Receiving and Offering Grace With One Another
The Missional Community as a Means of Grace, Week 6
by Adam White

Jesus Christ practiced radical hospitality.

What does it mean to practice “radical hospitality?”

For Christ and the disciples, it meant relying upon the hospitality of others to fulfill their service and missional life. Within three of the four Gospels, Christ givesauthority to the disciples and sends them out without means or resources, asking them to rely upon the hospitality of strangers to fulfill their mission (Matthew 10:6-16, Mark 6:6b-13, Luke 9:1-6).

Every Day...

Every Day is a Pilgrimage
by Maria Bergh, former resident of the Epworth Project

Every day the sun makes a pilgrimage across the sky and, cognizant or not, we follow. Preoccupied by daily tasks, it is hard to sense the direction and speed we are traveling. But with a little grace and intentionality we can draw out the patterns and rhythms and see our lives as a pilgrimage homeward to God.

Wisdom for the Way, SpotlightMissional Wisdom FoundationSeptember 9, 2016Epworth House, Epworth Project, pilgrimageComment

Showing Up

Showing Up
The Missional Community as a Means of Grace, Week 5
by Adam White

We should never underestimate the power of showing up.

I serve at a local United Methodist Church in East Dallas and have the humble opportunity to lead different classes, studies, and programs. Every week there is a Wednesday Bible study where a group of around ten to twelve older adults come and engage in discussion around scripture.

The Gathering: Burleson

The Gathering: Burleson
by Rachel Wells

We had tears on the way to school this morning. Normally that is not a good thing. But this case was a little different - it was my eight-year-old, confessing that he was very nervous about the teacher rearranging the seating assignments today.

Spotlight, Wisdom for the WayRachel WellsSeptember 2, 2016Rachel Wells, intentional community, missional living, four things, Rule of LifeComment

Constant Communion

The Duty of Constant Communion
The Missional Community as a Means of Grace, Week 4
by Andrea Lingle

Whoever you are, wherever you are, and whenever you are will affect how you see the world. We live in a tribal world. We are white and black, gay and straight, male and female, religious and “none,” introvert and extrovert, “in a relationship” or single, coffee or tea, Instagram or Reddit. We are a diverse species and we all fear invisibility, so we draw lines around ourselves. This is me. These are mine. This is what I believe.

What Do You Love About This Place?

What Do You Love About This Place?
by Bret Wells

The WNC3 cohort of Launch & Lead met at Haw Creek Commons this weekend for their 3rd training retreat (which means they’ve now completed about 75% of the 2-year program). This event, which focuses on principles and skills related to community development, also functions as a springboard into the practicum phase of Launch & Lead.

So much of what we do in Launch & Lead is designed to help our participants to develop a posture of curiosity, discovery, and expectation as we encounter the world around us. That isn’t to say that we turn a blind eye to, or adopt a naïve dismissal of pain, dysfunction, injustice. On the other hand, we also realize that constantly seeking out and highlighting everything that is wrong is not any more effective or beneficial.

Spotlight, Wisdom for the WayMissional Wisdom FoundationAugust 26, 2016Launch & Lead, Haw Creek Commons, listening, Bret WellsComment

Logical

Logical
The Missional Community as a Means of Grace, Week 3
by Andrea Lingle

Have you ever done a logic puzzle? You get a list of clues, make a grid, and figure out, through astounding feats of intellect and crossing off of boxes, who sat next to whom and what color shirt they had on and what they ate.

Community Garden

Haw Creek Commons Community Garden
This week's guest author, Kate Rudd, is the Cultivator at Haw Creek Commons in Asheville, NC.

Haw Creek Commons has a new addition: a community garden! The 3,000 square foot Haw Creek Garden is situated in front of the parsonage, or Haw Creek House, and is open to neighbors who want to learn and grow food.

Words

Words
The Missional Community as a Means of Grace, Week 2
by Andrea Lingle

I am fascinated by words. Specifically names. If you have ever read a decent fantasy novel, you will have a firm grasp of how important names are. Names give you power over a thing. You should never tell anyone your true name, or they will have power over you. If you know a thing, you will know its name. Good stuff.

What Does "Missional" Mean?

What Does "Missional" Mean?
The Missional Community as a Means of Grace, Week 1
by Adam White

What does it mean to be "missional" as we live out our faith?

The Institute for Vital Ministry

The Institute for Vital Ministry
A new nonprofit being incubated within MWF
by Ken Crawford

"You are not alone."

These life giving words are like cool water to a parched spirit for many who serve in ministry – both clergy and laity alike. Living one's faith and spirituality by serving in ministry is an opportunity for incredible joy as we learn with, from and about other people.

Wisdom for the Way, SpotlightMissional Wisdom FoundationAugust 5, 2016ministry, MWF connectionsComment

A Living Image

A Living Image of Communion
Discipleship as a Three-Legged Stool, Week 12
by Adam White

Over the past three months we have been discerning what discipleship looks like from our perspective at Missional Wisdom by using the image of a stool. One leg of the stool represents community. One leg is the loving of our neighbors as ourselves. Another leg is the pouring and filling of grace that we experience in following Christ is the greatest commandment. The top of the stool and connecting factor is the missional life of faith.

A Vision...

A Vision for an MWF Hub in Portland!
by Eric Conklin

This week's guest author, Eric Conklin, lives in Portland, OR with his wife, Mira, and their son, Auggie. While they both work in community development, Mira is leading a Missional Wisdom Launch & Lead group in the Portland area, and Eric is helping the MWF Portland hub come to life.

Wisdom for the Way, SpotlightMissional Wisdom FoundationJuly 29, 2016Portland, hubs, Eric Conklin, MWF connectionsComment

Metric

Metric
Discipleship as a Three-Legged Stool, Week 11
by Andrea Lingle

How many inches are there in a mile?

Well, there are twelve inches in a foot and five thousand two hundred and eighty feet in a mile, so…

God Unbound

God Unbound

MWF co-founder, Elaine Heath, recently published a new book: God Unbound.

What does it mean to move beyond the boundaries of what we believe?

Spotlight, Wisdom for the WayMissional Wisdom FoundationJuly 22, 2016God Unbound, books, Elaine Heath, MWF connectionsComment

The Infinity of Now

The Infinity of Now
Discipleship as a Three-Legged Stool, Week 10
by Andrea Lingle

There is power in a circle.

There is tension in a circle: an infinite number of points presses out from a central point of unity. There is balance in a circle: each of the infinite points is equally distant from the center of the circle.

Windblown

Windblown
Discipleship as a Three-Legged Stool, Week 6
by Andrea Lingle

There is a churchyard in central North Carolina, roughly an hour east of Charlotte, where, in early spring, the lawn is sewn entirely in dandelions. I don’t know if these dandelions were cultivated intentionally, but one of my greatest regrets is that I never stopped my car, just for one minute, to run through the seed heads.

Pierced

Pierced
Discipleship as a Three-Legged Stool, Week 5
by Andrea Lingle

It was a large stone; about the size of a slightly flattened egg. There were a dozen pits covering its surface. I scooped it off the shore and held it up to the sunlight, squeezing one eye shut to focus on each hole. I sighed. Not one hole went clear through. It needed more time. I hurled it back in the water.

Spotlight: Anam Cara

Several members of the Missional Wisdom Foundation will be participating in an Anam Cara retreat this weekend - training in missional, monastic spiritual direction.

Spotlight, Wisdom for the WayRachel WellsJune 10, 2016Anam Cara, spiritual direction, spiritual practiceComment

Loving Messily in a Messy World

There is a moment almost every single day when I find that all of the training that I have ever done in my life isn't enough.

Not nearly enough.

I am a mother of several children.