PlainSpoken

Reverend D.A. Bennett has served as the lead pastor of St. Andrew’s UMC in Oklahoma City, OK, since June 2006. Prior to that he served as Senior Pastor of Will Rogers UMC in Tulsa, director of United Campus Ministry at East Central University for 12 years, and was associate pastor of FUMC in Tahlequah. He was ordained a deacon in 1986, and ordained an elder in full connection of the Oklahoma Conference in 1988.D.A. received his Bachelor of Arts in Religion from Oklahoma City University. He earned recognition as winner of the School of Religion paper writing contest for a paper on John Wesley’s doctrine of Christian Perfection in 1982, and as the top graduate of the School of Religion in 1983. Healso was elected president of the United Methodist Student Fellowship. His Master of Divinity Degree was earned at Oral Roberts University School of Theology in 1986. There he was recognized as one of the top preachers in the school, and was privileged to preach in a chapel service.He has been blessed to preach in many different churches and settings throughout his ministry. He has preached in over 70 different churches in 9 different denominations. He has preached in prisons, conferences, nursing homes and camp/retreat settings. He is frequently requested to speak at youth camps and conferences, and has been the guest evangelist for many churches during revivals. He worked Dayspring Camp for senior high discipleship for over 25 years, helping it grow from a single camp to a camp at 4 sites. In 2011, he led a team to start Journey, a jr. high discipleship camp. The Oklahoma Conference awarded him the Francis Asbury award for contributions to the church’s mission in higher education in 2000. He was elected to the 2008, 2012, 2016 and 2020 Jurisdictional Conference delegations. Currently he serves on the Conference Board of Higher Education & Ministry, Committee on Episcopacy, trained as Counsel for the Church and was previously the chair of the Order of Elders. He recently completed a 2 year term as president of the Oklahoma Chapter of the Wesleyan Covenant Association.More important than academic and professional achievements are the members of his family. D.A. has been married to Robin Hawley Bennett, a Certified Public Accountant and homemaker, since January 10,1987. They have 2 sons – Garrett Adrian Bennett (1997) and Jonathan Harris Bennett (2003), and a daughter, Charis Katelyn (2005). D.A. enjoys a variety of sports, is a die hard fisherman, and loves camping and traveling with his family. Most importantly, he has been a committed follower of Jesus Christ since early childhood.DA and I go back several years. He gave some of my instruction when I first came to the Oklahoma Annual Conference at the local licensed pastor program. He has a longstanding ministry at St. Andrew’s Methodist Church in Oklahoma City. We have worked together in various capacities to advance the cause of Christ, first in the United Methodist Church, and now in the Global Methodist Church. He affixed my stole to me immediately after my ordination.DA has been an encouragement to many in the faith, having been active on a conference level, working especially to bless youth at camp every summer. He is an excellent example of a happy warrior and an earnest believer. In this conversation, he and I talk through the season of disaffiliation that we both shared in, leading into the new day in the GMC and our hopes for the future. What does it mean to come out of Egypt? What parts of Egypt might still be clinging to us?Consider taking some time to learn from my friend. Get full access to PlainSpoken at plainspokenpod.substack.com/subscribe

Rev. Tozoona Jacob Maforo is a Global Methodist elder at a two-point charge in Kansas, within the Heartland Annual Conference, He was born in modern day Zimbabwe, but he has been preaching Christ in the US since the 1990s. This man loves Jesus and the church. In this conversation, I learn a bit about him, his churches, his personal history, developments in contemporary Zimbabwean Methodism, and his prayers for the Global Methodist Church. Many have already written me to convey how blessed they were to hear from him. Take the time to learn and grow a bit! Get full access to PlainSpoken at plainspokenpod.substack.com/subscribe

Debra Baty is the head of Resources 4 Redemption, which is an effort aimed at spreading good information about sexual orientation and gender identity. She recently published an article about “sexual fluidity” and how it impacts our sanctification in Firebrand Magazine. It is a good piece, and Debra does worthy work. All believers in the West have to contend with the artificial ideas of the sexual revolution. There is nowhere we can go that these issues do not impact us. The only way out is through.Debra has a personal story that is quite compelling. She is a trustworthy, thoughtful, and conscientious resource. All covenant Christian bodies need to know where they stand on these things, lest the evil one sow confusion. Now is the time to reflect upon these things. Days are coming when what we believe will be put to the test. If we have not prepared, then we cannot expect to prevail.Resources 4 Redemption can be found at https://substack.com/@resources4redemptionIf you would like to follow up with Debra directly, you can contact her at resources4r@gmail.com If you would like to join my Locals community, where I give extended attention and interviews, go to plainspoken.locals.com and become a supporter!If you would like to subscribe to my pastoral Substack, where I publish articles on topics pertaining to pastoral ministry and Methodism, you can go to jeffreyrickman.substack.com.If you would like to subscribe to the PlainSpoken Podcast Substack, where I publish articles, video, and audio pertaining to Methodism and the culture war, you can go to plainspokenpod.substack.com.If you're not interested in any of that stuff, but you want to give directly to my church, you can go to https://tithe.ly/give?c=2198808 and make a donation there. Thanks! Get full access to PlainSpoken at plainspokenpod.substack.com/subscribe

Cambron and I have corresponded digitally in text format for a few months, off and on. He published a piece on Methodist itinerancy that got some positive attention several months ago. I enjoyed the exchange.He recently sent me a clip that I found engaging. I decided he would be a good voice to consult. He and I have a lot of overlap with having young children and leading Global Methodist local churches as elders. In this piece, we talk about our differing approaches to education and inculcation of the young minds in our care. We couch these things in light of our cultural moment, which is the byproduct of a century of drift into secularism. It is almost a certainty that all people trying to do family in a Christian way will find a lot to intersect with in this conversation.If you want to consult Cambron’s other work, you can find his Substack at cambron.substack.com.If you would like to join my Locals community, where I give extended attention and interviews, go to plainspoken.locals.com and become a supporter!If you would like to subscribe to my pastoral Substack, where I publish articles on topics pertaining to pastoral ministry and Methodism, you can go to jeffreyrickman.substack.com.If you would like to subscribe to the PlainSpoken Podcast Substack, where I publish articles, video, and audio pertaining to Methodism and the culture war, you can go to plainspokenpod.substack.com.If you're not interested in any of that stuff, but you want to give directly to my church, you can go to https://tithe.ly/give?c=2198808 and make a donation there. Thanks! Get full access to PlainSpoken at plainspokenpod.substack.com/subscribe

The Convening Conference of the Global Methodist Church is coming together this Friday to begin several important conversations, one of which being whether or not to immediately elect and mobilize new bishops. I think this is premature and potentially harmful, for reasons I outline in this segment. Get full access to PlainSpoken at plainspokenpod.substack.com/subscribe

Consider spending some time with one of the three episcopal candidates from the new GMC conferences in Nigeria. I got to get to know him much better, learning about his ministry context, the ways in which God has uniquely equipped him, and the common convictions we share. I hope this is of benefit to you as you pray for our leadership in the GMC! Link to GMC Profile on Rev. Hassan - https://globalmethodist-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mhowe_globalmethodist_org/_layouts/15/onedrive.aspx?id=%2Fpersonal%2Fmhowe%5Fglobalmethodist%5Forg%2FDocuments%2FAdditional%20Nominee%20Profiles%2FSalama%20Hassan%2Epdf&parent=%2Fpersonal%2Fmhowe%5Fglobalmethodist%5Forg%2FDocuments%2FAdditional%20Nominee%20Profiles&ga=1 Get full access to PlainSpoken at plainspokenpod.substack.com/subscribe

Matt has appeared on PlainSpoken before. He is a thought leader in Global Methodism and Pan-Methodism. He recently published a book on holiness, which you can find hyperlinked below. Today, he and I visited in order to try and reach clarity on the differences between the TLC’s plan for the episcopacy in the GMC and the Florida plan. Jay Therrell came on a couple weeks ago to explain the Florida plan, so Matt was gracious enough to offer himself to speak to the plan put forward by the primary governing body of the GMC thus far.The hope for this segment is that it will give clarity to the delegates, in particular, who will be deciding on a plan at the Convening Conference in a couple of weeks. God bless you as you learn from my stupid questions! I do genuinely hope this is illuminating. We talk, not just about the particulars of the superintendency plan, but also about the history, theology, and theory behind it. It is engaging on multiple fronts!Links:Matt’s New Book: “Free to Be Holy” - https://my.seedbed.com/product/free-to-be-holy/Printed Seedbed Interview w/ Matt - https://seedbed.com/free-to-be-holy-interview-with-matt-oreilly/Ryan Danker’s bummer article on Firebrand: “Wesleyans and Episcopacy” - https://firebrandmag.com/articles/wesleyans-and-episcopacy Get full access to PlainSpoken at plainspokenpod.substack.com/subscribe

Rev. Dr. Jerry Kulah is one of the most courageous and faithful public figures in world Methodism today. His love of Christ and the church shines brightly through him, as does his passion for the purity of the ministry that has been entrusted to us. In recent months, since the close of General Conference 2024 for the United Methodist Church, affairs have heated up in Liberia. I have covered developments there as violence has been threatened and political maneuvering has become commonplace. In this segment, I was touched to learn of the friendship between Rev. Dr. Kulah and Bishop Quire. Though they are at odds at the present moment, his strong convictions do not eliminate the love he has for his bishop, nor his unwavering commitment to his people in Liberia. It is a very refreshing and encouraging conversation. You will be enriched if you listen to him. Get full access to PlainSpoken at plainspokenpod.substack.com/subscribe

Rev. Dr. Wendy Mohler-Seib is a professor at Friends University in Wichita, Kansas. She is an expert in the field of young Christian discipleship. I encountered her a year or so ago and was clear that I needed to hear her speak on a number of topics. In this segment, we talk about the challenges involved in doing discipleship correctly, especially as it pertains to young folks in the church. She names a number of false beliefs churches have around how discipleship is best done, and we talk about how it is that modern local churches can work our people in the right direction. Wendy also speaks about discerning the voice of the Holy Spirit, and how that has taken place in her own walk with God. Y'all are going to like this one. I know it. Enjoy! Get full access to PlainSpoken at plainspokenpod.substack.com/subscribe

As delegates prepare to gather in San Jose for the Convening Conference of the Global Methodist Church, some are reflecting on where we came from. In order not to reproduce the sins of the past, Rev. Robert Sparkman and I look back on the reality of western monied interests perpetually maintaining power through representation in the general boards and agencies of The United Methodist Church.Rev. Sparkman was involved in general conference and jurisdictional conference-level activity aimed at reworking how his former denomination cut up the pie for representative groups inside and outside of the US. His history is replete with many examples of dirty politics. Many details and developments are lost to time, but Sparkman does an excellent job reconstructing much of the disappointing history that led to eventual split and splintering.Take some time to learn where we came from so that we can resolve to do better with this new iteration of the Methodist movement. Get full access to PlainSpoken at plainspokenpod.substack.com/subscribe