District News

What Just Happened?

Posted on by Bode

Australia has been battling the most devastating wildfires in recent history.  On Sunday evening our time, the Australian Open, the first major tennis tournament of the year began.  The usual contenders are present along with some new faces.  Most of them are focused on the game, hoping to hold the championship trophy in a little over 10 days.

Tennis, like few other sports, is truly an international competition.  During their pre match interviews, home town players like Nick Kyrios and Ashleigh Barty have been talking about the damage these fires have done to their nation.  As hard as it has been to learn of the destruction, I have felt truly warmed and touched by the innovative ways tennis players have shown their support for the Australian people.    

Serena Williams and Roger Federer donated their recent winnings to the relief efforts there. At an exhibition match, prior to the opening of the Australian Open, over $5 million was raised, as the stars of the tennis world joined together for this special event.  After Kyrios announced that he would be donating $200 per ace, other players have followed suit.  Many are donating their entire winnings in the tournament back to the country of Australia as the wildfires continue and relief efforts begin in some areas. 

And what tennis players are doing half a world away has inspired me to ask how we can make a difference in our local communities.  Can we pledge a portion of what we have…possibly donating a few dollars or our spare change each time we see an ambulance, fire or police car responding to a call?  Could we have a money jar by the television?  Each time a commercial comes on asking us to rescue an animal or support a child who is ill or in need of prolonged care, could we add the amount being requested for a day or a month to that jar.  While we are grocery shopping, could we pick up a few extra items to donate to a food pantry?  If we are in a craft store, could we invest in a project for someone we have never met?   

We may not all be extraordinary athletes.  But each of us can support one another in extraordinary ways.  I hope that we can share whatever we set aside with our faith communities? Our giving can continue to transform the lives of others we support through our mission and ministry. 

May God bless us in all that we do in the name of His son and our Savior.  And Amen.

New Year’s Resolutions

Posted on by Bode

Every year at this time, we take stock of what didn’t happen last year and commit to a better start for the next 365 days.  They are called New Year’s resolutions.  Some are about changing habits that lead to a healthier, smarter, and less cluttered lifestyle.  Many of our advertisers take advantage of this with specials to kick off the new year right.

Each new year is a time of reviewing what wasn’t achieved last year and setting new goals and creating new directions for the year to come.  There is a sense of excitement and hope about what is possible.  “YES WE CAN” is a motto that encourages us to cast a vision that is not only attainable, but is also sustainable in the year to come.

What do we do in our churches to support one another in the changes we want to make so that we grow closer to the Lord?  I love the Covenant Prayer in the Wesleyan Tradition that is in the United Methodist Hymnal (#607).  It is a wonderful way to reflect on what we accomplished for God’s mission during the previous year.  The prayer also invites and encourages us to be open to the ways the Lord will continue to call on us in the year to come.  

So, I have to wonder how we are caring for our spiritual selves.  What are we doing differently this year to serve the Lord?  What are we taking on to make a difference?  What are we giving up that has cluttered our relationship with our Creator? 

Sometimes we can let an entire year pass by before we ask ourselves these questions.  Maybe they should be monthly, weekly, or possibly even daily ways to reflect upon how the Lord is calling us to be His instruments for the world.  There is much which still needs to be accomplished before all that our Lord envisions for the world is done. How are we transforming and being transformed by resolving to prepare the way of the Lord (Mark 1) bring another to Christ (Matthew 28), share the Good News of the Risen Savior (Luke 4), care for the least of these (Matthew 25), and feed God’s sheep (John 21).  May the New Year bring new possibilities for mission and ministry to each of our lives.  And Amen.

The Birth of a King

Posted on by Bode

I lived in Memphis, Tennessee for several years.  There were two dates that, as a resident, I dreaded.  One was August 16, and the other was January 8.  For those of you who are not Elvis Presley fans, the August date was his death and today is his birthdate.  Had he lived, Elvis would be 85 years old.  In Memphis, many fans have celebrated his life and legacy as if he is still with us.

Graceland, Elvis’ mansion, is located in a suburb called Whitehaven.  There are special events that are held on these two days which invite people to gather and share the ways Elvis influenced and still influences their lives.  There have been at least 3 generations born since Elvis died.  His impact and influence on the Memphis culture are just as strong today as they were when he was alive.

But Elvis is not the king I want to talk about. Monday was Epiphany.  Jesus was visited by three Wise Men who traveled from afar to see the child and bring him gifts that were worthy of royalty.  Much of their story is unknown. Their countries of origin, whether or not they were royalty or advisors to monarchs, their names, and when and where they met one another on the road are not included in this wonderful story.

And yet, they were the first Gentiles who worshiped the King of Kings.  I can’t help but wonder at how their excitement grew as the star they followed became brighter and brighter each night.  What was it like when they reached their destination, and saw little Jesus? Did they possibly host a party?  Did they invite Mary and Joseph to a special meal or did Mary and Joseph offer to share what they had? And when they returned to their nations, what kind of stories did they tell?  How did they describe finding Jesus, not in a palace, but in a regular house?  What did they say about Mary and Joseph? Did they even mention their time with King Herod?  Did they wonder why he didn’t journey with them to behold the newborn King?

Whether you have already preached on the significance of the Epiphany or plan to use it as the foundation for a series; I encourage and invite each faith community to see this spectacular and amazing event through the eyes of the Magi.  God came, in the form of a child, to be one of us and declare God’s love for each of us.  Jesus’ presence among us is our Lord’s fulfilled promise for our salvation.  Our Savior is the bright shining star in our lives.  Jesus is our hope and our joy.  As the new year begins, may we celebrate God’s love for all of us.  And Amen.

Advent Calendar, Part 3

Posted on by Bode

In the Crawford household, Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without the cookies.  My sister’s favorites were Russian Tea Cakes and Thumbprint.  Mine were Sugar Cookies, rolled out and cut with the star, bell and angel cookie cutters.  My mom would always buy more tins of red and green sugar, even if we still had some left over from the last time we decorated the cookies.  And if we had enough time and didn’t forget the molasses, we would also make Gingerbread Men.  We used raisins, cinnamon red hots and icing to make eyes, jackets, buttons and hair. Most of those ended up in the stockings on the fireplace mantle. 

More than anything, it was the smell of baking that I remember most.  My sister was the Records Manager in a police station.  One of her favorite gifts for the officers was a platter of cookies.  She’d bake 5 dozen of each kind.  Invariably, some would disappear as my other sister and I would sneak a couple from her gift platters. Everyday after work, she would come home, make the cookie dough and begin baking whatever batch was the flavor of the day. 

I also love Christmas cookie exchanges.  I worked at the Detroit Medical Center and one of the office staff asked each of us to make a dozen cookies for 15 people.  Fifteen dozen cookies for just me and Terrance lasted well into the New Year.  Even though there were 15 of us, no two people made the same kind of cookie.  My favorite of those was the peanut butter cookie with the Hershey’s kiss in the middle.  I don’t think I’ve ever made them, but still look for them at Christmas parties. 

While I was in St. Clair, on Christmas Eve, between services, I would spend time with friends, decorating Christmas cookies.  My job was to take instructions from their 3-year-old child, who was an expert on how the icing had to be placed just right.  Two dozen cookies later, we’d select the best ones  to set aside for Santa. 

Christmas cookies were a welcome offering for carolers who came by our house.  And for two of the churches I served, it was a way to let people — who are struggling with this joyous season– know that they are remembered and comforted. 

Whatever your Christmas traditions, I hope you have a blessed and Merry Christmas and a joyous New Year.  God be with you,  And Amen.

The next Puzzler’s Corner blog post will be Wednesday, January 8, 2020

An Opportunity for Mission in the Midwest District

Posted on by Bode

The Native American Elders Program (NAEP) is one of the District Missions that was part of the Grand Rapids Metropolitan Ministry. NAEP provides lunch, health and education screenings and information for Native American older adults living in the Grand Rapids area. The District continues to support this vital ministry. Your church is being asked to help support NAEP in our area by making hats and mittens for those who participate in the lunches, as this year’s Winter season approaches. The District office will be collecting the hats and mittens at Christmas time. Please contact Liz to arrange a time to drop off your hats and/or mittens 616.459.4503.

Thank you for all that you do through a ministry that provides prayer shawls, lap blankets, hats, mittens and other crocheted and knitted products for persons in need.

God’s blessings,

 

 

Rev. Dr. Margie Crawford
Midwest District Superintendent

A big thank you to DS Margie, MW District Lay Leader, Deb Hodges, Georgetown, Wyoming Park, White Cloud, Wesley Park and Leighton UMCs for the awesome donations of hand knit hats, mittens and scarves!.  NAEP Program Director, Rhonda is seen posing with the loot! 

NAEP, hats

 

 

 

 

 

 

An Advent Calendar, Part 2

Posted on by Bode

Christmas isn’t Christmas without decorations.  Whether you start trimming the tree on Christmas Eve, or the day after Thanksgiving, there is a time of celebration about transforming our homes to welcome baby Jesus. The lights always take the longest to hang.  Each year I debate just buying a new string, rather than trying to figure out which bulbs need to be replaced or how to untangle the strings, which amazingly weren’t tangled when I packed them the year before.  Then it’s time to open the boxes of ornament. Some ornaments have their own story.  I have a few from my childhood which must go on the tree first.  My son made a few while he was in Elementary school and those are placed next.  After that, the delicate glass ornaments are unwrapped, hooks replaced, and items are placed all around the tree.

Growing up, my mom was the one who completed the decoration of the tree.  She hung the tinsel because no one else could do it correctly.  And finally, we knew the tree was done when she placed candy canes on it.  Then it was time to decorate the rest of our house.  Stockings, bearing each family member’s name were placed on the fireplace mantle.  The miniature nativity scene, delicately wrapped in tissue paper, replaced the coffee table centerpiece.  Angel statues also appeared.  And as Christmas cards arrived, each one would be placed in the front window to add a holiday greeting for people walking through the neighborhood. 

One of my favorite decorations is the Advent Calendar that counts down the days until Christmas.  Little doors are opened each day with a different surprise inside to tell (or retell) the Christmas story. 

For me, the best decoration of all is a blanket of snow.  I can’t say why it is a necessary part of the best Christmas for me. It just is.  Maybe it’s the way the light sparkles on a new snowfall.  Or the wonderful stillness that a winter night brings.  The snow helps to set the stage for Christmas caroling, hot cocoa or spiced cider, sleigh rides, sled outings and of course……making snow angels.  May each of you have a joyous Christmas season.  Rejoice in the birth of our Lord and Savior.  And Amen.

An Advent Calendar, Part 1

Posted on by Bode

Now that Thanksgiving is over, my countdown to Christmas has begun.  I have to admit that I noticed decorations, stocking stuffers and holiday suggestions for the best presents appearing as the Halloween candy was discounted by 50% or more.  The artificial trees appeared a couple weeks later.  And now, the section reserved for wrapping paper is stocked. 

But none of those things are part of my Christmas traditions.  I never developed a shopping gene.  This three-part series will describe a few of my favorite traditions that make the birth of our Savior so special in the Crawford household.  I will start with the classics.  Christmas isn’t Christmas without the cartoon version of How the Grinch Stole Christmas, A Christmas Carol, The Little Drummer Boy, Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, Mr. Magoo’s Christmas Carol and Amahl and the Night Visitors.  And of course, no Christmas Eve is complete without at least one viewing of A Christmas Story. 

In one of the first scenes in that film, Ralphie and his family head downtown for the annual Thanksgiving parade and Santa’s arrival.  The film was made in Cleveland, Ohio and the Christmas displays in the store windows were a big part of my childhood.  Many characters from the classics I listed above were part of the miniatures in those windows.   Rudolph leading Santa’s sleigh, the three kings, the town of Whoville and the ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future were there to tell the Christmas story.

I loved those stories, and love them because each one, in its own way, recounts the joy of Christmas.  For Santa, Rudolph and the folks of Christmastown, it was essential that they deliver gifts to all the good boys and girls.  The Grinch’s moment of revelation: “maybe Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store. Maybe Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more.” Scrooge learns that giving is not a sign of weakness.  And Amahl, a poor shepherd boy, offers Jesus his crutch, the only thing he owns.  His selfless act is honored by the 3 kings who seek to visit the newborn Jesus. 

Jesus is the reason for this very special season.  We celebrate His birth as a time of hope and promises fulfilled.  Whatever your traditions, may you find joy and happiness this Christmas.  “God bless us, everyone.” (Tiny Tim, A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens, 1843) 

Isaiah 40:1 Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God (KJV)

Posted on by Bode

As this year’s Church Conference season draws to a close, I want to express my gratitude for all that I have learned through my time with you in the District.  I am excited by the ways so many churches are in mission and ministry, connecting to the people in their communities and truly making a difference in the lives of our brothers and sisters in Christ.

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving.  Whatever you have planned for this special day, I hope you will be with family and friends, and share stories of blessings and joy which you have experienced this past year.  We often focus on the work that we want to accomplish, and rarely take time to bear witness and testimony for the good that we have done.  As we prepare for the Advent season and the promise of our Lord’s birth and all that it means for our salvation, our faith communities will adopt families to bring them meals, presents, and winter clothing.  Because the poor are always with us.

I am aware that for some, this season is a time of sorrow.  Some families will be remembering those who won’t be with them this holiday season. Parents, siblings and children who have died and gone on to glory, families that are now separated through divorce, persons who have been notified their jobs are ending, or have received the diagnosis they feared will struggle with the joy they may feel. There will be both happiness and sadness as they gather.    

The Lord is with us as we count our blessings.  The Lord is also with us through these times of trial. The passage from Isaiah 40 and the words of the 23rd Psalm remind us of God’s continuing presence in our lives.  As adults, we seek comfort from family, friends or even counselors and medical professionals when the woes in our lives overwhelm us.  Our children and grandchildren may not know who to talk to or what to say when they are in physical or emotional pain.

For this year’s Advent mission for the Midwest District, I have asked each church to collect teddy bears.  The bears are to be donated to a nearby police or fire station, given to children who have experienced some trauma or loss.  It is a way to begin their healing and help them receive what comfort we can offer. Please pray for one another and for the children in our lives who will need comfort.  And Amen.

 

Midwest District Advent Mission Giving
Please collect new or gently used Teddy Bears to gift to your local police station or firehouse this Advent. These special bears provide comfort to children who are traumatized. Please contact your local police/fire stations to make arrangements to donate the collected bears. Send photos of your church’s bear donation and we will post your photo here and on the Midwest District Facebook page. Click HERE to read a story about donating bears.
Project to support Native American Elders Program
Calling all Midwest District knitters and crocheters…there’s a warm, NEW project! It’s winter hats and mittens, yep hats and mittens! The Native American Elders Program is in need of warm winter hats/mittens for their older participants who come for nutritious weekly meals and wellness programming events.  Click HERE to read more.

Getting to Know You!

Posted on by Bode

The Midwest District has the honor of being the home for clergy who are starting their journey of servant leadership. These new folks were introduced at the District Conference on October 12. Each one will also be featured in a special Puzzler’s Corner in the coming weeks. I invite you, who are their sisters and brothers to reach out and welcome them to the Midwest District and the journey toward answering the Lord’s call upon their lives and vocation. Today’s guest blog post is from Rev. Elizabeth Hurd.

“Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?”
Isaiah 43:19a

 

Ipastor, Elizabeth, Hurd,’m Rev. Elizabeth Hurd, a newly commissioned elder in the Midwest District, serving at Caledonia United Methodist Church. I am a brand new clergy, fresh out of seminary, so these past five months have certainly been filled with a lot of surprises, lessons, and joy as I continue to follow God’s call.

I was born and raised in Port Huron, MI, so I am much more used to the east side of the state! I went to undergrad at Saginaw Valley State University, worked with the Mission Intern Program in Port Huron and Detroit, and when I went to seminary I went even further east to the Boston University School of Theology. So, this entire “being on the west side” thing is a new experience as well! I’ve found the west side of the state to be lovely, and have especially loved exploring the various walking and hiking trails with my dog, Lucy. 

If there’s one thing you all should know about me, it’s that I serve at Lake Louise Middle School Camp every summer. I served as a counselor for seven years, and 2019 was my first year as co-dean for the camp. Camp is such a beautiful place. It’s right in the middle of God’s creation, and our campers are given space to think, question, and grow in their faith in that space. Camp is one of the first places I heard God’s call to ministry, and it holds a dear place in my heart.

Grace and Peace.

And Now for Something Completely Different

Posted on by Bode

During my Christian Education course in Seminary, I was introduced to 3 books which have become a part of my spiritual disciplines. They are Imaging the Word, Volumes 1-3. Each volume contains art, poetry, photographs and musical compositions about what it means to be a child of God.

First Place, where the Midwest District Office is located is also home to other agencies. Our suite is across the hall from Leara Glinzak who is an Art Therapist at I Light Art Therapy Studio.

This Summer she created a traveling loom, encouraging people to share a portion of their life stories in the art piece. Leara’s inspiration for the traveling loom is shared HERE.

I offer images of the finished loom as a way to reflect upon what is happening in our lives and in the lives of our brothers and sisters in faith. And Amen.

 

Midwest District