10 Reasons I Am A Methodist

Brad Miller: 00:00:00

Hello Good people welcome to to be in courage, the podcast where we look to offer an encouraging word to a discouraged world. Featuring the thoughts and the prayers and the teachings of Indiana area Bishop Julius C. Triple Bishop, triple Welcome to Our Podcast conversation today. Thank you, Dr. Brad. I've been looking forward to this new edition of the podcast and new recording. And I've got a question for everybody in our listening audience and those who will partake partake in this podcast?

Bishop Julius Trimble: 00:00:37

Recording How is it with your soul? That's a question that's very much a part of who we are as Wesleyan and as United Methodist. But I asked that question of, of those who are here this across the globe and and on this day, how is it with your soul? And I'll come back and respond to that, as we have further conversation? Well, let's just do this about that for right now. If people want to respond to you about how is it with your soul is, is it okay for people to email you, for instance, to tell you about? How is it with their soul? Or to contact you through the website here? You can always go through our website to be encouraged.com. But can they email you for instance? Absolutely. Folks would like to respond how it is with your soul. I would point you to Matthew 11, verses 28 through 30. And the Message Bible from Eugene Peterson is helpful. But you can contact me at Bishop at i n umc.org. Or you throughout to be encouraged. website. And I'd be glad to respond to you. And continue to be in prayer for and with you. Are you tired, worn out, burned out on religion? Come to me get away with me and you recover your life. I'll show you how to take a real wrist. Walk with me and work with me watch how I do it. This is Jesus speaking, learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won't lay anything heavy, or ill fitting on you. keep company with me. And you will learn to live freely and lightly. Matthew 1128 through 30 Read it in various translations. And this was the message reading of that verse.

Brad Miller: 00:02:29

Well, I'll just thank you for sharing that verse of scripture is kind of our theme to get started, I'll share with you and my soul. I'm in a contemplative point. After receiving some some news in my life and health wise, it makes me think and so things make you think and contemplate about what's next. And I appreciate your good, your good word there about that. And for us to, you know, we need to ask for us, especially as Wesleyan and most of us listen to those podcasts. Our clergy are devoted late people or people who have a passion for the church. And we just need to be reminded of that question, how is it with your soul? And and I think maybe perhaps you asked, you've been asking yourself that question a little bit here. Recently, Bishop because we're going to talk about a book that you wrote that has to do with I believe you have to help me out here. Some of your thoughts about

Brad Miller: 00:03:20

your thoughts about the United Methodist Church in what is it all about? How is it with our relationship with with the church? We're, we're talking about your brand new book, which is called 10 reasons. I'm a Methodist. And we'll talk in our podcasts here but how people can get a hold of that book. But let me just ask you, Bishop,

Brad Miller: 00:03:42

cut reflecting with this question, how is it with your soul? How is it that you came to want to write or find a need to write write this book? 10 reasons I'm a Methodist. Well, actually, this goes goes back a few years ago, before before our last General Conference, when there began to be some inkling around church separation over

Bishop Julius Trimble: 00:04:07

the long standing dispute around human sexuality and authority of Scripture. And I wrote initially an article based on the song by Al Green, the Reverend Al Green, is an r&b singer who turned preacher and the song song one of his most popular songs, let's stay together. And that article was basically an argument or testimony if you will, that we need not agree about all things with especially with Biden's my mind say even today we need not think of like the love of life.

Bishop Julius Trimble: 00:04:46

And it's my contention that and I've always served churches that there was diversity, some which I knew about some which I didn't know about, whether it was personal experience or sexual orientation. In, or economic status, there always was diversity in the congregation as I served theological leanings conservative, what people might call progressive, and people who just were learning to love Jesus. So I was inspired to write this book because some people have made an argument that this is a time of disaffiliation, and maybe also a time of reformation. And I wanted to basically publish a testimony. Actually, I probably have 100 reasons. I'm a United Methodist. But I only put 10 reasons because I really wanted to prop people that began to think for themselves, as my wife would probably say, what do you believe in? Why do you believe it? And I was born, born a Methodist, my parents were Methodist. And I know a lot of the people who are in our church today, were not necessarily born into the Methodist family or the West End family, but found themselves and found a local congregation where they've where they've learned to love Jesus and love their neighbor and love their fellow parishioners, and find a place to do mission and ministry. So I listed 10 reasons. But I'm been really working on now kind of an addendum to the book of bread about more reasons that I am a Methodist. All right. And, and you know, for example, the beauty of grace and understanding grace, for example, United Methodist Committee on Relief, work that historically done as it relates to work, responding to disasters. So I wrote the book 10 reasons I'm a Methodist, to be a testimony, to inspire and encourage persons who are in the United Methodist Church, that want to continue to be United Methodist, and are not dependent upon a church where everybody believes, you know, the same, all the same things, but we all do believe Jesus Christ is Lord. And as one pastor said, prayer, Jesus Christ is Lord, everything else is just a conversation.

Brad Miller: 00:07:12

Well, that's, that that kind of says it right there. And that that's awesome. No, no, it's several of the points that you make, in this book have to do with the primacy of Jesus, the primacy of grace. And you know, we do live in a time where, you know, words like disaffiliation, or splintering, or division or diversion, and the ugly words like racism, and sexism, all come into play here and part of our part of our public conversation, and things like siloing, and all those kinds of things. But you're, you're talking here about one of things I love what you said early on in your book, you know, a little more in this kind of goes against the grain just a little bit here. A little more Jesus, a little less Wesley, more space for grace and diversity, without compromising connection. And I love that turn of a phrase there. We, you know, some people have used Wesley as a weapon. So people use Jesus as a weapon, don't they? And we, I think we need to get back to not pointing fingers. But I love the upgrade analogy. You and I about the same age. And I'm an old disc jockey from those days. Let's stay together. And that's awesome. But let's talk about some of the things you talked about in the book here that let's talk about, for instance, prayer, you really lift up were a couple times in your in your book here about why your Methodist prayer. Let's talk about that for a minute.

Bishop Julius Trimble: 00:08:37

Well, you know, I think that's something is really getting ready to take off in the Indiana conference, United Methodist Church, a whole whole prayer movement. And our annual conference theme for 2023 is praying our way forward. So we're really going to be focusing on prayer and what it means to do prayer walks and what it means then to embrace prayer is as not as a spiritual exercise, I'd say actually is more than a spiritual exercise. It's really the breathe on faith. Prayer. I think when I think about when I sing, someone says when you sing, you're praying twice, I think. And I think that might be the metaphor people use. But I think you know, we, prayer is not just asking God to do something. Prayer is making ourselves available to be in the presence of the holy, the presence of, of God, not asking God to do something for us, but to do for God often to do something with us. And so I'm gonna be praying for you, Brad, actually, you're already on my prayer list. You're even in the book. If you read

Brad Miller: 00:09:42

closely, I saw that. I didn't know if it was me or not because there's other brands in the world. That's

Bishop Julius Trimble: 00:09:49

right. I hope every brand in the world

Brad Miller: 00:09:52

but I do appreciate it very much

Bishop Julius Trimble: 00:09:55

but you make us because a commitment to prayer. It's It connects us in kind of a forgive me but but a sacramental way? Yeah, I would say in a very sacramental way so, so every every Sunday morning, I grew up in a house where my parents, you know, prayer was an option. On Sunday mornings we had prayer, and we prayed on our knees. There was a median of Scripture. That was pretty everybody got on their knees. You said, you said a Bible verse or a prayer. And then we close in the Lord's Prayer. Then we went to breakfast. So there was no breakfast on Sunday mornings. Until we did we have done that done that exercise. And my mother had a stroke a year and a half ago. She's 100 years old now. But my goodness, for up to the point, she had her stroke, if you were visiting her in our home, and you were there on a Sunday morning, you still participated in morning prayer, before breakfast, my sister live, that that lived downstairs and my, one of my younger brothers lived with my mom.

Brad Miller: 00:11:01

And I understand I understand you got some biscuits too? Is that right? Is that

Bishop Julius Trimble: 00:11:05

part of it? Yeah, there was homemade biscuits on Sunday mornings as well.

Brad Miller: 00:11:11

And what things would you say I love about your book here is that you interjected your life experiences. It was not just kind of a point by point treatise about, you know, these are wise, but you interject your life experience with your church life, your family life, and your experiences with your spiritual life. And I'll

Bishop Julius Trimble: 00:11:28

say prayer is is our common love language. And when I think about people who have chosen the churches that have chosen to disaffiliate you know, it's interesting, because people who are staying United Methodists and people are leaving, we both believe in the power of prayer. Yes. So So I, you know, I, my, one of my prayers is that people have actually been, really felt led by the Holy Spirit that this is something that they must do, in order to experience the fullness of their, their, their spiritual and religious life, to disaffiliate. Or, as I've done, and many others have done to said, I want to stay United Methodist, the church doesn't have to be perfect for me to understand that the church has been primary in my understanding and experience and growing bread in prayer. You know, it wasn't just my parents. And it certainly wasn't on me because there was a period of time when I was in college that kind of strayed away from straight. But you know, I never strayed away from prayer. You know, I prayed a lot of 911 for years. To get me out of this, to go back to

Brad Miller: 00:12:39

digging me out, Lord of the hole is there's, there's there's no atheist during finals week, for instance, right. Now, well, that's awesome. Well, I was touched by a couple of the other chapters in your book about kind of your by kind of a historical perspective, the one about your Alabama beginnings, and also the the one about a couple of here about the about African university. But those connections there, I thought were important about, you know, kind of the roots of your connection, our historical connection, and then where we're going, you know, that type of thing. Can you say a word about the importance to people that want to stay Methodist, about somehow being connected to our heritage personally, or as a church?

Bishop Julius Trimble: 00:13:24

Well, one thing I think we often don't speak enough about is how much the church has cared for us and for the society and for the communities in which they've been planted. So many of our churches have really been very, very inspirational and important to the history of the communities and towns where we live in as many of them had been part of the progression of society becoming more inclusive. Not to say that we don't have things that we ought to be asking God forgiveness for. And many of many of our church for example, in my case, my parents were African Methodist, Episcopal Zion, in Alabama, that church that they belong to, actually traced its history back to slavery, and the church that they were the building, it was started this is before my parents long before my parents were born, but but was a was really a result of the Methodist Church in Montgomery, and segregation and segregation. But there still was a sense that the Methodist message of holiness, spiritual holiness, of being followers of Christ, and of a more brighter future, permeated their understanding of Methodism. And so that they stuck with them and so when they moved north, my mom my mother married my dad who lived in Chicago, they went to the closest Methodist church they can find it was before we were United Methodist, right. And because the liturgy was the same, the hymns were, you know, the rich hymns were the same, my hope is built on nothing less. I love to tell the story of Jesus and His love. You know, the church was one foundation, these rich hymns, were proud of their heritage, and the notion and, and the, and the understanding that you would have a pastor who preached from the Bible, but also spoke to the contemporary world and realities that we were faced with. This has been part of the long history and heritage of Methodism and united Methodism. And I think that's one of the reasons I know my parents stay close, stay connected to the Methodist Church. And because it also paid attention to the families that had children. And I was, I was one of six children. So I wanted to search that did value value children and had Sunday School and Camp opportunities for children.

Brad Miller: 00:16:10

But you mentioned camp there. And I'd like to talk to you for a second about how you mentioned a couple things having to do with the nature of Church itself, which is why you remain a United Methodist. And as this book isn't supported people who want to remain it as United Methodist church camp, and the people in the pew, so I think they kind of go together, they kind of go together in the sense of once about faith of you know, about coming to faith and opportunities, I believe, and the other is about discipleship and training and community. Can you say a word about those areas, things like camp, and, you know, laity about Yeah, you

Bishop Julius Trimble: 00:16:47

can't you can't get me to say anything bad about camp. I'm a proponent of camp. And I've heard I've heard all the data around people who go to church, Christian church camp, and United Methodist camps, in particular, in my case, often, that is their first encounter with with making a decision for Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. And people who come to Christ at camp are more likely to remain Christians for the rest of their lives. I had a chance to go to I can connect these two together. I wish there were more stories written about lay people in the church in the Christian church in general. Yeah. And the United met, because so many lay people I could read or write a 500 page two volume series on just lay people that have impacted me some that I've forgotten along the way. And you know, Brad, and we all were late, late people. Absolutely. You have preachers don't drop from trees. So I can. My father died in 1969 have lung cancer on the on the operating table. And so my mother was left with six children. She's a school teacher. And right at the time, that same year, my dad that was also my I think my second opportunity to go to camp. Yeah, that was my second opportunity to go to camp. I've been accepted into camp three times. But the first couple of times, we went to camp, I went to camp. I also had a brother who went to camp at the same time I went to camp. My parents really, my mom did couldn't afford to really spend the money out of our limited budget. We weren't poor, but we still weren't living on the hog.

Brad Miller: 00:18:36

So speech single mom with six kids my good Yeah,

Bishop Julius Trimble: 00:18:38

yeah, yeah. But but you know what? The church said, don't worry if you sign up. We will take care of it. Yeah. And the Methodist, Methodist Women and Methodist man provided scholarships. And I never forget that, that I don't think we had to have we didn't have to pay anything.

Brad Miller: 00:18:55

So that was that was the community coming together to serve your congregate? Yeah. And you came together and then you you share about that. You also will talk about Mr. Russell, and about how the embodiment of being a good neighbor. And what that is, is so important to what we're about as a church, isn't it? You know, so, say some more about that.

Bishop Julius Trimble: 00:19:17

Yeah, Bill Russell was a lay person. This is after I became a pastor, my first full time appointment, and he joined the church and said, at the PVC pass, I don't want to belong on the administrative board. I don't want to be on a trustee board. But I will work with the food pantry. And we had a kind of fledgling little food pantry with a couple of shelves and some canned goods. And when when Bill Russell got a hold of that he was he and some other volunteers, he began to recruit volunteers that became a pretty significant food pantry in the city of North Chicago, which was also located near two military bases. And it had it had a section of the city that was very much impoverished. But that food pantry took off because of Bill Russell. And Bill Russell also took took me under his wings and decided that that I needed to learn how to go fishing. Yeah. And I never said no, when he invited me to go fishing. We always caught some fish.

Brad Miller: 00:20:23

So he took her son, your son or sons.

Bishop Julius Trimble: 00:20:26

He took on my oldest son fishing, and I remember that he came back, bragging because I only got some little hand fish. And he puts up, he caught some, something a little bit bigger. But Bill Russell was the kind of person you know, nobody writes about, you know, there's a famous Bill Russell. Yeah. Oh, yeah. Yes, recently passed away. Right. We had 1010 10 NBA championship rings to basketball. This Bill Russell was the consummate lay person, he volunteered I think every Tuesday or Thursday, it was to go to a nursing home. To to, to give basically pedicures, he said I was just going to cut the toenails. Seniors, what would that would never have anybody come see them. What a

Brad Miller: 00:21:13

what a gift of humility and service in that. That's kind of like Jesus footwashing thing, isn't it in a very real way. And that's what I love about that story. And then you tell some other great stories in your book that have to do with how the church has lived out. You talk about the shooting pool episode about the pastor and the gang leaders. And I'd like you to kind of talk about that for a second in terms of the evangelism or the community development that takes place when the churches is working well, then we're going to talk about Africa University and some of the things regarding that, in terms of a more of a extend this

Bishop Julius Trimble: 00:21:50

year. So I the church that that shaped and formed me primarily was Christ, Methodist Church, which became Christ United Methodist Church, on the Southside of Chicago. It's now since merged bread with several other churches. It's a small still, still, there's still a remnant who were who were part of that church, but it's since merged with two other churches, and has moved this location. But when I was there as as a youth and then as a young adult, and came back to serve as a youth minister, it was a church very much connected with the community. So it was it was a urban, urban inner city community. But it had a lot of activities, including, you know, family, family nights and try and activity nights. And we had a United Methodist youth fellowship, you know, em, yf, Methodist, you fellowship I write, and I learned to shoot pool and play ping pong, for the most part, everybody at my church, and my pastor was a pretty

Brad Miller: 00:22:52

good to it, that was my part of my education pool and ping pong. Yeah,

Bishop Julius Trimble: 00:22:55

yeah. And my pastor who had been in been in the army, you know, it was pretty good. Pooty poo. But, but but that was, that was something I so we, I always had the vision, the experience of church being fun as a as a young person,

Brad Miller: 00:23:15

when you describe a couple of things, youth and church camp, and other things like that it had to do with fun and fellowship, and how Jesus didn't have to be boring. And I think that's a certain part of my experience. So why can't church be more like church camp and youth group and things like that, and you experienced that in your own life? And I think you see that in how it relates to others. And then I'd like to take it also, I think that was cool that you mentioned about how that Pastor also had some connection to the gangs to the community. And, and that's, that's a, I see that, you know, develop in the community, you know, not just in the congregation, but in the community. Right.

Bishop Julius Trimble: 00:23:54

Right. Some of the controversy, unfortunately, and Ouch. If I still remember that, and I talked to his, his, he has, he has daughters and sons, but one of his daughters is a pastor now. Not in the United Methodist Church, but she's doing a good job of pastor and she's a, she's a pastor who connects with the community. That's, that's in her DNA. And our pastor had had marched with Martin Luther King Jr. And he was very much a person who believed you would he was the pastor of the membership, but also the community. And some people felt like, you know, they weren't getting enough attention, because he was also engaged in the open the gang members and you know, trying to keep in the neighborhood. And, you know, some people felt like a prophetic prophetic witness was taken away from his pastoral responsibilities.

Brad Miller: 00:24:48

Second kind of begs the cut that kind of thing and behavior kind of begs the question, What would Jesus do? I got a feeling I got a feeling Jesus would be out there with the gangs but also leaves me a bishop to think about in terms of What would Jesus do you we talk about that kind of evangelism in the community. And then let's talk about Africa University. You mentioned that as a prominent part of why you're a Methodist, I'm particularly interested in your, your take as the ultimate empowerment story. Because sometimes we think about missions or missional type things, as we do for others. But this was an empowerment story. So can you go there?

Bishop Julius Trimble: 00:25:22

Sure. I'm gonna make a segue from the end of the previous chapter, please, please do which, which points to this. And this is something I learned while I was at Christ Church, and that was a, quote, a quote, you've used yourself to read that from Martin Luther King, Jr. life's most persistent and urgent question is, what are you doing for others? What do you do? So I got involved with African University, really in response to that question. You know, what are we doing for others? United Methodists have long been committed to higher education and education in general, and, and improving access to education. So African University is a world class institution of higher education started by the United Methodist Church, by action of General Conference by action of African bishops, and others who were saying, if you want to help Africa, help produce more leaders increase the access to higher education for students on the continent of Africa. And that's exactly what the United Methodist Church did. And since 1992, when the first students started at Africa University, and OMA Tyrese, Zimbabwe, they've been over 10,000 plus, I think nearly 11,000, according to Dr. Sally, a graduate of that university, Africa University, representing does about 28, I think 28 to 30 Different countries on the continent of Africa. It's the only university brand I've ever heard of. It has a 96% graduation rate. Yeah. That's, that's almost

Brad Miller: 00:27:07

That's unreal. And, and just to make an unreal, just a just incredible God thing. It's a God thing, isn't it? It's more as a god project, because I've heard it called and, and that's a point where I think I will just say this about our whole conversation here. That is an example of the connection working well, isn't it?

Bishop Julius Trimble: 00:27:27

Oh, it's absolutely. It's absolutely no one, no one congregation, even a mega church could have done what it has been done in Africa University took it took the collective soul commitment of, of Christians, United Methodist, in Africa, and the United States and across the globe, to support this institution, which is, which is a United Methodist related institution that is very unapologetic about its connection to the United Methodist Church. And

Brad Miller: 00:27:58

so the kind of point I want to make about that, which is that even in spite of disaffiliation, and just, you know, dispersion, and so some people have critically called the Untied Methodist Church, things like that. Connection is still working and say a word about that. How is the connection still working? You know, we got the example of African university here. But how's it working?

Bishop Julius Trimble: 00:28:24

Well, I think it's working when we think about how is it with your soul it's Connect is working because we still care about every congregation. And every pastor, and every lay person who's a part of The United Methodist Church. We make provisions to stay connected with them. This past year, we did be encouraged grants for our pastors who were able to access and do something to contribute to their own self care after this prolonged period of pandemic, the COVID pandemic. And I think, you know, the ways in which we still do ministry like United Methodist Committee on Relief, responding to disasters, and the ways in which we are operating in cooperation with other churches, in our communities. For example, in Indiana, The United Methodist Church is part of the social safety net for the state of Indiana. So all of well, many of our churches, some which have disaffiliated now have been places locations for critical food pantries to address food insecurity. Many of our churches collaborate with other churches to provide those kinds of services. We've we have a big prayer initiative that connects both congregations now and clergy who are participating in the big prayer and this I always say that the connection could be stronger. Yes. So it It's not that it can't not that it can't be made stronger. When when I think about my opportunities that I've had to serve in a variety of places. My presence in Indiana is that is an example of a connection of church.

Brad Miller: 00:30:14

Yes, yes. Anything Bishop, you want to say about things like evangelism or about, you know, justice issues, how you mentioned those in your book, as well as being important to wider Methodist.

Bishop Julius Trimble: 00:30:27

Well, Jesus still does home visits. And a lot of times he does home visits because we bring the love of Jesus with us whenever we come home, or wherever we are in somebody else's home. So I often say that we, you know, it's Paul says in Romans, you know, be not ashamed of the gospel, for it is salvation, and not just for the Jews, and not just for the Greeks, but for all who would call on the name of the Lord. So, evangelism, you know, there's a there's a St. Wesley said, we have nothing to do but to save so yes, so So as I said, In the beginning, you know, Jesus Christ is, Lord, we need to share that, and let people know that we care about them. But we know that life with Christ Jesus with Jesus Christ is better than life without and tomorrow can be better than today. And we know that that can happen. If we're willing to be the people that God calls us to be.

Brad Miller: 00:31:28

And the Methodist church, we are a voice of justice as well. And not every faith group is I think, we have to say that, in our United Methodist tradition, this is a good thing, we have been a part of a justice heritage here.

Bishop Julius Trimble: 00:31:44

Absolutely. Social holiness. For Western men, one must literally engaged, the poor, one must literally put themselves in the place of those who are most vulnerable and marginalized. And not just as observers. But as you know, true, Samaritans and true. Brothers and sisters who are willing to walk alongside those persons who are in need of justice, I think, not only does Jesus weep when there are people who are innocently killed, whether they are by police, or whether they're in their own communities, or whether it's in war. But Jesus also weeps when he sees that people are without persons who are willing to address issues of justice, and willing to walk alongside people, as Micah six, eight says, What does the Lord require of you, but to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with our God?

Brad Miller: 00:32:49

Wow, great, great, some great sharing here, Bishop from your book, hear about from your heart about what it means to you and why Chad reasons. I'm the United Methodist. And I think it's a great resource for people to do want to stay Methodist and have, you know, I see more and more of that happening. People are saying, Okay, I really want to stay. But I need, you know, this helps give some resources for that. So it's anything you could do. First of all, can you tell us about how people can get the book if they want and then conclude our conversation with just a word of encouragement, because I think that's what this book is to that person out there who may be that pastor or their late, late layperson, who may have be seeking out their own reasons to be a mentor.

Bishop Julius Trimble: 00:33:35

Well, if people go to a bishop and I and umc.org, we can probably get your coffee to have limited editions left now it's in it's going through its second printing. And so we'll make it available easier after you do after that we still have some copies available. In our annual conference, if you go into whips on the website here, or either go to the bishop at AI and ufc.org and request a copy. Or if you if you also choose to participate in supporting African University scholarship initiative, we are underway doing now, then you could get a free copy. Free copy that way. You can get that information on the on the iron umc.org website, Africa University scholarship,

Brad Miller: 00:34:23

very good word of encouragement to a person who needs some encouragement in this area.

Bishop Julius Trimble: 00:34:27

Well, hey, the truth is that when it's cloudy, the sun is always shining somewhere on God's earth. The truth is when children are skipping across the globe, God is smiling. The truth is the gospel is expanding. The Christian Church is actually growing and God is still calling men and women to follow. I am United Methodist because I was baptized in the church. I went to camp in this church. I'm your United Methodist because I don't need to be great to experience God's grace. I'm you United Methodist because I don't need all people to agree on all things. I'm United Methodist, not because I have have quarrels with other religions or churches because I don't. For me and millions of others United Methodist Church represents the best of all Protestant possibilities. I'm United Methodist, and I'm a Christian most importantly, because I fell in love with Jesus as Lord and Savior. And I discovered myself in this church. Be encouraged God bless you. Stay strong.