Wesleyan Accent Archive | World Methodist Evangelism

Spirit-Led Discernment: The Quaker Clearness Committee by Danny Morris

Danny Morris February 16, 2015

The “clearness committee” was established by Quakers. Initially, focus persons were seeking clearness about marriage. Invited friends would gather to offer communal spiritual guidance. Eventually, reasons for calling a clearness committee were expanded. I was told by a friend that the Quaker clearness committee is currently used over a variety of subjects. When considering prayerful discernment, reflect on this model

Under The Fig Tree by Claire Matheny

Claire Matheny February 14, 2015

The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, “Follow me.” Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found him about whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus son of Joseph from Nazareth.” Nathanael said to him, “Can anything

On Guidance by Maxie Dunnam

Maxie Dunnam February 12, 2015

Christ indwells us Christians; the Holy Spirit is his abiding presence in our lives. To the degree that we cultivate an awareness of and are responsive to his Spirit, Christ will guide us.

Taken & The Luxury Of A Call by Elizabeth Glass Turner

elizabeth.turner February 11, 2015

Though I’ve never seen the film “Taken,” I have seen some delightful reels of action star Liam Neeson’s intense phone conversations that take place in the movie franchise. This, alas, is a Neeson-free post (though everyone’s favorite northern Irishman has dabbled in the Divine, voicing the character of “Aslan” in the Narnia movies and providing a cameo as a hobo-esque

Joy Begins At The Cross: Learning The Forgiveness Of Christ As A Pathway To Joy by Carolyn Moore

Carolyn Moore February 7, 2015

Did you ever run across the old children’s book called “Mr. Happy”? His story goes like this: one day he leaves his very happy home and goes walking in the neighborhood. He finds a door and wonders to himself, “who lives here?” When he goes through the door he is led down a long staircase and into the room where

A Deep Freeze by Elizabeth Glass Turner

elizabeth.turner February 5, 2015

Warning: this post contains references to the animated feature film “Frozen.” Overexposure to this movie may result in children shrieking song lyrics in the car, a conviction that your front yard snowman can talk, and a commitment to trip over “Frozen” themed toys for at least the next three years. You may have seen me in the headlines recently:

Which Saint Are You? Quizzes On Holiness by Tammie Grimm

Tammie Grimm February 4, 2015

On any given day of the week, a scan of my Facebook newsfeed reveals secrets about my friends I might never have guessed on my own. It turns out that several friends closely identify with a variety of Disney Princesses, from the bookworm-ish Belle of “Beauty and the Beast,” to the kind and gentle maternal Snow White, to the adventurous

A Circle Of Quiet by Madeleine L’Engle

Claire Matheny February 2, 2015

Note from the author: I am a part of a church book club that meets each month. A member nominates a book for the next gathering. This ensures that most of us read something we would never have picked on our own. And let’s be honest, with many of us torn between children and work, we barely get time to read. Our meeting gives

Justifying Grace by Jeff Rudy

Jeff Rudy January 31, 2015

If we desire that Christ brings us the grace to renew us and breathe new life into us, that admits quite simply that there is something about and in us that is old and dead and in need of being renewed. So, somehow, someway we must come to terms with that in ourselves which isn’t as it ought to be,

“Selma” And The Embodiment Of Discipleship by Cole Bodkin

Cole Bodkin January 29, 2015

A week before Martin Luther King, Jr. Day my wife and I went to go see the film Selma. This inspirational movie focuses on the non-violent protests of Martin Luther King, Jr., the SCLC (Southern Christian Leadership Conference), and others in the small town of Selma, Alabama. It particularly highlights the march from Selma to Montgomery, a momentous turning point

What Does The Lord Require Of You? by Maxie Dunnam

Maxie Dunnam May 6, 2015

I know that issues are more complex than these assertions, but I’m weary of excusing ourselves because the issue is so complex. Education is clearly a justice/mercy issue. That’s the reason why our church in Memphis has made a missional commitment to doing justice in relation to education.

Preach This, Tweet That: What Black Millenials Are Looking For From The Preacher by Dominique Robinson

Dominique Robinson May 4, 2015

Preaching has always been a lively communal dialogue between the preacher, God and the congregants within the Black Church tradition; however, technology and social media have invaded this dialogue for Black Millennials. Their idea of interactive preaching goes beyond the “preacher, music and frenzy” that W.E.B. DuBois refers to Black Millennials want church as they know it to reach beyond

Eating A Meal: Nourishment For Resurrection Life by Cole Bodkin

Cole Bodkin May 2, 2015

While they were talking about this, Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” They were startled and terrified, and thought that they were seeing a ghost. He said to them, “Why are you frightened, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? Look at my hands and my feet; see that it is I myself.

Theodicy Lived Out by MJ Kirby

MJ Kirby April 30, 2015

Our youngest, Duke, was one of these tender branches grafted into the faith that had been nurtured in him from birth.

Duke took the oath he was making seriously.

A week prior our son wrestled with whether or not he was actually ready to make such a hefty proclamation. His reservation? An unanswered (and I would add unanswerable) question that

Invisible Growth: Because Evil Doesn’t Win by Elizabeth Glass Turner

elizabeth.turner April 29, 2015

Do you remember standing tall and straight against a door jamb etched with pencil markings as a child? Was there a spot in the family home marking years of growth? Perhaps you had a growth chart, able to be folded away and moved as you relocated. If measuring height was part of your childhood, you’ll know that feeling in your

Rewriting The Story by MJ Kirby

MJ Kirby April 27, 2015

So, why do we make this annual trek to mark Jeremy’s birth, death, Christmas, Easter and other special occasions? I guess somehow in the ritual of the rhythm of returning to the grave we find comfort as we remember. We seek closure. We find consistency. We seek to make sense out of a situation that otherwise makes little to no

Easter: Bonus Material by Claire Matheny

Claire Matheny April 25, 2015

But here at the site of the empty tomb is our leap beyond lip service. When we take up the mantle from Mary and open our mouth to the truth. There is something bursting below the surface. A little seed of germination. This is Easter…we are the outliers who believe that despite all the impossibility of being raised from death

Staring Into Loss: The Tomb by Michael Smith

Michael Smith April 23, 2015

Now that light has dawned, one cannot simply stand and look at a symbol of defeat and the past. New life has broken in and we are not allowed to just look; we are invited and commissioned to go and tell.

Why Animals Need Heaven: God’s Love And The Problem Of Animal Suffering by Matt Douglass

Matt Douglass April 22, 2015

It seems, then, that God would not want anything bad to happen in the world, and he certainly has the power to stop them from happening. Yet bad things—unimaginably horrific things—happen every day. Over many centuries, philosophers and theologians have attempted to solve this problem by explaining why God would choose to create a world like ours, where humans

Don’t Be Afraid by Andy Stoddard

Andy Stoddard April 20, 2015

Today is April 16. Every year I write something in memory of my Mama Sarah and in honor of my mom, Maxine Stoddard. On this day 37 years ago, my Mama Sarah was murdered by my biological father; at that point, many lives were forever changed. She was murdered on my mom’s birthday (April 16) and buried on mine (April 18). You can read

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