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BY MELISSA LAUBER
UMCONNECTION STAFF

Almost 200 spiritual leaders from the Baltimore-Harford District gathered at Bel Air UMC Oct. 7, to discover how to more effectively and faithfully make disciples of Jesus Christ and grow Acts 2 congregations.

'We remain committed to moving forward in helping all our congregations become Acts 2 congregations and equipping each of our church leaders and members to participate fully in the Discipleship Adventure,' said the Rev. C. Anthony Hunt, superintendent of the Baltimore-Harford District.

The theme of the day-long Laity Convocation, which was created by E. Monterey Williams, Clara Bennett and an 11-member team, was 'Moving Forward ? Making Connections.'

'The issue of making connections is one that tears my heart out. Too many churches say they?re friendly and are not. This trend is killing us,' said the Rev. Vivian McCarthy, a regional gbwc_superusere for the Baltimore-Washington Conference. 'We need to be genuinely welcoming, accepting and including those who God brings our way.'

McCarthy gave participants practical advice to grow in the 'art and act of welcoming.'

First and foremost, churches need to offer hospitality in a genuine and intentional manner. They need to make others feel like they?re part of the community and recognize and utilize people?s talents in a faithful way. That kind of welcome is contagious, McCarthy said.

The church is very good at surface relationships, she added. Through small groups and in other ways we need to allow people to ask questions of the heart without repercussion. Churches need to provide people with an opportunity to answer some of the big questions like, 'What is the cry of your heart today?'

In addition to exploring the idea of connecting, one of the five elements of the Discipleship Adventure, those present also explored a variety of ways to grow in worship, development, service and faith-sharing in 15 different workshops.

Cindy Caldwell, the director of discipleship at Bel Air UMC led a workshop on small group ministry.

Caldwell outlined five essential ingredients for small groups: relationship and making sure that people feel connected; worship as they keep God at the center; Bible study, accountability to each other and their growth in Christ; and mission outreach, recognizing that the journey inward must lead to a journey outward.

Between five and 15 months after starting, small groups will find opportunities for 'multiplication,' or the opportunity to begin new small groups from theirs. Groups should be designed, Caldwell said, to multiply by developing new leaders who will birth new groups.

In another workshop, the Rev. Eric W. King of New Life UMC in Baltimore, helped spiritual leaders grow in their understanding of community development.

King stressed the importance of churches working in partnership with the community for the purpose of transformation.

He advocated local church leaders learning how to network to discover community needs.

'Networking,' King said, 'is the intentional and systematic visiting of people in the community by pastors or lay members to identify the comm-unity?s main issues, substantive problems and its pivotal leaders.'

The assumption of networking, he concluded 'is that people, however uneducated, exploited and beaten down by life, have a greater capacity to under- stand and act on their situation than the most highly informed outsider.'

In another workshop, the Rev. James Chambly and the praise team from Essex UMC provided insights into its 'Make Yourself At Home' contemporary worship experience.

In this session, participants were told that the church has the most important, most revolutionary news in all of human history and must find innovative and irresistible ways to share it.

The Rev. Mamie A. Williams closed the convocation with remarks on visionary leadership.

According to the event coordinators, the laity of the Baltimore-Harford District are pursuing a strong leadership role as they move forward with the rally cry: 'All God?s people in all places and in all times are called to love and to serve.'