News.NET
January 4, 2012- Vol. 5, Issue 73 |
|
|
|
End of Year Reports | |
Important Dates:
(1) Annual Reports by 2/1
(2) 2011 Apportionments by 1/13
(3) Legal/Property Forms by 2/1
Need details?
www.westohioumc.endofyear | | |
|
|
|
The Power of Breakthrough Goals | |
On January 1, the West Ohio Conference launched an online Breakthrough Dashboard accessible by all West Ohio churches. This tool has been designed by the Cabinet to assist churches to record and celebrate what God is doing in and through your breakthrough ministry goals.
Do you know what your congregation's 2012 Breakthrough Goals are?
At your fall 2011 charge conference, your church presented its congregation's 2012 Breakthrough Ministry Goals for prayer. Those goal cards have now been prayed over at district gatherings and by the Bishop and Extended Cabinet, asking God to bless, honor and magnify your efforts.
If you don't know your congregation's 2012 breakthrough Ministry Goals, ask your pastor to share them with you.
In your church, one or more persons have been asked by your pastor to help gather the information needed to celebrate your congregation's progress toward the goals you've set for 2012. Each week, one of those servants will go online and enter your weekly progress toward your 2012 breakthrough goals.
We pray this dashboard will prove to be an invaluable tool in supporting your congregation as you pray for God's work to flourish and bear fruit in and through you. Celebrate milestones as you reach your goals in 2012 and together we make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.
For more information about the Breakthrough Goals Dashboard, go to the West Ohio Conference website and click on "Breakthrough Goals Information" |
|
|
|
| Get Ready to Be Unleashed Around the World! | |
 Watch your inboxes for exciting information about this year's annual conference! Here's a sneak peek.....
We're going to walk around the world! (Hey it's only 24,902 miles, and we're going to do it together.)
While we walk we'll proclaim the Good News, learn about global health, visit our four global mission partners, and challenge ourselves to walk a mile in someone else's shoes. All culminating in an exciting week at Lakeside June 10-14, focused on Global Health.
It's a Global Health Challenge by our Bishop....so start warming up, gather some partners for your teams and get ready. (We've got an app ready for you techies.) While you're waiting for the Challenge to start on February 1, learn more about our Miracle Offering, the Wings of the Morning Caravan Project and the Four Corners of the World we'll be visiting.
Best way to stay in touch for Challenge and other Annual Conference news? Go to our West Ohio Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/westohioumc and "Like" it. We're on Twitter too.... @westohioumc. |
|
Rural Chaplains 2011 gathering |
 | |
Rural Chaplains Roger Grace & Wayne Engle with Bishop Sally Dyck |
The Bishops Council pastoral, "God's Renewed Creation: Call to Hope and Action" was the theme for the Rural Chaplains 2011 Annual Focus gathering along the Mississippi Coastal areas.
This year's event centered on environmental issues and the impact of both Hurricane Katrina and the Deepwater Horizon oil spill on coastal and marine life. Local residents and environmental experts shared the impact of these two major disasters on the life and economy of the Gulf Coast. [more] |
|
The Good Samaritan Project |
 In May, the Foundations Class at Circleville Community UMC was discussing a series called Becoming a Good Samaritan.
The study explored the critical needs facing the world and how a Christian could become a "Good Samaritan"...RIGHT NOW...RIGHT WHERE WE LIVE. Each lesson had a section called Now is the Time, asking the question: "How will we put faith into action - STARTING TODAY?" The class agreed to "get off the bench and do something" by the end of the series but did not know what it would be. Suddenly, an opportunity appeared. [more] |
Volunteers in Mission: More than Just a Trip! | |
 One of West Ohio's Church and Community Workers, Mariellyn Dunlap, shares her insights into the value of Volunteers in Mission.
Since the days of John Wesley, mission and service have been vital components of the principles ascribed to by members of The United Methodist Church. The Volunteers in Mission program, under the auspices of the General Board of Global Ministries, offers a wide variety of short-term opportunities to serve God by serving others, both in the United States and abroad. [read full news story] |
|
Become a First Responder - Join the Early Response Team | |
Our disaster response family is growing! If you would like to be a part of this growing community of first responders to a disaster, attend one of the Early Response Team (ERT) Training classes. ERT members provide a Christian presence while taking steps to prevent further damage to a family's personal property through tarping, debris removal, cleaning out flooded homes, etc.
Upcoming ERT training opportunities in West Ohio: 1/14/12 (Racine), 2/11/12 (Columbus), 3/10/12 (Monroe), 3/17/12 (Jackson). Details can be found at www.westohioumc.org/disasterresponse |
|
Human Trafficking happens in Ohio? Awareness Day is January 12. | |
 Did you know that about 1,800 people are trafficked in Ohio each year? That number includes 800 immigrants who are exploited in commercial sex and factory work and about 1,000 American-born children who are forced into prostitution.
Interested in learning more about this growing problem of modern-day slavery and what is being done to address it? Attend the Third Annual Human Trafficking Awareness Day in Columbus on January 12. Resources for congregations can also be found here: Human Trafficking.
West Ohio observes Human Trafficking Awareness Sunday each year on the second Sunday in January. |
|
Are you a young adult interested in work in the mission field? | |
Mission Interns Program is a leadership development and social justice opportunity for young adults (20-30 years old). The three-year program is divided into a 18-month international work/study assignment and a 18-month action/education assignment in one's own country.
US-2 Program is a domestic, two-year, faith and justice-centered leadership-development and mission-service program for adults, ages 20-30, interested in partnering in solidarity with faith-based organizations. US-2s will integrate faith and justice by learning, walking, and working with communities in their struggles to address systemic injustice and human suffering.
Global Justice Volunteers is a short-term volunteer program for young adults aged 18-30. For eight weeks over the summer, GJVs serve abroad with grassroots organizations alongside other young adults from around the world. The volunteers may staff an HIV and AIDS clinic in East Africa, or advocate for sustainable life in Asia. Working in teams of two to five people, volunteers support the community with which they are assigned and one another. |
|
Mission Intern news/blogs | |
 Matt Roudebush was one of two young adults from West Ohio to be commissioned as a Mission Intern through GBGM this year. As a mission intern, he will serve 1.5 years in Mongolia and another 1.5 years in placement within the US. As you read his reflection, you will notice that this experience is already helping him discern more deeply his vocational direction. [Newsletter]
Another West Ohio intern, Katie Steele, is serving in the Ukraine working with college students. Follow her reflections here. |
|
Know the Law: What VIM Teams cannot bring to Mexico |  Through our partnership with the Oriental Conference in Mexico and through other relationships, many congregations in West Ohio send mission teams to Mexico. As we seek to respond from God's love and build relationships with people and communities in Mexico, it is important for us to know and remember laws that govern what we can and cannot bring into Mexico, even as charitable donations. [more] |
| Summer interships in the US Capitol for seminary students |  The United Methodist General Board of Church & Society (GBCS) offers seminary students the opportunity to be engaged in social justice advocacy on a global scale through an internship on Capitol Hill. Interns will work 30-35 hours a week for 8-10 weeks during the summer and may receive a stipend to cover housing, depending on social justice area of focus. More Information |
|
|
New dates of note | |
February 4...Crossing Borders with Paul, the 2nd Annual Sprague Lecture, North Broadway UMC, Columbus; Dr. Althea-Spencer Miller, Lecturer.
February 24-25...Justice Conference, Portland, OR; international gathering of people from all walks of life interested in restoring the fabric of justice.
June 15-23...VIM Team, Managua, Nicaragua; brochure and application available from team leader Jack Reif, 513-831-5550 or jack.reif@zoomtown.com. |
|
Passages | | Rev. Richard E. Steigleder (retired - 2002), died December 30, 2011. Messages of condolence may be sent to Judy Steigleder, 1912 Arlington Drive, Lima, OH 45807.
Rev. Dr. Millard Knowles (retired 1992), died on December 15, 2011. Messages of condolence may be sent to Dr. Robin Knowles Wallace and Rev. John Wallace, 2170 Willowick Square, Columbus, OH 43229.
The Rev. Oscar W. Burdette, Jr. died on November 30, 2011. Donations may be made to Cornwell Presbyterian Church, 2286 Columbia Hwy., Blackstock, SC 29014.
The Rev. Norman P. Brom died on November 29, 2011. Messages of condolence may be sent to his wife Phyllis at 191 W. Krepps Road, Xenia OH 45385.
Mrs. Abby Kinne, wife of Rev. Raymond F. Kinne (retired 2008), died on November 29, 2011. Donations may be made to Choices, 5721 N. High Street, Worthington, OH 43085. Messages of condolence may be sent to Fred at 12715 Fairview Road, Newark, OH 43056.
Rev, Dale E. Colvin (retired 2009), died on November 25, 2011. Donations may be made to Genesis Hospice and Pallative Care, 713 Forest Avenue, Zanesville, OH 43701 or Coburn UMC, 3618 Maple Avenue, Zanesville, OH 43701. Messages of condolence may be sent to his wife Janet at 725 Deerfield Road, Zanesville, OH 43701.
Mrs. Eliza Lemley, surviving spouse of Rev. Chester Lemley (deceased 1996), died on November 24, 2011. Donations may be made to the Alzheimer's Association, PO Box 96011, Washington, DC 20090.
Mrs. Geneva J. Aldridge, surviving spouse of Joseph Aldridge (deceased 1996), died on November 4, 2011.
Rev. Gerviase F. Peters (retired 1989), died on October 15, 2011. Messages of condolence may be sent to Mrs. Marjorie Tudor, 1128 Devon Avenue, Dayton, OH 45429. |
|
Deadline for News.NET articles is noon on Tuesdays |
|
|
|
|
