All About the Global Methodist Draft Liturgies with Dr. Tesia Mallory – The David Donnan Podcast Season 3 Episode 8
September 30, 2026
Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcast, or watch on YouTube.
What are the Global Methodist Church’s draft liturgies, and how can your church use them? Dr. Tesia Mallory joins me for all of the information you could want about the draft liturgies. This is your one-stop conversation about what’s included, how the resources were developed, and how pastors and congregations can participate in the feedback process.
Tesia serves as Dean of Chapel at Asbury Theological Seminary and helped lead the drafting and editing process. This special episode, created in partnership with the South Georgia Conference of the Global Methodist Church, offers practical guidance for longtime liturgy lovers and those just getting started.
Show Notes:
Draft liturgies discussed on the podcast:
- Baptism for infants and adults.
- Reaffirmation of baptism and confirmation.
- Holy Communion, including a fuller service, an abbreviated service, and guidance for presiding without a formal written liturgy.
- Resources for laypeople taking previously consecrated Communion elements to those unable to attend church.
- Services of death and resurrection, weddings, and church membership.
Questions we explore:
- Why release draft liturgies and invite feedback from the wider church?
- How do shared prayers help shape our theology and identity as Global Methodists?
- How can historic liturgy and Spirit-led worship work together?
- Where can a pastor or congregation begin using these resources?
- Why should worship leaders practice reading the prayers aloud before leading them?
Resources and further reading:
- Tesia Mallory’s Asbury Seminary biography — Learn about her ministry, education, and work in worship and sacramental theology.
- Reflections on General Conference 2026 by Tesia Mallory — Tesia reflects on leading worship and announces the planned October 1 release of the draft liturgies, followed by a three-month review period.
Follow Tesia Mallory:
Whether your next service includes Communion, a baptism, or welcoming new members, this conversation will help you begin exploring the draft liturgies and the faith they help us express.
It is a new day in Methodism. The rapidly expanding Global Methodist Church (GMC) is blazing a trail for what the future of Orthodox Wesleyan-Methodism could and should be. Along the way, we can correct problems large and small.
One thing I implore all pastors and worship teams to consider is to celebrate an entire season of Pentecost instead of one Sunday. Most churches follow some sort of calendar to celebrate high holy days like Christmas and Easter. Some even celebrate the Christian seasons of Advent before Christmas and Lent leading into Easter. For each of these seasons there are colors traditionally associated with these seasons.
- Purple or Blue for Advent
- White or Gold for Christmastide
- Purple for Lent
- White or Gold for Easter
- Red for Pentecost
- Green for Ordinary Time
There once was a time where the church calendar celebrated an entire season of Pentecost. Now, the majority of churches I know of put out the color red on Pentecost Sunday then the majority of summer time they move to ordinary time which is green and last from Trinity Sunday until the start of Advent.
Pentecost is the day the Holy Spirit came to the church in what looked like tongues of fire (Acts 2:1-4). This is why the liturgical color is red. Pentecost is an important season for many reasons. Most important, the Day of Pentecost marked the outpouring of the Holy Spirit and the birth of the Christian church. The disciples who were hiding behind locked doors become bold in proclaiming the Lordship of Jesus Christ. The church exploded with gifts of prophecy, teaching, healing, deep discipleship, encouragement, and hope. These are the types of movements we desire in the GMC.
The 1964 The Methodist Hymnal I think had it right. They had a season of Pentecost where the color was red and it lasted from eleven to sixteen Sundays.
Out of all the challenges facing the GMC the liturgical colors might not even crack the top one thousand. Still, let’s keep the red out and remind ourselves about the Holy Spirit, the birth of the church, and this important aspect of the life God is calling us to.
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