by Jeff Greenway
December 13, 2022
“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens.” Ecclesiastes 3:1
I recently participated in my last meeting of the Wesleyan Covenant Association’s Global Council after serving in one role of leadership or another for the last six and a half years. I’ve resigned from the WCA Council so I can give my full attention to leading the congregation I serve into the Global Methodist Church, organizing the churches in my region who wish to join the Global Methodist Church, and serving on the GMC’s Transitional Leadership Council. I’m not abandoning the cause. The time has come to lay down this responsibility so I can give more of my time and attention to helping the formation of the GMC.
That said, this transition has afforded me the opportunity to look back with gratitude as I move forward.
During this season, I’ve had a front row seat to witness God move in amazing ways to turn the dream of the WCA into a reality which has helped birthed the Global Methodist Church. I’m grateful to have played a small role in the WCA’s development and leadership. The experience has shaped me while stretching every aspect of my person and drawing on every bit of life experience in the process. God hasn’t wasted a thing in my life, and much of that came to bear while providing leadership to the WCA.
The tone and tenor of the journey was established at a formational meeting held at the Woodlands UMC in Houston, TX on August 1-2, 2016. I joined 40-50 respected leaders from across the church to dream and begin to build what Joe DiPaolo later called “an ark” into which persons who wished to preserve and participate in an orthodox, evangelical expression of Wesleyan Christianity to come out of what we saw was the coming division in the United Methodist Church. One of the reasons for our effectiveness has been the laser-focused vision that came out of that meeting. The clarity of this statement, developed during that meeting, set the tone of the movement we would become:
“We are a movement of like-minded—warm-hearted—Jesus-loving—Spirit-filled—Wesleyan—evangelical—orthodox—covenant keeping Christians who are connected together in mission.”
This simple statement became the lens through which we’ve operated. As we’ve gathered others in the WCA movement, it’s been refreshing to see what God can do when we are united on the essentials of our faith.
From the beginning our purpose was:
“To create a new kind of Methodist connection, to engage in ministry and mission together from an orthodox Wesleyan perspective. We intend to:
- Lead like-minded and like-hearted United Methodists, who affirm our doctrinal standards and Wesleyan theology, through a period of grave uncertainty.
- Be part of a new, emerging unity of various global streams of Wesleyan Christianity, as the Holy Spirit leads.
- Create a network of leaders, congregations and related bodies that share a common vision of ministry and mission, to partner together in supporting, equipping, and holding one another accountable.
- Engage together in hands-on ministry in establishing new congregations and revitalizing existing ones in strategic locations.”
Remaining laser-focused on this purpose has kept us from getting distracted and helped us to move as far and quickly by God’s grace.
The day before we gathered to celebrate the launch of the WCA in Chicago in October of 2016, I was elected to serve as the WCA Council’s first chair. While being introduced to the 2,000 people who’d gathered for the launch of the WCA, I coined the phrase, “We’re going to build this plane while flying it.” In the years since we’ve done just that. I’ll never forget the early days before we hired our staff, and Carolyn Moore (Vice-Chair), Ferrell Coppedge (Treasurer), Madeline Carrasco-Henners (Secretary), and I worked tirelessly to keep it from crashing upon take-off. (Thank God Keith Boyette agreed to serve as our first President!)
With his (and now Jay’s) steady leadership, we’ve soared. We’ve engaged hundreds of volunteers from around the world who’ve worked together to build a movement which has become a denomination “of like-minded—warm-hearted—Jesus-loving—Spirit-filled—Wesleyan—evangelical—orthodox—covenant keeping Christians who are connected together in mission.” We’re reclaiming the distinctive Wesleyan DNA of accountable discipleship, church planting, and Spirit-filled holiness. We’ve affirmed and aligned ourselves with our historic doctrines and committed ourselves to be accountable to them. We’ve developed focus around mission partnerships, ministry with the marginalized and healing for sexual brokenness. We’ve also put the structural pilings in place for the Global Methodist Church to take off like clergy credentialing, pensions, and health insurance.
Serving in the formation and development of the Wesleyan Covenant Association has been one of the great privileges of my life. I’ve worked with incredibly gifted and faithful people—many of whom are widely known, but the majority of which have humbly and quietly served in our movement. Someday, when time is taken to write the history of what’s occurred during this season, the church will learn of some of the heroes who’ve served selflessly and sacrificially for the cause of Christ in the WCA to help form and birth the GMC. Thanks to each person who has served on the Council, a task force, a regional chapter or on staff. You are some of the finest and most faithful people I’ve ever known. Special thanks to Keith Boyette, Walter Fenton, Teresa Marcus, Simon Mafunda, and Jay Therrell who’ve provided incredible staff leadership. Those named, and those unnamed, have inspired and encouraged me with their faith, selflessness, and dedication to our cause.
I leave the WCA Council with a full heart and hopeful Spirit. My heart is full of the love of God and deep appreciation for the people I’ve met and the work we’ve done. I’m hopeful because the WCA is in good hands and well lead by Jay Therrell and Carolyn Moore. For those congregations and pastors who yearn to be free to disaffiliate from the United Methodist Church, the WCA is committed to do all in its power to leave no church behind. I’m also hopeful because I can see the future from my vantage point, and I can’t wait to welcome you there.
The Rev. Dr. Jeff Greenway is the outgoing vice-chairman of the Wesleyan Covenant Association Global Council, a member of the Transitional Leadership Council of the Global Methodist Church, and the lead pastor of Reynoldsburg United Methodist Church.