By Heather Hahn
Two proposals hover near the top of the controversy list as The United Methodist Church approaches this spring’s General Conference. The first would restructure the denomination, including consolidating nine of the church’s 13 general agencies under a 15-member board. The second would end job guarantees for ordained elders in good standing.

By Greg Jenks
“Don’t talk to me about God,” Angelique sobbed quietly. “If there is a God he doesn’t love me.” Those were the words of a young Rwandan orphan three years ago as she spoke with my colleague Epiphanie Mujawimana, ZOE Ministry’s Africa coordinator.

By Jason Vickers
The Western church is presently immersed in yet another age of anxiety. It is characterized by pessimism and despair over the current state of the church and by uncertainty and fear about the church’s future.

However, our current situation is also like previous ages of anxiety in that it is teeming with prophetic figures who are promoting visions and dreams for the church and who are often critical of the church’s leadership.

By Steve Harper
Every religion has a spirituality, because spirituality simply means our capacity to relate to God through certain established ways for doing that. The ability and necessity of speaking about spirituality in precise ways brings us to an exploration of the features of Wesleyan spirituality. In this article we will look at some selected features of it.

By Stephen Seamands
Commemorating Christ’s ascension to heaven, Ascension Day (also known as the Feast of the Ascension) occurs each year on the Thursday forty days after Easter. Liturgically minded Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and Anglican Christians observe it faithfully. For devout Roman Catholics, it’s one of the six holy days of the Christian year where mass is mandatory. In doing research, I discovered that Anabaptist groups such as the Mennonites, also have a long history of observing and holding special worship services on Ascension Day.

By George G. Hunter III
My reflection on the report of the Call to Action proceeds from my convictions that United Methodism should be appropriately rooted in John Wesley’s theological vision and, as in early Methodism, our churches should be local missional movements more than conventional parishes.

Albert Outler and Ed Robb were vexed over the theological trends in the seminaries preparing United Methodist preachers and professors. They wanted something substantial and transformative that would provide long-term change. What they agreed upon was AFTE, a program designed to raise up a new generation of leaders.

Each and every day, God sends out invitations, invitations to make a difference in someone’s life. These invitations are delivered in many different ways, but often times we miss them. We’re too busy, too distracted. What if the invitation were more obvious? What if you were reading one now? You Are Cordially invited to save lives today. Could you ignore it?

By Rob Renfroe — Here’s what I’ve concluded. Life is a trust. Life is a gift that God places in our care. We have been entrusted with this most precious thing called a human life. And like any gift, it can be wasted or squandered. Or it can be used for the purpose it was intended.

By Christopher L. Heuertz and Christine D. Pohl – “Go…and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you.” —Matthew 28:19-20 Jesus’ parting words to his followers ignited a missionary movement [...]