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Moving Methodism

What is "Moving Methodism"?


Moving Methodism recognises that significant movement (change) is needed for the Methodist Church in Great Britian to be all that God wants us to be. Moving Methodism is all about seeking God's Mission and moving ourselves to join in. Moving Methodism is seeking to discover, encourage, support and celebrate all that moves Methodism towards God's Mission.

"Moving Methodism" aims to provide ideas that are practical and pragmatic while also being visionary and idealistic. These are going to be supported with plenty of stories to inspire. However, Moving Methodism is not all about new content but also about connecting the themes and images of "Moving Methodism" that we find all over the internet.

Ethos

Our ethos is focused on the journey of faith and on the way we journey - the destination we trust to God. That understanding is put well in Daniel 3:16-18:

Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to him, "King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If the God we serve is able to deliver us, then he will deliver us from the blazing furnace and from Your Majesty's hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up."

There are a number of aspects to teaching of Jesus that are particularly relevant to Moving Methodism. Firstly, his call to the way of the cross: Mark 8:34-38

Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it. What good is it for you to gain the whole world, yet forfeit your soul? Or what can you give in exchange for your soul? If any of you are ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of you when he comes in his Father's glory with the holy angels."

Secondly, his offer of life from John 10:10b:

I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

In all we write we are eager to point to and share the Love of God celebrated in possibly the best known verse of the Bible - John 3:16:

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

In a passage that has been of critical importance to Methodism from the beginning Paul write (in Philippians 3:10-14):

I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead.

    Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

For us Moving Methodism is part of out response to the challenge Paul presents in 1 Corinthians 9:24:

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.

More on "Moving Methodism"

  • The Manifesto that got us started.
  • On Power which is all about who has Power within the Methodist Church and how it should be exercised. It sets a tone for the way we believe "Moving Methodism" can and should be put into practice.
  • 21 ways to improve Local Preachers Meetings our first practical and pragmatic yet visionary and idealistic guide to improving an aspect of Methodist Church life.

The Moving Methodism Resource

Subpages (2): Methodism On The Move Moving Me