14 New Year's Resolutions for Stevi UMC, #8 - #14

Pilgrimage symbol on the Camino de Santiago (Spain)

Note: This is the second half of a long post that is very worth your time. It is a paraphrase of a post on the blog, Roads From Emmaus, and written by the Very Rev. Archpriest Andrew Stephen Damick, pastor of St. Paul Orthodox Church of Emmaus, Pennsylvania. To view the original blog post, please visit this link.

8. Invite someone to church.

Do you really believe that you’ve found the true faith, seen the true light and received the heavenly Spirit?

Then why are you keeping it to yourself? Think of at least one person you know who isn’t in church. Make him or her a spiritual priority this year. Pray every day for that person. And when the time is right, give the invitation. Statistically speaking, they are probably going to say yes.

And when you make the invitation, don’t say, “You should come to church with me sometime.” “Sometime” is no time. Say, “We’re celebrating communion this Sunday at 10:30 am at my church. Can I pick you up and bring you with me?”

See more at this link.

9. Make a Pilgrimage.

You won’t believe how amazing pilgrimages are until you go on one. There are few things that underline for us how much is really possible in the Christian life like visiting places that are central to the Christian faith.


Some pilgrimages are to far off places such as my pilgrimage to Avila, Spain last year.  You may choose a place associated with the Christian faith such as the Holy Land or make a "Wesley Walk" in England. You may choose to focus on a site important to United Methodists or another faith tradition. Or you can make a journey in your living room through the use of a hand-held or virtual labyrinth.

Early Christians were known as people of The Way. We are on a journey that begins with that first step in faith.

10. Read the Old Testament.

Yes, we should read the whole Bible, but the truth is that most Christians are crypto-Marcionites—we don’t know almost anything about the Old Testament. Marcion was a 2nd century heretic who taught that the Old Testament was a book for Jews and had nothing to do with Christians. He was really wrong. The Old Testament is about the thousands of years of preparation before the coming of Jesus Christ. It is what sets the stage for His appearance. Jesus is everywhere in the Old Testament, but you have to know how to look for Him.

The Old Testament is filled with all kinds of fascinating stories, prayers, songs, poetry, etc. But most of us have almost no idea that it has much other than Adam and Eve, Noah and Jonah. And we’re probably a little fuzzy on some of those details.

But if God prepared the world for the coming of Jesus by what He did in the Old Testament, how can we think we’ll be prepared for His coming into each of our own lives without any of that same preparation?

Want a plan that will get you through the whole Bible in one year? Here’s one.


So, that makes me think of something else.

11. Attend an adult education class.

It’s actually kind of crazy how uneducated many United Methodists are in their own faith. I sometimes hear the excuse that that stuff is just for seminarians and clergy, that it’s too intellectual, too far above the heads of the average parishioner, etc. But the very same people can give you detailed information about what the rules and records in the Super Bowl are, what their least favorite politician has done to wreck the country, and what the latest gossip is on various celebrities, all in remarkable detail. But when it comes to what will last into eternity, we are suddenly the dumbest people on the face of the earth.

Don’t sell yourself short. You are probably pretty smart about many things. Why don’t you use that same talent to get smart about your faith?

It’s also quite frankly true that  early Methodists were far more educated about their faith than today's United Methodists are about their own. Are we really supposed to believe that Methodists were just smarter then? They’re weren't. But they developed a culture of education. However, a culture of education was not a uniquely United Methodist thing from days-gone-past. It’s a Jesus-thing, too. It’s been part of our tradition for 2000 years. It’s just that some of us have forgotten it. It’s time to bring it back.

12. Volunteer.

Do something in your parish or in your community that benefits other people without giving you any kind of material gain. And do it without expecting recognition. Your recognition will come from God in His Kingdom. You don’t need it from anyone else.
Not only will selfless volunteering help you be grateful for all that God has given to you, but it will set an example of what a Christian is for your kids and your friends, and it will also help you to be humble, something we know is necessary for entrance into the Kingdom of Heaven.

Consider signing up to be a greeter (chairs are available!), an usher, a liturgist, or participate in the Worship on Wednesday gathering with soup or a talk.

13. Go to confession.

While The United Methodist Church does not consider confession a sacrament, we know our need to confess our sin before God and one another.

Sin is a constant struggle. The Bible tells us that we all sin, and John Wesley noted in a sermon how Christians continue to struggle with sin even after their conversion. In “The Scripture Way of Salvation,” Wesley writes,

"How naturally do those who experience such a change imagine that all sin is gone; that it is utterly rooted out of their heart, and has no more any place therein!... But it is seldom long before they are undeceived, finding sin was only suspended, not destroyed. Temptations return, and sin revives; showing it was but stunned before, not dead."

Many of us can relate. Sin is a persistent force in our lives.The good news is that when we confess our sin, God promises to forgive us (1 John 1:9). 

Read more at this link.  

Pastor Charles is always available for you should you desire to offer your confession in private.

14. Read a spiritual book.

There are few things that get us into another story, another way of looking at life, like a good book. And a good spiritual book can help to retrain your mind to become like the mind of Christ. Most of us do not have the mind of Christ. We have the mind of something else. Our minds are filled with distractions, necessities and the cares of this world.

But the extended meditation on what is good and true and beautiful that can come from a good spiritual book can help to change all that. And you know what? That change helps to bring us peace. And that’s something that each of us needs a whole lot more of.

Visit our church library. Ask Pastor Charles for suggestions or if you could borrow one from his library. Go online. There is so much good things to read that you won't have time to peruse the tabloids at Super One.

---