Continuing with Jesus

Here are some quick thoughts about continuing with Jesus.  A lot of Christians tend to become discouraged with a lot things they deal with on a repeated basis.  Over the course of time, which sometimes seems to weed out the ”chaff,” people fall away from Christ.  These some thoughts that I hope will make sense to you if you are one of those people who is struggling to continue on.    

• Do not count on other Christians to lift you up when you fall into a downcast state.  That is what Jesus wants to do for you. 
• Seek God’s approval.  Do not look for someone’s approval so that you can be blessed.  Going with Christ means seeking His blessing alone. 
• When looking for direction, do not seek it from other people first.  Pray that the Spirit will reveal direction to you. 
• When giving effort, do so to please your Heavenly Father.  People cannot look into your heart like your God can.
• Do not busy yourself with ‘religious work.’  Spend time alone God.
• Do not allow situations to discourage you.  Trust that God is working things out for your good. 
• Do not allow unconverted people to frustrate you.  Realize that they still need Jesus. 
• Know that there is not anything that wastes your time.  God does not waste anything.
• When someone tries to convince you of a major life decision that you should make, always think back to what God told you first. 
• Know that it is normal to struggle over dying to yourself on daily basis. 
• Trust and obey God.  Do this even when it goes against everything that you feel during a crucial moment.      
• Focus on giving worship, great worth, to Christ.  Do not look to recieve all of the time.  Giving is the seed of recieving. 
• Draw a line in the sand and do not go beyond it spiritually.  Commit to staying with Christ no matter what. 

Sunday Recap

Sunday was awesome!  God moved and people responded!  So here is the recap.

• I took my part in preaching the Encounters Series.  I spoke about Caiaphas rejecting God’s Will.  The Scripture that I used was Mark 11:15-19, 27-33.  Because Caiaphas was ultimately in charge of the Temple, here are three things that he rejected; right worship; caring for others, and God’s Authority.  The problem with worship was that the Jews were not keeping God’s Temple Holy.  The priests had a scam for money going in the Temple.  They were selling pre-approved animals for sacrifice.  The priests rejected that Jesus is the Lamb of God and therefore, rejected His judgment upon the Temple.  Caiaphas was finally persuaded officials that Jesus should be put to death as the ultimate rejection. I asked three What if . . . questions.  What if Christians did not reject right worship of Christ?  What would The Church look like?  What if Christians did not take advantage of others, but really cared?  What would The Church look like?  What if Christians really accepted God’s Authority?  How would we live our lives?  What would The Church look like? 
• We had 45.  This is discouraging. 
• We had around 7 come to the altar to move closer to Christ.  This is awesome!  Praise the Lord!
• I noticed a sincerity in several to win others to Christ.  This is encouraging. 
• Giving was up. 
• I pointed out that most Christians give 10% of their income.  The problem with this is that many Christians limit God to just 10% of their income.  What I mean is that they only allow God to God of that much, and they limit His Authority to only the financial aspect of their lives.  Because we don’t want Him to have access to the other 90% of our income.  We also don’t want God to have access to our time and personal lives.  This is the danger of paying 10%.  We clear our minds of any other responsibilities.  Many think, “I’ve done my part.”  Yet, the question remains, “Have you really?”  I think that God is interested in more than money. 
• Sunday night was mediocre.  We split into men’s and women’s groups.  The men talked about Holiness.  What does it mean to have the mind of Christ? 
• As I look back at Sunday, I think it was a good time of worship.  Yet, I see that it was not good enough.  We must, as a church, begin to deliberately win Sunday back.
• I think Sunday has been lost to recreation, relaxation, and retailization.  I had to have another R.  People, let me tell you straight.  God knows if you are really His or not. 
• If you are cutting church without a legitimate reason, then you are missing the mark.  Please do not respond to this post that you can be a Christian without going to church.  I don’t think so.  Unless you are in a country that does not allow you to.  That talk just makes me tired.  I bet when we all get to Heaven people will enjoy being in a worship service with each other. 
• Finally, thank you Lord for new believers.  Amen. 

Christian giving in tough economic times

I have written several posts about the importance of tithing and giving above normal tithe.  I have a few thoughts about giving during these tough economic times.  First, we are still required to give during this time of economic hardship.  This is where God builds our faith so that we can understand that we are to trust Him for all that we need. 

Today I had the opportunity to give another we besides monetarily.  I drove to our local Blook Connection and donated blood.  This is a great way that we can practice Christian stewardship.  Yes, I believe that we are supposed to manage God’s resources.  So if we are in Christ, and our bodies are the Temples of The Holy Spirit, then our blood is His.  This means that it is a resource that we can give so that others can have life.  Christians you should be doing this too. 

Wait, before you say that you are scared of needles, you should know that I am too.  The nurse laughed at me today when I looked straight up as she stuck me.  It doesn’t hurt as bad as we think it does.  You can do it too. 

While at The Blood Connection I noticed that there are other ways to give too.  You can give plasma.  I found out that plasma is needed for burn victims.  Here are some of the reasons that you should consider donating plasma.

Now, there are many people who have seen those commercials of children fighting different types of cancer asking for financial help.  If you are like me, you may try to figure out how to budget some money so that you can help.  Yet, you may not have the resources to do this.  A good alternative to giving financially to those who are fighting cancer is to give platelets.  Cancer patients need platelets and The Blood Connection said they need 50 platelets a day.  That averages out to 50 donors a day.  Now, this will take a little longer than simply giving blood.  You will need and hour and a half.  You can give platelets a little more frequently than whole blood.   

Those who desire to be missional to their communities should consider how they can help meet the needs of all who are victims whether of disease, or any other trauma.   

Giving these types of God’s resources only requires that you care, are not looking for recognition, love others as your self, and able to sacrifice/steward God’s time.  Plus, you get free cupcakes and soda.  And, if you are a husband, you don’t have to do any strenuous work around the house for the day.  This means that your wife will have to allow you to relax so that you blood can begin to build back up.   

My advice is that we should all do our part while we are healthy.  Because a day may come that we will be those who are in need too.  Plus, I think God is glad when we do.

Sunday Recap

• Yesterday there were approximately 51 in attendance.  Some are sick and have various health problems.  So this is not bad. 
• Sunday school only had 31 people.  I just want to remind everyone, again, that this is the best time to learn.  Or, be in a small group.
• We started our series “Survey Says . . .”  Pastor Jon and I handed out a ballot with several different topics to choose from about what everyone would like to learn about on Sunday morning.  The winning topics are, What is the difference between Baptists and Wesleyans.  Why don’t I get along with other people.  Heaven and Hell.  And, What does it mean to be a Covenant Member of The Wesleyan Church.
• The first topic that I tackeled yesterday was the difference between Baptists and Wesleyans.  Here are 3 doctrinal differences between both. 

1) The Church.  Baptist churches are autonoumous.  They are able to govern themselves and can establish each churches core beliefs.  There is not one church over another.  These local churches are led by the church board and pastor.  The pastor cannot be a woman.  However, women are recognized as having gifts for ministries besides pastoring churches.  This information was according to the Southern Baptist Convention.  I compared other Baptist churches associated with the SBC and found that they are not all alike.  Some beliefs listed on the SBC web site were listed while others were excluded.  Wesleyans are a denomination.  In other words, we submit to governing authority.  We also believe that women can be pastors.  Both sides have their Scriptures so keep that in mind.  This includes government at the local, district, and general levels.  Each Wesleyan church has the same doctrine without variation; at least on paper.  Wesleyans also see The Church as including those who in Heaven.  I think that is awesome.  I may share thoughts about this later, but consider how special it is to take Communion with this in mind. 

2) Regeneration, also known as ”The New Birth” is a looked at differently by Baptists and Wesleyans.  Regeneration, according to the wording on the SBC web page, seems to suggest that new birth precedes faith and repentance.  There are some Scriptures that support both views.  The Baptists use John 3:3, and Wesleyans use John 1:12-13.  There more for both sides but I will not list them here. 

3) Salvation includes, for the SBC,  regeneration, justification, sanctification, and glorification this is in the broadest sense.  Wesleyans include justification, regeneration, adoption, and witness of the Spirit.   

4) Wesleyans have one distinctive doctrine.  We beleive in Sanctification as a second work of grace.  This is the work by which the Holy Spirit cleanses inbred sin.  In other words, God changes our desire to sin, so that we desire not to sin.  The Baptists believe that this occurs all at once, likely because of how they see the Regeneration process.  We have Scripture for this second work of grace.  I will post links at the bottom of this post. 

5) Baptists have another distinctive, and more popular I might add, doctrine.  They believe in Eternal Security.  This simply means that you can never lose your salvation.  The Wesleyans disagree with this and believe that each individual, because of choice and neglect, can fall into sin and be in danger without repentance. 

These are what I beleive the major differences between the 2 camps.  Therefore, in my opinion, I don’t see these issues as the great dividers that they many people seem to make them to be.  Elmer Towns once said that extremists on both sides are dangerous.  I agree with him.  So if you are struggling to decide between Wesleyan or Baptist, then I say find that church that is truly serving Jesus Christ by caring for others and giving.  Whether or not it is Baptist or Wesleyan is not really a big difference.  I think both sides would agree that it is important to seek salvation from Jesus Christ and truly live for Him. 

I am a Wesleyan pastor who is at ease with somebody in my family going to a Baptist church.  On the other hand, I would be uneasy if they attended a church, Baptist or Wesleyan, that continually preached doctrine instead of proper exegesis of the Holy Bible. 

The Wesleyan Church beliefs

The Southern Baptist Convention beliefs

A site that compares the 2

• We had our Saturday hot dog community dinner this week.  We had some who do not attend our church come.  But that is not why it was a success.  It was a success because our Wesleyan Men went out and invited most of the people who live close by to come and gave them a paper with our church name on it.  This paper will let them know that we are not hiding from the community.  We are here and want to establish a relationship with them.  It will take time. 
• The dinner is one way that we are turning around as a church.  Because this was a lay driven ministry.  This means that the people in our church are becoming less satisfied to just attend church.  They are desiring to be the hands and feet of Christ.  The culture within our church is changing!
• The treasurer gave me a total of the tithes that were brought in for the month of January.  We were down about $250 a week.  I preached about tithing in January twice.  Either it is an oversight by some.  Or, it people are withholding because they are upset, or because of the economy.  If you are a Christian listen for a second, God is going to test your faith in this economy period.  If you withhold because of being upset with a pastor or a church, beware.  God takes that as you disobeying Him.  Some have questioned me about where tithing is in the NT.  Well, long story short, Jesus said give “All that you have.”  So, tithing is one way that we keep Christ first in our lives. 
• The key to tithing is this; if you are giving to a church, remember it is not you that keeps the church going.  God supplies the needs of the church; and yours too.  Giving is designed to help your faith.  It is a biblical command.  So obey God.   

I think that we are on the right track as a church.  So continue to look for good things.  God bless.

Sunday Recap

• Good worship during AM service.
• 50 in attendance with many “regulars” MIA.
• Sermon series It’s time to . . .”  Title: Glorify God by Giving. Text: 2 Corinthians 9.  God is glorified when: Giving demonstrates righteousness, Giving demonstrate equality while caring for others, Giving sets an example.  Why?  When the church does not use God’s resources properly and never gives to those in need, God’s Image is at stake.
• Sunday school was full of younger people.  47 in attendance.
• PM service; Wesleyan Men and Wesleyan Women met.
• Wesleyan Men want to be on mission to serve the community and made real plans to do so.  This is what Jesus desires His church to do.  Take care of those in need so that He is glorified and those who receive His care through us are built up in faith.
• It was important Sunday to know that when we give in response to what is laid upon our hearts that God is likely answering prayer for the person needs it.  As a matter fact,  it may simply be a need being for the person who does not even know that he or she has a need.  God knows what we have need of before we even ask for it.
• Our nursery was full again Sunday morning.  Praise the Lord!  We rapidly becoming shorthanded for nursery attendants and Sunday school teachers.

Sunday Recap

• Good morning and evening worship.
• We had 44-45 people for AM worship.  I hope this is not going to be the norm untile Easter.  We are still missing 15 or so people each week.  It may be sickness, vacations, or good old fashioned cutting service. 
• I started a new series called It’s time to . . . and the title of the message was Develop a New Attitude toward Giving.  The Scripture was 1 Chronicles 29:8-18.  There were three principles that needed to be understood to develop a new attitude toward giving; joyful giving, everything is God’s, and God tests the hearts. 
• It was very quiet in the sanctuary during this sermon.  Why is so hard to give to God’s work and back to Him what is already His?  I believe that this is the closet in our hearts that needs to be cleansed by the Holy Spirit.  We are fine following other Christian disciplines except when it is time to give.  We don’t like it.  We don’t enjoy it.  We think we can’t afford it.  Yet, we cannot afford not to give. 
• In our PM service we had a great discussion about this article.  Questions to ponder were what should we pass down to our children?  A building or faith?  What is more important to God?  People or a church building?  What is the church?  A building or those who have surrendered to Christ?  Are churches supposed to be monuments or lives that are sold out to Christ?  Does it matter who builds the church?  Should the church be built by humans or God?  And, do those who build the church run it? 
• One of the points in our discussion was whether or not God wants His churches to flee urbanization or stay and minister to the community.  I wrote about the modern day Rapture of the Church a while back.  It was about churches who flee their responsibility to the people. 
• If you attend church, you should know that I believe that we will give an account for what we did not do for the Lord.  In other words, if we do not minister to the “least of these,” this will be a problem.  Jesus said, “Depart from Me, for I never knew you” to those who do not do this. 

Struggles that small Wesleyan Churches face in SC

I am living dangerously now.  Yep, you saw the title and know that this is going to be a debatable opinion.  Remember, it is my opinion.  I am not a researcher and I am not a big name.  So read it and know that these are my thoughts.

First, let me acknowledge that we serve a powerful God who can accomplish anything through those whom He desires.  If He is able to work through our small Wesleyan church too. 

Here are some possible problems.

• South Carolina is Baptist and Presbyterian country.  Yes, it is true!  We serve the same God, Jesus Christ.  Can we say it?  There is church competition.  What I mean is that there are other churches who are financially well off that can offer many different ministries to their attendees.  Child care is huge.  Professional musicians.  Great speakers.  Many different specialized ministries.  Unlike our earlier Wesleyans, when these churches build a church, they mean it!  Their facilities are beautiful and useful.  They can accomadate large amounts of people and hold community services.  In other words, they can be of a huge service to the community.  Yes, that is important. 
• There are only 48-50 Wesleyan churches in the entire state.  The good news is that we are working to fix this by planting churches.  Our brothers and sisters in other denominations have understood this for a long time.  They have been able to acheive a partnership with each other that is really awesome and this is how they take care of each other.  This is what we must do too.  Some Wesleyan churches are doing this already.  Yet again, we are small in number and time is what we will also have to work with. 
• We have had bad press in the past.  Some have called us a cult.  Pleeeezze.  People are shocked when we talk about Sanctification and when we acknowledge that we do not believe that once you are saved that you cannot lose your salvation.  Sorry.  Free will overrides that.  Now, listen.  Okay, the last is a non-issue.  Really it is.  Holiness is, and it is in the other denominations too. 
• It seems that some of our churches have hidden themselves away from the communities.  We did not want to be around sin.  Big mistake!  As a result, a lot of people that I talk to have not heard of Wesleyans and do not know where our churches are.  This is tough on advertisement. 
• Most of our facilities are outdated.  This leaves most pastors and laymen to choose between being missional or contemporary.  I would like to be both. 
• A lot of our churches are missing several generations.  This makes it tough to build strong children’s and youth ministries.  When this happens finances tend to go toward building needs and upkeep. 
• I think all churches are facing this next problem.  Because we live in the Bible belt it is a tougher assignment to get people to attend church and serve.  Consider, it is more of a social statement to attend church than to come out of a passion for Christ.  God and Sundays are those things that many take part in only on Sundays and then leave what was heard at church.   People have gotten used to the idea that God has chosen them and gives them finances which confirms that He has chosen them.  People get used to this.  Then there  really isn’t a need for God because we have the resources to take care of whatever problems might arise.  This leads to entitlement.  Yet, those who don’t have anything, anyone, or realize that God cares will come to Jesus.  But, they never hear because we are always entertaining ourselves. 
• The really most frustrating problem that we struggle with is that we cannot hire full-time youth pastors to minister to children and teens.  This is really hard to stomach because here is our future.  Man!  We can have all of the best intentions in the world.  We can dream.  We can talk.  But, nothing is going to happen until we have faith in God and sacrifice.  To get to the next step on the ladder we have to believe in God and give to God.  It has to be a united effort. 
• Southern Wesleyan helps us by being here.  This school helps us to get our name out there and put everyone at ease that we are not a cult. 

Listen, Baptists, Wesleyans, and etc.  We are all in this together.  To my fellow Wesleyans.  We have got to be more involved in our communities.  We especially have to be stepping out into the waters that only God can get us through.  We cannot please Him until we allow God to lead us into waters that we cannot navigate which will cause us to turn to Him by faith.  We must begin giving our resources to the next generations because they do not know Christ yet.  He is pursuing them in a big way.  If we do not join Him in His pursuit, then some might say that we are committing spiritual abortion.

Sunday Recap

I need to change the title of these updates on Mondays.  I know. 

• I preached about the presentation of Christ in the Temple Sunday.  I think it went well.  It is not a Scripture that most Protestant churches use.  I thought it was important to note that Christ will divide people.  He always has and will until He returns.  Those of us who serve Jesus find out fast that our friends and families generally take the opposite view of Jesus and reject Him.  I also noted that the Holy Spirit reveals Jesus through God’s Word and obedient people and that those who seek Redemption should be told the Good News. 
• We had 53 people again!  Praise the Lord!  This is significant because we have been averaging over 50 since the November.  This is also tough since our sanctuary only seats approximately 48 comfortably! 
• At some point we will have to do something about the seating if we intend to grow.  And, I do. 
• Smith Chapel continues to be the norm by weekly demonstrating that “regular” attendees come 2 Sundays a month.  I heard that stat from a peer and cannot verify it.  But it sounds about right. 
• Our nursery is still going well and has been in use since we opened it up a couple of months ago.  It reminds me of the movie Field of Dreams, and the famous line, “Build it, and they will come.” 
• It was mentioned by a couple of treasurers that if anyone is looking for a place to donate a large sum of money that he or she can give to our church.  I know that this sounds like we are money hungry; and I struggled with it too.  Nevertheless, it is true.  “You have not because you ask not.”  We do have needs at our church and it seems that we should say something once in a while.  I will be preaching about Stewardship next Sunday, but it was already planned.  It should be remembered that God’s people are supposed to be givers.  So if there are needs we need to do our best to take care of them.   
• I continue to be grateful for our Assistant Pastor Jon Brady.  He does well organizing our services and creating our power points.  Good job Jon!
• We ended up Sunday night at Taco Bell with some of our youth.  I miss being a youth pastor sometimes.  Teenagers are fun, but can also be a handful.  Yet, if this ministry is going well it is the most rewarding. 

Missional Small Church

How does a small church become missional?  This is a question many small church pastors might ask.  This is also a question that many witnesses for Christ might ask also.  While at New Life Wesleyan Church, we were missional in the late 90′s, and they still are.  This is where we focused on a ministry called the ROCK, Reclaiming Our Community’s Kids.  Our goal was to be Jesus, otherwise known as be Incarnational, to children. 

What each church should know is that each church is different.  We are different because God sets every mission up.  In other words, he creates the opportunities while preparing the church that already exists and while sending new lay people in to take part in the mission.  God goes before because He prepares the way, and God’s people must respond to His lead.  Duh!  We have heard that before.  Yet, what does it look like when God is leading you to a specific mission?

God uses frustration over injustices.  He breaks hearts.  Here is what frustrated our church and broke our hearts which brought us to action and this is what our mission looked like. 

Our community’s kids were not recieving proper love from the adults in their lives.  These kids were struggling with school, social skills, and having adequate clothing and a home.  Our kids did not have any adult in their life to create the sense of being valued.  They were not being heard.  Some were staying in multiple houses and where they stayed depended on where the party was the night before.  Some kids’ parents were working multiple jobs which meant they were too worn out to do things with them, or even cook supper at night.  In other words, our kids were too worried about what they needed to live in this life to learn another Vacation Bible School story about Jesus in the next. 

Notice that I said, “Our kids.”  You have to look at God’s children that way.  You have to own or take responsibility for the mission.  Plus, our goal was to let them know that Jesus wants to be part of their lives in this life.  Lordship now is what they needed too, on top of the sinner’s prayer to escape hell when they die.  Jesus wants to  be known now as the God who is with us. 

To other churches, mission may start to take root from frustration that some in the church might feel about any type of injustice that they see in the community.  This becomes the seed of something great.  Think about it.  If Christ’s people are frustrated about any type of injustice, then there is a huge chance that the Spirit of God is spurring that frustration so that we will get burdened enough to move. 

Next, someone needs to talk about a practical Jesus way of dealing with the injustice.  Practical means finding a way to be the hands and feet of Christ while sharing the Gospel.  One without the other won’t do.  They must be happen jointly.  This ministry must not be one that is duplicated from what someone else is doing.  A better way to say that is the ministry or mission should not be developed because someone else, who seems successful from doing that type of ministry, is doing it.  It is a ministry that should meet two requirements.  One is that the ministry fits the community, or situation, like a glove.  Two is that the ministry will have to be accomplished by faith.  This is important for God to demonstrate His awesome power to individuals.  Why?  He wants to show those who are lost that Jesus Christ is the answer.  But . . . He also wants to demonstrate His power to the individuals in the church too!  This is faith education 101. 

You will know that you are on the right track when the needs to run this ministry are being met continuously, by those outside of the church, those who did not know that there was a need, and from people inside the church who are willing to do without luxuries, like never before, and give their money or time.   This is when you are able to see God working.  This is when the church is supposed to join Him.  Joining God in His work is the only way to success.  God is missional and this is why His Church is led to be missional. 

Finally, for small churches, the mission might consume the entire focus of the church.  It may be all that the church will do.  Being missional is not necessarily a way to achieve growth.  Instead, it is how we introduce others to Christ.  When we expect to grow numerically from this mission or ministry, this is when we begin to get discouraged.  Pastors and lay people listen to me, “It is not about receiving, it is about sacrificing.”  Being missional will have a heavy work load for pastors and the men and women who attend church with a light pay off.  In other words, the pay off may be something different than what one might expect.  There will be a huge pay off in Heaven because people will receive Christ as their Savior, but it may not have anything to do with building a mega-church here on earth.

Can Churches and People be taught how to be Missional?

First of all, I want to clarify that I desire to be missional.  As a matter of fact, if I was looking for a church to attend with my family,  I would attend the missional church that is was capable of teaching the Word of God while striving to be missional.  In other words, there needs to be a good balance between missional and teaching God’s Word.  This means that one should not exist without the other.   

I am a Wesleyan pastor.  So if you are reading this article you should be aware that I am coming from a Wesleyan point of view.  Although, I do not claim that we Wesleyans have a lock on theology and are the only people who are right, I do, personally, feel more comfortable with the Wesleyan point of view.  Here is web site that you can see what we believe theologically compared to our Calvinist brothers. 

Anyway, theology between the camps is not really what I want to discuss.  I would rather hear both views  about whether or not we can teach churches and people to be missional or if we must be surrendered completely to Christ to be missional.  In other words, do we have to be full of the Spirit in such a way that we cannot help but be missional? 

1. From a Wesleyan theological point of view if we are Sanctified (Full of the Spirit and God’s love), do we need to be taught how to be missional?  If we have surrendered to Jesus Christ and asked HIm to come into our hearts so that He can be Lord of our life, and sought victory over our sinful nature, then He has filled us with the Spirit.  This would mean that we now have the nature of Christ in us and that our motives and desires have truly been changed.  If this is so, then we would instinctively know to be those who are sent to take the Gospel of Christ into the world. 
2. If we are Sanctified, then we have a natural love for God, others, and ourselves now.  This would mean that we are free from the bondage of selfishness so that we can give with great joy in our hearts to those who have needs.  We would not have to check the Sermon on the Mount because we would be living it.  It seems that if there are people and churches who are not living this way that there might be a spiritual problem.  If there is a spiritual problem, then are we really doing any good to teach people how to be missional? 
3. I hope this is wrong, but is the desire to be missional driven by the fact this type of Christ-living grows churches numerically and financially?  The danger in teaching others to be missional, and in people seeking to learn to be missional, is that we are only trying to appear to be something that we truly are not inwardly.  Again, if we have the nature of Christ now, then we are going to be missional because that is what we are now.  Why?  Because Jesus is. 
4.  To me, being missional is finding what upsets you in your community.  Once you find it, because of the love that you have for God and others, you will decide if it is something that only Jesus can fix.  If it is, then that is when His people spring into action.  If it is a church body, then they will all know what is expected of them if most are truly sold out to Jesus Christ. 
5. If we are not really Spirit led, of full of the Spirit, then when we seek to be missional can it just be classified as a social gospel?  Frankly, if we are not really surrendered to Christ, then we are merely taking part in community action that mirrors the governments purpose for community action. 

To my Wesleyan brothers and sisters: if you are trying to learn how to be missional, then have you forgotten your first love?  Our denomination was a movement first before it was a denomination.  When we were a movement, we were missional!  We were a movement because of our love for God and others.  We saw the world as a realm that needed delivered from the bondage of sin by our Savior.  Freedom was always at the forefront when it came to slavery and sin.  We helped to stop slavery, and for a while, we were used by the Holy Spirit to preach deliverance from sin ruling over us.  Now, we go to seminars and buy books to learn how to used by God.  It is time for us to surrender again to God’s will and seek to join Him in the work He is taking part in.  Yet, to see God’s work taking place would mean that we have to go out into the lowly places to help Him.  We can’t go until we love Him and others. 

One last word, I do not wish to say that we should not buy books and go to seminars.  My wish is that everyone would see that we must be sold-out to Christ to be truly missional.  I have been accused of being unteachable in the past because I was not gushing over reading books by those who are current.  Wow!  I do read some.  Yet, knowledge is knowledge.  But, love is what spurs us.