Great Plains Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church "AC 2014 Daily" for Saturday, 14 June 2014

Great Plains Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church "AC 2014 Daily" for Saturday, 14 June 2014
Each day there will be a special edition of "GPconnect." Below you can find information on what attendees can expect during AC 2014, along with announcements and featured stories.
Mary Lou Reece hosts clergy spouse breakfast
Mercy and Justice resolutions pass
Members review finances, approve 2014 budget
Connecting Council accepts bishop’s recommendation on process
Offering totals for 2014 Great Plains Annual Conference Session
Holding Annual Conference Session in Lincoln has historical value
On fruitfulness
Acevedo’s final message of AC 2014
The Rev. Jorge Acevedo began with the story of a small church that voted to transform their ministry by voting to be a campus of his congregation. He lifted up the phrase, "Creating a culture of discipleship, systems and strategies will determine the harvest you get." He used the parable of the seed sown on rocky ground to link this concept to scripture. He shared photos of his church community garden as well as sandy soil and a hydroponic tomato farm to illustrate his point.
Reflecting on the systems of the UMC, Acevedo recalled the stories of John Wesley, who employed systems of people to organize what we know as the Methodist way.
Acevedo’s congregation organizes their work into four areas:
Reach – Ministries that reach out to others, including special needs families, entrepreneurship and hunger ministries.
Connect ministries – Connecting with people where they are.
Form ministries – Opportunities to learn and grow in faith.
Send ministries – Ministries that send people out into the world in ministry. A video told the story of a specific outreach program that provides shoes to children.
Throughout his talk, Acevedo stressed the importance of the local church as a hub for personal growth, outreach, transformation and evangelism, which he summarizes with the words reach, connect, form and send.
He believes that John Wesley really got it right and summed it up by saying, “A vital congregation is one that creates incubator like environments for the Holy Spirit to work God’s grace into people.”


(Bishop Scott Jones later in the morning session committed to “borrowing” the phrase to use in his own teaching.)
Mary Lou Reece hosts clergy spouse breakfast

Saturday morning, Mary Lou Reece made sure to set time aside to honor the spouses of clergy at a breakfast. The breakfast was a time for spouses to get to know and support each other. During the breakfast, it was decided that at the 2015 Great Plains Annual Conference Session, the spouse will have a day-long retreat, to strengthen the fellowship that began today.
Mercy and Justice resolutions pass
By Kathy Lefler, director of communications, East Heights UMC, Wichita, Kan.
Resolutions submitted by the Mercy and Justice Team on gun violence, compassionate immigration reform and global maternal child health passed Saturday.
Christians Respond to Gun Violence
The Rev. Michelle Reed of Woodland UMC in Wichita, Kan., introduced the resolution titled Christians Respond to Gun Violence. She cited statistics on school shootings, homicide rates and gun assaults. "God's security is not by arming ourselves," she said. Discussion opposing the resolution focused on weapon definitions, federal government intervention and that passage would cause division among churches. Those who spoke in favor of the resolution cited a critical need to protect children. The motion carried by a 502-312 vote.
Compassionate Immigration Reform
In bringing forth the Compassionate Immigration Reform resolution, stories were shared of children crossing the border alone and families torn apart by deportations. The resolution, that passed, calls for United Methodists in the Great Plains Conference to advocate before U.S. Congress for changes to reunify families and provide a path for citizenship, among other things. People spoke to the need to not turn our backs those in need and that Jesus calls us to welcome the stranger.
To Support Global Maternal and Child Health Through the Healthy Families, Healthy Planet Project
Courtney Fowler, Great Plains Conference lay leader, presented a resolution to support global maternal and child health through the Healthy Families, Healthy Planet Project. She said often the joy of childbirth ends in tragedy when a mother and/or her child die. "Women are of sacred worth," said Fowler. Supporters spoke to the global need for this resolution, but the section calling for United Methodists to contact Congress for their participation was questioned because it was felt this is a church issue, not a government issue. The motion, which passed, also calls for United Methodists work to create awareness of this issue and provide leadership.
Members review finances, approve 2014 budget

Approved 2015 budget totals $16,036,373
Carl Nord, chair of Finance and Administration for the conference led the financial discussion. He reaffirmed the Rev. Gary Beach as Conference Treasurer and thanked him for his service in times of great change and transition. Beach took the podium and recognized his own staff who have been putting in many hours to make the transition to the Great Plains Conference. He noted that about 30 businesses and pseudo-conference business were shut down during the transition and aggregated into four incorporated organizations. At the same time his staff was reduced, meaning the department is doing more work with significantly less staff.
Read more on the Great Plains Conference website.
Members review finances, approve 2014 budget
Approved 2015 budget totals $16,036,373
Carl Nord, chair of Finance and Administration for the conference led the financial discussion. He reaffirmed the Rev. Gary Beach as Conference Treasurer and thanked him for his service in times of great change and transition. Beach took the podium and recognized his own staff who have been putting in many hours to make the transition to the Great Plains Conference. He noted that about 30 businesses and pseudo-conference business were shut down during the transition and aggregated into four incorporated organizations. At the same time his staff was reduced, meaning the department is doing more work with significantly less staff.
Beach noted that he has received nothing but gracious support and kindness from the people of the conference. “I appreciate that,” he said.
Beach presented the 2013 Mission Share percentages of the former three conferences — Kansas East, 85.04 percent; Nebraska, 86.05 percent; and Kansas West, 87.65 percent.
Beach asked if was even possible for churches to meet Bishop Jones’ challenge of 95 percent fulfillment of apportionments. He highlighted several conferences who regularly meet that level. He went on to recognize Great Plains districts who indeed had met that challenge in 2013.
Gateway District in Nebraska, 96.49
Hays District in Kansas, 95.13
Flint Hills, Hutchinson and Dodge district were just under the 95 percent.
Beach noted that if the conference would reach the 95 percent level on apportionments we would raise an additional $1.5 million. “It would enable us to do extraordinary things,” he said.
Beach announced some financial software enhancements for church bill paying and for giving that are planned for later in the summer. These are intended to make the financial work more streamlined and automated for both churches and the conference.
Carl Nord, chair of the Council on Finance and Administration led the group through the budget approval process starting with affirming the 10 + 1 Mission Share formula, affirming Mission Agency Support and ending with the approval of the 2015 budget.
In addition to income generated from apportionments, Nord noted that attendees might want to review the income line items generated from the new  Restricted Reserve Fund. (The Connecting Council approved the creation of this fund at its spring 2014 meeting.) It acts as an endowment for the GPC. The fund, along with the interest it generates, accounts for three line-items in the 2015 income section of the budget. A complete explanation of the Restricted Reserve Fund and the allocation from it for the 2015 budget, can be found on pages numbered 24-25 in the AC Resource Booklet.
“We have a great committee and I am really happy to be part of this, it’s a great process we’re going through,” Nord said. He thanked all the committee members and the bishop for their contributions to the process.
Connecting Council accepts bishop’s recommendation on process
A resolution to reduce the conference to 14 districts in order to provide greater funding for campus ministries was brought to the floor on Thursday, officially considered on Friday, and referred to the Connecting Council on Saturday.
The Connecting Council met at a special meeting at 8 a.m. in the Lied Center Johnny Carson Theatre on Saturday to hear Bishop Scott Jones’ recommendation on how to manage the referral.
Read more on the Great Plains Conference website.
Connecting Council accepts bishop’s recommendation on process
A resolution to reduce the conference to 14 districts in order to provide greater funding for campus ministries was brought to the floor on Thursday, officially considered on Friday, and referred to the Connecting Council on Saturday.
The Connecting Council met at a special meeting at 8 a.m. in the Lied Center Johnny Carson Theatre on Saturday to hear Bishop Scott Jones’ recommendation on how to manage the referral.
His recommendation read:
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For Considering the Reduction of Districts and Funding for Campus Ministry
On June 13, the Great Plains Conference referred a resolution and two amendments to the Connecting Council. The Council has been asked to study the matter and bring recommendations to the 2015 session of the GPC. The following is one possibility for how we might handle the referral.
The Connecting Council establishes a District Study Group of no more than 15 persons to be appointed by Bishop Jones. It should study other conferences and the unique history and characteristics of our conference and bring a report to the October meeting of the Connecting Council for discussion. At the very least, the report should consider the following questions:
Given our geography, our mission and our priorities, what is the most fruitful way for our conference to organize its districts?
What is the best way for district superintendents to serve our mission in the 21st century?
How many districts should there be?
If we change the number of districts, what are the financial implications?
Regarding the funding of campus ministry, the Campus Ministry Team is charged with completing a draft of their strategic implementation plan for campus ministry in the Great Plains Conference. Their work relates, at least, to the priority of developing spiritual leaders. They should consider what changes are needed to do that well, and what resources are required to accomplish the goals they envision.
Regarding the funding of campus ministry, the Campus Ministry Team is charged with completing a draft of their strategic implementation plan for campus ministry in the Great Plains Conference. Their work relates, at least, to the priority of developing spiritual leaders. They should consider what changes are needed to do that well, and what resources are required to accomplish the goals they envision.
(End of recommendation)
The Connecting Council accepted Bishop Jones’ recommendation.
Strategic Implementation Plan to play role
His recommendation was handed out on a sheet a paper to Council members and then discussed. The group agreed that there are two items for consideration and that they should not be yoked.
The Strategic Implementation process calls for all teams and related groups of the conference to provide a strategic implementation plan for their ministry, by October 2014, and finalized by March 15, 2015. This will enable the conference to see what revenue and expenses each ministry anticipates for 2016 and includes what accountability measures will be employed in order to present the best budget plan possible for 2016. “Caren Loper and team will be looking at what the goals are for campus ministry and consider the places where we do not have currently have campus ministries,” he said.
The Council believes that accountability is important because the resources put towards campus ministry in the past did not result in fruitfulness. It was also noted that every ministry of the conference could make a resolution calling for more resources to improve their ministries.
Additionally, members of the Council who have served on previous redistricting efforts noted that reducing districts does not always translate into cost savings. The bishop and others talked about other conferences and the work of consultants that call for an entirely different district approach. Bishop Jones said we would do well to look at what our brothers and sisters in other conferences are doing and learn from that. Connecting Council approved the formation of the District Study Group with members selected by the bishop. He was encouraged to be inclusive in his selection.
Bishop Jones noted that when he was with the young clergy at dinner earlier this week, he appreciated their desire for greater inclusion, their desire for more transparency and engagement in the conference processes. He also made a commitment to communicate the Study Group’s activities as widely as possible.
During the Saturday morning plenary Bishop Jones announced the acceptance of his recommendation. He also reminded the body of the Strategic Alignment Team and the strategic implementation planning of the conference, that campus ministries will bring a plan with goals and budgetary needs by March 2015, just like all the other groups in the conference.
He will appoint the 15-member group in the next two weeks.
Offering totals for 2014 Great Plains Annual Conference Session
The collection for Wednesday's opening worship, totaled $11,329.70 and will go towards the mission partnerships. The collection for the memorial service on Friday, totaled 5,490.04, and will go towards the Global AIDS Fund. The collection for Friday night's ordination service was for human trafficking and totaled $5,643.72. Saturday morning's worship was for the Youth Service Fund, and totaled. $4,419.83. A total of $22,883.29 was collected during the session.
Holding Annual Conference Session in Lincoln has historical value
By Karrie Dvorak, director/curator of Nebraska UM Historical Center.
There's an appropriate symmetry to the fact that the first session of the new Great Plains Annual Conference Session is being held in Lincoln, Neb. The General Conference first authorized the establishment of the Kansas and Nebraska Annual Conference in 1856. Its first session was held in Lawrence, Kansas Territory beginning on Oct 23 — approx. 158 years ago.[1] For the next five years, the conference alternated its annual conference session between locations in territorial Nebraska and Kansas. The last year (1860), it was held at Leavenworth City, Kansas Territory. So, it's as if the Great Plains Annual Conference is picking up where the Kansas and Nebraska Annual Conference left off.  In 1861, the conference split into two — the same year that Kansas was admitted as a state and civil war engulfed the nation.
It's also particularly fitting that Annual Conference Session is being held in Lincoln, the state capitol, because it was originally founded as a Methodist Protestant Colony on July 10, 1862 by Elder J.M. Young. Elder Young migrated with five other families from Nebraska City. He located on Section 23 in Lancaster County, and "on the eighty acres he owned, he laid out the town of Lancaster [original name of the town of Lincoln]. He gave half of the lots in the town to the county and school district and reserved half for Lancaster Seminary," a private [secondary] school for girls, which he hoped to establish for the church. [2] "From the sale of some of the lots, Young built the seminary* building — two stories, red sandstone, thirty by fifty feet — which also housed the district [public] school and, temporarily, the church … Unfortunately, the seminary building burned in 1867 and was never rebuilt by the Methodists Protestants … Elder Young is said to have put $8,000-$10,000 into the total enterprise … [According to an article in the July 2, 1868 Nebraska Statesman:] 'He not only planted his colony on the site of Lincoln, but was the inspiration which had much to do with inducing the commissioners to locate the state capitol on his site rather than at Seward, or one of the other competing points.'"[3]
Next AC session to be in Wichita, Kan.
The 2015 Great Plains United Methodist Annual Conference Session will be held at the Century II Center, in Wichita, June 10-13, 2015.
Correction: In the pension story in the Friday edition of GPconnect Daily, the headline should have read “Amendment to pension and benefit report passes by two votes.”
Editorial Policy: The content, news, events and announcement information distributed in GPconnect is not sponsored or endorsed by the Great Plains Methodist Conference unless specifically stated.
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Want to submit a letter to the editor? Email Kathryn Witte at kwitte@greatplainsumc.org.
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