{"id":8025,"date":"2020-12-01T16:12:00","date_gmt":"2020-12-01T21:12:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/?p=8025"},"modified":"2023-01-17T16:15:38","modified_gmt":"2023-01-17T21:15:38","slug":"an-encouragement-for-december-2-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/2020\/12\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\/","title":{"rendered":"An Encouragement for December"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"720\" height=\"250\" src=\"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/18\/files\/2019\/06\/Encouragements-Thin.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2573\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/18\/2019\/06\/Encouragements-Thin.png 720w, https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/18\/2019\/06\/Encouragements-Thin-150x52.png 150w, https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/18\/2019\/06\/Encouragements-Thin-300x104.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Two days ago, we entered the season of Advent. For me, one of the most poignant Advent texts is the account of Mary\u2019s visit to Elizabeth. Both women are experiencing unusual pregnancies and Mary seeks out the companionship of her mature kinswoman. Filled by the Holy Spirit, Elizabeth speaks strong words of encouragement and blessing over young Mary. \u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Read&nbsp;Luke 1:39-42:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>In those days, Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in the hill country, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary\u2019s greeting, the child leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and exclaimed with a loud cry, \u201cBlessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb.\u201d&nbsp;<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Reflect:<\/strong>&nbsp;Three days ago, Sarah Fuller became the first woman to play in a Power Five college football game.&nbsp;When COVID-19 decimated the placekicker line-up for Vanderbilt University\u2019s football team, Sarah\u2014goalkeeper for the SEC Champion Vanderbilt women\u2019s soccer squad\u2014walked on to the football team as a placekicker. &nbsp; &nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Sarah Fuller made history on and off the field.&nbsp;At halftime, Sarah used her goalkeeper voice in the locker room to encourage and exhort her teammates.&nbsp;\u201c(I told them that) we need to cheer each other on because that\u2019s the only way I\u2019ve seen it work.\u201d &nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Like Elizabeth, Sarah is an encourager.&nbsp;Who might need cheering on today? Who is navigating a new course like Elizabeth?&nbsp;Like Mary?&nbsp;Like Sarah Fuller?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Take Action: &nbsp;<\/strong>Consider offering a word of encouragement to another woman in ministry.&nbsp;When we cheer each other on loudly and regularly, we counteract the fear, doubt, and negativity that steals joy.&nbsp;\u201cGirl dads have come up to me and said, \u2018You are inspiring my girls.&nbsp;I want them to know that they can do anything, and you are proving that point,\u201d Sarah Fuller said.&nbsp;\u201cThat\u2019s the coolest thing.\u201d &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In partnership,<br>Center for Leadership Excellence and the Commission on the Status and Role of Women<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>We are grateful to the Rev. Molly Shivers, Director of Conflict Transformation Ministries for the NC Conference, for writing this month&#8217;s issue of Encouragements.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>If you are not receiving the monthly Encouragements emails and would like to, <\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/18\/women-in-ministry\/email-list\/\">sign up for the mailing list here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Two days ago, we entered the season of Advent. For me, one of the most poignant Advent texts is the account of Mary\u2019s visit to Elizabeth. Both women are experiencing [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_tec_requires_first_save":true,"_EventAllDay":false,"_EventTimezone":"","_EventStartDate":"","_EventEndDate":"","_EventStartDateUTC":"","_EventEndDateUTC":"","_EventShowMap":false,"_EventShowMapLink":false,"_EventURL":"","_EventCost":"","_EventCostDescription":"","_EventCurrencySymbol":"","_EventCurrencyCode":"","_EventCurrencyPosition":"","_EventDateTimeSeparator":"","_EventTimeRangeSeparator":"","_EventOrganizerID":[],"_EventVenueID":[],"_OrganizerEmail":"","_OrganizerPhone":"","_OrganizerWebsite":"","_VenueAddress":"","_VenueCity":"","_VenueCountry":"","_VenueProvince":"","_VenueState":"","_VenueZip":"","_VenuePhone":"","_VenueURL":"","_VenueStateProvince":"","_VenueLat":"","_VenueLng":"","_VenueShowMap":false,"_VenueShowMapLink":false,"_tribe_blocks_recurrence_rules":"","_tribe_blocks_recurrence_description":"","_tribe_blocks_recurrence_exclusions":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[6,12,7,13,194,10,14],"class_list":["post-8025","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-stories","tag-center-for-leadership-excellence","tag-commission-on-the-status-and-role-of-women","tag-effective-leaders","tag-encouragements","tag-leadership","tag-resources","tag-women"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>An Encouragement for December | Center for Leadership Excellence | North Carolina Conference of The United Methodist Church<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/2020\/12\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"An Encouragement for December | Center for Leadership Excellence | North Carolina Conference of The United Methodist Church\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Two days ago, we entered the season of Advent. For me, one of the most poignant Advent texts is the account of Mary\u2019s visit to Elizabeth. Both women are experiencing [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/2020\/12\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Center for Leadership Excellence\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/facebook.com\/nccumc\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-12-01T21:12:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-01-17T21:15:38+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/18\/files\/2019\/06\/Encouragements-Thin.png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Amanda Packer\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@nccumc\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@nccumc\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Amanda Packer\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/2020\\\/12\\\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/2020\\\/12\\\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Amanda Packer\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/35a3e68b00ed81e1439d938a3e4ae505\"},\"headline\":\"An Encouragement for December\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-12-01T21:12:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-01-17T21:15:38+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/2020\\\/12\\\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":409,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/2020\\\/12\\\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/18\\\/files\\\/2019\\\/06\\\/Encouragements-Thin.png\",\"keywords\":[\"Center for Leadership Excellence\",\"Commission on the Status and Role of Women\",\"Effective Leaders\",\"Encouragements\",\"Leadership\",\"Resources\",\"Women\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Stories\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/2020\\\/12\\\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/2020\\\/12\\\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\\\/\",\"name\":\"An Encouragement for December | Center for Leadership Excellence | North Carolina Conference of The United Methodist Church\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/2020\\\/12\\\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/2020\\\/12\\\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/18\\\/files\\\/2019\\\/06\\\/Encouragements-Thin.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-12-01T21:12:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-01-17T21:15:38+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/2020\\\/12\\\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/2020\\\/12\\\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/2020\\\/12\\\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/18\\\/2019\\\/06\\\/Encouragements-Thin.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/18\\\/2019\\\/06\\\/Encouragements-Thin.png\",\"width\":720,\"height\":250},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/2020\\\/12\\\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"An Encouragement for December\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/\",\"name\":\"Center for Leadership Excellence\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"North Carolina Conference of The United Methodist Church\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"\",\"contentUrl\":\"\",\"caption\":\"North Carolina Conference of The United Methodist Church\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/facebook.com\\\/nccumc\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/nccumc\",\"https:\\\/\\\/instagram.com\\\/nccumc\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nccumc.org\\\/leadership\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/35a3e68b00ed81e1439d938a3e4ae505\",\"name\":\"Amanda Packer\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"An Encouragement for December | Center for Leadership Excellence | North Carolina Conference of The United Methodist Church","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/2020\/12\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"An Encouragement for December | Center for Leadership Excellence | North Carolina Conference of The United Methodist Church","og_description":"Two days ago, we entered the season of Advent. For me, one of the most poignant Advent texts is the account of Mary\u2019s visit to Elizabeth. Both women are experiencing [&hellip;]","og_url":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/2020\/12\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\/","og_site_name":"Center for Leadership Excellence","article_publisher":"https:\/\/facebook.com\/nccumc","article_published_time":"2020-12-01T21:12:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2023-01-17T21:15:38+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/18\/files\/2019\/06\/Encouragements-Thin.png","type":"","width":"","height":""}],"author":"Amanda Packer","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@nccumc","twitter_site":"@nccumc","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Amanda Packer","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/2020\/12\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/2020\/12\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\/"},"author":{"name":"Amanda Packer","@id":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/#\/schema\/person\/35a3e68b00ed81e1439d938a3e4ae505"},"headline":"An Encouragement for December","datePublished":"2020-12-01T21:12:00+00:00","dateModified":"2023-01-17T21:15:38+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/2020\/12\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\/"},"wordCount":409,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/2020\/12\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/18\/files\/2019\/06\/Encouragements-Thin.png","keywords":["Center for Leadership Excellence","Commission on the Status and Role of Women","Effective Leaders","Encouragements","Leadership","Resources","Women"],"articleSection":["Stories"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/2020\/12\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\/","url":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/2020\/12\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\/","name":"An Encouragement for December | Center for Leadership Excellence | North Carolina Conference of The United Methodist Church","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/2020\/12\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/2020\/12\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/18\/files\/2019\/06\/Encouragements-Thin.png","datePublished":"2020-12-01T21:12:00+00:00","dateModified":"2023-01-17T21:15:38+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/2020\/12\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/2020\/12\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/2020\/12\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/18\/2019\/06\/Encouragements-Thin.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/18\/2019\/06\/Encouragements-Thin.png","width":720,"height":250},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/2020\/12\/an-encouragement-for-december-2-2\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"An Encouragement for December"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/#website","url":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/","name":"Center for Leadership Excellence","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/#organization","name":"North Carolina Conference of The United Methodist Church","url":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"","contentUrl":"","caption":"North Carolina Conference of The United Methodist Church"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/facebook.com\/nccumc","https:\/\/x.com\/nccumc","https:\/\/instagram.com\/nccumc"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/#\/schema\/person\/35a3e68b00ed81e1439d938a3e4ae505","name":"Amanda Packer"}]}},"featured_image_src":null,"featured_image_src_square":null,"author_info":{"display_name":"Amanda Packer","author_link":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/author\/apacker\/"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8025","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8025"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8025\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8026,"href":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8025\/revisions\/8026"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8025"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8025"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nccumc.org\/leadership\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8025"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}