Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine! Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine! Heir of salvation, purchase of God, Born of his Spirit, washed in His blood!/ This is my story, this is my song, Praising my Savior all the day long. This is my story, this is my song, Praising my Savior all the day long.
(words by Fanny Crosby, 1873)
I am so blessed. That has been my overwhelming thought this weekend, as I've spent time with my family and loved ones. I am so incredibly blessed.
The thing that I love about being a United Methodist is that my religion calls for two things in equal measure: faith and works. David Dinkins, a former mayor of New York City, once said, "Service to others is the rent we pay for our time on earth." I firmly believe that. And while I have not always served others in the way I am called to do, I have done what I can.
Being a member of the United Methodist Church (UMC) indicates a willingness to take on a certain level of social responsibility. John Wesley developed the idea of Methodism from viewing the separation of the factory and field workers from the Anglican church. During Wesley's time, the Anglican faith focused on faith inside the church, and did not allow for those who, economically, were unable to come to church every week. Wesley conceived of a church where faith was an everyday activity, and where each faithful member had an obligation to assist one another in any way they could. The first Methodists were involved in labor strikes for safe working conditions, in the temperance movement, in abolitionist movements across the world, in protests against child labor, and in creating safe, clean living conditions for all persons.
Faith is a tricky thing. So often, religious leaders turn people away from believing in God by telling them that their incessant questioning and doubtfulness is indicative of some kind of character flaw, and that if they had "true" faith "in their hearts," they would just believe. But I believe that some of us are, by nature, doubters. As humans, we were created by God with intellect and questioning dispositions. The Bible is filled with those who questioned God (Exodus 3:11), railed against God (Psalm 4), or refused God (Jonah). Yet all of these people are still considered men of God.
Before, I have called upon my faith to incorporate into the flock those persons who come seeking a genuine understanding of faith. Refusing a place for doubt in the faith journey isn't just silly, it's harmful. Doubt is necessary for faith, for blind faith is no faith at all. The lovely thing about the UMC is that not only are questions allowed, they're encouraged. We look to Julian of Norwich for inspiration in exploring faith through questions. I love this about the UMC. As United Methodists, we are expected to go through times of doubt, and not just at the beginnings of our faith journey. Doubt comes at any time, and with explored doubt comes clarity.
In the UMC, we rely not on the intercession of saints or the summing up of good works, but on God's grace that has been freely given. Grace is an amazing, wonderful, powerful thing. John Wesley writes of three types of grace: prevenient, accepting, and sustaining. As United Methodists, we believe that people are inherently good and are born with "a divine spark." (That, among other things, is what the flame means in our symbol.) God's grace is perfectly free for us to accept or reject. There's nothing that we can do to earn it, for it's already there. There's nothing we have to do to earn it, for it is already ours to have. That's absolutely amazing to me.
And for me, there is nothing more that I can ask for, for I have already been given so much. I am already so blessed.
More love to Thee, O Christ, More love to Thee! Hear Thou the prayer I make on bended knee. This is my earnest plea: More love, O Christ to Thee; More love to Thee, More love to Thee!
(words by Elizabeth P. Prentiss, 1856)
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