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Disaster Response and Recovery
Higher Education & Campus Ministry
Pan-Methodist Campaign for Children in Poverty
11/26/2018
Dear Friends, I hope you had a good Thanksgiving Weekend. I am using this time between Thanksgiving and Advent to reflect upon the many reasons I have to be thankful. I pray for Thanksgiving joy to permeate each of our lives, not only during the Thanksgiving season, but throughout the year. I have shared with some of you my “rule of life” for the next several months. Associated with religious orders and focusing on good habits, a “rule of life” is a means that helps us to live the Christian ...
11/8/2018
Dear Friends, I had been a Christ-follower for decades before I first read through the Bible in a year. Though previously I had read significant portions of Scripture, I had not intentionally journeyed from Genesis 1 through Revelation 22 in a 365 day period. When a dear friend told me he had read through the Bible every year since his teens, I was inspired to follow suit. Adopting this practice as an ongoing part of my walk with God has changed my life. Why? Reading Scripture gives new ...
10/15/2018
Dear Friends, This summer Lee and I had the opportunity to participate in the 2018 World Methodist Council meeting in Seoul, Korea. I continue to be inspired by this worldwide body that encourages unity in witness, mission and ecumenical relationships among Methodist, Wesleyan, and related churches. 80 million Methodist affiliates and members from 138 countries are represented by the World Methodist Council family. http://worldmethodistcouncil.org/about/ While participating in the Seoul ...
10/3/2018
Dear Friends, When was the last time you embarked on a spiritual pilgrimage? Sometimes such journeys involve physical trips back to our childhood homes. Other times they are figurative excursions through challenging circumstances in life. Then there are travels to historic sites that are central to our faith. During 2020 I will lead two of the latter kinds of spiritual pilgrimages via Educational Opportunities, an organization that has been facilitating United Methodist groups on such journeys ...
9/18/2018
Dear Friends, Each year I look forward to the North Alabama Conference Gathering of the Orders and Fellowship of Local Pastors and Associate Members. The 2018 Gathering will begin Sunday afternoon, October 21, and conclude by noon on Tuesday, October 23. The Gathering and Annual Conference are the two times each year all North Alabama United Methodist clergy assemble for fellowship, worship, teaching and resources. I especially anticipate being together at this year’s Gathering in light of all ...
8/27/2018
Dear Friends, Each day at 2:23 p.m. my phone alarm sounds to remind me to join thousands of other United Methodists around the globe for four minutes of prayer for our denomination. Sometimes my four minutes are from 2:23 through 2:26. Other times they are during another segment of the day. Regardless, I find hope in knowing that during these months leading up to General Conference 2019, many of us are praying four minutes a day for the United Methodist Church. The Way Forward process has been ...
8/14/2018
Dear Friends, I love the fall season for many reasons, including the North Alabama Conference “Days in the Districts.” Spending a day per District every fall listening, learning and dialoguing has been a highlight of my six years in ministry among you. Across the years the “Days in the Districts” have given me the opportunity to: get acquainted with many North Alabamians; discuss with clergy and laity the proposed vision, mission and values of North Alabama Methodism; share updates about our ...
7/23/2018
Dear Friends, I have had the privilege of serving on the Commission on a Way Forward during the past 18 months. Thank you for your prayers and patience as this Commission formed, studied, discerned and developed a report in preparation for the 2019 Special Session of General Conference. The final report represents the work of 32 Commission on a Way Forward members from four continents, nine countries and a broad range of experiences and theological perspectives. This document includes a ...
6/26/2018
Dear Friends, I have heard many people comment on how they appreciated the tenor and spirit of the 2018 North Alabama Annual Conference. If you like the way our Annual Conference session went, look in the mirror as you are the North Alabama Annual Conference. From my seat as a bishop, I saw many beautiful features to the 2018 North Alabama Annual Conference. This is because you are an amazing Conference with a multitude of strengths. I particularly appreciated the: Meaningful and lively ...
6/18/2018
In response to various media requests Bishop Wallace-Padgett has issued the following statements: June 18, 2018 Statement from Bishop Debra Wallace-Padgett: As United Methodists we join countless others who have expressed their opposition and heartbreak regarding immigration policies that separate parents and children. As our denomination’s Social Principles state, “We oppose immigration policies that separate family members from each other or that include detention of families with children.”...
