September 20th, 2024 | Rev. Dr. Mark Charles

One of the best aspects of the Wesleyan Rooted series we have been moving through this month has been the opportunity it has provided for us all to reflect, as Methodists, on what our tradition is, why it matters, and how it can make a difference in the world today. This Sunday morning, we will be thinking about how, as followers of Jesus in the Wesleyan way, we are called to Embrace Widely.

What does that mean? Great question!  When we speak of embracing widely, we are first remembering the wide embrace that God has made for us – an embrace that has welcomed us just as we are, saved us by grace through faith, and has also called and equipped us to join in with God’s work in the world.  This was the core message of John and Charles Wesley from the get-go of the Methodist movement – that all were welcome, that all could be saved, and that all could minister in the strength and power of the spirit.  They understood that the work of God wasn’t something that could only happen through the ordained priesthood, and so they encouraged lay people to step up and drive forward the momentum of their movement. 

The work and voice of the laity has always been central in the Wesleyan way of Christian faith, and it still is.  That’s why I am so excited about this coming Sunday morning at Memorial, when 13 lay voices from our congregation will bear witness across our four services, sharing how God’s grace has been at work in their lives, and how it is transforming them today. 

It is going to be a wonderful morning together – please do not miss it! I’ll see you there!

Blessings,

Pastor Charlie

September 13th, 2024 | Rev. Rachel Williams

Dear Friends,

 Pastor Alyce’s sermon this past Sunday was a helpful reminder that we are called to read and reflect and re-read Scripture continuously as a way of coming more fully into the understanding of who God is through Jesus Christ by the guidance of the Spirit. As Wesleyans, we believe in a dynamic view of Scripture, such that every time we read a piece of Scripture “the Bible becomes the living Word as we engage it under the guidance of the Spirit and are transformed into the image of Christ” (see more at wesleyanrooted.org/read-faithfully).

I think specifically how this applies to my new Bible study, “Bible Stories You Learned (or Didn’t Learn) in Childhood”. This is a great example of taking texts that we have read multiple times and looking at them with fresh eyes, knowing that each time we read God is revealing something new to us in that reading. How many times do we just skip the familiar stories altogether? We think “I already know this like the back of my hand” only to find that some new detail sticks out and bears meaning for us because we are now reading with a different time and context in mind.

As we read the two flood narratives on Wednesday (did you know that there are two narratives in Genesis 6-9?) we reflected how different details stick in our mind from each, molding together to give us the overarching story we recall. One narrative has Noah bringing pairs of animals; the other has seven sets of clean animals. One narrative mentions rain for forty days and nights (are you all starting to feel like Noah here in Nassau County?); the other mentions 150 days of water springing up from the Earth.

My encouragement to the group was to not get hung up in the details because even as we interpret these narratives without taking every detail literally, we find that the message of the overarching story points us back to God’s relationship with humanity. Rather than go through all of it here,

I want to challenge you to go back and read the Flood narratives (Genesis 6-9). What stuck out to you in your reading this time? Did you learn anything new? I’d love for you to email me and let me know what you learned!

With Peace and Love,

Pastor Rachel

September 6th, 2024 | Rev. Rachel Williams

Hi Friends,  

At this week’s Coffee with the Pastor, we got onto the topic of wavering faith, and we returned to Wesley’s own hesitation with his faith. You’ll recall that in last Sunday’s sermon Charlie included an encounter between John Wesley and Moravian missionary Peter Böhler in which Wesley asked, “How can you preach to others if you don’t have faith yourself?” Böhler answered, “Preach faith till you have it; and then, because you have it, you will preach faith.” 

Is that not a testament to the steadfast love and constant presence of God’s grace in our life? There will be times in our lives where our faith is shaken. What we do in those times of shakiness does not change the fact that we have a God that will never leave us nor forsake us, that yearns for us to respond to God’s loving embrace.  

You may be sitting here at your computer wondering if you even have faith in the first place. My encouragement to you is the same as Böhler’s was to Wesley. Continue to build habits of spiritual discipline that might illumine God’s movement in your own life. Search the Scriptures. The Bible is the living Word of God, and every time we read, we are inspired by the Holy Spirit to know who God is through Jesus. Pray, partake in the Lord’s Supper, fast, gather together with those of the faith, continue to attend to the Means of Grace that will breathe life into your faith journey. Then, continue those practices because these disciplines are a response to God’s grace in our lives. This is how we continue to grow in holiness.

This is not a “how-to” manual with clear-cut directions. This is not a magical fix to gain faith. This is a commitment to continue on the path of faith even when things get hard. What I might add, to Böhler and Wesley’s conversation for the present is that you also have a church community that will accompany you on your journey.

As we work through this Wesleyan Rooted study, I hope you are encouraged to know that all of the work we do, we do together. May that hope carry with you into the next week.  

With Love and Peace,  

Pastor Rachel