• Home
  • About
  • Writing
    • Books
    • Columns & Articles
    • Academic Essays
  • Resources
  • Contact

Andrew C. Thompson

Category Archives: Evangelism & Mission

New Room Conference 2015

30 Thursday Apr 2015

Posted by admin in Discipleship, Evangelism & Mission, Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ, Practical Theology, Seedbed, Wesleyan Theology, Worship

≈ 1 Comment

What if such a meeting place could be arranged today, where our collective paths could cross for a few days of hearing some new voices, engaging in some new conversations and seeing some new horizons of possibility for a movement whose time has come to move again?

That’s the question posed by the organizers of the New Room Conference, scheduled for this upcoming September 16-18, 2015, in Franklin, Tennessee.

If you are looking for a gathering that is deeply Wesleyan in tone and practical in aim, then you should really check out the New Room Conference. I attended the first New Room gathering last year, and it was one of the most encouraging, invigorating meetings of Wesleyan pastors and laity that I’ve experienced in a long time.

This year’s New Room gathering promises to be even better. Speakers include Jo Anne Lyon, Kevin Watson, Lisa Yebuah, Stanley John, and more. They’re even going to let yours truly take the stage at some point. There’ll be great music, great worship, and great conversation.Seedbed Logo 1

The New Room Conference will be held at Christ Community Church in Franklin, Tennessee. Since the Nashville International Airport is nearby, travel shouldn’t be too much of a problem even for those who live far off.

Seedbed Publishing is the host of the New Room Conference, and they see it as part of their larger mission to assist the Wesleyan movemenet with vital resources in print, online, and conference formats. (Or as they put it, “Resourcing people, communities, and movements to love the whole world with the whole gospel.”) You should check them out, and even more importantly — check out the New Room Conference this fall.

 

Wesleyan Practices of Evangelism

05 Thursday Feb 2015

Posted by admin in Evangelism & Mission, Local Church Ministry, Methodist House, United Methodist Church, Wesleyan Theology

≈ Leave a comment

Here’s what we’ve got coming up with the Methodist House of Studies. I’m excited about the possibilities that these conversations could hold for how we are engaging in Wesleyan ministry in the Memphis Conference of the UMC:

Wesleyan Practices of Evangelism Flyer


 

Evangelism and Discipleship: A Wesleyan Connection

28 Wednesday Jan 2015

Posted by admin in Discipleship, Evangelism & Mission, John Wesley, Means of Grace, Seedbed, Seven Minute Seminary, Wesleyan Theology, Wesleyan Tradition

≈ Leave a comment

One of the more interesting developments in Wesleyan theological education over the past few years has been the advent of Seedbed’s Seven Minute Seminary video series. The series features prominent Wesleyan scholars and pastors speaking on a wide range of topics related to the Bible, theology, and ministry. Here’s the Seven Minute Seminary launch announcement by Seedbed’s Chief Sower J.D. Walt.

I got to record my first Seven Minute Seminary teaching video awhile back. My topic in the video is the connection between evangelism and discipleship in Wesleyan practice. Here’s how it turned out:

For my other Seven Minute Seminary teaching presentations, go to this link.


 

Care for Children: A Wesleyan Calling

10 Friday Oct 2014

Posted by admin in Arkansas Conference, Evangelism & Mission, John Wesley, Local Church Ministry, United Methodist Church

≈ Leave a comment


 

The ministry of early Methodists impacted the lives of men and women in remarkable ways. Under John Wesley’s leadership, the Methodist revival in the British Isles emphasized a gospel that included concerns for both body and soul.

The Methodist preaching of the time called for a renewal of the heart through faith in Jesus Christ. But it also taught that those whose hearts had been renewed would be changed in their outward lives. So for people of that time, it was only natural that powerful preaching services and prayer gatherings would go hand in hand with social outreach to feed the hungry, heal the sick and educate the unlettered.

One part of the early Methodist movement that often gets overlooked is the Methodists’ deep concern for the welfare of children. When John Wesley and other young men met to organize their spiritual lives in the way that would eventually be called “Methodist,” their Irish friend William Morgan led them in gathering together a group of poor children for instruction. The project was so successful that they eventually had to hire a local woman in Oxford to take on the role of schoolteacher.

The commitment to the wellbeing of children would become a hallmark of the Methodist movement when it began to expand in 1739—a point made by Richard Heitzenrater in his excellent book, Wesley and the People Called Methodists. One of the first major projects that John Wesley undertook after he committed to field preaching was the Kingswood School near Bristol, England, which was founded to provide education and Christian instruction for the poor children of the area.

Wesley also gathered the children in the places where Methodism spread so that they could form “little societies” similar to the societies intended for grown-ups. One of the questions Wesley began asking new Methodist preachers in 1766 reads, “Will you diligently and earnestly instruct the children, and visit from house to house?”

Wesley at times admitted that he found ministry with children to be difficult, but he never let that stand in the way of pursuing it at every opportunity.

Ministry with children in Arkansas

Many of our local churches in the Arkansas Conference see ministry with children as one of their primary activities. I think it’s encouraging to recognize how deeply embedded that commitment is in the Methodist DNA.

Wesley himself defined Methodism first and foremost as the “religion of the Bible.” And in that sense, it’s also true that the Methodist devotion to ministry with children is an outgrowth of Jesus’ own teaching: “Let the little children come unto me and forbid them not; for of such is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 19:14).

Arkansas state flagThis past June our annual conference approved a Childhood Hunger Initiative that will seek to address food insecurity among children across the state of Arkansas. The hope is that every local church in Arkansas will participate in some way to help end childhood hunger across the state.

There is already good work being done on that front through various agencies, of course, and it is important to publicize and support it. Our local churches represent a huge resource to start new projects addressing children’s hunger in their own contexts, as well. So congregations ought to think creatively about what they can do to spread the gospel by caring for hungry children.

‘With utmost care’

We’ll be hearing more about this new initiative in the weeks ahead. As we prepare in prayerful and practical ways to commit ourselves to this good work, drawing on some Wesleyan wisdom might be helpful.

Wesley once referred to children in a sermon as “immortal spirits whom God hath for a time entrusted to your care, that you may train them up in all holiness, and fit them for the enjoyment of God in eternity.”

He believed children were gifts of God, as we all do. His point here is not just about the value of children, though. It is about the profound responsibility of Christian adults to guard them, protect them, provide for them and raise them as followers of Christ.

That’s an issue of faithful stewardship—care for the little boys and girls God has placed in our midst. So I think Wesley’s pastoral advice serves as a fitting word for us to consider as we embark together on a great missional ministry:

“Every child therefore you are to watch over with the utmost care, that when you are called to give an account of each to the Father of Spirits, you may give your accounts with joy and not with grief.”

________________________________

This article originally appeared in the Arkansas United Methodist newspaper’s October 3, 2014 edition. Reprinted with permission. You can read the article in its original form at this link.

 


 

We need a 'culture of call' in the church

10 Thursday Jul 2014

Posted by admin in Arkansas Conference, Evangelism & Mission, Leadership, United Methodist Church

≈ 2 Comments

Our recent annual conference in Rogers, AR, featured a persistent theme that needs to be transmitted to every congregation in Arkansas.

The call. Specifically, God’s call upon the lives of women and men into ministry.

We’re all called, of course. Every one of us. Every baptized Christian is meant to be a minister of the gospel in one way or another.

I’m mostly interested in talking about the call into ordained ministry here, though.

That was the theme I kept hearing in Rogers.

Bishop Gary Mueller emphasized it many times. It was there in the great preaching we experienced. The Rev. Adam Hamilton spoke at length about its prominence in the way his church teaches confirmation. And it popped up in video after video of our retiring clergy.

Each time, the speaker in question would comment about how important it is to recognize the call—either in yourself or in someone you know. Oftentimes a call into ministry is persistent-yet-subtle. The right kind of environment is needed so the person called can really sense what is happening. Mentors and friends are crucial in helping those who are called to discern the nature of their calling.

Opening worship service at the 2014 Arkansas Annual Conference in Rogers, AR

Opening worship service at the 2014 Arkansas Annual Conference in Rogers, AR

I don’t think the frequency of people speaking about the importance of the call into ministry at our annual conference was any accident. I believe there is a Spirit-led energy in the church in Arkansas to focus on this work. For revival to happen, raising up the best leadership will be essential.

We need strong clergy leadership for the church to thrive in any age.

The Apostle Paul teaches us that “the same Lord is Lord of all and bestows his riches upon all who call upon him.”

Yet in order for anybody to call on Christ Jesus, we have to know him first. So Paul goes on: “But how are men to call upon him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without a preacher?” (Romans 10:14, RSV).

The church must have preachers to proclaim the word of God, priests to celebrate the sacraments, and pastors to care for God’s flock. For those people to get where they need to be, they’ve got to hear God’s call and respond to it.

The Rev. Cornelia DeLee gave a humorous slant on God’s call when she shared her own attempts to avoid it during her retirement video: “You can run like Jonah,” she said. “But eventually you’re gonna come out dripping and puking seaweed to preach a 7-word sermon.”

Better not to run at all, of course! (If only it were that simple.)

Actually, Jonah’s story is a pretty good window into how difficult responding to a call from God can be. Because God’s call often interrupts our lives—and sometimes directs us to go places we’d never have dreamed about otherwise—it can be intimidating to say the least.

So many of those called in the Bible didn’t think they had the stuff to serve. Many of them saw themselves as people “with unclean lips,” in the words of the prophet Isaiah.

Sometimes it isn’t that responding to the call is the most difficult part. It may be hearing the call in the first place that is the challenge. This was my story, in some ways. I had many people urging me toward ministry from an early age. They saw what I could not. I also received some direct signs from the Holy Spirit, but for a long time I misinterpreted or just plain disregarded them.

The difficulty in hearing or responding to God’s call (or sometimes, both!) means that young men and women need a church around them that can support and nurture them. The right type of youth ministry is crucial. But youth group alone is not enough. The church has got to be invested in youth at every level.

Of course, some people get called at a later point in their lives. So the culture of call in the church needs to be present everywhere: in worship, in small groups, even in church administration.

We also have to do what people in our day sometimes tend to shy away from: direct engagement and prompting. If you know someone in your congregation that you believe is called into ministry—whether it’s a youth or someone older—you should start praying for that person daily. Then you should start figuring out a way to engage that person in conversation to let him or her know what you’ve seen.

Think about it: The Holy Spirit could be trying to use you to convey Jesus’ deep desire to bring another servant of the gospel into ministry. If you suspect that may be the case, then don’t delay.

The Spirit and the church are counting on you.

_____________________________

This article originally appeared in the Arkansas United Methodist newspaper’s July 4, 2014 edition. Reprinted with permission. You can read the article in its original form at this link.

A Wesleyan View on Equipping for Ministry

04 Wednesday Jun 2014

Posted by admin in Discipleship, Evangelism & Mission, Holiness/Sanctification, Jesus Christ, John Wesley, Means of Grace, Wesleyan Theology, Wesleyan Tradition

≈ Leave a comment

Earlier this week I was privileged to speak at the Memphis Annual Conference meeting in Paducah, KY. The teaching theme for the conference was fourfold and focused on engaged discipleship: Discover—Equip—Connect—Send. My session was on ‘Equipping’ and used Ephesians 4:10-16 as a springboard.

The video of my teaching session is below for anyone who would like to see it. There is some preliminary material on the front end (including a great storytelling presentation by Marilyn Thornton!). My part begins at around 18:00. Here’s the link:

Other videos from the annual conference are available through the conference’s website at this link.

 


 

Do Christians in America require a Christian America?

11 Wednesday Sep 2013

Posted by admin in Christianity & Culture, Evangelism & Mission

≈ 9 Comments

Cross_Flag-732069From time to time I get e-mail responses from people I don’t know who have encountered my writing online. These letters are often sensitive and thorough engagements of the issues I’ve raised in my own work—and they often push me to look at those issues in ways I probably would not have otherwise. These responses are one of the truly enjoyable things about doing the kind of writing I’ve done over the past few years.

Case in point: I got an e-mail from someone in Wisconsin a few days ago, engaging me about a United Methodist Reporter article (and accompanying blog post) I wrote back in 2009. The article and blog post were written in reaction to a rather silly and sensationalistic article that then-editor Jon Meacham published in Newsweek about the “decline of Christian America.”

My commentary on Meacham’s article took issue with the idea that there ever had been a Christian America, argued that attempts to “Christianize” a large secular society were doomed to failure anyway, and suggested that the church ought rightly to be focusing on forming faithful discipleship and manifesting a robust ecclesial life as a witness to the wider society. This is what some have called ‘culture making,’ and it is likely the best way to influence secular politics and social norms in any event.

In other words, I was arguing against what I’d call a Constantinian view of society by casting a church/world distinction in bold relief. (In the UM Reporter article, I did so with the help of theologian John Howard Yoder.)

The gentleman who responded by e-mail a few days ago challenged the either/or standpoint I had taken. (I’ll allow him to remain anonymous, as I have not asked his permission before writing this post.) His view is well-stated, and I want to offer it here as a good example of the kind of thoughtful engagement with serious theological and ecclesial issues that, in my experience, laypeople do very often (and which stands in stark contrast to the kind of shrill and superficial arguing that goes on in a lot of social media). Here’s an edited version of what he wrote:

Dear Andrew –

Came across your 2009 article and blog post yesterday as I was looking out to see how other faith communities are reacting to discussions of “Post-Christian America.” We’re about to start a series on this topic in our adult education program. So, even though I’m four years late to your party, thought I’d share a few thoughts and invite you to reply.

Up front, I appreciate your comments about fidelity to the gospel. I agree the church, empowered by the Holy Spirit, is God’s primary agent in the world today to reach the lost and suffering with His love.

I also agree that for many centuries Christianity was equated with Western culture, and to spread the gospel in that era often meant imposing Western culture in non-Western lands, often through the power of the state … I believe we’re in a very different era today.  I’m not aware of any significant efforts to spread the gospel by the power of the state or the sword. Evangelism and Christian Formation require personal experiences with the Lord. And the people I know working in evangelism are much more appreciative of indigenous cultures than the crusaders of Christendom past.

Having said that, here’s the part where the discussion of a Christian America or Post-Christian America remains relevant.

I believe there was a time when basic tenets of Christian faith and practice were accepted as fundamental tenets of American civil society. Not everyone believed or practiced them individually, but we as a culture accepted them and in our imperfect ways attempted to apply them to family life, law, medicine, education, ethics, etc. This acceptance and application of Biblical principles in civil society is how I understand the term Christian America. Historically, we enjoyed much personal liberty, freedom, justice and prosperity as a result.

I believe we have crossed over into post-Christian America. The result of this transition, as evidenced by any number of cultural indicators, is more despair, more desperation, more broken families, more unwanted children, less regard for life, etc. If this trend continues, law and justice will become more and more arbitrary, and freedom and prosperity (which funds a lot of gospel outreach) will continue to decline.

Does Christ ultimately win? Of course. That’s a certainty. But how people experience that victory could look very different depending on how effectively we engage the culture and civil society. I have two daughters in college. I’d like them to grow old in a country that has rediscovered the importance of applying Biblical faith and practice to civil society. As believers, they are Heaven bound either way. As their father, I’d rather see them enjoy the great temporal blessings of Christian America and support evangelistic outreach than have them become a marginalized and persecuted minority in post-Christian America just trying to survive.

Best regards,

———–

I was trained at Duke Divinity School, where the kind of postliberal position I take in the blog post and column referenced above are standard fare. I tend to think they make for the most coherent approach to how we can possibly be faithful in the way Jesus Christ calls us to be, both as individual disciples and as a church. But as I mentioned in my response to the author who sent me this e-mail, I recently had a conversation with a noted Methodist theologian who challenged the notion that real Christian fidelity (in the church) and advocacy for a Christian-themed civil religion (in the society) constitute an either/or proposition. This scholar argued that a civil religion that is positively inclined (or at least neutral) toward the Christian faith provides the proper cultural context in which a more robust Christian life in the church can take place in a liberal democratic society. Lose the civil religion, and we create a perpetual uphill battle for the church—whether it be because Christian views are directly persecuted, or whether the larger culture simply becomes more and more corrupt due to the waning influence of Christian beliefs and moral norms. I think my respondent is expressing a version of this same view in the e-mail above. I find it challenging.

There is a flip side to the argument, of course. It is that overlaying a Christian veneer onto the civil religion of the nation gives the nation’s government license to do all kinds of things in the name of “God and country” that are directly at odds with the actual norms of Christian belief and practice. Taken to an extreme, this kind of thing can lead to a kind of patriotic zeal that identifies the actions of the state as the expression of God’s will. (This is a view of which my respondent is quite aware, as seen in the third paragraph above; he does indicate that he believes this era is in the historical rearview mirror.)

What both my respondent here and my Methodist theologian friend are pressing me on is a subject worthy of serious consideration: Do we really think the church would be better off in a culture decidedly hostile to Christianity? And do we really want to raise our children in a society whose moral context doesn’t bear at least a passing resemblance to cultural Christianity? If not, do we not need to put some effort into articulating a public theology that seeks to influence the social and political views of the body politic?

Revival? We can expect it.

11 Thursday Jul 2013

Posted by admin in Arkansas Conference, Evangelism & Mission, John Wesley, JW Journal

≈ 1 Comment

Wesley preachingJohn Wesley had a long career in ministry—stretching from the mid-1720s to his death in 1791. During that time, he personally experienced many ups and downs. The movement he led also waxed and waned during that time. But there is one thing that always strikes me about Wesley’s attitude:

He always expected revival to occur.

Take this example from Wesley’s Journal, where he describes a visit to Tewkesbury in March of 1775:

“Many here have been lately convinced of sin, and many converted to God. Some have been made partakers of the great salvation, and their love and zeal have stirred up others. So that the flame now spreads wider and wider. O let none be able to quench it!”

Reading that passage, you can’t escape the great sense of both optimism and expectation that is bound up in Wesley’s report. It is an attitude that is tied to Wesley’s great confidence in the Holy Spirit—which is not named in this Journal entry but is certainly in the background.

Work of the Spirit

When Wesley speaks of the conviction of sin and conversion to God, he is alluding to the Spirit’s work in drawing us toward God. And when he refers to the possibility of partaking in “the great salvation,” it is a hopeful statement of the great possibility we all have for life in the Spirit, even in this present life. Wesley’s words about the love and zeal of believers stirring up others and the flame of revival spreading outward are his way of describing how the Holy Spirit works within a local community.

In all of this, there is in Wesley the belief that God’s work will proceed and will expand continuously—in other words, that revival will happen!

But we should note also that Wesley is suggesting that there is a particular way the Spirit works for revival. The Spirit doesn’t work without people, and the Spirit doesn’t work with people against their will. Instead, the Spirit works in and through people as they experience the salvation of Jesus Christ. That should say something to the people called Methodists today, who are hungering for revival.

Gary MuellerMy recent annual conference meeting in Little Rock, AR, emphasized a three-part theme: Discerning, Discipling, Daring. In their joint laity-episcopal address, Bishop Gary Mueller and Conference lay leader Karon Mann provided wonderful context for what such an approach to ministry ought to look like.

We have in many ways already discerned our path forward through our conference’s Imagine Ministry restructuring and re-equipping process, although what Imagine Ministry will look like must continually be discerned as it evolves. We must now get serious about discipling, that all-encompassing process of forming men and women into mature disciples. And we need to be willing to take risks—approaching our ministry and mission with a certain amount of daring, based on the confidence that the Holy Spirit will guide us.

‘In this together’

I also think one very important component to this work of the Arkansas Annual Conference (like all annual conferences) is its connectional nature. We are all in this together. And only by sticking together can we faithfully work to renew the church in our day.

But if we do stick together—and if we devote ourselves fully to the calling God has given us—then we have every bit as much reason to expect revival as John Wesley did at Tewkesbury.

The sheer sense of expectation was one of the things that struck me about the vision Bishop Mueller and Karon Mann gave my annual conference a few weeks ago in Little Rock. As they closed their address to the members of the annual conference, Bishop Mueller said, “It’s time for us to experience spiritual revival.” He then went on:

We can only share what we have experienced, been transformed by and committed ourselves to. We need to experience Jesus’ love that is so powerful it accepts us just the way we are. Experience Jesus’ love that is so powerful it is unwilling to leave us just the way we are. Experience Jesus’ love that is so powerful it gives us what we absolutely need but can never get on our own—reconciliation with God, healing, wholeness, second chances, the Jesus way of living, joy, generosity, compassion, and hope that is eternal in every sense of the word.”

Those are hopeful and hope-filled words. The hope bound up within them is a hope well founded. It is grounded in the scriptural promise that we will receive the Holy Spirit, who will teach us and guide us in every way.

Because God’s promises can always be trusted, the gift of the Holy Spirit also means that revival is coming. We can downright expect it!

——————————————-

This article originally appeared in the Arkansas United Methodist newspaper’s July 5, 2013 edition. Reprinted with permission. You can see the article in its original form at this link.

Imagining no malaria

03 Thursday Jan 2013

Posted by admin in Arkansas Conference, Evangelism & Mission, United Methodist Church

≈ Leave a comment

One of the most exciting ministry initiatives that Methodists in my part of the world are engaged in right now is called Imagine No Malaria. It is a project designed to help eradicate malaria deaths by 2015.

This is a worthy project. We don’t think much about malaria in North America, but in sub-Saharan Africa it is a major killer. A child dies from malaria once every 60 seconds. The disease kills over 600,000 people per year. And the tragic aspect to these statistics is that malaria is 100% preventable with the right treatment, the right protection, and the right education.

I’ve written about Imagine No Malaria in a recent piece I did in the Arkansas United Methodist newspaper. There, I give some background on the problem of malaria and on the United Methodist Church’s efforts to combat it as part of the general church’s “Four Areas of Focus” ministry initiative. I also offer a view as to how engaging in Imagine No Malaria can be a real means of grace to those helping and those receiving help.

The Arkansas Conference of the UMC has been a major player in the Imagine No Malaria effort. I’d encourage you to check out the overview provided on the conference website. Check out my article as well, and consider giving to what is clearly a deeply important cause.

Grappling with evangelism

26 Monday Mar 2012

Posted by admin in Evangelism & Mission, Memphis Theological Seminary, Spiritual Formation, Theological Education, Wesleyan Tradition

≈ 6 Comments

We need to focus on evangelism in the church in a major way. It isn’t even clear that the church has a good understanding of what evangelism is, let alone that it is a form of ministry we should be practicing at the center of our discipleship.

I am currently teaching a course at Memphis Theological Seminary called “Evangelism and Discipleship in the Wesleyan Tradition.” The course is divided into two main parts, one focusing on evangelism and the other on discipleship. In each half of the course, I have asked my students (many of whom are pastors) how their congregations would respond if they asked them to describe those two terms as they relate to life in the church.

The answers have been illuminating.

With regards to evangelism in particular, my students have described a situation that I would call spiritual illiteracy. Folk in the church tend to think of evangelism as solely wrapped up in the act of preaching, and they consider it something that it is the preacher’s job to do. From my students’ comments I got no sense that most laity understand evangelism as a central part of the congregation’s ministry — to which all are called as disciples of Christ.

I’ve been so struck by our conversations on evangelism that I devoted a recent column in the United Methodist Reporter on it. The good news for us is that there have been quite a few good studies on evangelism done by Wesleyan scholars in recent years. The best one is William J. Abraham’s The Logic of Evangelism, which is worth a close read.

I agree with Abraham’s view that evangelism should be properly understood as “that set of intentional activities which is governed by the goal of initiating people into the Kingdom of God for the first time.” He’s talking about particular kinds of ministry that introduce people to the gospel message, invite them into life in the church, instruct them in the rudiments of the faith, and begin to form them in the way of discipleship. This is what it means to know Christ, and it is the path to a living faith. It’s also – and this is crucial – a ministry that every Christian is called to practice. The vitality and faithfulness of the church depend upon it.

← Older posts

Proudly powered by WordPress Theme: Chateau by Ignacio Ricci.