District News

Bishop LaTrelle Easterling's podcast, "Thursdays at the Table," begins its second season with a conversation with the Rev. Willie Jennings, a professor at Yale and the author of The Christian Imagination: Theology and the Origins of Race. Listen.

New study explores: Are BWC clergy flourishing?

The Gender, Race, and Ministry study, a two-year effort by the BWC’s Board of Ordained Ministry (BOOM), explores how race and gender impact people's experience of ministry.

Read a story about the findings.

BOOM will host an online conversation about the study, which will include time for questions and discussion, on Oct. 5 from 10 to 11:30 a.m. Register now.

Training Tuesdays

Training Tuesday webinars return this week for its fifth year. Developing Missionally Vital Leaders is the theme of this fall's first Training Tuesday webinar on Sept. 12 at 7 p.m. Learn about resources to grow in leadership and find out how you can become involved with the BWC's new Leadership Development Academies: Fresh Expressions Academy, Church Planter Discernment Academy, Journey to Beloved Community, Certificate in Congregational Leadership program and the non-anxious leadership training. Register.

Coming this fall:

 

• 19: Charting a Course Toward Vitality – Using a Missional Action Planning (MAP) framework, learn about resources for your church to grow. Register
• 10: Hope and Healing in the Midst of Conflict – Best practices on conflict transformation for Staff-Parish Relations Committee members. Register
• 24: New Possibilities: Creating a Leadership Pathway for Your Church, based on Ken Willard’s book Church Ecology. Register
• 7: Aligning Money and Mission – Explore renting well, using assets, building projects and other issues and challenges facing church Trustees. Register
• 14: Budgeting as a Response to Vision – For finance committee members and others as they create and develop church budgets. Register

Nov. 28: Toward Better Meetings: Crafting Meaningful Discussions, Decisions and Change – How to develop an agenda and run an effective Church Council meeting. Register

Register now for a day of fun and fellowship at United Methodist's Got Talent: Beginning at 11 a.m. on Sept 30, youth and youth leaders of BWC and Pen-Del will spend the day at Camp Pecometh enjoying games, inspirational talks, music, and a talent show as they begin a new school year. All youth are invited to attend. Performing is not required. The cost is $5 per person for lunch, snacks, games and more. For every four people registered, the fifth is free using the discount code Talent! Register.

A special Hispanic Quality of Life Retreat for people living with HIV/AIDS will be held Sept. 30 from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Emmanuel UMC in Laurel. The Rev. Giovanni Arroyo, General Secretary of the Commission on Religion and Race, will speak on "Are God and the Angels with Me?" To register, contact Angel Ortiz at 443-994-4643.

 

Applications for Congregational Development Grants are now being accepted. All materials must be uploaded by Oct. 1. Do you have an innovative and exciting idea for a new faith expression or new worship service? A plan for a new ministry that will help your congregation go to the “next level?" Or are you developing a way to reach new people who are not yet a part of any church? The BWC's Congregational Development Grants can assist you in launching your new ministry initiative, congregational renewal project, or leader development ministry. Learn more and apply.

 

The denomination's Commission on Religion and Race will hold a Facing the Future Conference for all clergy serving in cross-racial, cross-cultural and multicultural ministry settings on Nov. 14-16 in Atlanta, Ga. Learn more.

Discipleship Opportunities

Becoming a CLM: The BWC's Lay Servant Ministries program has extended the application deadline to Sept. 30 for the 2023-2025 cohort of Certified Lay Ministers. Classes will begin in October. If you or someone you know is interested in or has heard the call of God to serve as a Certified Lay Minister, check out the application packet. Questions may be directed to Linda Flanagan, the Conference Director of Lay Servant Ministries. Learn more.

LAY SERVANT MINISTRIES COURSES

Find a full listing of Lay Servant Ministry trainings HERE.

The Baltimore-Washington Conference Lay Servant Ministries program is still accepting applications for the 2023-2025 cohort of Certified Lay Ministers. The new deadline is September 30, get full details.

Certified Lay Servants, Speakers, and  Ministers,  Please see the link below to register for your lay servant classes to gear up for the Fall 2023 church conference season.  Please use this link here to register. 

If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to our Annapolis District Director Kim Walker at    .

 

BMCR meeting: The Baltimore-Washington Conference caucus of Black Methodists for Church Renewal will host the 54th Annual Meeting of the Northeastern Jurisdictional BMCR at the Maritime Conference Center in Linthicum, Oct. 5-7. The theme is “Remaining Steadfast: Forging Ahead.” Local leaders are also seeking vendors and exhibitors. Learn more and register before Sept. 30.

This year's Communication Learning Week, set for Oct. 16-20, will be a weeklong virtual learning experience filled with recorded workshops, Q&A sessions and strategic resources designed by a host of church communications professionals. Courses will cover a wide range of topics, such as content for digital congregations, rural church communications, news writing and storytelling, just to name a few. Join our waiting list to be informed of when registration opens and also get the opportunity to take advantage of the early-bird registration discount. Get ready.

Mt. Tabor UMC, on Route 108 in Etchinson will host Westward Road in concert on Sept. 24 at 6 p.m.

Savage UMC Praise Concert

 A praise concert featuring Westward Road family trio at the United Methodist Church of Savage at 9050 Baltimore Street, Savage, MD on Saturday, September 23 at 6 p.m. Hear message of hope and be encouraged to live a life of trust in God. Feed admission. Love offering may be collected to support Westward Road. For questions call at (301) 725-7630.

 

September 23^rd at 9 am- 11 am: ALL ABOUT JOBS!!!:  The Baltimore Metropolitan District is hosting this event at Eastern UMC, 5315 Harford Road, Baltimore.  Every congregation should be represented by pastor, lay leader, outreach and mission coordinators and/or those with a passion for transforming communities. As we continue serving under our annual conference theme ALL ABOUT LOVE, this event will resource congregations to put love in action by meeting the need and overcoming barriers to gainful employment. We will be joined by ministry partners Wallace Beal, Founder and Director of Legasie Crossroads Foundation, and Melvin Wilson, Executive Director of Turnaround Tuesday, whose organizations have proven track records for changing the empowerment trajectory of individuals, families, and communities. at: https://arenaweb.bwcumc.org/default.aspx?page=4397&event=6443. Parking is available at the rear of the church. Don’t miss this opportunity for John 10:10 ministry that facilitates abundant life!

Job Postings:

 Organist - Friendship United Methodist Church, Friendship, Maryland https://friendshipmethodist.org/ “Love all. Serve all. Follow One.”

Friendship United Methodist Church in Friendship, Maryland is seeking an Organist to play our beautiful pipe organ, built in 2018 especially for Friendship. A strong candidate will have experience in church music for the organ, good teamwork and collaboration skills, and an enthusiasm for contributing to the worship experience. The Organist plays for Sunday morning worship and other congregational services; works with the Pastor and the Worship Committee on hymn selection; accompanies the choir, soloists and others as needed for special music.

Interested candidates should contact Rev. Rudy White at

Choir Director - Friendship United Methodist Church, Friendship, Maryland https://friendshipmethodist.org/ “Love all. Serve all. Follow One.”

Friendship United Methodist Church in Friendship, Maryland is seeking a Choir Director to lead our balanced adult Sanctuary Choir, capable four-part harmony in making a joyful noise unto the Lord, as well as to work with children, youth, and parents to facilitate choral activities. A strong candidate will have experience in church music and choir direction, piano skills, good teamwork and communication, and an enthusiasm for leading choir and enhancing worship. The Choir Director works with the Worship Committee and the Pastor to enhance the experience of the worship service; directs the weekly rehearsals and all performances of the Sanctuary Choir scheduled during Sunday worship services and for special/seasonal services in coordination with the Pastor.

Interested candidates should contact Rev. Rudy White at

Lessons in Leadership

Level Up is a video series that provides lessons in church leadership using best-selling secular writings by the Rev. Jack Shitama of the Center of Vital Leadership. This week, Shitama explores how "Effective Ministry Leaders Understand the Three Types of Conflict."

 

In the Mission-Shaped Church blog, the Rev. Tom Bandy explores how, as churches wrestle with the business – or “busy-ness” – of outreach, we forget that outreach is about embracing people and not just managing tasks. Church people ask the wrong question. We ask: What does God call us to do? What we should be asking is: Who does God call us to be with? Read more.