As This Year Draws to a Close

I was one of those children. Maybe one lives under your roof right now. Or maybe you were a 'kindred spirit' of mine. It actually started when I was quite young. About 4:30 a.m. tiptoe, tiptoe...a finger poking the arm of my sleeping mother:

"Mommy, I think Santa's been here."

"No honey. Go back to bed; it's not time to get up."

That was not the right answer! I was far too excited! The next year, I grew braver - creeping down the stairs until I hit that one step-you know the one - three steps from the bottom that always creaked.

"Go back to bed; it's not time to get up."

The following year, my ballet lessons began paying off. I practiced balancing along the baseboards that ran down either side of the stairs. Yes! I finally made it all the way to the living room. There in the darkened room, over in the corner, stood the unlit Christmas tree. I could make out the shapes of presents, why I could even figure out a toy or two, but I stopped and stared in the silence. Something was missing: my family. It wasn't the same without them. So I quietly snuck back upstairs and waited-for what seemed like eternity-but it wasn't the same without my family. They were part of the joy of the special day.

As I reflect back on these first five months as your District Superintendent, the joy I feel is because I am getting to know you, the Capitol Area South Family. Some of you I've known for many years, and some of you I've just met. Nonetheless, there has been true joy for me in renewing my connection with our UM connection. There is something quite essential and formative that comes from spending time listening to the stories of one another, what you hold dear. I also listened to you express challenges and the hope/dreams that lie ahead. Isn't that the point of this season in some ways?

As James Sharrett wrote, "God pitches his fleshly tent in silence on straw, in a stable, under a star. The cry from that infant's throat pierced the silence of centuries. God's voice could actually be heard coming from human vocal cords. That's the joy of it. God has come to be with us. Nothing in this world can separate any of God's children from his love. Not even our prodigal rebellions, nor our adult indifferences; our sins nor our sufferings. No experience goes unattended by God. Cradles of insecurity -- he is there; deserts of temptation -- he is there; gardens of indecision -- he is there; crosses of suffering -- he is there. He is in them all. This is the God of Christmas!"

"And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth." Oswald Chambers wrote: "There is only one relationship that matters, and that is your personal relationship to a personal Redeemer and Lord. Let everything else go, but maintain that at all costs, and God will fulfill His purpose through your life."

This is Good News dear colleagues and friends. As 2011 draws to a close, we at the District Office wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas! May you be filled with wonder and touched anew by the miracle of the in-breaking of the kingdom through the birth of the Christ child -- Emmanuel-- God with Us! 

Pitching into Help Single Women in Need of Housing 

This winter there is a new Single Women's Overflow Shelter in Columbus- the women will be staying at the St Stephen's Community Center every night from December 12 through March 15. This effort is being coordinated by the YWCA Family Center. Because we as United Methodists care deeply about people in need, we are all pitching in to help! Each day the women will have their meals at Broad St UMC, one of our 4 district mission centers, and then take the bus up to St Stephen's on 17th Ave for their overnight stay.   

Memorial Service to Honor the Homeless

The Columbus Coalition for the Homeless is hosting the community wide annual Memorial Service to honor the lives of people who were homeless or formerly homeless and who passed away during 2011.    

You are invited to attend this powerful inter-faith service to be held:
Thursday, December 22, 5:30 to 6:30p.m.
Trinity Episcopal Church
125 E. Broad Street
Columbus, Ohio 43215   

You can download the flyer for this event HERE.

One Day to End Homelessness for 2012

The faith community and the Community Shelter Board will collaborate as we did last year, when we raised $185,000, to help our neighbors in need. The faith-based campaign to end homelessness will take place between January 1 and February 29, 2012. WBNS-10TV will hold a daylong telethon on January 31 as part of this effort. Community Ministries along with Broad St United Methodist Church and the Capitol Area North and South Districts are sponsoring the campaign with a combined $7500 contribution.

The goal is to raise $300,000 and to provide opportunities to not only give a donation but also give a day of volunteer service with one of our United Methodist ministries providing housing in the central Ohio area. We will let you know when the dates have been set.

See the article about the One Day to End Homelessness in this edition of The Connection.

The One Day to End Homelessness campaign, from January 1 through February 29, 2012, calls on community members to contribute the equivalent of just one day's rent or mortgage payment. Money raised will benefit the programs of the Community Shelter Board, the nationally recognized organization that funds housing and homelessness services in Franklin County.

The campaign will include activities that raise money and raise awareness among our congregations about homelessness. To facilitate communications, the Community Shelter Board provides participating organizations with a comprehensive Campaign Toolkit with fact sheets, bulletin copy, and other support. WBNS-10TV will hold a telethon during all TV news programming on January 31, 2012, to bolster our efforts. 

Click HERE to download a copy of the memo that has been send to each congregation in the CAS District about this campaign.

Hebron and New Life Vote to Merge

On Sunday, November 20, District Superintendent Barb Sholis presided over a combined church conference for the Hebron UMC and the New Life UMC in which these congregations voted to merge.  The new congregation is now the Hebron New Life United Methodist Church.  The congregation under the leadership of Pastor Brian Harkness continues to meet at two locations with a vision to acquire land and build a new facility in the Hebron area.

Click HERE to go to the congregation's website.  Scroll down to the video where you can watch Brian Harkness announce the results of the vote to the congregation.

Learning and growing in our faith, in our relationship with God, is a life-long endeavor. As United Methodist's we share a common history, but we each have our own story as to how we came to this point in our journey and we each will live our call to discipleship differently. Our Story: Confirmation Retreat is an enhancement of your church's current confirmation program and will provide students an opportunity to explore their own faith journey while learning the history of the United Methodist Church.

This 3-day retreat is geared at 6th-9th graders but high school students engaged in a confirmation process are also welcome. Students will be immersed in God's creation while connecting with United Methodist traditions, each other and their own personal relationship with Christ. It is our dream that by learning the "United Methodist story" each participant will continue to grow in faith and explore opportunities to serve God as they move toward the next chapter of life. Join us as we discover our faith in the intersection between our past traditions and our life long discipleship.

The registration deadline is February 20. (Please note this event will fill us quickly).

Click HERE for more information.

The Historian of the Year and church anniversaries will be recognized at the Annual Meeting and History Convocation of the UMHSO on April 21, 2012 at Newcomer's Chapel on Pigeon Run near Massillon OH. At that time, the UMHSO will recognize the Historian of the Year for the West Ohio Conference, based on the recommendation of Commission on Archives and History, and also recognize churches of the conference which are celebrating significant anniversaries.