Will Willimon Duke Divinity School faculty 
Will Willimon has a new book out, and his publisher is receiving requests for him to attend virtual small group meetings that discuss the book, The Gospel for the Person Who Has Everything.
Willimon is a retired United Methodist Bishop and current Professor of the Practice of Christian Ministry at Duke University. He is also the author of 80 books. The Gospel for the Person Who Has Everything is actually a reprint of his first book published in 1978. In the preface to this new publication, Willimon writes, “My rereading of The Gospel for the Person Who Has Everything surprised me: From the first days I was already working some of the themes that characterized four decades of ministry. I’ve changed and grown along the way but not as much as I thought.” He continues, “here’s evangelism the old-fashioned, Wesleyan way rendered into contemporary idiom.”
We all have people in our lives who think they don’t need Jesus. This book is Willimon’s answer to the question, “What do you say to the person who says, through his or her neglect of the faith, ‘Thanks, but I don’t need it.’?”
In Willimon’s characteristic readable style, these 122 pages will provide much thoughtful discussion for your online small group, and who better to discuss it with than the esteemed author! To have access to Willimon’s years of wisdom and experience in such a small setting is indeed a privilege.
How to Request Willimon’s Attendance
To request that Bishop Will Willimon attend your online small group discussion of his book, The Gospel for the Person Who Has Everything, send an email to Jenny Lynch at jennyl@paracletepress.com.
More About the Book
From the publisher:
Bishop William Willimon brings the Gospel of Jesus Christ to life for the person who has everything – happy, fulfilled human beings, who don’t feel the same level of need expressed by the downcast, the outcast, the brokenhearted, and the miserable. Willimon says that the church’s message to the wretched and sad must not exclude the strong and the joyous. In nine concise, inspired chapters, he discusses these ideas:
- Must one be sad, depressed, wallowing in sin and degradation, immature, and childishly dependent in order truly to hear the Good News? (See chapters 1 and 2)
- “What do we say to the strong?” (See chapters 3 and 4)
- Speaking to the strong and to the people who are weak and want to be stronger: a particular kind of evangelistic message. They have their sins, but these sins are not the sins of the weak (chapter 5)
- Worship which takes God’s strong love seriously (chapter 6)
- Ethics which arise out of our response to that love (chapter 7)
- Church as a place of continual growth and widening responsibility (chapters 8 and 9)
Read the foreword by Lillian Daniel, both the new and old prefaces, and the first chapter in this excerpt.
Another New Book by Willimon!
Another new book by Willimon was also just published. Preachers Dare: Speaking for God presents a bold theology of preaching, emphasizing preaching as a distinctively theological endeavor that begins with and is enabled by God. God speaks, preachers dare to speak the speech of God, and the church dares to listen. With fresh biblical insights, creativity, and pointed humor, Willimon gives today’s preachers and congregations encouragement to speak with the God who has so graciously and effusively spoken to us.
Online Retreat Day with Bishop Willimon
Willimon is also leading an online retreat workshop on Friday, November 13th, 9:00 am – 3:00 pm. Tickets are available at $65 each. Group discounts of 30% off are available for groups of 5 or more. Email Bob Gibson at bobg@paracletepress.com to request the discount.
Telling the Good News with Will Willimon will be a lively presentation of the good news of Jesus, the challenge of sharing it, and the difference it makes in our contemporary context.
In the workshop, Will reflects upon the claims of the gospel of Jesus Christ, how the good news of Christ is distinctive and demanding. Then we will explore some of the challenges of sharing that news, in our witness and preaching, in our contemporary context. Some of Will’s preaching will be presented and participants will have the opportunity critically to reflect upon the substance of the gospel as well as the means of sharing the gospel in our time and place.
Get the Book
A book for your group leader, or just for individuals, can be borrowed from the NC Conference Media Center. All you need to do is fill out the Resource Request Form.
Multiple copies of the book for your group participants to use can be ordered from Cokesbury at $12.29 each. Purchases from Cokesbury directly benefit The United Methodist Church.
Copies can also be ordered from the book’s publisher, Paraclete Press, with bulk discounts.