Ember Days & Site Update
Pray for the Church's Ministers & Consider the Future of The Earnest Wesleyan
Readers and supporters of The Earnest Wesleyan,
I pray you are well. Several years ago, I wrote a State of the Publication-type post. Many things have changed since then! This post will be in a similar vein.
An Ember Day? What’s that?
But first, today is an Ember Day! If we go back in time a little, I can explain what these quarterly days of fasting and prayer are for. Three years ago, I posted this on Facebook:
Four times throughout the church year, the church calendar is interrupted by “Ember Days,” where the church prays for those discerning a call to ministry and those pursuing that call to Holy Orders.
Ember Days are a relatively new concept to me, but it is one in which I take great comfort. I live in a [seminary] community where “The Call” is an ever present reality almost lingering over us like a cloud. We live in the constant reality of The Call. We train as we do because of The Call; in Greek and Hebrew, in pastoral care and discipleship, in the worship arts and in catechesis. This place, it is a treasure chest of knowledge and talent. The Call dominates our comings and our goings, all that we are and all we aspire to be in service to the Lord our God.
Yet, the rest of the world is not like a seminary. The world is the harvest field... and the harvest field is as much part of The Call as the training ground. There have been a lot of articles this past year about how the average minister only makes it five years past seminary, or about the inevitable burn out and disillusionment a minister will face and give into. There is a war waging against The Call. There is a war waging against places like where I live. The Enemy is restless trying to take back the ground he’s lost to the ever advancing Gospel of Jesus Christ, and he’s targeting the laborers of the harvest. It’s a tale as old as time—“Then Satan entered into Judas called Iscariot, who was of the number of the twelve” - Luke 22:3.
Maybe this is one reason why Jesus commands us to pray for the laborers who are being sent out in Matthew 9:37-38: “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.” It is a comfort to know you are prayed for. My friends are being prayed for. I am being prayed for. The Enemy won’t win. What’s the next verse after Mathew 9:38? Matthew 10:1. “And he called to him his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every affliction.” Take up your mantle, o laborers, heed The Call. You are His. Under His authority, in His Holy Church, to do the work of the harvest.
This week will be my last Ember Week as a candidate for ministry. Lord willing, I will be made a deacon in Christ’s One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church in a week from Saturday, and I will begin serving a parish.
The Future of The Earnest Wesleyan
When I started The Earnest Wesleyan over six years ago, I intended it to primarily be a place for others. I like writing, but deep down I like editing more (and I am bad at editing my own stuff). I want others to be bold and courageous in their faith and to think theologically with a good head on their shoulders. I want all Christians to know their Lord and love Him, using thoughtful and fitting language to express it.
I won’t be stepping away from The Earnest Wesleyan, but naturally I will be writing less as I transition into full-time ministry. Actually, my magnum opus of reflection on my lifetime theological journey will be published here in the next few days, which I have been working on for about a year (it’ll be quite long, so maybe no one will read it). But I am very thankful that in the last few months, this website has seen a large increase in interest and submissions from other writers, and you are hearing more from others than me. That was my intention from the start, and I hope that continues. If it is the Lord’s will that The Earnest Wesleyan continues well into the future, I hope one day you rarely see my name on a byline.
Currently, the site’s reach, which was already larger than I ever thought we’d achieve, is exploding. Articles from this website have been featured in larger publications like Holy Joys and North American Anglican. If you have ever thought about writing, now is a great time to consider doing so with us (start here)! If you have been indecisive, take courage. Stand firm. Contend for the faith.
As long as the Lord is agreeable, this project will continue.
Will you pray with me?
On this Ember Day, my last one as a layman and a candidate, will you pray for those who are called to ordained ministry in the Church of Jesus Christ? And I humbly ask—will you pray for me? We need your prayers.
For all vocations—lay and clergy alike.
For those sensing a call to ordained ministry.
For those actively discerning ordained ministry.
For those in seminary or pursuing theological education.
For those imminently preparing for ordination.
For those already in ordained ministry.
For your pastor(s).Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayers.
Thank you for your prayers. Thank you for your support. Thank you for coming along for the journey of this online community, whether you’ve been here since the beginning or are relatively new. I can’t wait to see what the Lord is going to do.
In Christ,
Sid Johnson
Editor