Witness is one of five promises that members of McPherson First make: prayers, presence, gifts, service, and witness. The five practices below are everyday forms of Christian witness. They come from twenty centuries of Christian tradition and John Wesley's own way of forming Methodists in the eighteenth century. Whoever you are, long-time member, first-time visitor, or someone still figuring out what you believe, you're welcome to try any of them.
Witness is sharing your faith through words and actions. The Greek word for witness is martyros, the same word that became "martyr." A witness is someone who tells what they have seen, sometimes at cost. You don't have to be a preacher. You don't have to win an argument. You have to be willing to live, work, and speak in a way that points beyond yourself.
The five practices below are telling your story, inviting someone to come along, living the three simple rules, working with integrity, and welcoming hard questions in honest conversation. Witness is rarely dramatic. It is mostly faithful presence and honest words across years.
Witness starts with being able to say what God has done in your life. Not a polished testimony with a dramatic before-and-after, but an honest paragraph or two: where God was at work before you knew it, when you said yes (even tentatively), what faith looks like for you now. Your story doesn't have to be impressive. It has to be yours.
Ways to try it:
For your Grace Group: Take turns telling your faith stories over a few weeks. Listen for what God is doing in each other.
Scripture: 1 Peter 3:15
Wesleyan means of grace: A particular discipline (prudential), doing all the good you can, a Work of Piety (sharing our faith)
The most natural form of witness is asking someone to come along. Most people who join a church were invited by someone they trust. You don't have to be a preacher. You don't have to win an argument. You have to ask.
Ways to try it:
For your Grace Group: Share who you invited this season and what happened, including invitations that didn't lead to a yes.
Scripture: John 1:46
Wesleyan means of grace: Doing all the good you can (prudential), a Work of Piety (sharing our faith)
Wesley's three simple rules are a complete spiritual life on a single index card. Do no harm. Do good. Stay connected to God. They are short on purpose. A 10-second compass works better than a 100-page rulebook in the middle of a hard day.
Ways to try it:
For your Grace Group: Share which of the three rules is hardest for you right now and what's making it hard.
Scripture: Micah 6:8
Wesleyan means of grace: All three General Rules (prudential), the summary of the Wesleyan way, a Work of Piety and a Work of Mercy together
Vocation is a primary place of witness. Most of your hours each week happen at a job, in a school, in a home, on a farm, behind a wheel, or in front of a screen. That is where most people will see what your faith actually looks like, and most often, what they will see is not your words but your work, your relationships, and your character.
Ways to try it:
For your Grace Group: Share where faith met your work this week and where it didn't.
Scripture: Colossians 3:23-24
Wesleyan means of grace: Doing all the good you can (prudential), doing no harm, a Work of Piety and a Work of Mercy together
A curious conversation is one where faith comes up naturally, doubt is welcomed, and nobody is trying to win. It is the opposite of debate. The point is not to convince but to walk together. Most faith is formed in conversations like this, with friends, neighbors, family, coworkers, and strangers, over years.
Ways to try it:
For your Grace Group: Share a conversation you had this month where faith showed up, and what you learned from it.
Scripture: 1 Peter 3:15-16
Wesleyan means of grace: Christian conference (instituted), extended toward neighbors, a Work of Piety
This is one of five sets of practices at McPherson First, each tied to one of the membership promises.
The most fruitful way to walk these practices is in a Grace Group, a small group of six to ten people meeting weekly for a season. Grace Groups walk the practices together, share what's stirring, and pray for each other through the week.