The Annual Conference as the Basic Unit of the Church
The Constitution of the United Methodist Church identifies the annual conference as “the basic body in the Church.” The annual conference admits persons into ordained…
Browsing: Church History
Articles
Does Your Faith Community Live out of Memory or Imagination?
Bill Wilson, director of the Center for Healthy Churches, says that while memories of the past are vital, they must be balanced with a creative…
Leading Between Memory and Vision
Lovett H. Weems, Jr., explains that God’s leaders always live in the tension between memory of the past and hope for the future. Effective leaders draw…
7 of John Wesley’s Practices Can Change Hearts Today
Roger Ross, author of the book Meet the Goodpeople, looks to the Wesleyan Revival for examples of effective ways of sharing faith. He says seven…
Becoming More of What We Have Been
We were in a rut! I think we knew we were in a survival mode, and something needed to change. Our language reflected too much…
Leaders Interpret the Present in Light of the Past
Leaders create holding environments for innovation in part by helping the community interpret its legacy, present situation, and future. This centers on asking questions to…
Sifting Our Inheritance: What to Keep and What to Let Go
A few years ago, my mom passed away after having lived a good life. Dad asked us to help him sort through my mother’s possessions.…
Lessons from Wesley for All Churches
Martin E. Marty once observed that between the time of Luther and Calvin and our own time, John Wesley symbolized the genius of adaptation to…
Getting Your Congregation’s Story Right
Congregations, particularly mainline and established congregations, commonly tell either safe or weak stories about themselves. In an earlier era, when identity and purpose were clearer…
Your Church’s Creation Story
In The Contrarian’s Guide to Leadership, University of Southern California president Steven Sample makes the case that all leaders should discern the creation story for their…
