WI Conference Weekly ENews - November 30, 2022

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Bishop's Task Force Update

The Bishop’s Task Force, a team of laity and clergy dedicated to advancing the bishop’s vision to increase racial justice and radical inclusion, met November 28th. This group has been a catalyst and collaborator with the Anti-Racism Task Force since following the General Conference of 2019.  Recent months featured focus on supporting resources for cross racial appointments and best practices for laity and clergy in cross racial appointments. During the meeting on 11.28, there was a brief report of the North Central Jurisdictional Conference’s aspirational resolution related to holding charges against queer clergy and those who perform union ceremonies in abeyance.

Bishop Jung will be convening leaders to listen and dialogue about vision related to racial justice and radical inclusion as the Bishop’s Task Force chair, Dan Schwerin, transitions, into a new role as the bishop assigned to the Northern Illinois Conference. Dan expressed his gratitude for the Task Force’s grit, vision, and courage over the past three years. There was appreciation for Dan’s leadership that was spoken to him as well.
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Basic Lay Servant Ministry Course- Online via Zoom
Friday, Jan.13, 6 - 9pm & Sat., Jan.14, 9am – 3pm

The United Methodist Church recognizes that ministry is not only a clergy endeavor. God calls all Christians to their own unique service. The Basic Lay Servant Class is the entry course to Lay Servant Ministry.  Lay Servant Ministry classes are designed to help laity discover and/or further explore their own unique call in serving God, neighbor, and the greater church.

You must register and participate in both the Friday evening and Saturday class in order to receive a completion certificate. The registration deadline is January 6, 2023. For questions, email powellmama@gmail.com, or call 608-220-5873.  Register early as class size is limited.  

Register now / Learn more

The Wisconsin Conference of the UMC is excited to announce its partnership with Vanco. We invite you to join us at our upcoming presentation where we will introduce you to Vanco and share how they provide congregations with tools for online giving, mobile app giving and engagement and much more.  In this brief presentation, we’ll show you…

• Why the UMC and the Wisconsin Conference has partnered with Vanco.
• The reasons over 4,000 UMC congregations use Vanco.
• How Vanco helps you tell your story with your own photos and words on a giving page.
• The ways Vanco enhances connections with your congregants – including a free app.
• The significant price savings Wisconsin UMC congregations receive through our partnership with Vanco.

 
Join us for this enlightening presentation on Tuesday, December 6, 2022 at 12PM CT. Click this link to register!

Renewing Rural Ministry- Online Via Zoom
January 28, 2022  /  9:00am - 12:00pm 

Across North America, urban centers are growing, creating new challenges and opportunities for rural cities and towns. Rural churches, once a centerpiece of small- town life, need new tools for loving their neighbors, sharing the gospel, and connecting in community. This gathering will help our churches be prepared for the next season of ministry.

If you are a pastor, lay leader, or are simply interested in vital ministry in small towns, this opportunity is for you. There is an $18.00 non-refundable registration fee. 
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Save the Date for School for Ministry 2023
October 4-6, 2023

School for Ministry is scheduled for October 4-6, 2023 at Green Lake Conference Center. It’s essential that all clergy attend this training. By doing so, we can confidently support not only our congregations but also colleagues and the partners we work with. Purpose of the School for Ministry: To gather the community of clergy for renewal, mutual support, learning and deepening our relationship with God.

Christ UMC and Wildwood Chapel Mission Projects

Members and friends of Christ Church assembled 22 bags of Thanksgiving “fixins” to help the people of the Merrill area enjoy a wonderful holiday meal.  With the bags that were donated from Wildwood Chapel, there were 34 Turkey Bags delivered to the Merrill Community Food Pantry on November 14th. Officials at the food pantry were very appreciative of the items given. There was certainly a vehicle full by the time all the bags were loaded.

And Christ Church once again participated in Operation Christmas Child this year!  Between our packing party shoeboxes and the shoeboxes packed by individuals, a total of 115 boxes were donated to children in need.  Additionally, $505 was donated to help pay the shipping costs.  This does not include the funds that individuals put into the boxes! -Submitted by Mike Zahn

Share Your Story!

We are called to share the good news in all the ways we can. Sharing your stories is way for us to be in community together. Every church has a story to tell and we want to hear about them and what is happening in the life of your church.  We want to hear from churches around our conference so if you have a story that you would like included in an upcoming ENews please use the link below and fill out the form.  We would love to have pictures to accompany the story! Submit story here

Share Your Event!

We're looking for events that celebrate local church communities across the state. Help us spread the word about your upcoming event by sharing it with us here!  Please be sure that your submission provides complete details. Subject to our editorial review, we will add your event to our Events Calendar and share it in the weekly Enews. Submit your event here 

UM Communications 
Connect with Joy Campaign 

This Christmas Let's connect — with hope and joy.

This is a season of high expectations and waiting, isn’t it? We believe that the hope, love and joy we celebrate at Christmas is already present in the world – and we can connect to it right now, together. The people of the United Methodist Church invite you to join us as we seek out the hope present in God’s ever-present love. 
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Ask the UMC - Clearing up Misconceptions about Disaffiliation

At Ask The UMC, we continue to answer questions from congregations wondering about the future of The United Methodist Church, whether they should consider disaffiliating from it, and what happens if they do. Some of these questions reflect widespread misperceptions or misinformation that some congregations are receiving as they discern their next steps.

This is the sixth of a series of articles offering accurate and objective responses to such misperceptions or misinformation. All articles in the series are based on a variety of questions we have received multiple times through email, phone calls and live chat. See a listing of all of the articles in the series here. 

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#StillInMission Episode 49 - Dec 1, 2022

United Methodist Missionaries are #stillinmission and we hope that you'll join us to learn more! Join us as we explore the transforming work of United Methodist missionaries serving around the world.

You will have the opportunity to meet in a small group to hear a presentation from a single missionary during the call. Ann Hidalgo serves as a Professor of Theological Studies with the Universidad Biblica Latinoamericana in Costa Rica.
Genilma Boehler serves as a Lecturer of Theology with the United Methodist University of Mozambique in Mozambique. Imourana Bockarie serves as the Assistant Farm Project Manager with the International Leadership Institute of Southern Africa in Zambia.

Registration is limited. You will get a confirmation email once your registration is accepted. If the limit is reached, you will get priority for future events.

Dec 1, 2022 12:00 PM in Eastern Time (US and Canada)   Register here

Resource UMC
Extend A Warm Advent Invitation to Your Community

Advent is a season of hope, preparation and thanksgiving. So many people need to hear the good news. Will you share it with them? Welcome your community to your Advent activities with open arms, using customizable outreach resources. The possibilities are endless, with banners, yard signs, postcards, posters and so much more! Select designs, messaging and languages that best represent your faith community.
Order Today (English)
Order Today (Spanish)

UM Communications
Advent and Christmas Resources for Children

Advent and Christmas are magical times full of mystery and awe for many people. None experience the wonder of the season more than children. It’s important that our churches offer engaging activities and biblically rooted messaging to the youngest believers among us. The Michigan Annual Conference has built a fantastic free library of resources to help you and your congregation make the most of your children’s programming this season.
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Ask the UMC
Is Advent About Preparing For Baby Jesus?

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Advent is not intended to prepare Christians for baby Jesus, writes Ask The UMC, a ministry of United Methodist Communications. It is instead about refocusing the church, and especially those preparing for baptism, on Christ's return.
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