Dear friends in Christ,
This is the time of year when I do a fair amount of traveling around the church. Sometimes the travel is exhausting, but the reward is a wonderful view of the life, health, and challenges of our beloved church.
A few days ago, I attended a conference for clergy from all over North America. While it wasn’t quite the official conference theme, I noticed a distinct pattern. Nearly everyone is interested in discipleship. Church leaders at all levels are looking for ways to equip followers of Jesus in their journey.
I find it very encouraging that there are no gimmicks here. Discipleship is about, among other things, studying God’s word in the Bible, cultivating a habit of daily prayer, serving those in need, attending worship regularly, and sharing the Good News of God in Jesus Christ. These practices don’t require a big budget line or a fancy program. They just require commitment and focus.
Congregations where discipleship becomes the top priority are thriving. It’s true for small and large churches, in rural and urban areas, both high church and low church. It’s not surprising that when we do the thing that Jesus commanded us to do in Matthew 28, we thrive. Our primary task is to make disciples. And we have the Holy Spirit as our guide and companion.
Forward Movement’s purpose—from 1935 to the present—has been to make disciples. We offer plenty of resources, many of which are free of charge, to support you and your congregation in this work. There are lots of others out there providing resources, too. Ultimately though, we already have what we need: the liturgy of the church, the scriptures, God’s presence among us, and a mission to carry out.
What’s the main thing at your church? Is it discipleship? If not, what’s getting in the way? If we at Forward Movement can help, please do let us know. And pray for the renewal of our church as people discover the joy and the freedom of following Jesus Christ.
Yours faithfully,
Scott Gunn
Executive Director
Today’s Flash Sale: Bible Women
Women of the Bible have been trapped in dry and dusty literary caskets for centuries. While a few women, such as Mary, Sarah, Elizabeth, and Mary Magdalene, are familiar, many of the women who speak in the Bible have long been ignored. Yet their words are part of God’s Word, the Bible, for a reason. Through these women, God spoke, intervened, changed, illustrated, and proclaimed the story of redemption.
In this groundbreaking book named best Bible study of 2015 by Illumination Book Awards, Episcopal priest Lindsay Hardin Freeman identifies every woman who speaks in the Bible, providing their words, context, and historical background. We learn which women speak the most (hint: it’s not Mary!) and which books of the Bible have the fewest words from women.
We hear the only conversation in the Bible between a mother and daughter (and it’s not pretty), the words of a woman who eats her own child, and the triumphant exclamation of a woman telling the world about the risen Christ.
Questions at the end of each chapter encourage individual or small-group reflection about what we might learn from each of these women and how God is speaking through them to us.
Step into God’s sacred circle of mothers, grandmothers, warriors, prophets, prostitutes, and murderers. You won’t come out the same.
Regular: $22
Today: $16.50
*Discount is valid until 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time