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Harvest 2020 Reflections
New people... in new places... in new ways
Greetings! 


The People of Grace  or Gracious Living
"...God loves a cheerful giver."  II Corinthians 9: 7b

This past month has been a time of deep contemplation for me. One month ago (February 1) my mother passed away. At age 93 � and after six years of dementia and debilitating Alzheimer's, my mom was but a shadow of the great lady I had known. Over the last several years, my mind had started to forget all that she had been.

While sitting on the other side of the pulpit through the whole funeral process, I started to experience the healing that the Christian Faith and the Church can bring. It was as if a veil was being removed from my mind's eye. Over the past month pleasant memories of my mom have been coming back to me.


Two that keep coming up are her beautiful, joyful smile and her gracious spirit. Mom's smile could make even the dreariest day seem bright. But she did not just leave you with a smile, she followed up with gracious actions that stood behind/validated the smile. More than anything she loved to give of herself to her family, her church and her community. As a boy I remember many a morning being awakened by my mom as she came into my room with a big smile singing one of her favorite choruses. Often, we kids would tag along as she would visit shut ins or sick people from one of the churches where my dad served as Pastor. She did not do this because she had to, she did it because she enjoyed sharing her joy. It should be no surprise that one of my mom's favorite verses of Scripture was "...God loves a cheerful giver." She lived it out daily and made sure that her four children memorized this verse at an early age.

Several years ago when our Conference leadership first launched the Harvest 2020 program, I was excited. I saw it as an opportunity to say "Thank You" to God and our NIC forebearers for the great church we have inherited and to reclaim our grace-filled heritage. Through God's justifying grace, our forebearers experienced God's redeeming, transforming love which in time changed them into "the people of grace". Having received a great gift, they in turn had a passion to pass it on. Their willingness to share freely of themselves and all they possessed were great gifts to their families, their church, their community and society in general. 
Bill Landis and family
Bill Landis


As United Methodist pastors it is our privilege as well as responsibility to pass this "amazing grace" onto ours and the next generation. We live in a very harsh world where graciousness has often become the exception rather than the norm. Harvest 2020 gives us the opportunity to connect in new and different ways with many people whom we have not been reaching.

I was overjoyed to hear that although we are just a few years into this Harvest 2020 emphasis, in Northern Illinois Conference over 2000 new people are worshiping each weekend in new places and often in new ways. I expect that over time as these new people experience Jesus Christ and the spiritual values of John and Charles Wesley, they, too, will become the gracious people of the United Methodist Church.

Your Servant,
Bill Landis




About the Author 

Bill Landis (officially, Clarence William) grew up in Southwestern Iowa where his father (and mother) served as Pastor of a number of United Methodist Churches. He came to Illinois in 1974 to attend seminary, was ordained Deacon in 1976 and Elder in 1980. He has served churches in Buffalo Grove, Prairie View, Sheridan, Norway, Savanna and now is Senior Pastor of Sycamore UMC for the past ten years.
Bill is married to Jo and together they have three grown children: Kara (and Jason) Lehnhardt of Gurnee,IL, Rachel Landis of Durango, CO and Jacob Landis of Chestertown, MD. Bill enjoys traveling with his wife, Jo, and visiting with his kids. His hobbies include model trains, history, old cars, storytelling and hiking.



Northern Illinois Conference

These devotional pieces have been written by members of the Clergy Committee of the Harvest 2020 Campaign. This is the final week which you will receive an e-mail with their reflection, a picture and a brief "bio" telling you a bit about who they are and how they serve in the Northern Illinois Conference. If you feel inclined to unsubscribe, please choose the Harvest 2020 list to ensure you still receive the eNews.

For information visit www.umcnic.org/harvest2020