Ecclesiastes reminds us that there is a season for every purpose under heaven and Bishop Ward welcomes us into charge conference season.
For everything, there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven. Ecclesiastes 3:1.
We are in the season of charge conferences. Thank you for your careful preparation and for your participation as we cluster for these annual gatherings across Eastern North Carolina. We cluster for charge conferences to embody the connection which is The United Methodist Church. As you gather with neighboring churches, you will be very aware of the ways in which we share the ministry of Christ in the Wesleyan way. Thank you for your leadership, for your deep faith, and commitment, and for your generosity.
As we gather for the charge conferences, we will receive an offering for the Youth Storm Response. We are nearing the goal of $500,000 and your offerings will be doubled by the Annual Conference dollar for dollar. Thank you for your generosity.
In this Conference year, we continue to focus on God’s great generosity, particularly in worship. The liturgical year is a great gift to us and we will celebrate the way in which we move from Advent to Christmas to Epiphany to Lent to Easter to Pentecost in the cluster charge conferences. We will also frame our Annual Conference in June around the flow of these liturgical seasons. They are a great gift to us, and as we move through the seasons each year, we relive, we reenact, we remember, we study, we learn and we are inspired anew by God’s way with us.
I’m deeply grateful for all the ways that we share Christ’s ministry. Grace and peace to you this day.