A Heart Strangely Warmed
One of the biggest issues facing Salem is the creation and implementation of an intentional discipleship process. Our mission, the reason we exist, is to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world. So how do we do that? I believe the habits we practice in our lives are very important. So did John Wesley. When he was at Oxford, he insisted that the members of the Holy Club be disciplined in their study, prayer, and good works. Wesley called these practices the means of grace (worship, reading scripture, receiving Holy Communion, prayer, Christian conversation, and doing good). That is, they are the primary ways in which we receive God’s grace. He realized something important, though. These time-honored traditions weren’t enough. That became even more clear when he traveled to America on a missionary journey. Wesley went to Georgia in 1735-1737 to minister to the colonists and Native Americans. Bishop William Willimon tells the story in his book Why I Am a Uni...