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So, we looked on ChatGPT and didn't like any of their suggestions; maybe you can help? We're trying to find a name for the little coffee shop on our property - it needs to be friendly, inviting (and not too churchy!). The person who comes up with the winning suggestion will earn themselves a couple of cappuccinos :)
Our services and many of our meetings end with a blessing (or benediction). The words are so familiar that we can find our minds wandering even as we speak them, but this is a powerful thing that we are doing. We are reminding each other that as we part, we do not leave alone - we go in the company and the strength of the risen Christ.
This week in our Alpha course, we heard a testimony from a man who became a Christian while serving a jail sentence in Britain for having committed multiple violent crimes. His life has now been turned around. Since his release, he has devoted himself to reaching out to other men in prison - sharing his life story and the good news of the gospel. He has a stable, loving family and seems to be a completely new person.
A W Tozer once said that the "most important thing about us is what comes into our mind when we think about God". That's quite a claim! Author J B Phillips obviously felt that we were failing in this most important task when he wrote a book in the 1950's called "Your god is too small". Over the next four Sundays we are going to be using some of Phillips' ideas to help us notice where we have settled for a shrunken God - a caricature of the real Person.
It's been a full week for our denomination - three days of Mission Congress, followed by three days of Conference and then the annual ordination service taking place this Sunday. We saw lots of creative energy at the Congress and it'll be exciting to see what concrete decisions Conference makes based on the recommendations from Mission Congress.
Every year in September, the senior leadership of the Methodist Church of Southern Africa gathers for Conference. If you're not familiar with the language, that's another word to add to your Methodist lexicon - Conference (not a conference), but a gathering of leaders at Conference. Yes, it's a bit confusing :)
I'd love to catch you up on some of the good things that are happening with our youth at WMC: 1. We have a new team leading the youth on Sunday mornings. Dani has been meeting with our youth over the last couple of months and Lloyd has recently joined her. Between the two of them, a programme for the whole term has been developed, which means that on any given Sunday during the school term our youth can count on there being something planned for them. Together the group are dreaming up some new ideas (including exploring a Friday evening programme).
A reminder if you are new to Methodist-speak :) that historically, a congregation is called a society - we are the Westville society; societies are grouped together into circuits - the fifteen Methodist societies in our area make up the Durban Metro Circuit (we have four ministers in our circuit working alongside these societies); circuits belong to districts and we are a part of the Natal Coastal District.
One of the great contemporary teachers on Christian spirituality, Father Richard Rohr, was interviewed recently, having just turned 80. Much of the conversation covered ideas expressed in his many books, but Rohr also spent a good while talking about his dog, Opie - a 4 year old adopted Jack Russell cross. It was so striking to hear in his voice the profound joy that this little animal gives him.
A recent Barna study in the USA asked the question: "what is your preferred method of discipleship". The most popular response from Christians (38% of respondents) was "on my own". That is to say, discipleship for this group can be experienced without belonging and participating in community life. It may seem easier, less complicated to be "solo Christians", but author Ronald Rolheiser insists that there is no such thing.