Bible in Time 2020 - Discipleship?

Christ Pantocrator mosaic in Byzantine style, from Cefalù Cathedral in Sicily, Italy, c. 1130
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The Holy Name of Jesus
1 January 2020

Discipleship? Now what?

This year for the Bible in Time blog will be a year-long reflection on “What it means to be a servant of Jesus Christ and a disciple in the modern world?”

Ephesians 2:8-10 GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)

God saved you through faith as an act of kindness. You had nothing to do with it. Being saved is a gift from God. It’s not the result of anything you’ve done, so no one can brag about it. God has made us what we are. He has created us in Christ Jesus to live lives filled with good works that he has prepared for us to do. [1]

So you have been saved, now what?

As a reflection, this blog this year will be more like a scrapbook of thoughts about individual and corporate spiritual practice, expectations, where the Church is at today (IMHO), and what’s next. These reflections may not be in any particular order or sequence.

As a reflection, this will be an opinion piece where I see the topic as it was written. It is intended to help others in their faith journey.

As a reflection, my voice is led by the Holy Spirit as one who has had faith in God as long as I can remember. I was baptized at a Lutheran Church in Paradice, CA. I was raised in Lutheran congregations in the Midwest (USA). I attended a Lutheran College. I attended a Lutheran Seminary (ELCA). I was not ordained but served the Church as my wife, Katheryn, served in Lutheran Congregations and Episcopal Parishes through her ordained ministry. 

Professionally, I have volunteered or been hired to run stewardship programs and capital campaigns on the national, regional, and congregational expressions throughout the North American Church in a variety of mainline denominations. I have served as a volunteer on denominational jurisdictional councils and committees. 

I live in Oregon where Christianity is not the faith of the majority of people but a minority and evangelical faith. I worship in at Episcopal and Lutheran Churches in my area. I have done Morning Prayer in the Book of Common Prayer for 10 years.

With that, I hope to reflect on the Church in an era of declining worshippers and attenders where most parishes, congregations, and churches have not kept up with modern communication channels and modality.

Using the Bible as a basis and source of faith, I will walk with God reflecting on the ministry of the people of God today and into the third decade of the 21st century.

Come, journey with me…

In the name of the Triune God,

Dave Eitland
Cornelius, Oregon, USA

© 2020 - Dave Eitland and Katheryn M. King. All rights reserved. P.S. - I will try to post something each week toward the end of the week.

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Endnotes:

[1] - This Scripture taken from God’s Word ® Translation. Copyright 1995 by God’s Word f or the Nations. Used with permission. Retrieved through Biblegateway.com (28 December 2019)