| NEWS Feb 22 Prayer Request Bill and Thelma Johnson, organizers of the School of Christian Growth event, request BWC members and friends to be in prayer on Sunday, Feb. 22, for the success of the school and the edification of its participants. | School offers Christian growth by Erik AlsgaardUMConnection Staff  More than 300 people are expected to attend this years School of Christian Growth, sponsored by the Washington-Columbia District of the Baltimore-Washington Conference.
The school begins Feb. 23 and runs consecutive Monday nights through March 29. The emphasis this year is evangelism, said the schools co-dean Thelma Johnson, a member of Asbury UMC in Washington. Were supporting Bishop May and his number one priority for the conference. Johnson said she hopes participants will come, gain insights about evangelism and then share the word of Jesus Christ. Bill Johnson, Thelmas husband, is the other co-dean. He stressed that organizers of the school are hoping to increase the diversity of its students. Ninety percent or more of the students in the past have been black, he said. We hope to improve upon that, and the members of the committee have worked hard. A multi-racial team, he said, is visiting churches in the district, inviting and encouraging people to attend. The School of Christian Growths opening service will be at 7 p.m., Feb. 23, at First UMC of Hyattsville. The guest speaker will be the Rev. Alfreda Wiggins, senior pastor of John Wesley UMC in Baltimore. The next four Monday nights, 16 workshops are offered, six of which count toward recertification for lay speakers. Clergy continuing education units are also available. The closing ceremony will be March 29, at 7 p.m., also at First UMC of Hyattsville. The Rev. William McClain, professor at Wesley Theological Seminary, will be the speaker. For more information and to register, at a cost of $20, contact Dorothy Williams at (301) 894-0874. There will be late registration Feb. 23 from 5 to 6:30 p.m. |
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