It is so easy to be distracted from what really matters. Have you ever missed breakfast because you felt too busy to sit down and make time? The morning adrenaline rush is ready, so sitting down, taking a breath, and making something nourishing just isn’t going to happen – yet it was what your body needed before the rest of the wild adventures you would be about to embark on. A good breakfast and time of quiet, thoughtful reflection could give your mind the space to process what is to come without worry or rushing. The nutrients in a well-thought-out meal could make the difference, leading to less anxiety and better decision-making. Preparation leads to better execution when the rubber hits the road.
The spiritual life of the disciple of Jesus is the same, but even more involved. We are called as people of faith to pray. Not just the prayers we make in conflict or trials (foxhole prayers), but rather the sustained prayer of a life completely committed and devoted to the one who saved us from death, the one who created us, the one who gives us our daily breath. We have a God who loves us and is always speaking. We also have a God who wants to hear our voice. We also need to be formed daily by the higher ways of Jesus to be filled with His Spirit and know the will of the Father in Heaven. Without listening, without speaking, without a relationship – our lives wither, and we fall into traps of despair, anxiety, and even depression over time. This is not the life God intends for us. We should not remain so busy that we don’t have time to listen.
This summer, make each moment, each breath, a reminder to be in continuous prayer. Maybe you’re not always speaking in “thees” and “thous” as some of us imagine prayer, but rather let’s consult the God of all power and authority on the major decisions in our lives. Let’s take the time to ask and listen when we don’t know what is wisest in a tough situation. And we might remember to thank God when times are good and celebrate in His presence. We can do that both individually in our prayer closets and also communally. That is one of the main reasons we gather and worship together. It is an extension of the prayer life that is “continual,” meaning it never ends. God is always with us, so we can always call out to Him and be reminded of His comfort, love, and counsel. He has also given us each other – so let’s remember to pray for one another, our growing church, and for the greater community that so desperately needs a Savior. Together, we can listen and encourage each other into the best Summer ever. Let me know how I can pray for you, and let’s share in His glory as His people. Each small group, every time of worship, every prayer – it matters because God hears and knows and acts. Things change when we pray.
Last Sunday I visited two churches (Church on the Bend and Duncan Chapel) and preached the text of the liturgy: Luke 6:17-26. Jesus is surrounded by people who desire healing and from the greater context of these events, the people came from all walks of life and there were myriads of purposes as folks sought their needs and desires from Jesus. It was clear he had become a regional celebrity without claiming it. When you start miraculously healing people and make water into wine, that’s something that is going to happen. Word got around that a great healer had come but also the desire for good leadership arose in those wanting change from Roman rule and conversly those who desired things to stay the same (and likely profited from the status quo) were coming to size up this developing Christ/Messianic story. Regardless of why people were coming, crowds circled around him and it is clear that Demons were being cast out and then people were being healed of literal physical ailments. Jesus’ proclamation that the Kingdom of God is “happening in their midst” – it is real and Jesus’ presence is the reason for the inbreaking. Those with the innocence of faith felt hope and would evangelize from their own witnessed events and experience; those whose hearts were closed to God’s new work in the Son would eventually seek to crucify him. In all of it, Jesus began by proclaiming blessings and woes that reset the expectations about who God is blessing when people are in poverty or attain great wealth addressing the diversity of the crowd and giving them a rudder about what kind of ministry those who follow Him ought to have.
He said: “‘Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. ‘Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you will be filled. ‘Blessed are you who weep now,for you will laugh. ‘Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you on account of the Son of Man. Rejoice on that day and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven; for that is what their ancestors did to the prophets.’”
No one “feels” blessed when they are poor, hungry, weeping, or hated – reviled – defamed – because of Jesus’ mark on our lives and our proclamation. Yet, when we step out in faith and proclaim Jesus as our Lord; the entire system of evil spiritual powers and principalities begin to single the Christ follower out for the purposes of destruction. If one comes alive to the wonders of God’s love and transformation of the Spirit tears them from the spiritual death that Satan (the deceiver) desires for humanity – that person is now a target. This is the reason those of faith must cling to Jesus first and those who do have promises! You will inherit the Kingdom of God, you will be fed and filled, you will laugh and receive joy – because the reward is infintely greater than the temporal suffering. When we take stands for what is right to defend life, to welcome the alien among us, to provide for the widows and orphans and share what God has blessed us with all while proclaiming the power of Jesus’ resurrection from the grave – in all this we claim a victory that can be seen when the church rallies, souls are saved, and we keep first things (the way of salvation and discipline in maturity for growing as holy ones) primary our unity and passion emphasize the words on our lips, that “Jesus is Lord” of our life and of all the cosmos.
As we build new churches and revitalize our communities seeking new life by calling on Jesus name and proclaiming His power to heal our land, we need to remember that our sucess will look different than the success of the world. We will have hardship before we see glory. If we build by kingdom principles and make disciples rather than consumers of worldly information – we will have an adversary that works against us. That is ok because the breakthrough will come at just the right time and the awakening in our community will break open. Our sucess will look like people willing to put their lives on the line for their neighbor and give at great cost for the salvation of their souls. I am praying for more breakthroughs and we bear testimony to what God has already done in us and I rejoice! God will bear fruit through our church plant but only because we are in this for Him and not our own egos. I’ve heard it said, “Let’s make Jesus famous.” I like that.
The scripture does give us warning, and we might worry about the woes and there are many for those who hoard wealth, seek prosperity as their idol, and make success (propping up the ego rather that the Savior) their primary purpose. But for those who truly seek after the One True Way of Salvation in a relationship with the Son of God, empowered by a prayer life that fills one’s soul with goodness of the Holy Spirit, and centers us on the worship of our Father in heaven – there is nothing to fear and the demons will flee in the mighty name of Jesus. Let us be bold in our witness and prepare to proclaim Him as the center of our lives. And if we have placed any idols before Him in our lives and ignored our duty to the one who created us and sustains all life – may we turn again and remember to sit at His feet, experience the forgiveness of an endless grace, and become conduits of love unimaginable. As we gather together, we have another opportunity to build one another up and flee the woes of the world by grasping onto the blessings that inevitably overflow in the presence of our great healer. Let us never forget who knows all our pains and griefs but who can heal every ounce of suffering and replace it all with mighty celebration.
In all things, may God receive the glory! Amen.
Pastor Daniel Griswold, Pastor of Lowcountry Church Plant based in Summerville, SC
“Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.” 1 Corinthians 9:24
by Pastor Dan Griswold
Imagine that God would place a calling on the lives of several people to step out into the wilderness to do something new. Ok – this isn’t a new concept; in fact, this is the core of the Christian faith. The mission historian Andrew F. Walls wrote that because Christ translated himself into humanity, our faith exists in the places where Jesus’ love is being retranslated into a new place, time, and culture. About 6 months ago a call was placed on my heart and life to leave comfort and institutional stability and to follow Christ into a new path on mission to create a new worshipping community to be built a bit differently than churches have been built in the last 20 years. The call was to go, to get into the mess of humanity moving into halo around Charleston, and to begin with who the Lord called out for the work. We thank the Lord that the call was confirmed in the hearts of others who have met with us over the last four months every two weeks on Sunday evenings – working out our faith together in our homes visiting with one another and seeking the Lord’s will for our group. Our last gathering filled the Cardwell home with good food, joy, laughter, carol singing, hearing the Christmas story with the children dressed as manger animals, and we prayed over one another feeling the presence of the God who heals and desires our wholeness. As I tell the story of what God is doing, more have decided to join in what God is doing and my heart is glad.
The root of this community is grounded in the holy scriptures of the book of Acts. We can’t completely replicate what happened when the Apostles were sent by Jesus and new communities were formed in homes, but we can see the principles that the Lord instilled in their hearts and in that way be more Christlike as the original Christians existed. As Christians in the wealthiest nation on earth, it is easy to forget that Jesus had no possessions and held no power or authority except what His Father in Heaven gave him in His very nature. The Apostles and those who were baptized after Pentecost sold all they had and appointed deacons (servants) to care for the widows and orphans. They met in the homes of those who had means and Paul taught them to treat even those enslaved in the homes as equals upending the social order for a more heavenly order of God’s Kingdom breaking onto the planes of today’s existence. They broke bread and drank from the same cup as they remembered the sacrifice of Christ but also stood in the hope that Jesus would return one day and deliver them from all injustice and oppression. God would win! We can be people who align with the Sovereign Lord over all creation and the only way to the Father is through Jesus the Christ, the Messiah, the one true Lord. The hope of the early Christians was in the name of Jesus who represented God’s love so we could see it for ourselves. The entire New Testament in the Bible is a response to this incredible miraculous divine self-sacrifice.
Believe it or not, we are living into this ethos today by the same Pentecost Spirit that Christ gave to the Apostles. We too are entering new territory staking out a new community but done in the old and more simple way. Without a cathedral, without the capital campaigns, and solely focused on the mission to save the souls of our neighbors. God always intended our mission to be twofold. (1) To worship Him and glorify Him forever, and (2) to love our neighbor by the means we have been afforded. John Wesley felt this passion in his burning soul that all would be saved and the evil one would have no sway in the land of England. In the United States, Frances Asbury and Thomas Coke carried on the work leading to joint ventures with the Presbyterians and Methodists to bring revival to the land. Our Camp Meetings are the vestiges of those times when our nations soul was on fire for the Lord in the Great Awakenings. We can burn again with a holy fire but it does require one thing – that we do not despair! And in juxtaposition – that we have infinite hope in the power of God to bring new life in the midst of chaos.
I remember in seminary, Dr. Jeffrey Niehaus drew out Ancient Near Eastern symbolism and in the mind of the ancients the ocean was a symbol of chaos and destruction. Water itself could simultaneously bring both life (as we drink it and bathe to cleanse ourselves) but also bring destruction (as we have seen in Tsunamies in Japan or the flooding of the Mississippi River or the rains of Hurricanes). Though the power of destruction is all around us, the Lord has promised that He will redeem creation and conquer the chaos on our behalf. As Christians, we have a mediating role to the world as we represent Christ. Every worker to that headed to help others in the destruction of Hurricane Helene were doing the good work the Lord God calls us to do. To have hope in the darkness and to never give up. God will win it all for us but it is our Hope and infilling of the Holy Spirit today that enlivens us for the work of healing and reconciliation in the world that needs to happen now as we prepare for the complete fulfillment of the promises of God. We do not know what year (could it be 2025?) that God will bring the Heavens to the Earth and we will be refined like fire and receive perfection as we have always dreamed. One thing is certain though – that God will come and the world will be changed. Evil will have no more harbor and righteousness (the ultimate good) will reign because God’s victory will be complete.
As a person who now calls himself a church planter and has called out to the people of God to see who would come in this journey, I am encouraged that others are feeling the same call. This first year has been a great feat in building a team the Lord can count on. I am certain we are still building the team that will be forged by fire to become evangelists and servants of our communities in the Lowcountry. So far we have folks from Summerville, Hanahan, and Ridgeville. I foresee the family growing and the Lord drawing more as we minister to the people of Cane Bay, Nexton, and Carnes Crossroads seeking to establish an outpost of hope for the region. I hope that we see a flag raised for the cross and Christ’s name appropriately worshipped not for glory or our own praise – but so the Lord God Almighty, our Father in Heaven, would receive all the honor, the glory, and the praises. Let’s see what God can do when we love one another the way God loves us. Let’s make 2025 the best year ever as we run the race before us with excellence. Let’s sing and shout for the power of the Lord is unending and we have faith in Him and not our own strength. Hallelujah! Amen.
Our next Gathering for Home Worship is Sunday January 12th at 4 pm!
Mark your Calendar: Lowcountry Church Plant Small Group Worship Gathering
You’re invited to our next Worship Time together in Hanahan with our first Cell Group of families joining together to discern God’s will and encourage one another in discipleship. Our next time together is on Saturday September 7th at 4:30 pm. Send Pastor Dan a message (dgriswold@gmcofsc.org) or send a text message to (843) 695-7002 and let us know you’re coming and we will send you the address. We have a time of fellowship, refreshments, worship together, read the Holy Scriptures, and give testimony to God’s working in our lives. God is really using this time and if you’re looking for a space to grow as a follower of Jesus Christ, this is a great place to be encouraged.
God is Making a way – Seeds of Revival
The Griswold’s are moving to Summerville, SCin September
GOAL 1 – SIGNING THE CONTRACT – THIS IS REAL – WE HAVE A HOME
Please be in celebratory prayer for the Griswold Family as we are about to be on the move once again after signing on purchasing a “new-to-us” home. We will be sojourning to our new location in a very short time. We had pictured ourselves purchasing an older home under elder live oak trees – and that may come in the future – but God placed us in a newer community right in the middle of the three communities that the Lord has called us to serve and plant. These communities: Nexton, Carnes Crossroads, and Cane Bay; are right on our doorstep. Our two children have initiated life at a school in Summerville and we are currently commuting from North Charleston and we will be glad to resettle as well as to be closer to their school in the next few weeks. It is going to be continued transition and we will have to sort through a lot because we moved so quickly out of our previous parsonage. There really wasn’t time to see what we really needed so Amanda just boxed things and off we went – the time for a slow reflection and deciding what stays and what goes has come. Pray for us as we discern what “brings us joy.”
Goal 2 – SEEKING THE THE LABORERS FOR THE HARVEST
It seems to us through much prayer and trembling that God is guiding us and we walk by faith into the greater-Summerville area with a heart to meet people and begin this project of establishing a mission. We desire to make the good news of Jesus Christ’s love and mercy known to an area that only has 28% of folks interacting in any way with an established church. This is an incredible opportunity to enter into real evangelism and provide for the deep spiritual needs of a community in formation.
Jesus said, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”
I’ve moved from praying for a home for our family to a new prayer for those who will come alongside us in this work and make this church plant their blinding passion. I know the Lord is stirring things up right now. Putting ourselves into unknown territory has been both “terrifying and exhilarating” as we’ve heard God’s call. There are people who we are about to meet and discern together for mutual mission to these communities. We are trusting that there are folks who are ready to activate their deep desire to reach out, to get uncomfortable for the Gospel, and to live the life that Christians have always been meant to live – as living sacrifices unto the Lord for the wellbeing of our neighbors!
Please be in prayer that the Lord would awaken the hearts of those meant to join our team. Jesus never sent people out alone.
We are walking with a small group of wonderful passionate folks already, meeting as a small group, and we are ready to grow as we enter the new space and meet who God calling. I do challenge if the Lord is putting a fire in your heart to join in, pray and let me know!
Goal 3 – FINDING AN OFFICE SPACE
As a Pastor who needs a space with quiet time to study the Word, to pray intensively, meet others for counsel, and provide a staging ground to organize the church (and for my wife – to outsource and deposit my rather large Library of theological books as well as Live Sound Equipment collection) – I am in need of such a space at very little to no cost. Perhaps there is a church in the three communities that would be willing to provide an unused office temporarily, perhaps the YMCA would work with me (long shot but God can do anything, right?), maybe there is a place or solution I cannot currently imagine. Whatever it may be, I am currently praying that a space will become apparent and available. I know that the Lord will provide the pathway and resources in time. If you know of a potential solution please do send me a message. I would certainly appreciate your lead towards completing this goal of gaining a place of prayer, refuge, and relationship.
He’s Got the Whole World In His Hands
My children recently went back to school – a new school – and all this happened while incredible changes are happening in our families life. We’ve moved into a temporary home, have found the home we will be moving into, and we’ve followed God’s call on our life but for our children that meant some sacrifices. I’ve watched my son and daughter as they’ve navigated their new spaces and met their new teachers and it is wonderful to see even with some very challenging new situations that they’ve been able to meet new friends, take on new work, and they come home tired but with lots of stories and excitement. I love spending time listening to them and asking questions as they explore this new universe. They’ve been wandering with mom and dad as we spent time seeking a new home and they’ve done remarkably well. For us, as adults, we sometimes lose the elasticity and tend to lean into comfortable spaces, relationships, and routines; but when I read the book of Acts I see Jesus calling us to wander with him. To take chances, learn some new tricks (yes, you can no matter how old you are), and to see where the Holy Spirit is guiding you. The Lord will never leave you comfortable in my experience. Any organism that becomes complacent and plateaus in growth is going to die sooner than later. As disciples, we need to get in the boat and go out in twos and threes and fours speaking to others about the goodness of God and how evil cannot hold onto the strongholds of this world forever. God is too strong. So step out of your comfort zone and let someone know Jesus loves them today. Invite them to join in a crazy endeavor. Maybe starting a small group and spending time in worship and inviting your friends to experience the love of God in your living room is something that would excite you. Maybe just going to someone else’s home and talking about your struggles in faith is challenging enough. Wherever you are, I pray that the Lord draws you out into this exciting adventure and speaks new life into your bones. God is with you! Get excited for what is about to come. Sincerely, Pastor Daniel R. Griswold
If you feel called to join the Holy Spirit and my family in prayer, financial support, or signing up to personally launch this endeavor then take these steps:
(1)PRAY for a mighty act of God for revival in the Summerville, Metro Charleston area.
(2)SIGN UP for our “Lowcountry Church Plant Newsletter” for testimonies, prayer requests, and Pastor Dan’s reflections on the journey. Click here to add your email.
Pledges and donations can also be mailed to: “GMC OF SC” and mailed to this address: 106 Groce Rd, Lyman, SC 29365 Add “Lowcountry Church Plant” in the memo line of any checks or note it somehow when giving.
(4)CONTACT PASTOR DAN if you feel led to make this your congregation and become part of a Lowcountry Church Plant small group via email: dgriswold@gmcofsc.org
I feel sorry for athletes who have spent their entire lives readying themselves for a moment of global competition only to be upstaged by an edgy art display. It has been done so many times, I may be jaded, but sacrilegious artwork has been thoroughly normalized during my lifetime. I’m hoping we can simply discard the spectacle that was meant to cause controversy, dispense with rage, and double down in prayer for the secular culture that wants to displace Christ in western societies.
The right Christian response is to remember who we are and retell the Gospel so the displacement is unsuccessful. God is above debased entertainments and we really don’t need to get down into the mud. The best vindication is a life lived well and we can simply walk away from the opening ceremonies. I almost feel that complaining about it draws the attention that was desired.
While there was a Bacchanalian scene that alluded to obvious pagan imagery (the Olympics were started by pagan Greeks), there was also a moment where Davinci’s “Last Supper” scene was appropriated (and the center drag queen was wearing a star crown looking like a halo and the stars tend to denote the holy nature of Mary’s virgin birth from the book of Revelation). If this wasn’t intended to poke at very traditional religious people, it was done in very poor taste and I understand particularly why the Catholic community is outspoken against the juxtaposition of sacred imagery and the profane. I have a hard time believing that it was an accident. It was to press the envelope in many different areas and I feel the offense but I am not outraged.
This is what the world does, and Paul dealt with the same spirit in the Book of Acts chapter 19. He was confronted by the silver smith Demetrius who made statues of Artemis who didn’t appreciate his message that there is only one God, one way, and that salvation comes through Jesus Christ alone. The gods (demons, according to Paul) of the Roman world held great sway and they roused a riot to rid Ephesus of Paul and his trouble makers. Today, those who want everyone to accept everything everyone is doing as “right” rather than do what the Lord calls us to do in the Holy Scriptures are always sending messages of displacement. Signals like these are sent out and the Olympic ceremony was just one of many statements saying they can own the symbolism of even the Christian faith and combine it (syncretize it) with that of popular and past pagan cultures (or whatever people are distracting themselves from faith in God in any given age). The world has no problem with this post-truth view of reality. And I might mention that this is not new. Look up the fun things early Christians battled like Gnosticism in its many forms seeking to reinterpret Christ to be more palatable to the Roman world. Today the culture is simply trying to assert dominance. As a Christian who does not seek power as an ethic exemplified by Jesus himself, I think we can listen to the words of John:
“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God; for many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. And this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming; and now it is already in the world. Little children, you are from God, and have conquered them; for the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.”
1 John 4:1-4 (NRSV)
For Christians, it was a clear signal that we really don’t need to be giving viewership to something that is so obviously on a wrong track. Support the athletes and pray for good competition but perhaps just leave the opening ceremonies behind and pray for everyone who participated. May God’s Spirit breathe life even here in time.
“And the master said to the servant, ‘Go out to the highways and hedges and compel people to come in, that my house may be filled.’” -Luke 14:23
Some Background and Heart for Church Planting in the Lowcountry of SC
Only 8 years ago I was sent to serve as pastor to three rural churches in Ridgeville, SC. A leader of Mount Tabor, Wallace Muckenfuss, drove me through pine forests and told me that these developments were about to be built in the hunting club lands. The spaces were enormous but flat and expansive and I could easily imagine the great numbers of people that would be soon coming to the metro-Charleston/Summerville area.
Soon after the roads were added, homes were built, and commercial centers have developed across the landscape between Summerville and the $1 Billion Volvo Plant and the Commercial hub called “Camp Hall”. As I ministered to the three churches, I prayed and asked the Lord if it was His will to make a mission to this area and over the last 8 years I continually felt the tug on my heart by the Holy Spirit that this land was and is a mission field in need of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I did a MissionInsight demographic and religious makeup study on the triangle between three major developments: Nexton, Cane Bay, and Carnes Crossroads in the north Summerville, Berkley County area. The people in these parts are middle class (blue and white collar) multicultural folks from various backgrounds and many are starting families and are open to spiritual direction. Two data points that impressed upon my heart the urgency of the mission are that (1) 40,000 people have moved into this area in the last 20 years with many more moving in daily, and (2) only 28% of those residing here have any connection at all with a local church. This is fertile ground for the Holy Spirit to move our hearts and participate in a mission of the Gospel.
Preparation, Foundations, and Prayer
After sharing the urgency for mission to this area with the Church Multiplication Committee of the Global Methodist Church of SC and being approved to plant a church in the metro-Charleston area called the “Lowcountry Church Plant” and with deep prayer with Amanda, my wife of 21 years, we decided to journey into the Lord’s will to launch this new work of the Spirit. After careful study of church planting methods and from the wisdom learned from church revitalization over the last 9 years of pastoring, I would need some framework and accountability for this work. I started reading on the foundation seed of the church also called a “cell group”. I built a relationship with The River Network(led byRev. Steve Cordle, church planter of the small groups based Crossroads Church in the metro-Pittsburgh area and author of“The Church in Many Houses” ). Through their training, we have been certified to plant a Global Methodist Church in the Wesleyan (aka: traditionally Methodist) way of discipleship that Cordle suggests as the best method for growing a new church – and that is by starting in homes just like in the book of Acts during the infancy of the Christian movement and recovered by Rev. John Wesley in the well known “Class Meeting” model of relational discipleship.
Steve Cordle in “The Church in Many Houses” stated, “The first Christians met in both large gatherings (in the temple) and in small groups (in homes). We can see the early church’s rhythm of ‘cell and celebration’.” With the book of Acts as our Biblical grounding and ethos from abiding in the Holy Spirit, we won’t immediately start with a brick and mortar Sunday Morning Worship Service but rather with discipleship among small groups of people committed to “being the church” together and as the community of communities grows we will naturally know when it is time to launch Sunday worship gatherings to bring the small groups together as one as a place where we can express our love for the Lord and receive the sacraments together. It may look radical, we will need to be flexible and sensitive to what grows dynamically, but it was the small group that formed the foundation of the original movement of the Spirit after Pentecost. The church miraculously welcomed thousands into baptism and communion but it was after a few years of discipleship with Jesus himself. With much prayer and support, with the care of the Global Methodist Church of South Carolina Annual Conference, and with our growing network, we continue to discern the Lord’s guidance and prepare to make things happen.
A special thanks goes to those who came to our Fundraising Dinner at Aldersgate Global Methodist Church. Thank you for listening to my heart for the mission and felt moved to pledge prayers, gifts, and the gift of your presence in the future. I covet the prayers of the surrounding churches who were in attendance and have pledged to support the plant: Knightsville, Point Hope, Aldersgate, and The Ridgeville Charge – the word is getting out! Even now a small group of leaders have let me know they have been prompted by the Lord to come on this journey for discipleship, accountability, and leadership and we plan to have our first get together for worship, testimony, and planning on Thursday July 25th. I’ll be sending out a group invite soon.
A phrase keeps running through my head, “We are excited and simultaneously terrified.” Excited that the Lord is doing a work and we have the privilege and honor to step into it and terrified because we have to trust the Lord in every step keeping our ego out of the process as we raise support and build a team that will spend the next three years making this new church a reality. It will be a lot of prayer, listening the will of the Spirit, and sweat equity. While we enter this journey we know it can only be done by the power of God Almighty and for the honor of His name. We want people to connect to the life saving power of Jesus Christ!
If you feel called to join the Holy Spirit and my family in prayer, financial support, or signing up to personally launch this endeavor then take these steps:
(1)Pray for a mighty act of God for revival in the Summerville, Metro Charleston area.
(2)Sign up for our “Lowcountry Church Plant Newsletter” for testimonies, prayer requests, and Pastor Dan’s reflections on the journey. Click here to add your email.
Pledges and donations can also be mailed to: “GMC of SC” and mailed to this address: 106 Groce Rd, Lyman, SC 29365 Add “Lowcountry Church Plant” in the memo line of any checks or note it somehow when giving.
(4)Contact Pastor Dan if you feel led to make this your congregation and become part of a Lowcountry Church Plant small group via email: dgriswold@gmcofsc.org
We are excited as we grow with the movement of the Holy Spirit. May God revive our hearts as we seek the salvation of all people! Let’s make the world a better place.
I committed to becoming a United Methodist at Saint Andrew By-The-Sea UMC on Hilton Head Island, SC in the year 2010 after having been a member for a year and realizing I was called to ministry as an Elder in the general church. Having been reared in the Assemblies of God, I had Wesleyan DNA but had never read John Wesley’s sermons, writings, or notes; so I began to read and realized I am a Methodist having both the rational and enthusiast impulses (including the more charismatic leanings that spilled over into the Pentecostal movement). Because the AOG did not engender nor necessarily encourage higher academic pursuits at the local church level, Methodism gave me a place and I backed up historically for personal and communal ecclesial commitments after careful study and prayer.
In the differences and through Bible study, I shifted from my inherited believer only baptism towards baptism of infants realizing that the book of Acts contains accounts of whole households baptized together and read the church fathers commitment to this particular form of God’s prevenient grace. I fell in love with evangelism seeing God reaching out to all people in all places at all times. Methodism awoke that impulse within me and I am thankful. I also shifted from a congregational form of polity to episcopal (supervisory) form of church governance and that was a natural move. I have always felt that accountability and a line of command is good when done not from a place of power but from a system of equals seeking to be saints but for those who had extraordinary wisdom, those seeking that wisdom and experience could rely on the District Superintendents and in a more distant but important way, the Bishop.
The other components of my Christian identity did not need to shift at all because at the heart of John and Charles Wesley’s movement was the central core of spreading “Scriptural Holiness across the land.” As long as the scriptures (containing all that we need for salvation) were upheld as the benchmark, and there containing the revelation of God within, the discernment of communal discipline would be sound. In reading the Book of Discipline of 2008, I read a good document and I agreed by it to abide and teach. I learned Methodist History, Polity, and Theology and fell in love with God more deeply through an intensive five years of ordination (I had already received my Masters of Divinity at Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary, so my journey to ordination duration was cut in half). Working through District and Conference Board of Ordained Ministry, I soon found that my choice for online Methodist education was looked down on by many (Asbury Theological Seminary) and there were barbs that highlighted to me there was discord in the body. I’ve learned since despite my naiveté that all bodies have discord of some sort but it is a matter of how much that makes all the difference. The United Methodist Church I was joining was embroiled in a 50 year long battle over human sexuality and the traditional view of marriage, sexuality, and ordination. There was a status quo with progressive views held but hush hush in the more traditional South Carolina Conference. My eyes were opened and I had to dig deep to understand the history of why it was such a large issue.
Many who have lived in the politics of the United Methodist world know all the issues and history of these battles that would come to a head at each General Conference. My first General Conference was the 2012 and then I prayed over the 2016 GC. The disfunction over these issues was increasing and disobedience to the discipline was increasing with visibility and national reporting. I had folks coming to me to ask my opinion and I honestly spoke about where I stand as a newly minted United Methodist minister, having been made a Provisional Elder in 2015 and having been granted full ordination in 2017 by the hands and prayer of Bishop Jonathan L. Holston of the South Carolina Annual Conference (I am still proud that I made it through the fires of ordination by the way – it was intense and refining as it should be). In discerning the Holy Scriptures and serving a new charge in Ridgeville with three churches, we held town halls and I explained where I stood as pastor and where The United Methodist Church stood. I really didn’t expect that The United Methodist Church would bifurcate and the now called “Traditionalists” would leave to form the Global Methodist Church on May 1, 2022 two years ago. I felt that the traditional scriptural teachings on marriage and human sexuality would be debated, disobeyed, but the Discipline would stand and I would be able to teach with proper order. Others in the congregations disagreed with me and their skepticism has been proven right. That charge has since left The United Methodist Church and is now united with The Global Methodist Church with the pastor that followed me when our Bishop moved me to North Charleston UMC in 2021.
I’ve now spent three wonderful and good challenging years as the pastor of North Charleston United Methodist Church. This church lives into some of the best values of following Christ and their concern for the community has allowed me to be an evangelistic preacher. We’ve grown the church together and solidified the leadership and the facilities have been renovated in an ongoing process that took some grit and fortitude. God has worked through our mutual love for each other and those who live in our community. In these years I’ve known that about 1/3 of the congregation disagrees respectfully with my traditional teachings on marriage and human sexuality. I love them regardless. I know that about 1/3 of the church is still working out their views on all these things. Many aren’t at a place where they want to make definitive statements and I’ve felt that I’ve been able to speak into that space. Then we have about 1/3 of the congregation that has been in alignment with me and I’ve comforted them as we build up a local church for Jesus Christ but mourn the trajectory of the greater denomination. I’ve loved no one differently. Christ is for all of us and wants us to learn and grow into perfection together.
The part of this that is so painful now is that The United Methodist Church at the 2024 (delayed 2020) General Conference in Charlotte has made proclamations on marriage and human sexuality that are not aligned with the revelation of God contained in the Holy Scriptures. I’ve seen pastors online celebrating that marriage can now be between “two persons” rather than one man and one woman in monogamy. I am for the rights of all people in a liberal Democracy to choose their own path and discern how they live their lives, but I also as a Christian minister (and someone formed by the tenets put forth by John Wesley himself in the making of a revival movement of Methodists), I have a scriptural mandate to tell the world and even my church when they are wrong. Jesus himself in Matthew chapter 19 affirms the Genesis account of what marriage actually is and it is given by God as a particular form. I’ve also seen well known people in the methodist world sharing that marriage in the Bible is not uniform citing examples of polygamy, incest, among others. Unfortunately these people are deceived or are purposefully deceiving others into thinking that because something is recorded in the Bible it is actually prescribed by God. We certainly do not affirm Jezebel’s actions of killing the prophets as God’s will simply because it is recorded. Those things which are described are not necessarily prescribed or given as admonishment for us to do likewise. In all accounts of polygamy or other forms of marriage described in the Bible, there are consequences. Many living in those arrangements are not bad people, but there is no “Thus sayeth the Lord” or an act of law that brings the institution into effect. As far as I have discerned from my reading and learning of the scriptures, nothing has repealed the Genesis account setting up that a man and woman leave their father and mother to be united as one for the formation of a new family and the cultivation of the earth as stewards. We ought not leave that institution or amend it according to the spirit of the times.
I realize that puts me in a minority in The United Methodist Church and perhaps in the culture of the United States as well. I am a subset of people that love and welcome all and respect the dignity and rights of all people to make their paths, but also stand and preach the Word of God in all its original intentions and prescriptions. Because this sets me at odds with the Book of Discipline, I will be making decisions accordingly in the coming months. I’ve discerned that my path is now diverging and I’ll be joining The Global Methodist Church which continues to uphold a Discipline that may not be perfect in polity (it is still a work in progress) but that the doctrines and teachings will continue to contain and maintain the boundaries for marriage and human sexuality that are still in force from the ancient days to Jesus Christ alluded to by the Apostle Paul and upheld through the millennia until this current time. I do not accept that the Holy Spirit is prompting these changes but rather the Spirit of this Age is at work in the body of Christ.
I will continue to pray for The United Methodist Church and all who continue to be nurtured within it though I cannot any longer remain in the UMC covenant (BOD) myself. I do not believe that institutions are infallible and in that I am a continual Protestant with a penchant for critical reflection on our communal commitments in society. As I walk in another direction I do not look away with bitterness or any sort of malice to those I love and have served. We can disagree and move on, though I do hope everyone will read the entire corpus of scripture, seek a posture of learning from the Holy Spirit, and discern the path forward carefully. There always are a set of elite people to set themselves up to speak for all the people. In the times of Judges there were good governors and bad governors but the phrase “people did what was right in their own eyes” developed in the phases of righteous and unrighteous judgement. We always have a choice to do what is right and we don’t always have to agree with those who govern us. In my case, as a minister of the Gospel, I have a higher commitment and responsibility and so I cannot uphold the Discipline as it will now be printed with a slew of items (marriage, relativity of truth to pastor/church, avenues of abortion, among others). I painfully submit that I cannot continue with this body.
To those who spoke into my life and formed me who walk a different way, I pray for God to guide and direct you. I do hope someday the rift will be mended. God in His infinite mercy sees farther than we can during our short lives. To God be the glory, forever and ever. Amen.
Due to wars decimating infrastructure, environmental instability, tribal conflicts, community violence, and a myriad of other reasons – people are on the move globally. In my current class on Non-Governmental Organizations and Mission, we considered how many people are on the move and considered the Biblical Mandate to welcome the stranger among us. Of course, we also have to consider that we have not allowed those displaced in our world to even be “among us” as wealthy communities erect barriers to keep those less prosperous out of our communities. But for those who hear the heart of God, so many are reaching out across borders and sharing their resources to help make the world a better place for all the peoples without a home.
In my quiet time today I asked God if I should write a song about what I was feeling as I prayed for the peoples across the globe and it came to me that I might be able to rewrite “Be Still My Soul” (a favorite hymn in times of troubles) as a song of the Migrant.
I renamed it “Seeking Our Home” and put some chords that resemble the original “Old Finlandia” tune. I’ll post the words here and here is a link to the Word .doc if you’d like to play it yourself. It was a deep part of my devotion today and perhaps I’ll share it by playing it sometime soon.
Let me know what you think if you play it or utilize it in a discussion or devotion. God be with you and keep your hands helping your neighbor.
Seeking Our Home (Capo 2) (to Old Finlandia) (Verse 1) Seeking our Home We weep among the trails carrying children crying on our backs when we were born, the bombs began to fall we lived in tents and starved in foreign lands Where will we go What land will help us come Will God’s face hide as people die in vain
(Verse 2) Seeking our Home The Spirit Leads us on Will God provide compassion and repair The hearts of all who live abundant lives Who set the barbedwire fences in our way A place to sleep Where wolves won’t swarm and shake the promises Our God sincerely made
(Verse 3) Seeking our Home The nightmare never ends The television shows us talking heads Who have no heart to make orphans friends Thy Kingdom Come Means nothing on the air Break hearts of stone Remold their hearts anew O Jesus Christ impress their hands with love
(Verse 4) Seeking our Home We know the time will come When Christ returns and we will see his throne But hear us now while grief and fear remain Protect your servants thrown into the flames We seek a home Where all are made to thrive Prepare a place To faithfully remain
In a moment of spiritual burden, I find myself talking with God and in the conversation the Spirit leaves impressions and movements that lead me in new paths of peace. Today I was feeling a heavy spiritual burden and desired to write something down that maybe one day can be reformulated to guitar and become something to share. Those who read the Psalms may recognize that the language is heavily dependent on Biblical language as I’ve been reading the Psalms a lot. They are comforting but also give words to the grief I’ve felt walking with people through so much tragedy and pain over the last 8 years. I think there is a bit of therapy here as I spoke how my spirit felt and the Lord returned a word of hopeful jubilation. My prayer is that there is something here for someone else who is in need of hope. It is not edited thoroughly (those who love grammar may need to avert their eyes) so it is pretty raw and I’ve added some Responses as I may refine it and use it in the Liturgy of the church someday. May we all seek the Lord and find His peace in the cries of our hearts and in the Shalom of resting in His presence. -Dan
The Lord is Great and Worthy of Praise.
The age of the Church of Christ as divisions multiply and the world rushes
And colonizes the ashes of monuments and pews no longer used to glorify God.
The era of stagnation while viruses chain and spread to close the world
And government hands wrap around sanctuary to close rose windows.
The Lord is Great and Worthy of Praise.
The righteous cannot escape by fleeing into worldly gardens of emptiness.
Where birds die and the smokestacks rise while ash falls to cover the flowers.
And grey eyes look at the broken earth with no hope of ever breaking through barbed wire fences.
When worry reigns and limbs break and the spirit of mercy chokes on a cough.
The Lord is Great and Worthy of Praise.
Trouble is given like a gift and the children release tears that have no end
And we tremble as the invention and craft of warfare dampen the light of the world.
The sun is gone, the moon has fallen, the clouds flee at an eclipse of blood from the winepress
And wrath is poured into our sight to the wicked, ruling with deception, greed, and malice.
All now hunger for something no food can satisfy, like when God’s Spirit descended
In the prayers of a friend and the touch of a holy hand, sitting in a room so full of love.
And hearing the divine voice speak so clearly as the Spirit repaired the hurting heart.
The Lord is Great and Worthy of Praise.
No one can see the future without the vision of the Almighty God
No human can taste eternity without the fulfillment given as a gift from the Son of God.
No earthly creature will see the face of God without experiencing the pain of this earth.
So within the troubles of this age, as earthquakes break apart the mountains
As oceans crush the pillars of once proud cities and the people of the nations tremble
Those who humble themselves and fear God will see visions and dream dreams, to inherit his favor.
This God, whose Spirit searches the ends of the earth, whose arms encompass the cosmos,
It is in the mercy of this King that all may rest and remain.
The Lord is Great and Worthy of Praise.
This, because we cannot see the future, and it is not in our power to grasp beyond our senses
But as a gift we experience but a piece of the world in a time of God’s choosing, and then we die
We will be made again, by faith that holds, as we seek this one and only Master of all the pathways.
God, it is, who can speak to our land and calm the judgements from the blood of our war.
By the Son, who speaks life and is resurrected, we see the Father, the giver of hope.
As the Spirit goes forth as a comforter who sees the righteous and knows the pain of living,
So across the holy places on the face of the earth, our Lord speaks, and we are called to hear His voice.
The Lord is Great and Worthy of Praise.
I’ve read poems and sung songs and have seen the scriptures about the wolf who seeks to devour flesh and spirit,
We will not fear, nor will we worry, neither will we speak as if the Evil One has power over the land we’ve been given.
The Lord has conquered the enemy, the once great deceiver, whose might is like a vine that is ripped from the earth
And as the evil is unwrapped from the tree, the trunk of salvation has grown and life has not been destroyed or decayed.
Nothing can stop our God! Nothing can break the armies of the King on High!
We serve the one who rules over the nations of the earth.
The Lord is Great and Worthy of Praise.
The denominations may argue and many will fall; like concrete foundations that lose their water and return to the dust
The invisible church gives witness to what the Lord has done, with hands reaching high in worship and praise.
The peoples of the earth will remember and retell the mighty victories as heaven reimagines the earth and God’s breath spreads
Into many new beginnings and revivals that will spring forth in the Day of the Lord when evil fades
The deep breath of creation will be filled with life and the exhale will be with a shout of jubilant celebration.
The Lord is Great and Worthy of Praise.
Who will stand before God and not be afraid? Let us grasp faith in He who covers our failures in His own blood.
How can we march to this place if we cannot see? The Spirit of God will guide us and we will be filled with knowledge.
What will come of all we have lost and the sacrifices given in His name? The Lord will fill our homes with gladness.
When will the earth be healed and the nations see His glory? When the Lord has chosen we will hear His footsteps.
The Lord is Great and Worthy of Praise!
Hallelujah! God is stronger than fear!
Hallelujah! Those who have died will be raised to new life!
Thank you Jesus! Your name will bring peace to the nations!
God’s greatness will be known and the world will find peace!
And the dragon will be slain, the earth will rejoice, life will regrow!
The old pathways will once again lead to wisdom. Let us understand the truth of life!
O Holy God: Father, Son, and Spirit; sustain us and seal us in the days of pain.
Set our feet firmly once again on the highway that leads to You.
My personal news feed is stacked with articles from business research organizations that give thoughts on how to make one’s organization more effective in its missions and purposes. I stumbled across this article on the Graduate School of Stanford Business webpage titled “How Power Struggles Escalate”. It rang a bell in my soul because (1) My denomination The United Methodist Church is in the midst of a power struggle that is leading to a split, (2) every church I’ve worked in as a Youth Director and then as Pastor has dealt with power struggles that needed unwinding, and (3) every human organization I observe in the post-modern era is dealing with deconstruction – meaning institutions are being dissected and roles that were once clear in our political and corporate environment are now unclear because of a vast social review process (aided by social media and the democratizing process of the internet). All of these items have at one time or another caused angst in my personal life and I’ve seen others in stress as a result of the same. So what did this article say that was so helpful in thinking this through?
In human organizations Lindred Greer posits in this article that as high powered individuals move up the organizational ladder they receive more power. In a very Tolkien-esque Lord of the Rings idea of power, Greer states, “Put simply, power changes people.” As power is gained, activity begins to turn towards preserving power rather than working on organizational goals and those with unclear roles in the power structure can actively work against one another to hold their gains which leads to conflict. In the church, the proverbial Church Council split over the color of the carpet might not actually be about the carpet but is rather an all out confrontation of who has the most say and whose voice has the weight that will carry the decision in the end. Not very democratic, but if recent political currents have taught us anything it is that powerful people seek to rally others to their cause not to convince the perceived opposition of their rightness, but rather to take the ball down the field to the goal line in an unstoppable force in great numbers. This is not healthy for a nation, it is not healthy for a business or non-profit, and it is certainly a death knell for a church that throws off the image of Christ washing the feet of the disciples saying in the Gospel of Mark chapter 10 verses 42b to 49: “You know that among the Gentiles those whom they recognize as their rulers lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them. But it is not so among you; but whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all. For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.” As Christian leaders we are to exemplify the redistribution of power to those who have lost through acts of service as an outpouring rather than maintaining one’s status and role in an organizational hierarchy.
As an illustrative aside, every church I’ve served there have been tales of Napoleons. By Napoleons, Greer does not state that these are bad people, but that unchecked those who seek power will lord themselves over others building a coalition that does not seek to take various viewpoints into consideration and decision making but rather as a bully position that begins to conquer others and take their domains of influence. How does this happen in the churches I’ve worked and served in? Lower in the hierarchy, power struggles are more benign and power is about face time with those they give immediate report or up the ladder. I remember a movie where a CEO name “Teddy K” comes and gives a speech to a particular branch of his company and he knows one man’s name who has an enraptured moment stating “Teddy K knows my name!” In the beginning our instinct to power leads us to desire to be around those and learn from those who have gained the means to their ends. The youth director, who leads without power tests their ability to make decisions by aligning with the values of the Pastor. If a youth director does not align with the one in authority, then a power struggle can erupt and the youth director will usually lose and will either stand down or be fired. I’ve even seen situations where a Youth Director was simply popular and the Pastor felt a threat which led to a one sided power struggle and a narrative was created that led to the departure of the YD. Lots of hurt feelings in those who have sought mentoring and have found that the gates of power are carefully guarded and Napoleon is marching on. From the pastor’s perspective, it is a careful cultivation of servanthood and distribution of power to those with the wisdom and authority to act that leads to a more healthy egalitarian spirit of leadership. Greer notes that a King Arthur style round table with each knight knowing clearly the center of their talent and authority leads to consensus decision making under the eyes of a servant oriented leader. This is the style that most corporations at least aspire to and that which churches also preach towards.
All too often our pastorates and by proxy our Annual and General Conferences in the United Methodist Church (and also among the other denominations and associations of Christianity in America) have been enamored with where power and authority resides and how decision making can be owned by particular groups or caucuses. This mirrors the world and I believe the active splits in our denominations are due to our inability to live as Christ has taught us at the institutional level. The church of Christ has fallen into sin and can no longer effectively speak to the world effectively because we have fallen into the temptation of Napoleon. Each church I’ve served has had to outlive and outlast the Napoleons among them and when they burn themselves out, have sought the leadership of the servants among them to heal and move on. I would like to think that beyond the splitting of our denominations, when the dust settles and most have found the house in which they will reside, that the spirit of Christ’s servanthood would again gain a foothold and give wisdom to the church. When the church acts like the empire, we know that we have walked off the “paths made straight in the wilderness by our Lord.” We will not see life in our own power, but rather death will always be the end of that wide road. My prayer is that wherever we are, we might look into our hearts and reform our own selves so that the round tables may be rebuilt and we might clearly share power again so Christ can be the center and we might serve in His high and holy name.
Daniel Griswold Thought This 