News and Views

“With.” That one word has defined the Rev. Dr. Jim Miller’s 36 years of pastoral ministry. It will also shape his new ministry as superintendent of the Central Maryland District.

Miller, pastor of Grace UMC in Gaithersburg and chair of the Baltimore-Washington Conference Episcopacy Committee, was appointed by Bishop LaTrelle Easterling to be a conference superintendent beginning Jan. 1. He will follow the Rev. Dawn Hand, who was appointed to serve as the Director of Equity and Justice in the Western North Carolina Conference.

In appointing Miller to the Cabinet, the bishop lifted up his faithful leadership, which has been evidenced by the excellence of his service on numerous boards, committees, teams and taskforces. “Jim embodies deep discipleship, spiritual acuity and self-differentiated humility. His non-anxious presence will be a key asset as we live into our adaptive change,” she said.

“Jim’s gifts will be essential as we reclaim the best of our heritage in service to a future filled with vitality,” said Bishop Easterling. “I look forward to the myriad contributions Jim will offer to the Cabinet.”

 “It was conveyed to me early on that the key to ministry is to love the people,” Miller said. Being in ministry with the poor, listening to and being present with the community, having meaningful encounters with the people in his congregations, and living with the certainty that God is with us matters deeply to him.

“In being with people, witnessing to their gifts in ministry and seeing them care for others, I find my own faith fed,” Miller said. “I’m always visiting with people, hearing their stories, praying with them. That always energizes me.”

Miller grew up in northeast Ohio, one of five children. His parents instilled and inspired his faith. He attended Wesley Seminary in Washington, D.C., and started as a student pastor at a two-point charge in the Peninsula-Delaware Conference. He went on to serve as an associate pastor at Kent Island UMC and then pastor of Hyattstown UMC in Clarksburg, Trinity UMC in Germantown, and Grace UMC, where he has been the lead pastor since 2014.

At each of these churches, Miller said, he “put listening and being present first and foremost. I begin as that listening presence, being in prayerful discernment, discovering what the needs are, and being open to the Spirit’s leading in how we can go forward,” he said. 

Being authentic is also important. Miller remembers the first days of the COVID pandemic, when churches closed, but worship continued. Some thought it would be better to pre-record the sermons. But Miller overcame his initial discomfort and preached live. He remembers the moments when, preaching from his kitchen table, his cat appeared on the screen. “It brought out the humanness of it all. It was not perfect, but we were striving to make it better.”

Miller counts himself lucky to have served on the BWC’s Restructuring Task Force, which last year held several listening sessions around the Conference. The humanness of people’s hopes and concerns poured forth in those sessions and created a new vision of how churches can be connected. 

“We didn’t go into those sessions with any prescribed ideas. We were intentional from day one to hear each voice,” Miller said. He heard a lot about people’s desires to belong, to be connected and to be faithful in ministry. “There was a desire for a closer walk with Christ and each other.’

He’s excited about the new plans for cooperative hubs and affiliated districts, which will begin to be implemented in the year ahead. “There is always some fear of the unknown and change,” said Miller. “But there’s also the realization that we can’t continue as we are. Too many churches are struggling. This is the way God is reshaping us. … We have such opportunities to touch lives throughout the world through our connection. I believe God is guiding us into these next chapters.”

While he says he has much to learn about his new role as a district superintendent, Miller is excited about what the future holds. Along the way, he’ll be turning to one of his favorite Scripture passages from Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” It’s stenciled on his daughter’s bedroom wall, which he uses as a home office. He’s also bolstered by Psalms 148 and 150. “You can’t exhaust the Scriptures,” Miller said.

He'll be sharing this journey with his wife of 34 years, Betsy, who works as a nurse, along with his two daughters and son, and his two grandchildren.

He’s also excited about spending time with the people of the Central Maryland District. “I’m thankful for their ministry,” he said. “I covet their prayers and look forward to our journey together. God has wonderful plans. We’re all in this together. We’re all part of the same kin-dom work.”

While he admits that it may sound like a cliché, Miller is convinced that “our best days are not behind us. Exciting new chapters await us as we face the unknown. But God is with us. God is with us now and will continue to be. … I want to avail myself to God to use my experience. That’s key to me,” he said. “God is working in wonderful, mysterious ways.”