2014 Annual Meeting of the 

Michigan Conference United Church of Christ

"UNEXPECTED Places"

Jacob is assured of God's abiding presence and then reflects, 

"Surely God is in this place - and I did not know it!"

Genesis 28:15 - 16

When:  

October 10th & 11th, 2014

                                                                     ONLINE REGISTRATION

Where: 

The People's Church of East Lansing

200 W. Grand River, East Lansing, MI 48823

 

Keynote Speaker:  Rev. Nadia Bolz-Weber

Rev. Nadia Bolz-Weber is the founding pastor of House for All Sinners and Saints in Denver, Colorado. She is an ordained pastor in the ELCA, a Mom, a gifted writer and bestselling author. She is honest and outspoken, insightful and hilarious; a deeply engaging pastor who just so happens to have sleeves of tattoos. She is ready to enlighten you in ways only she can. 

 

Hotel/Parking Information:

We have contracted with four (4) area hotels. You may make your reservations at any time. Please note that each hotel has their own deadline for reserving a room at the discounted rate. Please be sure to make your arrangements before the designated deadline. There are many other options for lodging - if you prefer to search for those on your own.

Hotels - Michigan Conference UCC - 2014 Annual Meeting

 

Church Multi-person Discount: Eligible churches will have 5 or more people attending Annual Meeting from the same church and receive a $5.00 per person discount on up to 10 people. All participants must be registered at the same time to receive the multi-person discount - either online or a paper form. To complete the registration in full you must have the following information for each person registered: Full name, email address, status at the meeting, any special needs, workshop choice, and meal information. If anyone is in need of childcare, that information will also need to be completed as well. A credit card can be used to pay for all registration fees; if paying by check it must be mailed to our office within 1-2 business days from the day of registration. Payments are not being taken at Annual Meeting to avoid congestion at the registration table and lessen wait times for you and others checking in. We appreciate your understanding as we strive to make your Annual Meeting experience the very best. 

 

Workshops:  A complete list and description of each workshop is available below. 

WORKSHOPS - 2014 Annual Meeting
 

 

Cookies: A Michigan Conference Annual Meeting tradition; we invite folks from any of our UCC churches in attendance, to bring 3 - 4 dozen cookies of your favorite kind to share during our break times at Annual Meeting.  We love all different kinds of cookies or dessert bars! Please try and eliminate nuts; if your cookies or bars do contain nuts or fruit of any kind please mark your container well. If you have a favorite vegan or gluten free cookie/dessert bar that would be wonderful as well! Thank you in advance for all of your baking efforts - we look forward to trying your creations!

 

Childcare:  Childcare is available during Annual Meeting - with the exception of during meal time - lunch and dinner children will be with parents. Please plan to bring along some snacks for your child(ren); please do not brings snacks that contain nuts of any kind. If you require childcare, please fill out the childcare section of the registration form (either online or paper form) as well as, the Childcare Authorization form. This form is also available on our website.

 

 

Please check the Michigan Conference UCC website periodically for new information as it becomes available! Stay tuned!

 

 

A request for prayer and advocacy on behalf of Christians, Yazidis and other religious and ethnic groups in Northern Iraq.

Letter from the World Council of Churches

Friends in Faith and Conscience:

Many of you are among the signers of the religious leaders an allies letter to stop the water shut-offs and end the process of privatization.  This is a follow up invitation to a number of actions and religious presence.

1.      This Friday 4:45 pm at Coleman A Young Municipal Center (The Spirit of Detroit statue at the City County Building) there will be a prayer service related to the end of the shut-off moratorium and the cost to seniors of the bad bargain in the Bankruptcy Trial, both of which resume next week. We will have ecumenical voices and music. Please come. Please get your people there. Please participate if you're able and contact me about roles you might play. BWKellermann@gmail.com 313-433-1967

2.      I have been praying that the faith community would step forward in direct action and there may be such opportunities in the weeks to come. Again, contact me with your interest.

3.      There is a big demonstration planned for the first day of the Bankruptcy trial. August 29 at 9am at the Federal Court House Lafayette and Cass. There is such a direct connection between the efforts to privatize water and the bankruptcy itself. Please get your members to that gathering. If you have a bus or a van and might be able to bring a load of folks from a community or senior center, give me a call.

4.      We are still looking for communities of faith and spirit to become water stations for the distribution of both information and water. Please call We the People at 844-42WATER.

Thank you again for your witness in these days. The Spirit has truly been moving this campaign forward on the waves of faith.

For all those organizing,

Bill Wylie-Kellermann

Saturday, November 8, 2014

Hotel Maya | Long Beach, California

Whether your church or organization already benefits from an endowment, or is dreaming of a fund that can support your ministry for generations, make plans to attend the Western Regional Endowment Conference!

Enjoy a day next to the water and sea breezes, engaging with expert speakers and taking part in practical workshops covering a range of endowment related topics: - investing, planned giving, fiduciary duty, social responsibility and more. Build your skills, expand your knowledge and strengthen your leadership at this one-day event. Early registration is only $15 per person, including lunch!

REGISTER

HOTEL (UC Funds special rate)

I need a sales rep (or ten) to do the selling so I can do my work.
 

And investors to put up the money so I can do my work.
 

And an accounting staff so I won't have to think about inflows and outflows so I can do my work.
 

And an admin to process and answer all my email and my paperwork...
 

And employees who already know what to do so they won't ask me...
 

And an organization that not only doesn't make me go to meetings, but also instantly understands and adopts my best ideas...
 

And a coffee boy to bring me an espresso, a police escort so I don't get stuck in traffic and a publicist so every media outlet in the world communicates what I'm working on.

By now, you've probably realized:

This isn't going to happen. Not as completely or as flawlessly as we'd like to hope. We need the leverage that comes from working with other people, but that leverage also means that we're responsible. People who do great work also embrace the fact that this is their work too. It's not merely an interruption or a distraction, it's part of what they do. There are no monasteries reserved for productive, successful artists who regularly ship inspiring work. Our culture responds to instigators and impresarios who figure out how to make a ruckus in a complicated world.

Years ago, you had to work with a quill or a manual typewriter. You needed to wait for the post office and you had no free and highly-leveraged outlet for your work to be seen by others. You had no access to a huge, instant and free library of the work that has come before... and yet, despite all of those missing elements, great work was created.

My guess is that the few people who find themselves isolated with nothing to do but what they believe is their work find a way to distract themselves with something anyway. And people who have too many distractions to actually do any real work are in that bind because they haven't invested enough time, effort or risk in their organization and their process. Yes, there's a sweet spot. As you obtain leverage, that leverage becomes part of what your work becomes.

We are leaving you to do your work. Go!

First Congregational Church, United Church of Christ in Romeo, MI has the following staff openings. It is possible that two positions may be filled by one qualified candidate.