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Disaster Response and Recovery
Higher Education & Campus Ministry
Pan-Methodist Campaign for Children in Poverty
4/1/2018
From Disbelief to Joy Luke 24:36b-48 The disciples can hardly believe it. Two days earlier all of their hopes and dreams of life in Jesus were buried with him in the tomb. Yet, can it be? Can this man standing before them be the Resurrected Jesus? Is it really him? As the reality of his resurrection sets in, their disbelief slowly dissipates and is replaced with joy. The resurrection miracle has happened. Jesus Christ their Lord is alive! That, my friends, is Easter joy at its best. It is ...
2/28/2018
Dear Friends, Humanity from all walks of life and regions of the world often rally together when crisis strikes. The North Alabama Conference has been firsthand beneficiaries of such generosity as recently as the 2011 Alabama storms and tornadoes. We have an annual opportunity to give to others who have experienced crisis through United Methodist Committee On Relief offerings that occur each Spring as well as when a national or international disaster occurs. Churches are encouraged to receive an...
2/13/2018
Dear Friends, Our vision in the North Alabama Conference is spiritual leaders empowering life-giving congregations to transform the world. Our mission is to discover, develop and deploy spiritual leaders to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world. This vision and mission is front and center in everything that the North Alabama Conference operational team and appointive cabinet do, including appointment-making. The appointment-making cycle is a year-round process. ...
2/1/2018
Dear Friends, I believe that prayer makes a difference. This is why I ask a team of persons to pray regularly for specific prayer concerns and joys that I send them. It is why I am a part of the Council of Bishops Praying Our Way Forward team. It is why the longer I live the more time I spend in prayer. So you can understand the reason I am excited about the March 10, 2018, North Alabama Conference Bishops’ Day of Prayer at Clearbranch United Methodist Church, 9 a.m.- 3 p.m. I encourage each ...
1/10/2018
Dear Friends, Jesus was sensitive to the needs of those on the margins of life, including the elderly, the poor and the orphaned. I count it a joy to participate in God’s work through supporting various missions and ministries that reach out to people in these life situations. We are incredibly thankful for all ministries serving the senior adults in our communities. One such ministry is the Fountain of Love Fund at Fair Haven and the other Methodist Homes in Alabama and Northwest Florida. Fair ...
12/11/2017
The story is told of a man strolling by a sandlot ballpark one afternoon. “What’s the score?” he called to a boy in the dugout. "We’re down - Eighteen to nothing." "Wow!" said the spectator, "I'll bet you're discouraged." "Why should I be discouraged?" asked the little boy. "We haven't even gotten up to bat yet!" Source Unknown. I love this little guy’s hope in the face of great adversity. Sometimes we have that kind of hope. But on other occasions financial difficulties overwhelm us, a ...
12/5/2017
Dear Friends, I am appreciative of the many North Alabamians who participated in this Fall’s updates on the Commission on a Way Forward. Approximately 1200 persons engaged in the eight District gatherings held across the Conference. The insights and feedback we received at these meetings have been compiled and summarized by the Conference Connectional Ministries and Communication offices. In addition, the summary and the raw data have been passed along to the Commission on a Way Forward. The ...
11/13/2017
Dear Friends, It is mind-boggling to be able to communicate with the God of the Universe as frequently as we desire. Yet, prayer provides us this avenue. Communication with God is only the beginning of what happens when we pray, too. Time spent in prayer changes us in profound and life-changing ways. No wonder the first disciples said, “Lord, teach us to pray.” Though they had been raised in the Jewish faith and thus knew how to pray, as they observed Jesus’ prayer life they realized that they ...
10/25/2017
Dear Friends, When was the last time that you experienced R and R? I am talking about reform and renewal, not rest and recuperation. My answer is best expressed by the Apostle Paul who writes, “So if anyone is in Christ there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new!” (II Corinthians 5:17) Reform and renewal are cornerstones of Christian living. They are an ongoing process in the lives of Christ-followers, as well as in denominations and the Universal ...
10/9/2017
Dear Friends, Ten years ago Bishop Robert Schnase released Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations, a book that has had a significant impact upon the United Methodist Church. Congregations across the nation have grown healthier as a result of leaning into the five principles Bishop Schnase identified, including: 1) radical hospitality 2) passionate worship 3) intentional faith development, 4) risk-taking mission service and 5) extravagant generosity. A decade later, at the 2017 Gathering of the...
