Are you ready for Annual Conference June 15-17? Are you getting excited? I know many of you look forward to this time each year. It is a time of connecting with old friends, reuniting with former pastors, and enjoying some time in worship, fellowship and celebration daily.
I have heard from others describe our Annual Conference gathering as a business meeting embellished by all the other “stuff.” Some don’t want to attend anything but the “votes” (and some want to attend anything but the votes or “arguing” from the floor!)
When we met last fall for a special called annual conference, it was a somber time of taking a vote together. And yet we offered this meeting in the context of worship, holy time, where we were voting in order to offer great, needed care for one another. Our action that day was to vote to approve disaffiliation for 249 churches. The congregations had voted and on that day our members to annual conference confirmed that action. We have similar work to do at our meeting in June. And – AND — there is so much more!
We have joys to celebrate in June including the chartering a new church here in the Harbor District! Out of disaffiliation in Elizabethtown, a new church has sprouted from the vine! Forty-nine people are gathering June 4 to charter Grace United Methodist Church. They share a pastor with two other small membership churches, they meet in the Episcopalian buildings, and they are excited about making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world! We celebrate the churches who have risen up from difficult conflict and are thriving in our midst! We celebrate new members, members who returned to in person worship, and for the movement of the Holy Spirit as we continue to make disciples for Jesus Christ together!
We will worship together at Annual Conference with holy communion, singing praises, remembering those who have transferred their membership to the Church Triumphant, lamenting what we have lost and celebrating all we have gained and been gifted by the Holy Spirit. There are opportunities to eat together, to sing with gusto, to pray, to commune, to rise up and greet the morning together and to part ways for rest. We learn, we seek out answers, we find new resources, and we reconnect with these people called United Methodists. It is truly a time of reflection, learning, action and holy conferencing.
Holy, or Christian conferencering, is a term we learn from John Wesley which means to confer with sisters and brothers and can be a means of grace. When we come together in holy conferencing we seek to discern God’s will, God’s will. As we gather to confer we find some of the best opportunities for growth in faith and action. As we learn God’s will, as we grow together in love and concern for all people, our action is to make decisions for the annual conference, about our lives together. “Starting in 1744, John Wesley gathered preachers together for a conference about what to teach, how to teach and what to do (how to regulate doctrine, discipline, and practice). As a means of grace, such conferences should always be open to the role of the Holy Spirit in shaping our thoughts, actions, and decisions,” (JW Study Bible, inset, p. 1425) Together we offer the Holy Spirit to one another; God is using us all to help us understand how to live better together. And we have the opportunity to be a part of the decisions that will guide our shared lives. If ever we needed such guidance and direction, it is now!
One of the most common concerns I find for those going to Annual Conference is “how will I make my voice heard?” Or “how can it matter if I am there?” Or even, “Will this really affect me?” Some of you are concerned if you get to vote or if your vote really counts. Well, simply put, it does. Your vote counts and the floor is open for all to come and speak. Your voice matters in conversations within voting and your voice is important as we seek to educate, to witness, and to bear one another up. It takes two to tango and it takes many Methodists (at least several!), representing clergy, laity and our churches, to engage in this Holy Conferencing. For most of us to participate in Annual Conference well, there are a few things we can do now:
Educate yourself. Review the information the conference is sending out. Know the agenda and when the topics on which you desire to speak are coming up. Do your homework on those topics and be ready!
Be spiritually prepared. Pray for our Bishop and all who lead us throughout this time. Pray about how you will offer words to lead us. Seek wisdom from God through scripture, quiet reflection on the scriptures, and asking God to center your spirit as you travel to Greenville or watch from home. Perhaps make this preparation a discipline you commit to in the days or week leading up to Annual Conference if you haven’t started already.
Arrive with an open heart, mind and spirit. Center yourself as you make your way into the session each day, focusing on the agenda while remaining open to God’s presence in our midst. Remind yourself why you are there. Take breaks when you need it so that you can be fully present in the sessions. And give yourself grace; long days in a big room are difficult for us all.
While Annual Conference is not about you or me, it is about the greater body and the greater good, of which we all are a part and to which we contribute. Each decision may not have a monumental effect or elicit a direct response from you; we still need you engaged for what you bring from the Holy Spirit, in your word and witness. Thank you to all those who serve as Lay and Clergy Members for being present June 15-17. Thanks to all of you who will join online and join your prayers with those who are in person – because this is important, holy, Christ-centered work. Thanks be to God! See you all soon!
