To Church by Aaron Perry

“Something in you dies when you give yourself indiscriminately to gluttony, whether in food, drink, or sex.”[1] While it was New Testament scholar N.T. Wright who wrote that, it could just as easily have been written by singer-songwriter Andrew Hozier-Byrne (“Hozier”), as commentary on his song, “Take Me to Church.” The only difference is that Hozier celebrates this kind of

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A Pattern For Prayer by Andrew Thompson

What is the difference between praying and living a life of prayer? Practically everyone prays now and then — even atheists, when they end up in foxholes. Offering an occasional prayer is much different than living a life of prayer, though. Biblical teaching suggests that a fully formed faith will express itself in a prayerful life. “Rejoice always,” the Apostle

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Hidden Heroes: The Anti-Hero Hero by Talbot Davis

And when you’re on death row, you’re not really concerned with trivial pursuits, are you? Paul wasn’t dwelling on trivialities; he was dialed into eternities. That’s why it was particularly devastating for Demas to desert him. Because look at what Demas did: he loved this present world – its comfort, safety, and reputation – and in so doing ignored the

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Hope For The Future Of Methodism? by Kevin Watson

Our story can be one of experiencing God’s transforming presence in our lives as we recognize the depths of our need for Christ, and Jesus’s ability and willingness to meet that great need. We can move forward with confidence, knowing that the Lord will sustain the church one way or another. And as we move into the future, we will

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Heaven, Hell, And Purgatory: Interview with Jerry Walls

Well, the Christian doctrine of the afterlife is simply integral to Christian doctrine, period, and indeed, the faith as a whole makes no sense if the life to come is ignored or trivialized. The heart of the Christian faith is the incarnation, death and resurrection of Christ, which provides salvation and redemption for God’s whole fallen creation.

I believe

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“Calvary” Revealed by Cole Bodkin

Note from the Editor: This film is rated “R” and therefore is not advised for all audiences. You are encouraged to use your own discernment in your viewing choices.   “Calvary” is not for the faint of heart. This movie is audaciously candid and ruthlessly palpable. Replete with memorable dialogues and unforgettable characters, its core message is both timeless and timely.

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Triumphant Grace by Jeff Rudy

The bells that tolled, according to John Donne, were a sign to those who heard that we are all mortal and meet the same end known as death; that when one dies a part of all of us dies. The stone that rolled, according to Matthew, was a sign to those who witness it that the end known as death

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The Persecutor by Elizabeth Glass Turner

“Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” On the road, an interesting question is posed. First of all, consider what we know of Saul in the early portion of the book of Acts. He watched the coats of the witnesses who approved the men creating the first Christian martyr, stoning Stephen. Later Saul “breathes murderous threats” against the followers of

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The Bible: Source of the Transformed Life

[iframe style=”border:none” src=”//html5-player.libsyn.com/embed/episode/id/21890009/height/100/width//thumbnail/no/render-playlist/no/theme/custom/tdest_id/3433802/custom-color/87A93A” height=”100″ width=”100%” scrolling=”no” allowfullscreen webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen oallowfullscreen msallowfullscreen] Rev. Dr. Dave Smith serves as Associate Professor at Indiana Wesleyan University’s School of Theology and Ministry as well as Assistant Pastor at College Wesleyan Church www.profdavesmith.com Let us hear from you: podcast@worldmethodist.org www.worldmethodist.org Connect with Rob on Social Media: @DrRobHaynes Find us on Social Media: Facebook Twitter Instagram

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The Breath of God by Kim Reisman

Scripture Focus: God, teach me lessons for living so I can stay the course. Give me insight so I can do what you tell me – my whole life one long, obedient response. Guide me down the road of your commandments; I love traveling this freeway! Give me a bent for your words of wisdom, and not for piling up

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Centering Prayer: Interview with Dr. Brian Russell

Dr. Brian Russell is the author of Centering Prayer: Sitting Quietly in God’s Presence Can Change Your Life, a uniquely rich resource for spiritual formation that draws on meaningful traditions of the church across centuries. For those sensing the need for fresh practices to widen or deepen their prayer habits, Centering Prayer beckons with wisdom that outlasts stale New Year’s

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Mobilizing Evangelists

[iframe style=”border:none” src=”//html5-player.libsyn.com/embed/episode/id/21790325/height/100/width//thumbnail/no/render-playlist/no/theme/custom/tdest_id/3433802/custom-color/87A93A” height=”100″ width=”100%” scrolling=”no” allowfullscreen webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen oallowfullscreen msallowfullscreen] Rev. Dr. Desmond Henry is Executive Director, Global Network of Evangelists, Luis Palau Association https://www.evangelist.global/  desmond.henry@palau.org Let us hear from you: podcast@worldmethodist.org  www.worldmethodist.org Connect with Rob on Social Media: @DrRobHaynes Find us on Social Media: Facebook Twitter Instagram  Check out this episode!

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The Post-Pandemic Church

[iframe style=”border:none” src=”//html5-player.libsyn.com/embed/episode/id/21637583/height/100/width//thumbnail/no/render-playlist/no/theme/custom/tdest_id/3433802/custom-color/87A93A” height=”100″ width=”100%” scrolling=”no” allowfullscreen webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen oallowfullscreen msallowfullscreen] Stuart Kellogg is Regional Cohort Director/Fellows Program at Colson Center for Christian Worldview Book: bit.ly/PostCovidChurchBook Web site: www.thepostcovidchurch.com Facebook Group: bit.ly/thepostcovidchurch Contact me: stuart@thepostcovidchurch.org Let us hear from you: podcast@worldmethodist.org Connect with Rob on Social Media: @DrRobHaynes Find us on Social Media: Facebook Twitter Instagram  Check out this episode!

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Embrace the Change: End of the Year Episode

[iframe style=”border:none” src=”//html5-player.libsyn.com/embed/episode/id/21525284/height/100/width//thumbnail/no/render-playlist/no/theme/custom/tdest_id/3433802/custom-color/87A93A” height=”100″ width=”100%” scrolling=”no” allowfullscreen webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen oallowfullscreen msallowfullscreen] Your host is Rob Haynes, Direct of Education and Leadership for World Methodist Evangelism www.worldmethodist.org/podcast Let us hear from you: podcast@worldmethodist.org Connect with Rob on Social Media: @DrRobHaynes Find us on Social Media: Facebook Twitter Instagram Check out this episode!

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Redeeming the Tragedy by Rob Haynes

In 1940, Sergei Prokofiev shook the world with his ballet adaptation of William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. Prokofiev, an accomplished composer and artist, brought many new elements to his rendition of Romeo and Juliet. However, he stirred a great deal of controversy when he gave this well-known tragedy a happy ending. Audiences were appalled at the idea. Since 1597 people

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Mental Health and the Church: Disordered Eating

[iframe style=”border:none” src=”//html5-player.libsyn.com/embed/episode/id/21374111/height/100/width//thumbnail/no/render-playlist/no/theme/custom/tdest_id/3433802/custom-color/87A93A” height=”100″ width=”100%” scrolling=”no” allowfullscreen webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen oallowfullscreen msallowfullscreen] Rev. Dr. Liz Kent is the Director of the Wesley Study Centre of St John’s College, Durham University. https://www.dur.ac.uk/st-johns.college/ elizabeth.kent@durham.ac.uk Let us hear from you: podcast@worldmethodist.org Connect with Rob on Social Media: @DrRobHaynes Find us on Social Media: Facebook Twitter Instagram  Check out this episode!

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Quietly Anchored by Advent

Some things you only discover over the long course of years. This frustrates an economy of optimization, hyper-fixated on immediate improvement and benefit. Wisdom can’t be reduced to “insights” gleaned by data, metrics, or analytics though, even if they’re useful from a strategic point of view. The season of Advent stubbornly persists in forcing the door open for the hard-to-quantify

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The Path of God by Kim Reisman

Scripture focus: Show me the path where I should walk, O Lord; point out the right road for me to follow. Lead me by your truth and teach me, for you are the God who saves me. All day long I put my hope in you. (Psalm 25:4-5, NLT)   Our Christmas nativity scenes often include the magi who patiently

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