Wesleyan Accent Archive | World Methodist Evangelism

Could Jesus Save Aliens? Why Answering Silly Questions Is Serious Business In Youth Ministry by Philip Tallon

Philip Tallon July 16, 2014

Talking about aliens was a great opportunity to teach students about the Wesleyan understanding of scripture, to delve into the logic of the two natures in Christology, and to unpack how Christians connect incarnation to salvation. I got to show the student I cared about his question, and maybe helped him learn a bit more about Christian theology.

How To Live While We’re Waiting by Carolyn Moore

Carolyn Moore July 12, 2014

Forty years ago, we could not have imagined paying $3 for a cup of coffee. Now, a daily Starbucks habit would cost you the price of a house over 30 years. And people pay it. Starbucks is nearly 43 years old. There are about 23,000 of them, but there are 1000 less of them this year. Starbucks is shrinking. Here’s

Imagining Glory by Elizabeth Glass Turner

elizabeth.turner July 10, 2014

“Now we see dimly; then, face to face.” Not, perhaps, the most utilized portion of I Corinthians 13 at the ubiquitous summer wedding – but oddly, one of my favorite parts of the familiar chapter. It seems to distill the essence of faith: trust that we will eventually see “face to face” what we now discern only dimly, in fragments

Onan The Barbarian: Self-Gratification At Its Worst by Tom Fuerst

Tom Fuerst July 9, 2014

I mean, what in the flippin’ world is happening here? Did God really just slaughter this guy for “spilling his semen on the ground”? If this story has ever interested you, then you’ll want to know why Onan the Barbarian was slain.

Generosity by Michael Smith

Michael Smith July 7, 2014

True generosity means extending yourself to a place of the unknown or even fearful. To do something that is so beyond your capacity and frame of reference puts you into the Realm of the King. This is Kingdom work, here folks. We get to see moments of God’s Kingdom here and now when this happens. All it takes is a

Doctrine and Renewal (Part 2) by Ken Loyer

Ken Loyer July 3, 2014

I believe that we will discover the most promising way forward through a deep retrieval of our doctrine and a comprehensive re-reception of it at every level of our church, especially in the local church since that is the most significant arena for making and growing disciples of Jesus Christ. This retrieval project will be a long and difficult one,

By Attending On The Ordinances Of God by Tammie Grimm

Tammie Grimm July 2, 2014

Have you ever noticed the similarities between Major League Baseball and the United Methodist Church? Both organizations exist throughout the country and have a brand logo which is recognizable around the world. In the case of the MLB, professional baseball is played on other continents and plenty of MLB players call another country “home.” In a similar vein, the UMC

Hospital Field Trips And Spiritual Training: Why Kids Should Learn To Make Hospital Visits by Elizabeth Glass Turner

elizabeth.turner June 26, 2014

As a grown-up, I traveled to a hospital once to visit a friend who’d had surgery. A mutual friend accompanied me. I watched his anxiety with amusement. He was anxious about how to find the elevators, anxious about reading the hospital map, anxious about the visit itself. I discovered that this otherwise rational, intelligent adult was uneasy and uncomfortable in

Making Disciples In The Wesleyan Way by Andrew Thompson

Andrew Thompson June 25, 2014

The church today puts a lot of focus on the need to make disciples of Jesus Christ. But do we take seriously what that work requires of us? I’m not so sure. I am very sure, on the other hand, that we’re living in a culture that does us no favors when we even begin to approach the work of

It’s Always Abuse, Not Just When It Involves A Child by Tom Fuerst

Tom Fuerst June 23, 2014

But what we also fail to realize and consistently communicate is that anytime a clergy member has sex with a parishioner who is not their spouse, it is abuse. The emotional, spiritual, and even societal power granted to a pastor is intertwined and inseparable from all their relations within the church. We cannot, therefore, pretend that infidelity between pastors and

To Observe A Holy Lent by Andy Stoddard

Andy Stoddard February 12, 2018

As we prepare to enter into the season of Lent, there is always a call to fasting. That is one of the definitive features of this time of Lent. It is a time to pull back from all the abundance of our life, particularly for those of us in the West, and to refocus ourselves upon God, on our great

What to Do With #metoo by Jennifer Moxley

Jennifer Moxley February 8, 2018

As the Church, it would be foolish to believe we have not participated or contributed in some way. We can confess the ways we have corporately and personally upheld this power dynamic, repent and seek to turn it upside down.

Women Are the True Heroes of Star Wars by Rebecca Bratten Weiss

Wesleyan Accent February 5, 2018

Men who object to women taking central roles in the church might want to remember what place the women took in the gospels: at the foot of the cross, present with Christ, at the moment when God himself was pierced and blood and water flowed.

Living Alive by Carrie Carter

Carrie Carter February 5, 2018

I’ve seen a lot of death. Not just because my husband has a full-time pastoral calling, but also because my parents never shielded me from the reality of death. Many parents today hesitate to take their children to funerals because, “they wouldn’t understand,” and that is true, but only to an extent. As a parent, it is my duty (privilege?)

When Curiosity Is Christ-Like by Elizabeth Glass Turner

elizabeth.turner February 1, 2018

Curiosity is underrated. In the past one hundred years, many North Americans have undergone a shift in how they’re described and in how they see themselves. We have gone from citizens to consumers. A few years back the hit drama “Mad Men” followed the lives of people in a booming advertising industry in post-World War II America. Citizens may benefit

Why Congregations Must Embrace Awkwardness by Elizabeth Glass Turner

elizabeth.turner January 31, 2018

Recently I read an article by seminary professor Kate Bowler that had me staring wide-eyed at the computer screen, alternately barking bursts of laughter, fist-pumping the air, and feeling tears sting the corners of my eyes. She walked up to the elephant in the room, reached out, touched it, gave it a treat, made friends with it, and sat down

Our Way of Being in the World by Kim Reisman

Kim Reisman January 31, 2018

We live in a culture marked by a dramatic lack of trust, and the Church is not exempt as a target for those feelings of suspicion. As the Body of Christ, we have some restorative work to do as we witness for the kingdom.

The Pastor’s Almanac: A News Rundown for Tired Reverends by Elizabeth Glass Turner

elizabeth.turner January 29, 2018

It’s Monday when most clergy members attempt to hide, read, or decompress. A few with churches large enough to afford a staff prefer post-game analysis on Mondays, parceling out Sabbath follow-up’s and sketching the week ahead. Many pastors enter Monday with a need to refuel – even the extroverts. And while the calendar reads January 29th, it can feel like

When You’re Tired, Afraid, and Uncertain by Otis T. McMillan

Otis McMillan January 25, 2018

God, when we grow tired and weary, when we stumble and fall, lift our eyes to heaven and remind us to find our hope and strength in You.

The Trinity And The Mission Of God by Edgar Bazan

Edgar Bazan January 24, 2018

Let’s explore how we are called to engage in the mission Dei through a Trinitarian lens. Lesslie Newbigin uses the theology of the Trinity to offer a theological ground for the understanding and practicing of the missio Dei. He explains, “He is the Son, sent by the Father and anointed by the Spirit to be the bearer of God’s kingdom

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