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Lay Leader's Corner Archive

Greetings from Your Lay Leader,

January is here and with it the culmination of the Christmas season. The “twelfth day” of Christmas, Epiphany, brings the season to a close. The sixth of January is the Feast of Epiphany and is often celebrated on Sunday between the second and eighth of the month (the 5th this year). For most of us, when we think of Epiphany we think of the Magi, the Wise Men or the Kings from the East, coming to adore and present gifts to the baby Jesus. The Greek word Epipanos, from which Epiphany comes, means “showing forth”. Thus, Epiphany is the celebration of Christ's manifestation (showing forth) to the Gentiles (the Magi). In some traditions it commemorates the baptism of Jesus, another form of “showing forth”. In either case, Epiphany is both an ending and a beginning. It is the point between leaving behind the old and stepping into the new. It is where many of us find ourselves this time of year and at significant points in our lives, letting go of the past and grabbing onto the future. Where are we going from here?

 

To answer that question, we often must first have an “epiphany”, a sudden flash of recognition, according to my dictionary. Have you ever pondered a problem or situation over a period of time, and then suddenly have the solution or a resolution just seem to pop into your head? To me that is just God's way of giving us a nudge in the right direction. But that “epiphany” is for naught unless we use that nudge to stir us to action. Often, even seemingly small actions can have far reaching effects. Consider some of the service programs in our community that started as an epiphany put into action; food pantries, free community meals, clothing pantries, recycling, mentoring, homeless shelters, and the list goes on. The resolution to any problem starts with the actions of an individual. What nudges will you put into action this year?

 

Epiphany only comes on the sixth of January each year, but an “epiphany” can happen any time. Consider what you will do the next time God gives you a nudge.

 

Peace be with you,

 

Your lay leader,

Timothy Locker, Sr.

 

 

 

The Lay Leader's Corner

Greetings from the Lay Leader's Corner. Advent is upon us, a “season” of preparation and anticipation. Did you know the first Sunday in Advent is the first day of the year on the Christian calendar? It is. Happy New Year! So, perhaps some New Year's resolutions would be in order. What, one more thing to do in this already overloaded season? But how better to prepare and anticipate the celebration of the birth of our Lord and Savior than to resolve to be closer to what Jesus wants us to be.

 

Recently, a group of folks gathered in the Fellowship Hall to take action to contact others in the congregation with cards, phone calls, or visits. They saw a need to strengthen the bonds among us and they resolved to fill that need. They refer to themselves as a “Circle of Care”. The next gathering will be on December 16 at 10:30 A.M. in Fellowship Hall. Consider widening the “Circle” with your presence.

 

Another group meets Monday evening for Bible Study. The consensus of the group is that through Bible Study and discussion all involved have grown personally closer to God and each other. They have discovered they have learned more about each other and become closer during the time they have spent in Bible Study than all the years they spent in Sunday worship alone. Consider starting a Bible Study with a few of your friends or joining an existing one. Part of Wesley's vision of the church was organized small study groups to build bonds with God and each other.

 

Some other groups to check out are the Wednesday School Kidz Klub (Children's Christian Education), In Stitches (sewing, knitting, etc.) RCUMC Women of Faith (rummage sale, bazaar). You might find your place in service on the Do Crew, Finance Team, Missions, music ministry, worship planning, Tech Crew, office support or outreach. If you don't see something on the above list, think about what you would like to do to build the Body of Christ and search out other like minded folks, and get to it.

 

Being the body of Christ is a group activity. Resolve to find or start a group and get active. You'll have a Happy New Year and a very Blessed Christmas!

 

Peace be with you,

Your Lay leader,

Timothy Locker

Greetings from the Lay Leader's Corner. November is here, the month of Thanksgiving. This is a time to take stock of what this year has brought us, our joys and concerns. As we check the balance sheet of our lives, we need to remember that no matter how it looks, God will always bring balance to our topsy turvy world. Sometimes we don't see or understand that balance, but what we do understand that is if we use the gifts God gives us to help and support others, everyone benefits. At our Charge Conference this year, those who attended saw and heard many opportunities to use our God given gifts. Our District Superintendent, Rev. John Kasper, brought a message of encouragement and challenge. He encouraged us to discover and develop the gifts we are given and challenged us to use them to the fullest to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world. For what is the use of being “born again” if we don't act any differently than before? Then, Rev. Kim Bos, the Director and spiritual leader of the Wesley Foundation at Ferris State University gave an impassioned presentation on the ways we can get involved to help and support the students she shepherds. She described her flock as three distinct types of Christians; a couple are Sunday School super stars (they grew up in the church and have lots of experience in church stuff), a few are Sunday School drop-outs (they attended church occasionally with friends or grandparents but they wandered away or never really got involved), and the majority have had no experience in the church (when you start singing “Jesus Loves Me” they have no idea what you mean). All of these young people need help and support in their faith journey. Kim asked that we get involved by building relationships with these young folks by providing meals on Thursdays, their worship night, or helping support their campus and spring break mission activities. What can you do to build bridges to a younger generation hungry for Christ's love and grace? Then it was my turn to remind the lay people gathered in our Fellowship Hall that they have the qualifications for the work that needed to be done, and perhaps all they needed was a bit of specific training to get them headed in the right direction. If you check last month’s Lay Leader's Corner article it outlined the areas of Lay Servant, Lay Speaker, and Lay Minister training that are available; in person, online, or through Zoom. The point is to get involved to use your gifts. If you get a Kitchen Aid mixer for Christmas is it of any use if you don't use it to put together a cake, or a new Craftsman tool and not use it to build or repair something? How are you going to use your gifts? The last presenter was Peter Blinkiade, our District Co-Lay Leader. He informed us of the ways the District supports the Laity to do the work Christ has put us to do. The District website is a good place to start; click on Ministries, then Laity. As your Lay Leader, you can always ask me any questions you have and I'll get an answer for you. In what ways can you get more involved as a lay person? Finally, for those of you who were at Charge Conference, please talk to those who weren't able to be there and let them know what you got from your time there. How better to serve the Lord than to share your experiences with your friends? The work of Jesus Christ gets done in many ways, as many ways as there are Christians in this world. How will you help get His work done to balance this topsy turvy world? Peace be with you, Your lay leader, Timothy Locker, Sr.

Greetings from the Lay Leader's Corner. October is here and the smell of Fall is in the air. Also, October is Charge Conference month, for us on the 27th at 2:30 PM. We will be taking care of the “business” of our local church, so please plan on attending. Along with the “business”, presentations will be made on what is happening in our Connexion Zone, the District, the Michigan Conference and beyond. This month's article is dedicated to introducing Lay Servant Ministries which will be one focus of our conference.

 

LAY SERVANT MINISTRIES is a leadership development program in The United Methodist Church focused on equipping and empowering laypersons who have responded to the call of God to serve in mission and ministry. These laypersons are called to live out their own discipleship as servants in leadership through the ministries of leading, caring, and communicating. Being called to ministry is a serious endeavor. It takes a disciple to make a disciple. Thus, we must do all we can to prepare ourselves and others to serve. The United Methodist Church has established three categories for laypersons in the area of lay servant ministries to develop, prepare, and engage principled Christian leaders for the mission of making disciples for the transformation of the world:

• Certified Lay Servant

• Certified Lay Speaker

• Certified Lay Minister

Certified lay servants who wish to develop their skills further may choose a track to become certified as lay speakers (those who are called specifically to pulpit supply), or as lay ministers (those who are called to long-term, intentional ministry as part of a ministry team).

Certified Lay Servant

A certified lay servant serves the local church or charge (and/or beyond) and:

• provides program leadership, assistance, and support.

• leads meetings for prayer, training, study, and discussion.

• conducts, or assists in conducting, services of worship, preaches the Word, or gives addresses.

• provides congregational and community leadership and fosters caring ministries.

• assists in the distribution of the elements of Holy Communion.

• teaches the Scriptures, doctrine, organization, and ministries of The United Methodist Church.

 

Certified Lay Speaker

A certified lay speaker serves by preaching the Word when requested by the pastor, district superintendent, or committee on lay servant ministries in accordance and compliance with ¶341.1 of “The Book of Discipline”. The role of a certified lay speaker is a specific calling for the ministry of pulpit supply.

 

Certified Lay Minister

A certified lay minister serves as part of a ministry team with the supervision and support of a clergyperson and:

• conducts public worship.

• cares for the congregation.

• develops new faith communities.

• preaches the Word. • leads small groups.

• establishes outreach ministries.

• serves as a class leader.

• assists in program leadership.

• engages in specialized ministries after appropriate training such as in parish nursing, church planting, men’s ministry, children’s faith formation, congregational care, and more.

 

Prayerfully consider how you can be involved in lay servant ministries and follow as God leads. Peace be with you, Your lay leader, Timothy Locker, Sr

 

 

Greetings from the Lay Leader's Corner.

Welcome September, a month of transition; from summer to autumn, from vacations to business as usual, from air conditioners to furnaces, from tending gardens to harvesting (and preserving) the fruits of our labor, from a sparse church calendar to one abundant with opportunities. It has been a good summer from Annual Conference to Vacation Bible School. If Annual Conference kicked off the summer with joy and optimism, then VBS finished it off with no less. It was a super success. Over twenty K - 8th graders enjoyed two days, with an over-night, at Albright Camp led by a terrific staff. Everyone involved came away with a deeper understanding of and closer relationship with Christ Jesus our Lord. A huge THANKS to all involved to make VBS such a positive experience and praise God for bringing so much growth of faith in just two days. Between those two events things were happening right here at RCUMC. A new Community Outreach Team hosted several events to give the citizens of our community opportunities to come together to enrich their lives; creating pieces of art while enjoying food, fellowship, or relaxing to live music performed by talented musicians. Also, our church building was used for several blood drives, providing a life-giving commodity that cannot be manufactured only shared. Our church building received even more than its normal maintenance this summer. It now has strategically placed heat pumps which act as both air conditioning and heating units providing more comfortable spaces in all seasons. THANKS to all who have made this a very productive summer. Now we look forward to the rest of the year. Weekly Bible studies will begin. You are encouraged to host a new study group in your home or other convenient place, we can't have too many. Kids Klub is starting another year and needs help with the growing number of young people eager to learn about the Lord, consider being a mentor. Every “Team” would welcome your participation, see me for details. The Leadership Team has already set in motion the work necessary to have a successful Charge Conference in October. RCUMC will be host to the nine or so other congregations in our “Connexion” Zone in the Central Bay District of the Michigan Conference. You will be hearing more on this in the coming weeks. I encourage you to mark your calendar, and attend, October 27, 2024 at 2:30 pm here in RCUMC. Charge Conference is your greatest opportunity to have input on the business of the church. You will vote to choose your local leadership, set your local church budget for 2025, your Pastor’s compensation, and other important items of business of your congregation. It is also the only opportunity you will have to direct the business of the District; discuss and vote on its budget as well as other District business. It may also be your only opportunity in the year to talk to the District Superintendent and/or hear him preach. When else would you have the opportunity to be in fellowship with so many other United Methodists in your own church building? A new season is upon us. Let us move forward with trust in the Lord. Only God knows what the future holds but we can all be assured God will provide us many opportunities to do the Lord’s work. Peace be with you, Your lay leader, Timothy Locker, Sr.

 

Greetings from the Lay Leader’s Corner.

As promised, this communication will be about my experiences at Annual Conference 2024. The theme was “FEARLESS: Embracing a New Future”. Trying to cover everything I experienced would be impossible, not to mention incomplete, because Cinda’s experiences would not be included. I hope you are not too disappointed if I don’t give you a blow-by-blow description of events here. On Sunday, June 30, during fellowship time after service, Cinda and I shared some of the materials we collected during AC, gave a brief synopsis of the highlights we experienced, and answered any questions you may have had. If you would like to experience some of AC yourself, I suggest you go to Michigan UMC on Facebook. There you will find videos from this year’s Annual Conference. Each of those videos contain everything that took place in Governors’ Hall, where all the business of the Conference took place.

 

 

Greetings from the Lay Leader’s Corner.

By the time you read this, Annual Conference will be over, but as I am writing only the Legislative Committees have been meeting. I would like to thank those of you who gave Cinda and me your thoughts about the legislation the AC considered this year, and for your questions about the function and activities of AC. For now, let’s look ahead to some thoughts on summer. This summer looks like it’s going to be a busy time at RCUMC with Community Outreach, Vacation Bible School, The Summer Challenge (a Bible study of Acts), and other activities still in the works.

As usual, some activities are on summer hiatus, but will be back in the Fall. Summer is often a time of travel for many of us, but that doesn’t mean we leave the thought of church behind. In fact, it’s on those summer journeys (or any time we are traveling!), when we can take the opportunity to experience worship of God with others in different settings. I encourage you to soak in those new experiences as you find yourself away from your home church. This might be at a campground worship service, a friend or relatives’ church, or a church you find along your way that is totally new to you.

You may find yourself in a different denomination, with people of different backgrounds, or even a service conducted in a language you do not understand, but you will be with fellow believers worshiping our God. Hopefully, you will find yourself in an environment as friendly and welcoming as RCUMC. In any case, remember that you are there because God wants you there; perhaps to learn from a different experience or share your faith with others to enrich both of your faith journeys. Perhaps you will see something new that you feel would be welcomed back home at RCUMC. How exciting would that be to share your new “findings” with your church family!

It is those “shared” experiences that enrich our congregation and help it grow spiritually, functionally, and creatively for the glory of God. May I suggest that when you have something to share, that you talk to Pastor Daniel, myself, or anyone on the Leadership Team, so we may help you share that experience or idea with the congregation or greater community. You may be surprised how one seemingly little thing can bring about greater abundance in the life of our church and the world around us.

Enjoy the season ahead. Be mindful of where God places you. Absorb the experiences you have. Share your enriched faith with others for the glory of God’s kingdom.

May God bless us all with his abundant grace.

Peace be with you,

Your Lay Leader,

Timothy Locker, Sr.

 

Greetings from the Lay Leader's Corner.

Spring is here, the landscape is greening up and God continues to reveal his handiwork. It is time to take inventory and plan for the days ahead. The Michigan Conference of the United Methodist Church is doing just that. As I write this article, representatives of our Conference are attending General Conference, planning the future of the United Methodist Church in the world at large.

Cinda and I are looking forward to attending the Michigan Annual Conference at the end of this month at the Grand Traverse Resort in Acme Michigan. The MAC is a gathering of equal numbers of Clergy and Lay members of the Conference to do the Corporate business of the church. All clergy in good standing in the Conference, whether active or retired, are required to attend. Cinda was elected at our Annual Charge Conference last Fall as your Lay Representative to Annual Conference and I was chosen to be an Equalization Representative to Annual Conference by our District Lay Leader. Note, because there are more clergy attendees than there would be lay representatives elected by local congregations, and equal numbers of each are required by The Book of Discipline, a number of lay people need to be chosen on a district-by-district basis to “equalize” the numbers, thus, the Equalization Representatives. Well, that was a lot of explanation of why both Cinda and I will be attending as your representatives, but I felt it is important for you know.

Also important for you to know is what “business” will be before us and what your part is in accomplishing that “business”. There are eleven Resolutions that have been presented and a budget for the Conference to consider. Three of the Resolutions and the budget will come before the entire voting body to be considered for discussion and vote. The remaining eight will first go through Legislative Committees for consideration before coming before the entire body. It is that process you can help with.

On May 22 and 23, four Legislative Committees will meet separately via Zoom to consider those pieces of legislation, two per committee. Pastor Daniel, Cinda and I will each be assigned to one of those groups, but no two of us to the same group. The pieces of legislation and budget have been posted in the RCUMC narthex for your examination. Also, you can access the Michigan Conference web sight and find them there. You are strongly encouraged to examine these documents and provide Pastor Daniel, Cinda, and/or me with your thoughts, feelings, and wisdom. Cinda and I will be in the Fellowship Hall each Sunday after service to discuss your questions and or comments. It is through your input, prayers, and God’s guidance that we will do God's work at Annual Conference.

You will be able to follow the actions of Annual Conference as it happens via the Conference website, YouTube, and Facebook page. There is much more to Annual Conference than the legislative sessions; worship, fellowship, information booths on a myriad of topics, seeing old friends, and making new friends. A round-up of each day's activities will be published in Newsletter form the following day on the web sight and Facebook page as well. At a time to be determined after the Annual Conference there will be a time set aside to present a report to the congregation from those of us that attended. Peace be with you,

Your lay leader,

Timothy Locker, Sr.

 

 

 

Greetings from your Lay Leader. Lent is now behind us, and our journey continues on as Easter people. Thank you to all who gave me input for my last correspondence. It really helps to hear from you about your feelings of what is happening or not happening in and around our church. In our meeting in March, Pastor Daniel and I discussed your comments and determined to continue working on discussing the work of building relationships within our congregation as well as with the greater community.

 

That in mind, first a shout out and “praise the Lord!” for all the “small groups” already gathering and working at building stronger and deeper relationships in and around our church. Besides the required formal Leadership and Finance Team, we have two active Bible study groups, Tuesday’s “In Stitches Group”, Wednesday’s “KIDZ KLUB”, Women’s Group, Handbell Ensemble, Missions Team, an informal after worship Coffee Hour discussion group, the Memorial Garden group, and the “Do-Crew” (aka Trustees). If there are other groups not mentioned, please let me know so they can be recognized. Our church building is also used for several outside groups and activities that provide assistance and support for the greater community, but more on that at a later time.

 

There is another group, once very active in our church, that seems to have languished and fallen by the wayside. I’m thinking specifically that an active Men’s Group meeting in our church would be an added blessing not only to the congregation but to the community at large. I’ll be talking to the men in our church about such a group, but would like input from anyone and everyone on this endeavor. It is my prayer that before the end of this year we can again celebrate a group of men from this congregation dedicated and working to do God’s will in this world.

Relationships not only need to be developed, strengthened, and deepened in this congregation, but also across our denomination. In light of that I will also endeavor to establish a group of Lay Leaders from across our District starting with the UMC churches of Osceola and Mecosta counties. By doing so, an information and planning network can be established among those churches to better facilitate inter-congregational activities and the ability to share news and ideas. Progress reports of this project will be forthcoming in future articles of The Lay Leader’s Corner.

 

Every journey begins with one step and continues one step at a time. Building our relationship with God, with each other, and with those we are yet to meet is another step we take “to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the World”.

 

Yours in Christ, and peace be with you,

Timothy Locker, Sr., your Lay Leader

 

Greetings from the Lay Leader’s Corner. Since the last newsletter, my service to the Big Rapids Parish has come to an end. Dedicated lay speakers in the Parish have come forward to fill the role I have been filling, and I can direct my attention to the needs of the Reed City UMC. Praise the Lord!

 

Pastor Daniel and I have agreed to meet regularly, at least once a month, to discuss the state of the church and needed ministries. At our last meeting, relationship building was the main subject of our discussion. It is through our relationships with others that our faith in Jesus Christ was first formed, strengthened, and then passed on to others.

 

As anyone knows, relationships take time, patience, understanding, and love. Jesus described the church as a body in which each part is important but that no one member can do it all. We all need each other. He prayed that we “may be one” (John 17:11). In a spiritual context, “being one” refers to our interconnectedness, not our sameness. I relate this to the experience of being in small groups, at Coffee Fellowship after Sunday service and at Bible study, in which those in the group exchange views, examples, feelings, and beliefs involved in our individual faith journeys. Through these exchanges we not only strengthen and grow our relationships with each other and Christ, but also have realized, though we have different views, examples, feelings, and beliefs, we are connected through our faith in Christ and are in the body of Christ, the church.

 

To make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world we must develop relationships with those who are not yet disciples of Jesus Christ. For many of us that may seem like a daunting task, one for which we feel inadequate. It seems to me that the best place to start to develop the relationship building skills we need to make disciples of Jesus Christ is with people with whom we already have relationships. Those of us in the small groups mentioned have, for the most part, known each other for many years. Yet, after several weeks or months of discussion and sharing we came to the realization of how much deeper our relationships had grown because of our time together. We learned patience, that is, to really listen to what each person was trying to express so as to have a better understanding of where they were on their faith journey. We also found that Christian love grows more than we could have imagined within that experience.

 

As important, necessary, and vital it is to participate in Sunday worship, we need more than just that to “be one”. One example is participating in a small group, formal or informal, in which relationships can grow deeper and stronger, which is key to developing the skills we will need to make disciples of Jesus Christ. You are invited to join or start a small group for Bible study and/or discussion of your faith journey. Please contact me or Pastor Daniel as we can be of assistance to you in that endeavor.

 

Yours in Christ, peace be with you.

 

Your Lay Leader,

Timothy Locker, Sr.

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