Last week, leaders of three heartland Conferences met to begin a conversation about how we might collaborate more closely with one another.  While this was not the first time we have thought about sharing our ministries, it was our first focused gathering. Conference Ministers, Edith Guffey of Kansas-Oklahoma, Allen Fluent of Missouri Mid-South, and Sheldon Culver of Illinois South, met with our respective Conference Moderators: Mark Van Dorn, Joyce Bathke (incoming Moderator) and Tom Kuergeleis, to initiate this exploration.

The decision to talk about our shared ministries as Conferences was prompted, in part, by the resolution from the last General Synod (2013) which calls upon the entire Church to examine "blurring" Conference boundaries. It can take a long time for a resolution to come to the floor of General Synod, and this one was no exception, but its time finally arrived.  Across the denomination we have grown increasingly aware that the structures we put in place over 50 years ago no longer serve to support our mission as a Church.  We are conscious of the ways that we duplicate the services provided by each Conference, and while there was a time when this was necessary, the world of communication, and the technology to support it, has already transformed how we inter-relate in every other field of endeavor.

We look forward to your participation in the conversation as it unfolds, and we invite you to begin as we have, by getting to know our three Conferences.  Links to each Conference website are provided below.  We also intend to invite one another to upcoming events such as Clergy Days and other gatherings of Associations/Conferences, so that we can discover who we are together.  Please plan to join us in whatever ways work for you.

Finally, we give thanks, always and ever, for the light of Christ at the center of all we seek to accomplish.

Illinois South website  

Kansas-Oklahoma website 

Missouri Mid-South website   

Sheldon Culver 

Our 2014 Conference Annual Gathering (CAG) will be held on June 12-14 at the Truman Hotel & Conference Center in Jefferson City.  Registration deadline is Friday, May 30th, which is 16 days away!  Prices increase after the 30th and the absolute last day to register is Monday, June 2.  Please be respectful of these dates as we need to share information with the hotel.

There are two ways to register for CAG:
1).  Fillable pdf - Please note that some of you may have difficulty with this form depending upon your computer and which version of Adobe you have downloaded.  If you are not able to use the fillable form, please use registration option #2.
2).  Printable form - This form (in Word) may be printed and filled out by hand which should then be returned to our Conference office.

• Credit card form - fillable 
• Credit card form - Word 

You may also find the above documents on the 2014 CAG page of our website.  

We are also sharing the CAG schedule, which highlights the main portions of the gathering and business sessions.  More information regarding the faith sharing lunches, workshops, conversations and other programming highlights will be available in the eCourier and on our website over the next several weeks.  Keep watching!

We certainly look forward to seeing many of you in June!   

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Youth Stewards at CAG:

The Missouri Mid-South Conference Annual Gathering Planning Team and the Conference Youth Ministry Covenanted Ministry are presenting another opportunity this year for high school Youth to be Stewards at this year's Conference Annual Gathering.

There are five leadership positions available for Conference Youth to serve at the event.  These Youth Stewards will be expected to arrive by noon on Thursday, to help with hospitality and registration duties, and to serve in many designated capacities throughout the event; including worship opportunities.  They will be working closely with our Conference staff and the CAG Planning Team to be stewards of the resources and relationships we will be celebrating this weekend.

Registration and meal fees for Youth Stewards will be paid using funds made possible by church contributions to Our Church's Wider Mission.  Youth Stewards and/or their local congregation will be responsible for their own hotel fees.  These Youth Stewards will be voting delegates from their local congregation; supervision of these youth will be the responsibility of their host church delegates/pastors.

Nominations for Youth Stewards can be made using the Youth Stewards Nomination Form .  Nominations must be made by May 14; and please, before nominating a Youth Steward, ensure that they are willing to serve, and available to be in attendance the entirety of the event.

I love listening to music -- many kinds of music. When I stop to think about it, I know that the strings of an instrument or the skin of a drum need to be stretched -- not too tightly and not too loosely, but just right. If not, the instrument will be painfully out of tune and hurt listeners' ears. The musician needs to keep tuning the instrument so that it can create great sounds and harmonize with the other musicians' instruments. Otherwise, no one wants to listen! 

Our churches are unique instruments with various strings that need regular attention and attunement. We are each a unique string of our church's instrument. Each of us creates sounds and vibrations slightly different from anyone else. In order for our congregation to be in tune with the Spirit and resonate with others, we work to tune the sounds. Yet, in order to be in tune, we need a centering tone -- the oboe if you will, which sounds the tone to which all the orchestra tunes. Our center is our God, and we must come back again and again to God's tuning tone.

A church in tune with God's Way makes beautiful music. Watching its various groups, clergy and lay leaders, youth and elderly sharing activities, is like experiencing a well-orchestrated symphony. This is God's breath, God's voice speaking and guiding us. If there is discord or dissonance among us, it is painful. When there is harmony, soulful music soars. That is why we invite the Spirit to make the music of our lives at home and in church.

In what ways do you seek resonance with others? What are the ways your church makes beautiful harmonies?

Jan Aerie

jan@mmsucc.org 314-918-2601 

We, as a Conference, are finding new ways to be prayerfully mindful of each other. We are also building and deepening our relationships. This new feature which will appear in the eCourier weekly, is one way of attaining this goal.  Each week three (in random order) congregations, their pastors and other clergy, will be named, inviting your prayers during the week. We will rotate through the entire list of churches and clergy in one year. Please join us and share with others in the power of collective prayer.

Churches & Pastors

Friedens (Peace) UCC in New Melle, MO - pastor Karen Eck

Central UCC in Jefferson City MO - pastor Coletta Eichenberger

St Johns UCC in Chesterfield, MO - pastor Dale Bartels

Clergy

Rev. Homer Schmitz, Rev. Jane Fisler-Hoffman, Rev. Howard Cavner and Rev. Lois Yatzeck

Miracles of Action      

We know that our giving can only make a difference if we connect giving to the "feet" of action. Faith and action do go step by step. With your giving, many miraculous steps occurred this week:

Many UCC churches across the country have joined in praying by name, for the schoolgirls kidnapped in Nigeria. A statement from our Global Ministries has also been made public.

32 million adults who are illiterate are getting a boost from the UCC national campaign for literacy. Every church can do its part in its own community.

Young people interested in going to the Regional Youth Event this summer receive encouragement to go and support for expenses from all settings of the denomination.

Our Church Works Miracles!

OCWM: creating miracles every Day.

Back in January, Columbia UCC invited our Conference, as well as our Disciples partners, to help fund a shipment of PET devices (Personal Energy Transportation carts, built in the U.S. by volunteers - please visit  http://petinternational.org/) to Drs. Anil & Teresa Henry at Mungeli Hospital in India.  

PET International is prepared to fill an ocean-going shipping container; Dr. Henry has land transportation in India taken care of.  We asked for contributions totaling $4,407.00 to fund the sea-transport of the container from the U.S. to a port in India.

To date, contributions and commitments have been received for $2,800.00 - thank you!  Gifts have come from churches, Sunday schools, women's groups, clergy clusters, and individuals.

Anil and Teresa recently concluded another visit to our Conference.  To date we've received $2,750.00 and still need to raise $1,650.00.  Gifts are being held in a designated account (PET Project) at Columbia UCC.  Please make checks payable to Columbia UCC and mail to our church at 3201 I-70 Dr. NW, Columbia, MO 65202 with PET Project written on the memo line. 

Thank you for your partnership!

-submitted by Rev. Steve Swope, Columbia UCC