Share the Post: I recently heard this story of a boy who desperately wanted a car for his sixteenth birthday. He didn’t hesitate in making that desire known. When that day finally arrived, he looked out the window, hopefully thinking that surely his new car would be there. But to his great disappointment it wasn’t. He asked his parents why
Share the Post: Scripture Focus: What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us? Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else? Who dares accuse us whom God has chosen for his own? No
Share the Post: Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be. I John 3:2 “The world is still a jungle, Maxie. Man is still an animal in that jungle. The only difference is that the jungle is not as wild as it was in the past, and the animals are
Share the Post: Scripture Focus: Woe to the world because of the things that cause people to stumble! Such things must come, but woe to the person through whom they come! If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than
Share the Post: In my previous article I made the claim that in our going on to salvation, struggle is normal and discipline is essential. I want to elaborate on my claim that discipline is essential. Scripture, especially the New Testament, is replete with calls to a disciplined life. This is the process of sanctification, or we may call
Share the Post: “Good morning, pastor.” “I am so glad you are my pastor.” “If only we had a different pastor.” “It must be nice to be a pastor and work only an hour a week.” “Sorry, I shouldn’t say that in front of a pastor.” “You, are a pastor?” I have been a pastor for more than a decade
Share the Post: Scripture Focus: Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not rely on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take. Proverbs 3:5-6 (NLT) One of the great myths of the modern era is that humanity can experience perpetual, boundless progress through the application of
Struggle is “Normal” by Maxie Dunnam reveals the transformative journey of faith through the testimony of a barber who found salvation. His story highlights the shift from darkness to light, showing that new birth is an inward transformation. Wesley emphasizes that justification is just the start; the true journey involves change and growth in holiness. As we seek full salvation,
“As a lawyer for God, putting up His case, I was a failure. As a witness for God, telling what He had done for me, I was a success. As in a flash, I saw my calling: I was to be a witness! It was bitter medicine, bitterly and publicly administered, but I took the medicine and found it cured
Scripture Focus: Oh, the joys of those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand around with sinners, or join in with mockers. But they delight in the law of the Lord, meditating on it day and night. They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season. Their leaves never wither, and they prosper
It’s not easy to hold yourself in readiness. You have to be alert, your entire body engaged and prepared to move. You have to be focused, intent on watching for the necessary sign. You have to be willing to act, following the signal the moment it arrives.
It’s nearing the end of summer and there is a pretty good chance, if you are a Methodist or attending a church in the Wesleyan tradition that either your church newsletter or weekly bulletin is currently showcasing upcoming Bible studies or spiritual formation classes under a banner headline, “Fall Discipleship Opportunities.”It might be that there is an advertised afternoon volunteer
The conclusions reached in God’s Love through the Spirit, particularly concerning an understanding of love both within God’s own life and in Christian participation in God by grace, challenge the claim that Western theology suffers from a pneumatological deficiency, and represent a significant contribution to the study of Aquinas and of Wesley, to ecumenical dialogue between Catholics and Methodists (and
To die, to sleep— no more—and by a sleep to say we end the heartache and the thousand natural shocks that flesh is heir to—’tis a consummation devoutly to be wished! To die, to sleep. To sleep, perchance to dream—ay, there’s the rub, for in that sleep of death what dreams may come when we have shuffled off this mortal
“What kind of advice can I offer you? I’m younger than you.” My friend’s reflection resonates with many younger folks in ministry. In essence it asks, “Can young people offer wisdom to those who are (much) older than themselves?” That question haunts many young pastors and ministers as they wrestle with their vocation. Whether or not Timothy was in his
The Son of Man came not to be served by to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. – Matthew 20:28 My mom was a great southern cook. At least six nights a week, she cooked a full meal for everybody who showed up at the table. There were eight of us and most nights, at
The setting is ripe for revival. And the essential response to that possibility is for God’s people not to whimper. Acknowledge our sin, and repent, yes, but not whimper. Could it be that we are mistakenly centered on institutional unity, when a prior issue is crying for attention: unity in the Gospel. We can have institutional unity without revival, but
These kinds of moments have come and gone in my ministry, and more are sure to unfold; as they do I need to ask myself, how am I treading? Lightly? With grace? Out in the open? Is it about me? Or am I the errand runner for the Spirit I need to be? Sadly for me, as my ministry moves
If it is true that many are gravitating to more historically resonant forms of worship, Methodists should know the resources within their own liturgical history…The forms of Methodist worship, when embraced with “heart, mind, soul and strength,” allow for reverent spontaneity and holy emotion. The use of liturgical forms, for Wesley, actually led to freedom in worship—a fact quickly lost
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.
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