Over the last several years, the Great Plains Annual Conference has introduced Networks into our life in ministry together. These are groups of congregations that share a physically contiguous mission field – all the churches in an area. The church which I serve, Berryton United Methodist Church, is connected in a network with Big Springs […]
I have had the privilege of spending time with Ray Pitman, a member of Resurrection, over the past several months. Several years ago, I officiated at the funeral for his wife, Betty, and we reconnected this summer when I lead worship at Leawood one Saturday night. He has shared with me over and over his […]
I have had the privilege of spending time with Ray Pitman, a member of Resurrection, over the past several months. Several years ago, I officiated at the funeral for his wife, Betty, and we reconnected this summer when I lead worship at Leawood one Saturday night. Last Friday he invited me to hear him speak […]
I had a great conversation with a colleague a couple weeks ago about the reality of jobs. Here is what he had to say: When considerino possibile roles or commitments, play to your passions and don’t apologize for it. There will always be a part of every job that you hate. What would you add […]
Although today is the quintessential end of summer, I can’t really recall it having felt like that to me. Growing up, I was usually in school before Labor Day and this was really the end of summer. It may have been a chance to have a picnic or cook out in the backyard – kind […]
The conversation around the Call to Action: Reordering the Life of the UMC and the subsequent UMC Leadership Summit, as well as the conversation in Kansas and Nebraska about Great Plans for the Great Plains: A Vision (PDF Link), I have been reflecting on the time that I spent on the spring senior staff retreat at Resurrection in which […]
There is no group, connection, cluster or network of churches that doesn’t have issues. Being connected is part of who we are as Christians. There is no use complaining, but great value in working in God‘s kingdom and renewal within the church. I ran across this advice in a post by Matt Judkins from Tim […]
Last month, I read an article from the Lewis Center for Church Leadership about Myths about Clergy Burnout and Managing Stress. From the article: Myth Three: Older leaders are more likely to burn out than younger leaders. Recent research on clergy age seems to indicate that younger clergy are more likely to burn out than […]
Today is Labor Day, of which I did not know the origin until consulting Wikipedia, which reports: “Labor Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the first Monday in September (September 6 in 2010). The first Labor Day in the United States was celebrated on September 5, 1882 in New York City.[1] In the […]
These are posts that I enjoyed and recommend. Enjoy! Joseph presents A Downside to Youth Ministry A photo from Ben representing HCR in Small Town Middle America. Signal vs. Noise presents a concept, Profits = Freedom, which I believe could apply to the church. Things That Happen at Starbucks VI (Peete’s Coffee Version) has a […]
I was deeply encouraged by learning about the concept of chabadza. This is a custom of the Shona people of Zimbabwe in which a traveler stops to help anyone whom they pass as they are going on their way. If I am traveling from village to village and see someone working in their field, I […]
Power Down For the Planet – Good plan. Simple Guidelines for Workplace Quality over Quantity – This is a dream list for me. A perspective that makes me stop and think at Video Venue Churches: Pay your taxes. The most powerful word is no – Amen. I love it – Boom Done An Open Letter to […]
Rev. Andrew Conard 