Annual Conference: 2014

This week, Pastor Mark and Bobby Totten are attending the 148^th North Georgia Annual Conference in Athens, GA. This is the annual meeting of delegates (all appointed clergy and an equal number of lay delegates) from all over United Methodist Churches in North Georgia. The North Georgia Conference has nearly 1,000 churches located from as far south as Pine Mountain near Callaway Gardens all the up to the Georgia line on Lookout Mountain near Chattanooga, TN, and everywhere between east and west in the state. It is estimated that 3,000 delegates and guests will be present for this year’s Conference session.

Annual Conference is a special time. During the Conference, reports are given to inform the delegates of the work of United Methodism in North Georgia, the U.S., and across the globe; next year’s budget will be discussed and voted upon; we will celebrate with those newly ordained as well as those who retire; we will remember in worship the clergy, staff, and leaders who have passed away in the last year; and new clergy appointments will be read for pastors and churches. During this year’s Conference, Pastor Mark and his family will be reappointed to Cokes Chapel, and we look forward to another year in ministry to our community and beyond!

During all of these events, we will engage in something John Wesley (Methodism’s founder) called, Christian conferencing – the act of people gathering in the name of Jesus to discuss the business of the church. Let’s be honest, sometimes things can get a little boring, but all-in-all, it is for the purpose of advancing the Gospel of Jesus Christ! So whether it’s a report being made from the podium to a conversation over a cup of coffee in the hallway, people will gather, meet, pray, worship, and serve for the sake of Jesus Christ!

Each year, our Bishop, B. Michael Watson, decides upon a theme for the Conference to help guide our Christian conferencing. The theme for the 2014 Annual Conference Session is “Together We Make Disciples.” It is wonderful to be a part of The United Methodist Church family. Like many families we decorate our homes with pictures celebrating many ages and stages of our lives. That is why this year’s logo gives a nod to a framed extended family portrait. Look for many different expressions of our North Georgia Conference family during the 2014 annual conference session.

The logo features just a few of the members of our United Methodist family: an older adult holding a newborn baby, a young camper exploring the natural world, a mission worker involved in the community, a student considering higher education, a young person with an adult mentor and an enthusiastic child.

We in the North Georgia Conference are all ages, diverse in a multitude of ways. We have a range of spiritual gifts. Even with all the ways we differ from one another, we celebrate that we are one United Methodist family. So we work together to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the Transformation of the World.

The 2014 theme, Together We Make Disciples, is both a statement of ministry emphasis and a reminder that making disciples is a collective work. It begins with the promises we make at baptism and is lived out in the relationships we build as we fulfill those promises and honor our vows. It is the work of individuals and of congregations. It is the work of the whole community of faith deeply committed to the growing of children, youth, and young adults into faithful disciples who are equipped and empowered to share their experiences of God.

Please keep our delegates, and everyone attending this year’s Annual Conference, in your thoughts and prayers. It promises to be a powerful week of business, mission, and ministry, and one where transformation will be the focus! And if you choose to peek in, you can watch all of the sessions online by visiting www.ngumc.org. And who knows, maybe you’ll just see Pastor Mark or Bobby caught on camera!