By Philip M. Wesley, II
Pastor of the Mt. Olive and Emmanuel Seventh-day Adventist Churches, NEC
Salt Life Series in New London, CT
You are the salt of the earth (Matthew 5:13) is a discipleship idea that I have been preaching through the theme Salt Life at the Mt. Olive Seventh-Day Adventist Church, New London, CT. Over the course of two weekends June 1-3 and 8-10, 2018, the Mt. Olive team produced the Salt Life Series. The vision of the series was to connect with the community through prayer, food, fellowship, music, and preaching. We started this epic weekend with author of the book Lessons From My Hard Head, Paula Sanders Blackwell. Through out the series she present
Salt Life Series In Providence, Rhode Islanded ReCraft Your Life, a concept she has developed to empower woman through lifelong lessons to enhance their walk with God through service, Bible study, and prayer. Mt. Olive held the ReCraft Your Life Prayer Breakfast at the Holiday Inn in New London, CT where over 46 individuals attended. One concept I’ve been working on in the last year is the gospel according to food. I believe it is easier to connect with people when you feed them well then just preaching alone. We can win more with different strategies. I started to wonder how the next weekend could match with the first. However, Pastor Damon Hendrickson came and preached discipleship and spoke to the hearts of the people with power and conviction. Recording artist, Mark Prentice ministered in music Sabbath morning and a Sabbath afternoon concert with his arrangement of hymns and original music. Both speakers delivered 4 messages each empowering lives and calling people to Bible study and reconnecting with God. The Salt Life theme will continue till the end of the year as we create ways to bridge the community to God through discipleship. As each disciple connects with friends, family and community we will see a powerful impact for the kingdom of God!
According to the www.WorldAtlas.com, Rhode Island is one of the least religious states in North America in the company of NY, CT, ME and MA. There is a great need for disciples to the be the salt of the city! June 15 to 24, The Emmanuel Seventh-day Adventist Church hosted the Salt Life Series which included preaching, prayer, food, fellowship, and music! Pastor Audley Allen preached on discipleship and empowered individuals to be salt of the earth and bring flavor wherever we go. June 16, recording artist Laos In Harmony held a concert in partnership with the Lincoln Seventh-day Adventist Church in Lincoln, RI. Sunday, June 17, we presented the community with a Father’s day brunch at the church as we catered a delicious vegetarian and vegan breakfast. In addition to Pastor Allen, I preached the next weekend, however, it was connect to something that was very special. In the midst of the series, June 23 Philly Youth Praise team from the Philadelphie Seventh-day Adventist Church in Malden, MA blessed us with Praise and Worship that added a great touch to the service. Recording artist Japhet Ruiz ministered music from his album and then presented an amazing concert in the afternoon. A special feature that we added to the weekend was the Baby blessing for a family in our community. Family and friends packed the church in support of Baby Nia. In partnership with Mt. Olive we presented beautiful gifts to the parents along with a custom made dedication certificate. It is my goal to build a connection with our community to through fellowship, Bible study, discipleship and love. This approach will take some time to develop, however, with the Holy Spirit I anticipate powerful rewards!
