- Sex & Gender Identity – Considering Johannesburg
On the last day of the 2026 General Conference, Lori Rowe, a lay delegate from Florida, walked to microphone three to speak against an amendment. Her first words were, “There’s not a word that I disagree with in the substitute… Read more: Sex & Gender Identity – Considering Johannesburg - The Identity of the “I” in Romans 7
There are strong reasons to think Paul is not describing the normal Christian life in Romans 7 when he writes, “I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin…For what I want to do I do not do, but what… Read more: The Identity of the “I” in Romans 7 - Sharing Christ in Cuba | Adria Nûñez Ortiz | It’s Elementary Podcast Ep. 46
What does revival look like in the middle of poverty, scarcity, and spiritual darkness? And what can the global Church learn from Christians who depend on the Holy Spirit every day? In this episode of It’s Elementary, Dr. David Watson… Read more: Sharing Christ in Cuba | Adria Nûñez Ortiz | It’s Elementary Podcast Ep. 46 - Liberia: Global Methodist Church Bishop Kula Poorly Received in Nimba Despite Heavy Radio Publicity
Ganta, Nimba County — The Global Methodist Church Bishop, Dr. Jerry P. Kula, was poorly received during his visit to Nimba County over the weekend after heavy publicity on community radio stations. Bishop Dr. Kulah recently elected bishop of the… Read more: Liberia: Global Methodist Church Bishop Kula Poorly Received in Nimba Despite Heavy Radio Publicity - Divorce & Remarriage – Considering Johannesburg
On the last morning of the 2026 General Conference, Rich Hoffman, a lay delegate from Allegheny West, told the Global Methodist Church, “In 345 pages, the words divorce and remarriage do not appear once. If what we leave unsaid shapes… Read more: Divorce & Remarriage – Considering Johannesburg - Exodus is More Than Escape: An Endorsement of Exodus and the Mission of God’s Holy People by Brian Russell
I had the privilege of reading an advanced reader’s copy of Exodus and the Mission of God’s Holy People by my mentor, friend, and seminary professor Dr. Brian Russell. I highly recommend this amazing work from Dr. Russell, published by… Read more: Exodus is More Than Escape: An Endorsement of Exodus and the Mission of God’s Holy People by Brian Russell - The Methodist Global Story: When Grace Crossed Borders
How a Movement of Grace Took Root Across Cultures and Continents. - Liberia’s Methodist Church at a Crossroads: What the Growing Dispute Means for United Methodists
The dispute within the United Methodist Church in Liberia has moved beyond a theological disagreement. What began largely as part of the worldwide Methodist debate over same-sex marriage, LGBTQ+ clergy and the future structure of the denomination has increasingly developed… Read more: Liberia’s Methodist Church at a Crossroads: What the Growing Dispute Means for United Methodists - The Last Twelve Feet
One evening, as I was walking in our neighborhood, I saw friends from Sudan cooking dinner in their garage. When I greeted them, they offered me a plate of food. I had already eaten and wasn’t hungry, but knowing how… Read more: The Last Twelve Feet - Entire Sanctification as Antidote to a Distortion of the Gospel of Jesus
Matt Judkins wrote a post a few weeks ago on the doctrine of entire sanctification. He makes a really good point: The doctrine of entire sanctification is often scrutinized in a way that few other things are. Matt presses back… Read more: Entire Sanctification as Antidote to a Distortion of the Gospel of Jesus - When New Creation Takes Root: How N. T. Wright and Wendell Berry Help Us Recover Spiritual Formation in a Fragmented Age
Across the Christian landscape, people are naming the same ache: life feels too fast, too loud, too fragmented. Churches are busy but thin. Leaders are exhausted. Communities feel unmoored. Beneath all the noise sits a deeper longing—a desire for a… Read more: When New Creation Takes Root: How N. T. Wright and Wendell Berry Help Us Recover Spiritual Formation in a Fragmented Age - What John Wesley Can Still Teach the Church, If We Listen
Origin stories have a profound impact on our identity and destiny. They explain who we are, where we come from, and sometimes what we need to claim or reclaim for ourselves and others. Genesis begins with several origin stories that… Read more: What John Wesley Can Still Teach the Church, If We Listen - Justices weigh whether courts can hear property disputes when church and denomination split
West Virginia Supreme Court justices considered the question of what happens when a local congregation wants to disaffiliate from its denomination but keep the church land, buildings and bank accounts. A major part of the legal battle is over whether… Read more: Justices weigh whether courts can hear property disputes when church and denomination split - Jackie Hill Perry: The Bible Never Even Implies That God Wants You to be Straight
In another promo video that we discovered for an LGBTQ curriculum that Preston Sprinkle is selling on his website, Jackie Hill Perry is arguing that nowhere at all in the 66 books of the Bible does God ever even imply… Read more: Jackie Hill Perry: The Bible Never Even Implies That God Wants You to be Straight - Exploring the Significance of the “Trust Clause”
The “trust clause” became a familiar, if sometimes confusing, concept for many during the period when disaffiliation was possible for United Methodist churches for reasons of conscience related to human sexuality policies. When that period ended on December 31, 2023,… Read more: Exploring the Significance of the “Trust Clause” - The Early Church on Abortion
Abortion is not only a great tragedy of our age, but also great evil. And this practice is not new, but an ancient practice. Today, many still justify the practice, even after admitting that it is murder. How did the… Read more: The Early Church on Abortion - Replacing Healthcare with Deathcare
MAiD means “Medical Assistance in Dying.” It is a euphemism for assisted suicide. I fact checked the claim in the post. The CDC recorded 15,364 gun homicides in the U.S. in 2024. In the same year, 16,499 people in Canada… Read more: Replacing Healthcare with Deathcare - What Happens at Communion?
I was teaching our new member class at Aldersgate on Sunday afternoon, when one of the 22 folks in the class asked me to explain why we share in Holy Communion every Sunday at every service. I love it when… Read more: What Happens at Communion? - West Virginia churches fight to keep properties in disaffiliation from United Methodist
West Virginia churches seeking to disaffiliate from the Methodist denomination over its stance on human sexuality are now in the state Supreme Court of Appeals to ensure they keep their church property in the process. - HPUMC sought to be ‘legally insulated’ from UMC strife
Changes made to the governing documents of Highland Park United Methodist Church in 2022 were to “ensure that if the church maintained its ecclesiastical connection with the UMC, it was legally insulated from the ecclesiastical and doctrinal strife within UMC,”… Read more: HPUMC sought to be ‘legally insulated’ from UMC strife - N. T. Wright vs. Other-Worldy Salvation
N. T. Wright is on a mission to disabuse the broader church of the notion that Christian hope is focused on going to heaven when you die. This, of course, is nothing new. Wright’s speaking and writing has for years… Read more: N. T. Wright vs. Other-Worldy Salvation - ‘She did not consent’: Family says Christian grandmother euthanized against her will
“I don’t want the death shot.” Those were reportedly the words of 83-year-old Brigitte Stegemann, a Christian grandmother in Ontario, Canada, who repeatedly resisted medically assisted dying before her death in July. Now, her granddaughter is demanding answers, alleging that… Read more: ‘She did not consent’: Family says Christian grandmother euthanized against her will - Courage & Cowardice in this Moment
I try to read the Firebrand Magazine articles when they come out. Firebrand was an exciting alternative to other Methodist digital platforms like Ministry Matters when it first came out. It continues to be a source of good Wesleyan thought,… Read more: Courage & Cowardice in this Moment - Women in Church Leadership with Preston Sprinkle (part 1 – corrected full episode)
Should women lead churches? What does the Bible actually say about women in positions of church leadership—and are we asking the right questions when we approach the debate? In Part 1 of my conversation with Preston Sprinkle, we discuss his… Read more: Women in Church Leadership with Preston Sprinkle (part 1 – corrected full episode) - When God Meets His People
The CBS television interviewer, Dan Rather, once asked Mother Teresa of Calcutta: “When you pray, what do you say to God?” Teresa replied, “I don’t say anything, I listen.” Rather pressed further: “Well okay, when God speaks to you, then,… Read more: When God Meets His People