We returned from Annual Conference Saturday evening. It was a long, but good, four days. There was a lot of intense (but respectful) discussion this year. Overall, it was a very good conference.
We had great guest speakers, Dr. Tex Sample and Dr. Charles Yrigoyen. Tex is an excellent communicator and storyteller and Chuck did a good job of sharing about our history / heritage as United Methodists.
As we mentioned earlier, we both write for the Annual Conference publication, The Daily Link, where several stories are now available online. Two articles we wrote include Drop Your Nets and Take a Leap of Faith (Opening Celebration, including drama by pastors of Hot Metal Bridge as well as Bishop Middleton’s address) and God’s Gifts for Leaps of Faith (Bible study led by Dr. Tex Sample).
We’re looking forward to the 2-DVD set that is expected to be shipped within the next few weeks. The DVDs will include the drama, “Sticking with Fishing” (by Jim Walker / Jeff Eddings), Bishop Middleton’s keynote address, all the Bible studies by Tex Sample and Chuck Yrigoyen, the message by Tex Sample, and a sermon by Anthony Alexander. The DVD set will come with a “Leap of Faith” study guide.
We both bought Buzzkill t-shirts from Cokesbury. The shirt is part of the effort to raise awareness and money for the Nothing But Nets campaign to send nets and save lives in Africa. See also Malaria Initiatives of The United Methodist Church.
Again, we’re excited about what God is doing in the United Methodist Church, and specifically what God is doing in our conference. May God continue to use us to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world!