Reclaiming the Wesleyan Tradition

Reclaiming the Wesleyan Tradition
Author: Douglas M. Strong
Publisher: Upper Room Books
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2007
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9780881775198

Come back home to God! Salvation is a central theme in John Wesley's writings. Wesley urged people to become and continually grow as committed disciples of Jesus Christ. His appeals and reasoning are just as relevant today as they were in the 18th century. "Wesley's 'Way of Salvation' is a road map of the journey of humanity toward God," write the authors. "It's a pathway of grace in which we respond to God with increasing self-awareness of our separation and our need to come back home. Our aim is to help people understand and apply Wesley's teachings to their lives...and to transform them from being 'almost Christians' to being 'altogether Christians.'" The authors are passionate about returning to the roots of Methodist tenets of salvation. Covering biblically based doctrinal topics such as sin, grace, justification, sanctification, and ethical living, Reclaiming the Wesleyan Tradition explains Wesleyan theology in an easy-to-understand way. The book's format makes this 13-week study especially accessible. Margin notes highlight excerpts from Wesley's sermons, hymns, and journal with the authors providing context and analysis of the themes. Daily reading and writing assignments are designed to open theological discussions and to deepen spiritual growth. Wesley's words can reshape your daily walk with God. Expect to be spiritually awakened and brought into a deeper communion with God while celebrating a powerful legacy.

Devotional Life in the Wesleyan Tradition

Devotional Life in the Wesleyan Tradition
Author: Steve Harper
Publisher: Upper Room Books
Total Pages: 150
Release: 2016-03-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0835816001

This workbook describes major features in John Wesley's devotional life, and it illustrates how you can apply his ministry to your own life. Structured around Wesley’s "Means of Grace," the 7-week study covers prayer, scripture, the Lord’s Supper, fasting, Christian conferencing, and providential means of grace. Developed for individual or group study, the workbook also offers suggestions for organizing an initial group meeting and developing a successful group study. Also available in Spanish as La Vida de Devoción en la Tradición Wesleyana.

Reclaiming Rural

Reclaiming Rural
Author: Allen T. Stanton
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
Total Pages: 137
Release: 2021-05-15
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1538135256

As rural America continues to undergo massive economic and demographic shifts, rural churches are uniquely positioned to provide community leadership. Leading a rural congregation requires a deeper understanding of the challenges and opportunities facing these communities, as well as a strong theological and community-focused identity. Allen T. Stanton describes how in establishing this identity, rural leaders build a meaningful and vital ministry. Reclaiming Rural explores the myths and realities of rural places, and how those common narratives impact the leadership of rural churches. Ultimately, rural congregations must practice a contextual understanding of vitality, which understands both the strengths and challenges of leading in a rural setting. Arguing for a practice of evangelism imbued with this mission of vitality, Reclaiming Rural promotes the church as a leader in economic and community development, modeled upon a Wesleyan theology of grace. Acknowledging the many challenges facing rural churches, this book is an energetic and encouraging guide to overcoming social and economic obstacles to build a thriving congregation.

The Class Meeting

The Class Meeting
Author: Kevin M. Watson
Publisher:
Total Pages: 153
Release: 2013-11-15
Genre: Methodists
ISBN: 9781628240580

Being a Christian in the Wesleyan Tradition

Being a Christian in the Wesleyan Tradition
Author: John O. Gooch
Publisher: Upper Room Books
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2009
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9780881775594

Discover what it truly means to be an involved member of your church and grow in your faith. Unlike many books on church membership, Being a Christian in the Wesleyan Tradition does not spend a lot of time on bylaws or matters of organization. Instead, the author speaks to the heart of our participation: how we belong, what we believe, how we live, and the possibilities for our growth in faith. Christians belong to a community of faith, John Gooch stresses. Being a Christian in the Wesleyan Tradition shows how you can live your faith in private and public acts of devotion and ministry.

A Wesleyan Theology of the Eucharist

A Wesleyan Theology of the Eucharist
Author: Jason E. Vickers
Publisher: United Methodist General Board of Higher Education
Total Pages: 304
Release: 2016-10-26
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9780938162520

Recover the Eucharist for church and ministry.

Pursuing Social Holiness

Pursuing Social Holiness
Author: Kevin M. Watson
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 241
Release: 2015
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 0190270950

Kevin M. Watson offers the first in-depth examination of the early Methodist band meeting: a small group of five to seven people focusing on the confession of sin in order to grow in holiness.

Recapturing the Wesleys' Vision

Recapturing the Wesleys' Vision
Author: Paul Wesley Chilcote
Publisher: InterVarsity Press
Total Pages: 132
Release: 2003-12-29
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9780830827435

Paul Wesley Chilcote introduces the dynamic faith of John and Charles Wesley, showing how they were able to balance faith and works, Word and Spirit, the personal and the social, head and heart, mission and service.

Class Leaders

Class Leaders
Author: David Lowes Watson
Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers
Total Pages: 185
Release: 2002-04-30
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1579109543

In 1988, The General Conference of the United Methodist Church restored class leaders and class meetings to the Book of Discipline after an absence of fifty years. In this volume, David Lowes Watson explains what the recovery of this tradition can mean for congregations, and offers some guidelines for the revitalized office of class leader. Adapting the later Methodist class meeting as a pastoral subdivision of the congregation, Watson shows how class leaders, under the supervision of the pastor, can nurture the discipline of other church members in light of a ÒGeneral Rule of DisciplineÓ derived from the early Methodist societies: ÒTo witness to Jesus Christ in the world, and to follow his teachings through acts of compassion, justice, worship, and devotion, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.Ó This volume is the second in a trilogy : Covenant Discipleship, Class Leaders, and Forming Christian Disciples.

A Blueprint for Discipleship

A Blueprint for Discipleship
Author: Kevin M. Watson
Publisher: Discipleship Resources
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2009
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9780881775563

Do no harm. Do good. Practice the spiritual disciplines. Watch over one another in love. --John Wesley's General Rules Why is this so hard? Does being a part of the Wesleyan tradition make any difference in living out your faith? Does Methodism offer guidance as we look to the future and seek renewal? Methodist Christians sometimes exhibit the most unchristian attitudes and behavior. People notice. And it's reflecting badly on the church, but we can--individually and collectively--correct the problem. Allow God to enter more deeply into your life until it's hard to tell where you end and God begins. "Most American Christians are struggling to practice their faith," Watson writes. "...Methodists can hold on and try not to let our tradition die, but mere survival is not God's deepest desire for us or the church. Instead, we must choose to live by stubbornly depending on God's Spirit, allowing our lives to give witness to who Christ is." A Blueprint for Discipleship offers a practical approach to Christian discipleship that's distinctly Wesleyan. Watson addresses the overwhelming desire of many Methodist Christians who want a more meaningful relationship with God but aren't sure how to start. Reawaken to the power and vitality of your spiritual heritage. Repent of apathy and spiritual complacency to reclaim, in the words of Wesley, "the form and power of godliness."