The Media Center has a new DVD study, Mudhouse Sabbath,  that offers “seven ways of Christian formation inspired by the Jewishness of Jesus.”

“After her conversion from Orthodox Judaism to Christianity, Lauren Winner found that her life was indelibly marked by the rich traditions and spiritual practices of Judaism. She set out to discover how she could incorporate some of these practices into her new faith. Winner presents eleven Jewish spiritual practices that can transform the way Christians view the world, and God.”

The DVD has seven sessions: Christianity and Judaism, Sabbath Keeping, Hospitality & Mindful Eating, Jewish and Christian Prayer, The Practice of Fasting, Mourning Well, and Doorposts. The study comes with the book that it is based on of the same name.

Dr. Lauren Winner is a bestselling author and Assistant Professor of Christian Spirituality at Duke Divinity School.

Call, email, IM, tweet, or stop by the Media Center to check out DVD406: Mudhouse Sabbath.

The Media Center has a new DVD available. Lives for Sale is a 1-hour documentary on immigration and human trafficking from Maryknoll Media. Here is a description:

“First aired on Public Television and the Hallmark Channel, this harrowing film goes beyond the rhetoric to show why immigrants are willing to risk everything–even virtual slavery–for the American Dream. While politicians, activists and the media wrestle with the thorny issue of immigration, Lives for Sale exposes the painful, rarely seen human side of illegal immigration–especially the growing black market trade in human beings. The documentary also looks at some practical alternatives to these tragic realities.

Tracing the stories of two young women who were trafficked, one in California, the other in Florida, the documentary asks why and how this could happen in the United States–and what can be done to stem the most lucrative criminal enterprise after drugs and gun sales.”

The DVD contains a study guide, script, fact sheets, brochures, video clips, and more. This documentary is partly funded by the United Methodist Women’s Division of the General Board of Global Ministries. Maryknoll Media Productions can be viewed without special performance permission by local church groups if no fee is charged. The film may not be broadcast except over closed circuit systems. More information and previews can be found at http://www.livesforsale.com/

Call, email, IM, tweet, or stop by the Media Center to check out DVD403: Lives for Sale.

We are close to finishing the unpacking at the new Methodist building in Garner.  You will begin to see new resources added to the website again.  The first one is The John Wayne Movie Bible Study.  This fun study uses clips from John Wayne’s “most Christian movie,” The Angel and the Badman, to explore Biblical themes.  Four lessons include: The Badman (Vice), The Angel (Virtue), The Law or the Lawless (Decision), and The Pilgrim’s Progress (Redemption).  The study pack includes the DVD, a leader’s guide, and a study guide.  The Media Center has gained permission for churches to make copies of the study guide to provide to participants.

The author of this study, Stephen Skelton, has produced several other studies based on “primetime” entertainment.  Currently available at the Media Center are Gilligan’s Island & the Seven Deadly Sins, The Beverly Hillbillies Bible Study (Volumes 1-2) and The Mayberry Study (Volumes 1-4) based on The Andy Griffith Show.

Call, email, IM, tweet, or stop by the new Media Center to check out any of these fun bible studies for your small group.

If you did not get a chance to pick up the Conference Media Center Survey at Annual Conference, you can complete the survey online by clicking on the following link: http://is.gd/bYZph.  Please let us know if you experience any technical problems.

If you completed a paper survey during AC, please mail it back to NCCUMC Media Center, 1307 Glenwood Ave., Raleigh, NC 27605.

The results of the survey will help me get to know your church and design a Media Center in the new building that helps to fulfill the resource needs of all churches in the North Carolina Conference.

I have added some new tools to this website for contacting the Media Center and accessing resources.  Get connected!

IM the Librarian
In the left sidebar on every Media Center web page, you can quickly contact me to ask a question or make a comment.  Just start typing in the box and hit enter.  If it says I am online, I will respond shortly.  If I am offline, I will receive your message and respond when I return.  My current hours are 9am-3pm, but I am not always at my desk, so check my online status to estimate response time.

Twitter
You can also ask me a question or make a comment through Twitter, but you will need a Twitter account.  It is free and easy to set one up, and there are many UMC twitter users to follow and keep you updated with Methodist happenings worldwide. I have created a list of users at http://twitter.com/#/list/laurabdallas/christian that can help get you started. You can view a video from Howcast on how to use Twitter at http://www.howcast.com/videos/149055-How-To-Use-Twitter.

If you have a question that you believe others may also be interested in, you can send a public tweet to @laurabdallas.  If you want to send me a private message, you can tweet “dm @laurabdallas” to send me a direct message only visible to me.  Click the button below to get started.

Electronic Resources
A major goal of the NCCUMC Media Center is to connect you to electronic resources that you can download directly from the Internet for use in your ministry. We now have a Delicious account to collect these websites in one place. Delicious is a social bookmarking service that allows users to bookmark favorite websites, tag them with keywords, and share their lists with the world. Our links are listed on the left side of every Media Center web page under Electronic Resources. Click on the blue words to view websites containing resources related to that subject. We are just getting started so visit often or follow the RSS feed (available on each Delicious site) to get updates.

If you have any questions or need help connecting with these services, I am still just a phone call or email away.

The United Methodist Task Force on Immigration has endorsed “Made in L.A.” The Emmy award-winning documentary tells the story of three Latina immigrants working in Los Angeles garment district sweatshops and their three-year odyssey to win basic labor protections. An online document is downloadable for further study. It includes material from the production team and suggestions for United Methodists to become involved in immigration reform. Learn more at www.madeinla.com. A copy of this DVD is now available to borrow from the NC Conference Media Center for showing to study and community groups in the local churches. Ask for DVD304

Video clips most accessed on the UMC website for 2009.  Watch them by visiting this page from UMTV.

Link to Top 10

The Purpose of Christmas

The Purpose of Christmas DVD study for groups and    Families features three sessions taught by Rick Warren on why we celebrate Christmas and how it can change our lives forever. At the very first Christmas – the birth of Jesus – an angel announced three things. In those three statements of the angel, we find the three purposes of Christmas.

The three sessions on this DVD looks at each of these:

1.Christmas is a time for celebration

2.Christmas is a time for salvation

3.Christmas is a time for reconciliation

The Advent Conspiracy: Can Christmas Still Change the World?

By Rick McKinley, Chris Seay, and Greg Holder

In four compelling sessions, Advent Conspiracy invites individuals, families, groups, and entire churches to substitute compassion for consumerism by practicing four simple but powerful, countercultural concepts: Worship Fully—because Christmas begins and ends with Jesus! Spend Less—and free your resources for things that truly matter. Give More—of your presence: your hands, your words, your time, your heart. Love All—the poor, the forgotten, the marginalized, the sick, in ways that make a difference. DVD comes with leader guide.

Both titles are soooo new they aren’t in the catalog yet. If you would like to reserve a copy contact the Media Center soon! The Purpose of Christmas is evangelistic and aimed at including those who are very new to the faith or exploring the meaning of Christmas for the first time.

Mental Health issues in our Church families?

How can Congregations Respond?

 Mental Health Ministries has developed a new DVD that includes segments on many of the topics that they have produced to help congregations, leaders, and individuals respond to the very real needs within EVERY congregation.  Topics included on this DVD are: Mental Illness in Different Age Groups, Mental Illness and Families of Faith, Understanding Depression, Overcoming Stigma: Finding Hope, Addiction and Depression, Anxiety: Overcoming Fear, Teenage Depression and Suicide, Eating Disorders, and the general resource for churches: Creating Caring Congregations.  A leader’s guide with background and discussion questions is included.  Many helps may be found on the www.mentalhealthminstires.net website.  The site includes a video preview.  DVD286

Also for Special Needs Ministries on DVD :

DVD287  Helping Children Grieve: Differences between how Adults and Children grieve, How can parent’s grieve, common feelings of all children, telling the truth about death. Guidelines included.

DVD87 Creating Caring Congregations: Mental Illness in Adolescents and Young Adults, Depression and Anxiety Disorders in Adults, Mental Illness and Older Adults, How Congregations can respond.

DVD136 The Power of Forgiveness: Everett Worthington, 4 part study: The Origin of Forgiveness, What is Forgiveness, Why Do We Need to Forgive?, and How is Forgiveness Possible.

DVD160 Fierce Goodbye: Living in the Shadow of Suicide: Inspiring family stories of survival plus insights of theologians and mental health specialists, hosted by Judy Collins. Study guide included.

DVD162 Addiction: New Knowledge, New Treatments, New Hope. Produced by HBO and critically acclaimed documentary. Program guide available.

Modern Parables: Living in the Kingdom of God

12 sessions based on 6 films. A Bible study curriculum “designed for people who like movies”.  Parables (stories) told by Jesus are interpreted in examples from modern life.  These include: Hidden Treasure, Samaritan, The Shrewd Manager, The Widow and the Judge,  The Sower and The Prodigal Son.  Material is included for studying the parable in two sessions each. DVD includes a movie and a teaching reflection for each. Kit includes Teacher’s guide, Audio CD with teacher preps, Film and application DVDs, and an example of a student’s book. KIT98