There are few surer ways to miss out on God's voice than urgency. Deadlines. Relational drama. Global injustice. Multiple jobs. Financial stress. Life is relentlessly difficult and moves insanely fast. The world is changing and evolving every moment and the pressure to keep up, stay current and get ahead can be all consuming. Can I hear God's voice above all the noise? One of the most significant challenges of our rapid culture is the sense of urgency it creates. Urgency is good for getting things done. A healthy sense of urgency helps us to be focused and productive. Urgency, however, is less suited for reflection and rest. In many ways, it is at odds with waiting on the Lord, seeking God in silence and solitude, and meditating on Scripture. Urgency has a powerful magnetic pull that can keep us from hearing God. (continued)

This year United Methodists from across the nation joined an estimated crowd of 80,000 who packed Selma, Alabama, March 7-8 for a weekend of events marking the 50th anniversary of "Bloody Sunday," including a speech by President Barack Obama and the annual march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge. Read the United Methodist News Service story

West Ohio United Methodists also found ways to participate in the observance of the protest march that sought voting rights for African Americans. UM's from the Ohio River Valley and Miami Valley districts shared a bus to Selma and participated in the march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge. Gaines United Methodist Church and Clifton United Methodist Church partnered with the community for a march through Madisonville. Watch the video See the photos on Facebook

Each year the United Methodist Historical Society of Ohio (UMHSO) recognizes the Church Historian of the Year as well as those churches celebrating significant anniversaries (100 years or more, in 25 year increments). The West Ohio Conference Commission on Archives and History is responsible for gathering nominations for the historian of the year award and the significant church anniversaries for West Ohio. The Historian of the Year and  church anniversaries will be recognized at the Annual Meeting and Convocation of the UMHSO on April 25 at Franklin First United Methodist Church. All are invited to attend.

• Deadline for receiving nominations, including rationale and supporting material, for Historian of the Year is April 4. Criteria  All nominees will receive a certificate with the winner receiving  a plaque.

• Deadline for receiving church anniversary notifications is March 31. Each church will receive a certificate recognizing its anniversary.

Both may be sent to James R. Barbee, Chair, West Ohio Commission on Archives & History, 2241-C Wesley Way, Reynoldsburg, Ohio 43068 or at jbarbee001@insight.rr.com.

Rossford United Methodist Church is using Circles of Grace as a process for a series of weekly gatherings engaging in gracious conversations with around issues of race in America. Senior pastor, Dr. Robert Ball began the series with an introduction, Circles of Grace Conversations. The following weeks feature the discussions: Islam and Terrorism (Dr. Amjad Hussein), Racism and Prejudice (Rev. Lawrence Keeler),The Hispanic Experience in America (Lucy Mendoza) and The Black Experience in America (Rev. Larry Whatley). The idea was sparked by Bishop Palmer's urging that churches in West Ohio create Circles of Grace and engage in conversations, using as a guide the invitation of Jesus to live gracefully in a world broken by violence, rejection and fear. 

The United Methodist Men of First United Methodist Church in Marysville began hosting a winter concert series in support of missions two years ago, and the results have been outstanding. Built around Bluegrass music, bands performing have included Joe Mullins and the Radio Ramblers, The Spinney Brothers, Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver, Junior Sisk and Ramblers Choice, and The Grascals. "It's been a great way for us to raise money for mission and provide good family entertainment for the community", said Lay Pastor, Bill Kelley. This year the mission project is Imagine No Malaria. Next concert is March 20. Information and Tickets

Burning Hearts Chili Cook-off warms a cold Sunday

 At Amlin United Methodist Church where Rev. Steve Putka is pastor, the Burning Hearts Chili Cookoff by the United Methodist Women was added to their Sunday to Save Lives event. During worship, Dave Boling, Conference Coordinator for Imagine No Malaria, shared the Mama Rose, Malaria Ravages the Poor video story and his passion for the cause. After worship everyone enjoyed chili on what was one of the coldest days in February. In the words of the UMW President, Doreen Cole, "After seeing the film and with Dave's sharing fresh on our minds, our hearts were open for the day's event." More than $500 was raised towards the church's $1,500 giving commitment to Imagine No Malaria.

A Sunday Evening to Save Lives

Churches of the Johnstown clergy cluster gather Sunday evenings during Lent for a time of fellowship and worship. Each week a different United Methodist Church in the cluster hosts the Sunday evening service which includes a light supper and worship. The Lenten gathering is also focused on raising funds for Imagine No Malaria. Dave Boling, Conference Coordinator for Imagine No Malaria, showed the Mama Rose, Malaria Ravages the Poor video story and was the preacher for the evening. Members from Appleton, Croton, Alexandria, Miller Memorial, Bennington Chapel and Johnstown United Methodist Churches gathered for a great time of fellowship and worship.  

Sunday to Save Lives is about more than a special offering. These are just two stories of how West Ohio United Methodists are working together to end malaria's hold on families in the sub-Saharan region of Africa. Working together and creative fun is a great way to have your Sunday to Save Lives. Thank you for saving lives through Imagine No Malaria!

Our West Ohio camps are perfect places for special events, meetings, retreats and seminars. Each camp has a lodge, extensive grounds and unique opportunities for relaxation, learning or team building. The camp staff will assist you in planning any event including providing lodging, meals and extraordinary hospitality. Wi-fi and media are available and facility rates are discounted for West Ohio churches. For details about the unique amenities at each camp, visit Retreat Facilities, 

Millions of people have read How to Win Friends and Influence People, the classic self-improvement book first published in 1936 by Dale Carnegie. One criticism sometimes evoked by the title is that friends should be made rather than won. However, readers who dive into Carnegie's principles quickly realize that the author's tactics are steeped in kindness, authenticity and humility. People didn't follow Jesus because he won public arguments. They followed him because he loved people. In our modern drive to increase reach and build platform, it is easy to get so caught up in numbers that we forget how influence can be negative as well as positive. Often, negative influence comes in the form of our natural drive to want to win at EVERYTHING, even at the cost of losing loved ones. (continued)

Is your pursuit of Jesus far less interesting than the pursuit of new ministry strategies, worship ideas, Christian disciplines, or creative ways to study the Bible? If you created a children's ministry that's radically, creatively, passionately, and even ridiculously centered in Jesus, how would it change the way you see your calling and what you do in ministry? At this conference, held at St. Mark's United Methodist Church in Findlay, explore what a youth ministry looks like when all your everyday practices and activities orbit around Jesus. Led by Rick Lawrence, editor of Group Magazine & Simply Youth Ministry, participants will receive a copy of Rick's new book, Skin in the Game. Let yourself be personally transformed in these sessions and leave with new ideas to bring back to your ministry.  More information

Cokesbury offers beautiful and personal Easter gifts of jewelry, Bibles, and decorative crosses. They have a great selection of gifts suitable for pastors, church staff and teachers, as well as many gifts in a range of prices for Sunday school classes or small groups. 

Beautiful boxed cards help you share the meaning of Easter with family and friends and Cokesbury has a wide selection. Complement a friend or loved one's home or office decor by choosing from a wide variety of decorative crosses. 

Click here to see the full selection of Easter gifts and give a timeless reminder of the Resurrection. 

Recommendations to be included in the Book of Reports for the 2015 Annual Conference session must be sent to Rev. Amy Aspey, chair of the Reference & Procedure Committee, by March 15. 

Request space for an event at a Lakeside facility during Annual Conference by March 20. 

Registration & Housing online registration is open. On-site housing at Lakeside is on a first-come, first-served basis, registration for conference is open until May 30. 

Pouring over the history of the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR), it is hard to resist the image of the mustard seed-that "smallest of all the seeds on earth" that Jesus uses to describe the kingdom of God. From a tiny seed, new life grows from obscurity to become "the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade." (Mark 4:30-32) Now, UMCOR itself may not be the kingdom of God or "the greatest of shrubs," but, like the mustard seed, its beginnings were small and humble. At its founding, it was not intended to survive much beyond World War II but to help and comfort those who were impacted by the violence of that period. Nevertheless, nourished by faith and self-giving love, it has sunk deep roots in Methodist soil and extended leafy branches both to those in need and to all who would partner with them to respond. Over the course of seven and a half decades, UMCOR has modified its size, reach, and approach. Yet, certain constants have developed within the organization from the days when the seed was first sown to the present. Read more about UMCOR's start. Then read Faith-Based Relief in the 21st Century: How UMCOR Continues to Make a Difference.