We are shaped by our experiences. You are who you are because of what has happened to you and your response to those happenings. At least in part. Every one of us has memories of times in our lives that we can identify as crucial milestones –moments that became momentous, moments that changed us in some way, made of who we are, shaped our thoughts, branded our memories, imprinted our feelings.

What is your most vivid memory? Often, the experiences we remember the most are those that were most traumatic. For good or bad, trauma can leave a permanent scar if not upon our bodies, then upon our minds and hearts.

For John Wesley, the founder of the Wesleyan tribe, it was his memory of “the fire.” Samuel Wesley, little “Jacky’s” father, was an Anglican priest. The family of Samuel, his wife Su…