Flourishing Life

“I felt my heart strangely warmed. I felt I did trust in Christ, Christ alone, for salvation; and an assurance was given me that He had taken away my sins, even mine, and saved me from the law of sin and death.” – John Wesley

On the evening of May 24, 1738, a young John Wesley responded to the invitation to attend a Bible study with a group of  Moravian Christians at Aldersgate Street, in London, England. Apparently they led Bible studies differently in the 18^th century, because the leader was reading aloud from the preface of a commentary on the Epistle to the Romans written by Martin Luther. Wesley opened his heart to the leadership of the Holy Spirit and placed his faith in Jesus Christ for salvation. This moment of transformation was the spark that lit the flame of the Methodist Revival.

The revival spread to all of Britain. Some historians credit the influence of the Methodist Revival with saving England from the chaotic upheaval experienced in France due to their revolution. It soon jumped the Atlantic impacting the Americas. By the turn of the twentieth century, Methodism had grown to be the largest protestant denomination in the United States. 

All of this from one heart-warming experience. When asked why God had raised up the people called Methodists, Wesley replied, “To reform the nation, particularly the church, and to spread scriptural holiness over the land.” I believe we still exist for just such a purpose. Wouldn’t the world be a better place if we heeded our calling to spread scriptural holiness, a heart-felt experience of salvation and the empowerment of the Holy Spirit to follow Jesus in thought, word, and deed?

On Aldersgate Day, I invite you to join me in committing or recommitting ourselves to loving God with our whole beings and our neighbors as ourselves.