United Methodist Men - From your partners in men’s
ministry
A bimonthly e-mail letter from agency officers and staff
to leaders of United Methodist Men – Friday, December 2013
A bimonthly e-mail letter from agency officers and staff
to leaders of United Methodist Men – Friday, December 2013
Mohammad Ali once
boarded an airplane and was being his usual jovial self and entertaining
everyone around him when he was approached by a flight attendant.
"The plane is
about to depart; you need to fasten your seatbelt," said the attendant.
"Ma'am,"
replied Mr. Ali, "Superman doesn't need a seatbelt!"
"Yes, you're
right, and Superman doesn't need an airplane either," responded the flight
attendant as she reached down and buckled his seatbelt.
I'm not sure if this
is a true story or just one of many apocryphal stories about this great boxer.
But, it is a story that illustrates the attitude and struggle of many men.
We may not proclaim
ourselves to be Superman but we actually seek to live up to that comic book
legend in many ways. Often it takes a jolt like a flight attendant reminding us
that Superman doesn't need an airplane to point out to us that we are human,
mortal, and fragile.
Perhaps it takes a
pink slip from an employer saying, "Your services are no longer
needed."
Maybe it takes a
doctor speaking words that sound like "cancer" to you, and you are
sure that the doctor is talking about someone else.
It is at times like
these that we men discover that Superman only exists in a comic book and on a
movie screen; we aren't him.
There are some limits,
some things out of my control, some places I can't go walking upright that I
can only travel to flat on my back. There are some sermons that are only
whispers. And there are some things you can only know about God in the darkness
of the unknown.
It was during a time
of contemplation about my impending surgery for prostate cancer that I learned
three valuable lessons:
God made me a man, not
a Superman and that's good! You see, to be a man is to depend not on my own
strength but to walk in the strength of my Creator and to claim that without
reservation.
Each man and woman is
a social being. We need each other in many ways. I was able to go through the
surgery and now I'm going through recovery because of the social networks of
people who love me and care for me. Some people care even when they don't know you
personally because the Holy Spirit binds us together beyond the spaces,
relationships and barriers that divide us.
Even when I'm absent
from the events, the beat goes on. Things happen with or without me; therefore,
I should cherish every moment, every event, every friendship, and every
opportunity to make a difference in this world that God loves.
Superman doesn't need
an airplane, but a man needs to know he is fragile. He needs to know he needs
others and he should cherish every moment God allows him to breath.
So—men get tested for
prostate cancer, diabetes, high blood pressure, or whatever. Don't be afraid.
Someone will be with you so you can drink in this precious gift of life God has
given. You can make a difference—as a man—not as Superman.
Blessings,
Bishop James E. Swanson,Sr.
President of the General Commission on UM Men
bishop@mississippi-umc.org
Bishop James E. Swanson,Sr.
President of the General Commission on UM Men
bishop@mississippi-umc.org
This is the season of endings and beginnings—the end of one year,
and the beginning of another.
Each one of us has
been coping with situations that are ending, and each of us faces new
challenges. That is life. But during this time of year, those changes become
clearly defined and more apparent.
I am often asked,
"What is the difference between men's ministry and other ministries?"
"What is so unique about men's ministry?" "Why is this so
hard?"
From my experience, men
have a hard time letting go and forgiving that "man in the mirror."
So as we reach the end of this year, let's ask ourselves, "What are some
things we are willing to leave behind, to forgive, to learn from—but not carry
anymore?"
"What 'weight'
can we free ourselves from as we welcome a new year?"
"How can God free
us for joyful obedience?"
And while we are in
conversation with God, let's ask what we should "pick up" in the new
year.
Following the National
Gathering we asked participants, "So since the event, what are your next
right steps?"
We did not want the
gathering to be just a great event; we wanted it to be the beginning of
something new.
One of my favorite
responses to the question came from a man who said on the way home he felt the Holy
Spirit telling him to get involved in the youth of his church.
"But I am 70
years old!" he protested.
Responding to the
mandate, he spoke to the youth director at his church. He is now teaching a
Bible study for 12 boys, and helping in the Sunday evening youth program.
What a blessing for
him and for those young men.
What is God calling
you to do?
I assure you that you
are not too busy, too unskilled, too untrained, too old or too young.
I hope you will
overcome one of the greatest forces hurting our church today—inertia.
Wesley gave us three
general rules, "Do no harm; do good; and stay in love with God by
practicing the ordinances of God."
If Wesley were around
today, I think he would look at some of us and say, Do no harm—but for God's sake—do
something!
T.S. Eliot and Natalie
Sleeth remind us, that "in our end, is our beginning." Treasure the
past, but as Sleeth wrote in the Hymn of Promise, "From the past
will come the future; what it holds a mystery, unrevealed until its season,
something God alone can see."
Where
is God leading you?
Gil Hanke, general
secretary
General Commission on United Methodist Men
GHanke@gcumm.org
General Commission on United Methodist Men
GHanke@gcumm.org
"And she shall
bear a son, and you shall call his name 'Jesus,' for it is he who will save his
people from their sins."(Matthew. 1:21)
We are at a time in the year when we celebrate the birth of a
king—a savior.
This year has brought
many challenges to all of us in men's ministry and to each of our personal
lives.
Jesus came to this
world to save us and show God's love for us.
As you go through this
Advent season, be thankful for what God has provided. Thank God for your
family, friends, your ministry and the health of all. Be grateful for this
ministry that circles the world.
Each day is a new
gift. Remember, God provides a bridge for us.
Too often, we ignore
the presence of that bridge.
Draw near with faith
and know that Jesus really is the reason for the season.
Thank you for all you
do, and have a merry Christmas and happy new year.
Thinking
of you!
Dan Ramsey, president
National Association of Conference Presidents
dramseyjr@sbcglobal.net
National Association of Conference Presidents
dramseyjr@sbcglobal.net
With thoughtful advance planning, Scout Sunday (Feb. 9, 2014) can
be a memorable day for Scouts and leaders who are affiliated with Boy Scouts,
Girl Scouts and Big Brother Big Sisters.
Scouts may lead
various parts of the worship service, and they may serve as greeters and
ushers. Time may also be set aside for the presentation of awards.
Pastors who have been
working with young people may use Scout Sunday to present P.R.A.Y. (Programs of
Religious Activities with Youth) awards.
The Scout leader or
youth director may nominate Scouts, youth or young adults for Good Samaritan
Awards. Awards may be given anyone between the ages of 6 to 30 who demonstrates
the attributes of the Good Samaritan described in Luke 10:25–37.
Parents or pastors may
also use this Sunday to honor adults who lead the scouting program. Adult
leaders may receive the Cross and Flame Award. Sponsoring churches may also
receive a Shepherd Church Charter Recognition.
The plans you make
today will make your Scouting Ministry Sunday a meaningful one.
We want to hear about
your Scouting Ministry Sunday. Please send us a one-paragraph article and an
action photo for potential publication in Scouting News.
Facts about scouting
ministry:
Scout Sunday in the
UMC is generally celebrated the second Sunday in February for BSA and the
second Sunday in March for GSUSA. However, a local church may designate any
Sunday as Scouting Ministry Sunday.
Scouting ministries
include Boy Scouts of America, Girl Scouts of the USA, Camp Fire USA, 4-H, and
Big Brothers Big Sisters.
Each year, 500,000
members of these youth-serving organizations meet in nearly 7,000 UM churches.
Half of these young people come from un-churched families—an evangelical
opportunity for your congregation.
For
more information about scouting ministries, including downloading brochures,
visit our web site: www.umscouting.org.
Larry Coppock,
national director of scouting ministries and director of the Strength for
Service Publication Fund
General Commission on United Methodist Men
LCoppock@gcumm.org
General Commission on United Methodist Men
LCoppock@gcumm.org
I get questions about
our mission, vision and activities.
What should United
Methodist men be doing?
Why should people
support the United Methodist Men?
I believe we need to
get back to basics. The mission of the United Methodist Church is
"To make
disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world."
This mission has kept
the church busy since it started. As Christians, we have spent a lot of time
chasing other things and trying to get back on track is an ongoing opportunity.
Our church mission should keep us busy for the immediate future. All of our UM
Men projects and efforts should support this mission.
For a long time, I
just sat and shook my head yes as I heard this message repeated. I then started
to wonder, "What exactly does that mean I should do?" What is my next
right step?
Jesus sums this up in
three ways:
love God
love your neighbor
tell everybody else
Jesus gave us these
two greatest Commandments (Matthew: 22 34-40) and the great commission
(Matthew: 28 16-20). To break this mission into more manageable chunks, we have
the general rule of discipleship.
The UMC General Rule
of Discipleship is
"To witness to
Jesus Christ in the World, and follow his teachings through acts of compassion,
justice, worship, and devotions, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit"
2012 Book of Discipline ¶1117(2a)
2012 Book of Discipline ¶1117(2a)
Wesley proposed that
we use acts of devotion and worship to demonstrate our love to God. Also, that
we use acts of compassion (service) and justice to demonstrate to the Lord how
much we love our neighbors, his people.
This schematic and the
Jerusalem cross represent the general rule.
|
Acts of Service
Acts of Devotion
|
 |
Acts of Justice
Acts of Worship
|
The top two items are
acts of compassion. The bottom two items are acts of piety. The two items on
the left are individual acts. The two items on the right are corporate acts.
Therefore, as
disciples we have four areas of work (acts):
Acts of service are
acts we do as individuals to demonstrate our love for our neighbors. Such as:
sharing food and resources with others, visiting prisoners or providing malaria
nets.
Acts of justice are
acts we do as a group to demonstrate our love for our neighbors. Such as:
eliminating the reasons for hunger and poverty, developing prison ministries or
eliminating malaria for whole continent with our church's "No More
Malaria" project.
Acts of devotion are
acts we do as individuals to demonstrate our love for God. These are acts of
spending time and developing a relationship with God. Such as: daily devotion,
prayer, abstinence, fasting and studying the scripture.
Acts of worship are
acts we do as a group to demonstrate our love for God. These acts center on
worshiping and developing our faith as a Christian community, such as
worshiping in church, Communion, small-group Bible study, and Christian
conferencing.
I believe it's
Wesley's conviction that all of our Christian activities find themselves in one
of these four categories. They should directly relate to our rule of
discipleship and support our mission to make disciples. If they don't, why are
we doing them?
Take a minute and
determine where you would place these items.
Being part of a small
accountability group.
Attending church.
Taking a friend to
church.
Teaching a Bible
class.
Being part of the
conference UMM group.
Helping plan worship.
Visiting shut-ins.
Being part of a potato
drop.
Being a Scout leader.
Developing a Scout
ministry.
Becoming a men's
ministry specialist.
Being an Amachi
volunteer.
There are dozens of
discipleship activities listed on our webpage (gcumm.org) that fit into these
categories. Remember the key to any activity is how it relates to our mission
to make disciples. To quote a friend of ours "Therefore go and . . ."
Mark Dehority,
deployed staff
General Commission on United Methodist Men
MDehority@gcumm.org
General Commission on United Methodist Men
MDehority@gcumm.org
When a training event is complete and evaluation sheets are
turned in, there are still two questions to ask:
How do I want my
leadership to be remembered by the people at work, at home, in my church, and
in my community?
What do I want my
legacy to be?
Leading like Jesus is
not a course or workshop, it is a lifestyle!
Making the development
of people an equal partner with performance is a decision you make. It is
following the example of Jesus as a servant leader and pouring your life into
the lives of other people.
It is about leaving a
legacy of service.
Leading like Jesus is
more than a theory or a hopeful sentiment. It is a call to obey Jesus.
It is a lifestyle that
encourages us to ask "What would Jesus do?" before every act.
Jesus didn't tell
Simon Peter, Andrew, James and John that He would give them a self-study
course, send them to a seminar, or provide them with an education at a
prestigious university. He said, "I will make you..." This
is an important distinction in the life of the servant leader.
Servant leaders are
shepherds, not herdsmen. Shepherds lead with love and nurture. Herdsmen lead with
force and fear. Jesus redefined leadership in a way that rocked the world then
and continues to rock our planet today.
A key activity of an
effective servant leader is to act as a performance coach. When Jesus called
His disciples to follow Him, He pledged to them His full support and guidance
as they grew from fishermen into fishers of men.
As a performance
coach, Jesus changed His leadership style as the disciples developed
individually and as a group, Jesus empowered His followers to carry on after He
was gone. Through His hands (effective leadership behavior),
He was able to transmit what was in His heartand head about
servant leadership.
This will be key for
you should you seek the role of servant leader during these unsettling times.
Your people need to know that it is not all about you but about helping
everyone win.
A major message that
great leaders need to send in uncertain times is that, "none of us is as
smart as all of us."
We're in this
together.
People desire good
leaders. They want to know if you are concerned about image or integrity. Are
you reaching out to them or retreating? Are you investing in them or hoarding
resources for yourself? They look to you not only to serve but also to be a
good shepherd to everyone God has placed in your care. They want to see if you
are a good steward of the resources that God has placed in your hands. Remember
everyone is watching you! People cannot see what is in your heart or head until
it appears in your behavior.
You can't do what you
don't know, so attend a Lead Like Jesus Encounter workshop as a first step
toward becoming an effective servant leader and a performance coach.
Seek God's counsel
about your possible role as a performance coach so you may support others as
they apply new understandings to transform their lives and the lives of others.
*Adapted from Leading Like Jesus in Uncertain Times by Ken Blanchard
and Phil Hodges.
Jim Boesch, deployed
staff member
General Commission on United Methodist Men
jboesch@gcumm.org
General Commission on United Methodist Men
jboesch@gcumm.org
Visit with friends of
United Methodist Men on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/GCUMM
United Methodist Men on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/GCUMM
gcumm.org
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Address:
General Commission on United
Methodist Men
1000 17th Avenue South
Nashville, TN 37212
1000 17th Avenue South
Nashville, TN 37212
Phone: (615)340-7145
Toll Free: (866)297-4312
Toll Free: (866)297-4312
Fax: (615)340-1770
E-mail: gcumm@gcumm.org
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