SE District News

May 2007

SE District Office - MAC - UMC

Make Disciples of Jesus Christ

              

Living Out Our Faith

By Mike Wuehler

 

This month I continue to talk about another characteristic of effective clergy taken from the document “Characteristics of Pastoral Leadership – Minnesota Annual Conference” developed by the Cabinet:

 

Invites forms and sends disciples: Inspires, engages and motivates others by preaching the good news with conviction, casting a compelling vision of what it means to be the church, and offering a thoughtful Wesleyan theology that is relevant and meaningful to peoples’ everyday lives.

 

I’ve been reading a book by Paul Wesley Chilcote called “Recapturing the Wesley’s Vision.”  Chilcote talks about the fact that the Wesleyan movement was both evangelical and sacramental.  The evangelical thrust focused on the importance of the Word.  The sacramental part of the movement focused on the importance of communion for Christian renewal.

 

As spiritual leaders in the church, pastors are asked to provide parishioners with the means of grace that will fulfill them spiritually.  Sharing the body of Christ and the cup of Christ is one of the means of grace.

 

While worship and communion care for the spiritual life of the congregation as an inward means of grace, the pulpit can create avenues for the outward expression of grace through a spiritual expression through evangelism.  Evangelism means taking the Word of God to the people of God.  As preachers, we are charged with the commission of using the pulpit to share the Good News of the grace God offers through Jesus Christ.  The pulpit needs to be looked at as a doorway to inviting the people of your community of faith to take the message to the community in which they reside.

 

The proclamation of the Gospel is a commission that all members of the church are called, charged, and sent forth.  Just as all are invited to the table, all are sent into the community to share the message of the grace they received at the table.

 

Most United Methodist churches do not have this cycle of spiritual nourishment and sending forth. If we only nourish and do not send forth, then we will soon fail to exist as a faith community.  What plans does your church have for sharing the gospel in your community?  I know of one church that has taken this challenge seriously.  Every committee and work team is charged with answering the following question at each of their regular meetings, “How have we helped reach the people of our community?”  What if every committee of every church asked that question?

 

Blessings,

Mike Wuehler

Published monthly for the leadership of the United Methodist Churches in the SE District

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.