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A bi-weekly newsletter to keep you up-to-date and informed.
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Since October, Rev. Dr. Renee Jackson and Rev. Nicole Havelka have been serving as our half-time Area Ministers. They each cover two Associations, staff search and call committees in their Associations, consult with and help develop special programs in their work for the Conference. Many people have asked what Nicole and Renee do with the other "half" of their time. Here are updates from them about their busy lives!
"Betwixt and Between"
The above title is a fairly accurate description of my dual roles as Pastor and Southeast Area Minister. Like most people, I am accustomed to wearing multiple "hats" as I navigate through life. In this instance, however, I am more aware of the growth opportunities and rewards of ministry.
As a pastor I share the responsibilities of my peers when it comes to fulfilling the pastoral role. Engaging with the larger community, studying for and preparing sermons, counseling, church meetings and events, leading bible study classes...all typical pastoral activities. Each places demands on ones time and energy.
As a Conference staff person, I have the privilege of sharing in celebratory events such as ordinations and installations. I am also a resource to churches striving to address the stresses of ministry, offering a listening ear and pertinent information, and prayerful encouragement to clergy and lay leaders. As an Area Minister, I serve as a connective reminder of our Conferences presence and support in our mutual endeavor to engage in effective ministry as covenant partnership.
These roles have areas of convergence, such as representing both my congregation and the Conference as a board member with Evangelical Homes of Michigan, a ministry of the United Church of Christ; and as part of the board of directors of Sustaining Pastoral Excellence, an ecumenical organization which promotes personal and professional vitality among pastoral leaders.
Whether I am helping public school children improve their reading skills, sharing in a prayer vigil for persons impacted by substance abuse, or educating others about voter disenfranchisement, I know that I am only one of many in our Conference who are intent on being the Body of Christ in all aspects of our lives. It is the Spirit that gives life and is the Connecting Presence that links the "betwixt" to the "between." To God be the glory!
Peace and blessings,
Rev. Dr. Renee Jackson
Despite my undergrad theater degree, I have no formal training in juggling. I am getting lots of practice in this new role in the Michigan Conference.
I see so many possibilities and connections between my "other work" and the ministry of the Michigan Conference. Already some people have begun to take advantage of these other offerings - the Southwest and Grand West Associations are hiring me to do a Vibrant Faith Ministry training called "Family Faith Night," on April 27. A Michigander participated in my online youth ministry course this fall.
I hope more people take advantage of these offerings so that we can explore how connecting to these organizations and the resources they bring can benefit our common ministry. I believe that the possibilities are almost endless!
Peace,
Rev. Nicole Havelka
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Detroit filmmaker wins UCC video contest!
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 | | Alive. Awake. Aware. (Rashad Jackson) |
The winner of the United Church of Christ video contest, "My Faith, My World, My Voice" has been chosen by popular vote. Rashad Jackson, a member of Fellowship UCC in Detroit, Mich., is the winner of the $5,000 prize. His video, "Awake, Alive, Aware," came out on top, collecting the largest number of the 4,500 votes cast, and the 25 year old plans to use his prize to continue filmmaking. READ MORE
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Associations Office - Michigan Conference UCC
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For Association information and correspondence please email Associations@michucc.org, or call the office at (517)332-3511 extension 209.
Since Barb Paff's retirement, Elsie Claggett has graciously agreed to work on a temporary basis in the Association office. She will work a few hours each day - with Wednesday's off. If you happen to call when Elsie is not in the office, please leave her a voicemail or email message and she will get back with you. Thank You!
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Grand West Association: Lay Leader Forums
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By popular request, the Grand West Association of the Michigan Conference is following up on the successful Lay Leader Sessions held last October at the Fall Annual Meeting. These forums will be concurrent two (2) hour sessions and will include the Christian education and mission groups which began discussions at the annual meeting along with a forum for church treasurers. The forums will be informal in nature, with opportunities to exchange ideas on best practices, successful programs and the like. As always, participants are welcome to choose any session they wish. INFORMATIONAL FLYER
Date: Sunday, January 26, 2014 Time: 3:00p - 5:00p (registration is open at 2:30p) Cost: FREE (light refreshments will be available) Register: Pre-registration is not required but is preferred. Subject Line: "Lay Leader Forums" Email your Name, Position or interest, church name and city
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SAVE THE DATE: VITALITY DAY - MARCH 1, 2014
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2014 Michigan Conference UCC 
"Vitality Day"
March 1, 2014 10:00a - 4:00p
Location:
"Tools for Transition"
Facilitated by: The Rev. Dr. William Lyons
Bring a team of pastoral and lay leaders to:
- Achieve more of your vision
- Generate more new things
- Successfully address resistance to change
Cost: $15 per person or $50 per congregation (up to 5 people).
(Lunch included)
REGISTRATION
INFORMATIONAL FLYER
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Save the Date:
Great Lakes Regional Youth Event (GLRYE)
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Great Lakes Regional Youth Event
July 10 - 13, 2014
DISCOVERING
CALLING
SERVING
Open to Grades 6 - 12 (2014)
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Festival of Faith - Worship for the 21st Century
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Saturday, April 26, 2014 9:30a - 2:30p
469 N. Hagadorn Rd. East Lansing, MI 48823
Cost to attend: $25 per person (includes lunch)
Featuring Keynote Speaker:
Join the Michigan Conference United Church of Christ and the Christian Church Disciples of Christ Michigan Region as we welcome professor and author, The Rev. Dr. Frank Thomas. Dr. Thomas serves as Nettie Sweeney and Hugh Th. Miller Professor of Homiletics and Director of the academy of Preaching and Celebration at Christian Theological Seminary of Indianapolis, Indiana. His newest book is the revised and updated version of "They Like to Never Quit Praisin' God: The Role of Celebration in Preaching", considered by many as a classic.
Online registration begins March 1, 2014; a paper registration will be also be available. Childcare will be provided at this event.
Deadline to register is April 14th, 2014
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YOUR Input is Valued and Greatly Appreciated...
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We at Midwest Ministry Development, in partnership with North Central Ministry Development and Work Effects, a leadership consulting firm, are making progress on development of a tool to assess pastoral competencies. We have designed a survey to help gather data from a wide range of people about the qualities that they deem important for pastoring their church. We are looking for input from pastors, lay leaders, denominational executives - in short, anyone who cares about good leadership in the church. I'd like you to contribute to our process by completing a survey. Please respond in terms of the specific church you are connected to, rather than "churches in general." The results will be confidential and anonymous, and only used for the research and development of this assessment tool. The survey takes less than 20 minutes to complete.
Please share this survey with anyone you think would be appropriate. The broader the base of respondents, the better!
Thank you for your help with this project!
Ross D. Peterson
Executive Director
Midwest Ministry Development
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Inclusive Justice Radical Welcome
"Racism remains a wound at the heart of our nation
that cannot be wished away or treated carelessly."
-- UCC Pastoral Letter on Racism (2008)
Delegates at the 2013 Annual Meeting of the Michigan Conference reaffirmed the urgent need for dialogue, education, and action that address the continuing reality of racial inequity and injustice. Heeding that call, the Covenant Association is offering a two-part workshop series designed for clergy and lay leaders. Inclusive Justice, Radical Welcome in an interactive workshop where participants will explore creative ways to interrupt racism at the personal, congregational, and societal level. Please join us for this critically important workshop series!
Dates: February 22 and March 22 (Attendance at both sessions required)
Time: Saturdays, 9:00 am - 5:00 pm.
Facilitator Team: Melanie S. Morrison and Monique Savage
Location: Pilgrim Congregational UCC, 125 S. Pennsylvania, Lansing 48912
Cost: $25 - (includes program, materials, and lunch for both days)
Full Program Description
Registration Form
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Michigan Prophetic Voices
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 The next meeting of the Michigan Prophetic Voices clergy caucus will be held on Thursday, February 13 from 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 Noon at First Presbyterian Church in Lansing. The church is located at 510 W. Ottawa Street near the State Capitol in downtown Lansing. At this caucus, clergy and interested congregation members from mid-Michigan will plan upcoming actions responding to issues of human need and ending gunviolence.
For more information, please be in touch with Rev. Tom Jones at 517-543-1310.
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Boundary Training sessions announced
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Sustaining Pastoral Excellence
at
Boundary Tending and Border Crossing sessions
Upcoming Dates: May 1, 2014 September 4, 2014 April 30, 2015 September 10, 2015
*Please note that two (2) sessions will not take place at St. Francis Retreat Center.
9:15a - 3:30p Cost: $75 (includes materials & lunch) $25 deposit required with registration
Registration is not available at this time; information will be shared when it becomes available. |
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IMPORTANT - Have permission!
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Churches may find themselves in trouble if they use songs, poems, writing, sermon illustrations without permission. We are hearing from other Conferences that churches are being sued for printing poems in newsletters, posting sermons (which use quotations without permission) on YouTube, and making audio/video recordings of worship services for distribution to members. Please read this article for more information: http://macucc.org/blogs/detail/325
If you are close to a concert or musical performance venue, ask the staff there about licenses they have to get in order to have live performances.
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Next round of online courses
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January 30 - March 6, 2014
"Church Planting 2.0"
with Cameron Trimble & Doug Pagitt
Wednesday, January 15, 2014 to Wednesday, February 5, 2014 "Experiential Worship that Transforms" with Cathy Townley
Monday, January 27, 2014 to Monday, March 3, 2014 "Church Renewal 1.0" with Mike Piazza & Jim Latimer
Monday, March 3, 2014 to Monday, April 7, 2014 "Church Renewal 2.0" with Mike Piazza & Jim Latimer
Tuesday, April 30, 2014 to Sunday, June 2, 2014 "Church Planting 1.0" with Cameron Trimble & Sara Wilcox |
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UCC Women of Michigan: The Gathering 2014
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June 6, 7, & 8, 2014
"Sing a New Song" 
Featuring Keynote Speaker: Rev. Penny Lowes
Come and join us for various workshops
- Women's Intuition - Journaling by the Rev. Lydia Meyer
- Dancing with God by the Rev. Ginny Titus
- "What God has to say about LGBTQ" by Amy McDonald LLPC
- Corded bag/basket workshop by Eileen Lovett
- making prayer blessing flags, Scandinavian wood shaving ornaments, and much more.
Join us for a great retreat weekend at the beautiful Kettunen Center just outside Tustin, Michigan. A registration form is available below or you can email your name and address to either Amy McDonald amycmu@yahoo.com or Vesta Smith-Campbell vscampbell@cleary.edu and we will be glad to send you a paper copy.
REGISTRATION FORM
Hope to see you this summer!
Amy McDonald & Vesta Smith-Campbell
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WORKSHOP:
Disability Justice - What Role Can You Play?
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Allies for Change is offering this two-day workshop designed for nondisabled people who wish to deepen their understanding of the disability justice movement and explore what it means to be an ally with people with disabilities. The workshop will provide an opportunity to connect with other allies to build a community of accountability, discuss questions and concerns, and practice the skills of being an effective ally in the struggle to dismantle ableism.
Dates: March 14 & 15, 2014 (Attendance at both days is required) Time: Friday, 9:00a - 5:00p; Saturday, 9:00a - 5:00p Facilitator Team: Theresa Squires & Melanie S. Morrison Location: Red Cedar Friends Meeting House, 1400 Turner St., Lansing, MI (The facility is barrier free) Cost: $150 ($50 deposit and $100 balance due). The cost includes program, materials & lunch both days. Partial scholarships are available.
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Mission Service Trip to Nicaragua
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Edgewood United Church, UCC, East Lansing, Michigan is planning a mission service trip to Nicaragua, June 20 - 29, 2014, to participate in the construction and installation of water purifiers in the homes of rural Nicaraguan families.
 Participants will have the opportunity to learn about the community development work of our hosting partner, CEPAD (Council of Protestant Churches of Nicaragua) and about the history, politics and culture of the country.
An orientation meeting will be held Wednesday, January 29th at 6:30p at Edgewood United Church - 469 N. Hagadorn Rd., East Lansing 48823.
For more information about this mission service trip, please contact
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First Congregational UCC, Kalamazoo, Co-sponsor's retreat at Transformations Spirituality Center
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"A Life of Being, Having and Doing ENOUGH"
Wayne Muller
Transformations Spirituality Center
March 2 - 4, 2014
From the moment we are born, we are seekers, but this is lost "in a world seduced by its own unlimited potential. In obsessive pursuit of money, success and self-improvement we reach the end of each jam-packed day discouraged by everything we have not checked off on our to-do lists. We despair that whatever we have accomplished is never enough.
All of our worries will not add a single day to the tally. In fact, anxiety is likely to reduce our days if not in quantity, then surely in quality."
In this retreat, you will grow in compassion and mercy for yourself and recognize what is most profoundly true about who you are and what you need. See how self-acceptance makes whatever you choose to do, in this moment, wholly enough. INFORMATION FLYERTotal registration is $270 when a $50 non-refundable deposit is paid by February 3, $295 after. Cost includes the retreat, two nights in private guest room with bath; 5 meals and materials.
Commuter Rate: Total registration is $190 when a $50 non-refundable deposit is paid by February 3; $215 after. Commuter cost includes retreat, materials and two lunches.
REGISTER (Please register by February 17.)
This event is co-sponsored by First Congregational Church of Kalamazoo, UCC. Please see their website for more events with Wayne Muller
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Church World Service Blankets+
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Recent record low temperatures in the Midwest have reminded everyone what bitter cold feels like. During the coldest days, many Midwesterners were able to stay in their warm homes, perhaps putting on an extra sweater or piling on warm blankets. 
For many people in the U.S. and around the world, struggling against the bitter cold is a daily challenge. Homeless persons in the U.S. seek shelter and warmth all winter. Around the world, disasters force people from their warm homes, sending them to shelters and refugee camps.
CWS is there.
The CWS Blankets+ program provides warmth, hope, and care during cold and trying times. A gift of just $10 provides a sturdy, comforting blanket to children, men and women who are struggling against the cold.
This Valentine's Day is a perfect time to give thanks for the warmth in our homes, our churches, and our hearts by providing CWS blankets to those in need. Please request materials for a Blankets+ offering by calling (888) 297-2767 or visiting www.cwsglobal.org/blankets
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UCC Insurance Board: Boundary Training
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Sexual abuse is hard to talk about in a loving, trusting faith community. We want to believe that it "can't happen here." Unfortunately, child molesters exploit this trusting atmosphere to take advantage of unsuspecting parents and vulnerable children.
Prevention is the key, and it starts with awareness and training. So, in Spring 2014, the Insurance Board is working on a program to deliver Boundary Training in Michigan for any clergy or volunteer leader who desires to participate in it. READ MORE
As plans are put in place, more information will be available. Please stay tuned!
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Edgewood United Church, UCC in East Lansing, Michigan has 110 plastic communion cups and six (6) wooden cup holders (35 slots in each).
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We have 110 New Century Hymnals that are like new for sale at $10 a book or best offer. You can buy the whole set or each book individually.
Please contact:
Kimberly Eve, Bethel United Church of Christ
248-682-9240
Monday - Friday, 9a - noon
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Camp Talahi is currently seeking someone to fill the position of
If you are interested please click on "Site Manager" above for a detailed job description and information on how to apply.
camptalahi.org
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Making a difference - One "outfit" at a time!
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Did you know that Michigan ranks #4 in the country of homeless people? There are over 42,000, yes you read that right, 42,000 homeless children in Michigan. Here is an excerpt from the News:
"A lot of people think of homeless people as drunks or drug users, but sometimes it's just a series of events we didn't see coming," Michelle Verdier, a mother of a homeless teen, told The Detroit News in April. "We always thought we could dig ourselves out, but not this time."
This kind of despair is unacceptable to our Christian beliefs. Our church is known for our loving and non-judgemental generosity and in that spirit, Congregational UCC of Armada will be starting a clothes give away to those in need. The idea is to have a twice a month give away for those that need but cannot afford clothing.
This could be anything from someone needing an outfit for a job interview, clothing for a court date, funeral, school, prom, or any reason any of us would need clean decent clothing for an event in our lives.
We are reaching out to you for donations of clean, gently used clothing. We are accepting children through adult sizes. Business to casual and everything in between. You can further help by asking your friends and relatives to keep us in mind when clothes have been out grown or replaced by new.
Clothes can be dropped off any Sunday until noon or Thursday evenings during choir practice and the days that Lee Ann is in the office. On Thursday, February 28th someone will be a the church from 8:00a until 8:00p to accept donations.
With your help we can make a difference in someone's life.
God bless you and thank you in advance,
Linda G., Linda B., Carol P., Rho Z., Diane N., Judy S., Kathy W., Pam & Mike
AKA: Thinking Outside The Box
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Employment Opportunities:
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"Big Ministry Trends for 2014"
"A Parable about Pastoral Leadership"
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Central Seminary - Ann Arbor
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 UCC History, Theology and Polity Course (3 credits)
Fridays 6-9 pm and Saturdays 8:30 pm - 3:30 pm
5945 Park Lake Road, East Lansing MI 48823
June 27-28
July 8 Wednesday (trip to national office)
July 25-26
August 8-9
August 15-16
Rev. Dr. Julie J. Kilmer Site Director Associate Professor of Theology & Ethics Central Seminary Ann Arbor 517 E. Washington Street Ann Arbor, MI 48104 Phone: 517-803-9685
VisitCentral Baptist Theological Seminaryonline for more information and classes available! |
The Detroit VA Healthcare System will be host a "Veterans Networking Fair" on January 29, 2014, 10:00 am - 3:00 pm. Programs at the VA will provide information on their services from 10:00 am until 12:00 pm, with community providers invited to share information regarding their services from 1:00 pm until 3:00 pm.
The fair will be held on the first floor in the Red Section of the medical center in
B1290. All participants are asked to park in the Blue Parking Deck and parking tickets will be validated at the fair.
Veterans are also invited to participate in the fair. Registration, Vesting Exams, and Dental Screenings will be available from 10:00 am until 3:00 pm for Veterans new to the facility.
Veterans Networking Fair Flyer
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Please keep in your prayers, Oletha Haller, Merrilyn Vaughn-Hoffman, Elsie Claggett, Rev. Forrest Hoppe and Rev. Roger Pohl as they all recover from recent surgeries.
Please hold in your hearts and in your continued prayers, the Rev. Sherry Schacht and her family (Eastern Association; pastor of First Congregational UCC, Romeo). Please continue to lift her up in your prayers of strength and courage -determination and faith - and for LOVE and comfort.
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5945 Park Lake Road | P.O. Box 1006 | East Lansing, MI 48826-1006
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