“Sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done marvelous things” (Psalm 98:1).
With the close of another year, and with it another decade, The Wesleyan Church has experienced the fullness of his goodness in 2019. Our God is worthy of our praise, as he has done marvelous things.
Wesleyan lay and clergy are actively engaging in the disciple-making process. Last year alone, thousands of people were baptized, and thousands more committed their lives to Christ
But despite these victories for the cause of Christ, the Gospel Gap continues to grow. The 2019 report on Wesleyan church statistics, released in September, indicated that the numbers of onsite church attendance, baptisms, membership and conversions declined from 2018 to 2019.
I am evermore inspired by these numbers to press on toward the goal, “forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead,” as the apostle Paul modeled for us in Philippians 3:13. The need to be a Kingdom Force on a global scale, from everywhere to everywhere, is still forefront in our minds as we enter into a new decade.
I continue to be encouraged by the stories told in our Wesleyan Life magazine and WesLife newsletter — stories that illustrate how Wesleyans are making personal witness (evangelism) and discipleship a priority in their churches, families, workplaces and neighborhoods.
In five months, we will join together for General Conference 2020: Unleashed (GC20). As we gather, united, my prayer is that we leave GC20 as sent-out ones, an Unleashed Kingdom Force, purposefully taking kingdom risks for kingdom growth.
The focus for The Wesleyan Church will not change in 2020; we will continue to celebrate every time a disciple makes a disciple and a church multiplies itself until there is a transforming presence in every ZIP code.
In the coming days, weeks and months, please be prayerful about where God is calling you in obedience to become a transforming presence as a part of his Kingdom Force across the globe.
May we, in 2020 and beyond, press on toward the goal of a purpose-driven love. May we press on toward the goal of discipleship. May we press on toward the goal of closing that Gospel Gap, inch by inch – not that our names be lifted up but that lives will be transformed and forever made new.
Updated 02/03/20: Updated to bring clarity on disciple-making statement.
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