Briefly

Dates shift for next Annual Conference

In 2013, the Oklahoma Annual Conference will begin Monday evening, May 27, and continue through Thursday, May 30. The Africa University Choir will perform during the statewide meeting, which will emphasize missions.

Wesley arts festival in early November

On the first weekend of November, OKC-Wesley Church will present the Fourth Annual Ruth Haddon Memorial Arts Festival. The benefit, hosted by the Wesley Explorers, features Oklahoma artists. Admission is free. The event will be 10 a.m.-5 p.m. on Nov. 3 and 11:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. on Nov. 4, in the fellowship hall of the church, at Classen and N.W. 25th Street. For more information contact the church, 405-525-3521, or Festival Coordinator Gay Abarr, 405-745-7799.

Pastors from 3 states attend Panhandle program

A continuing education event recently drew 24 pastors from Oklahoma, Texas, and Kansas to Guymon’s Victory Memorial UMC. The workshop, "Renewing Our Wesleyan Heritage," was led by Kenneth Collins, a professor at Asbury Theological Seminary and a prolific author of books featuring John Wesley. "It is difficult without driving long distances for pastors to get quality continuing education in the Oklahoma and Texas Panhandles and western Kansas," said Gary Holdeman, senior pastor at Victory Memorial.  "The response to Dr. Collins was extremely positive and was a great start to what we hope to be a growing ministry to pastors," he said. The church underwrote part of the event expenses as a ministry to pastors and laity. This reduced the cost for participants and also enabled the major presentation by Collins, an acclaimed Wesley scholar. Rev. Holdeman wants to offer such workshops annually at Victory Memorial. The program was held Friday evening and all day Saturday, with Sunday options based on the speaker’s calendar.

Time to check on Apportionments

As we move into the last quarter of the year, pastors and church treasurers are encouraged to review their churches’ progress in 2012 Apportionment giving. That information is easy to access on the Conference website. Go to http://www.okumc.org/ok_ytd_ch.asp  and choose your church’s name to see an up-to-date report of contributions received by the Conference Treasurer’s Office. "Every year, there are congregations that lose track of what they have paid and end up paying too much for one area and not enough for another," said Treasurer Brian Bakeman.

Lay-speaking classes at Cross Point

Ardmore District lay-speaking training is set for Nov. 16-17 at Cross Point Camp. The basic course will be taught by Greg Tener and Sharri Hiller. The advanced course, taught by Brett Thomason, will be on preaching. For information contact the district office, 580-223-2353, or Toni Hignight, 580-920-3941.

Mission meals feed kids in Belize

Children in Belize are benefitting from the meals assembled and packed by volunteers in the hands-on mission project carried out in Oklahoma City during the South Central Jurisdictional Conference in July. The Stop Hunger Now organization has reported those nutritious, dehydrated meals were shipped to Kidz Konnect 4 Jesus in Belize. A total of 142,560 meals and 4,500 bottles of children’s chewable multivitamins were shipped from the Stop Hunger Now warehouse in Jackson, Miss., to Karen and David Rhodes, founders of Kidz Konnect 4 Jesus. "These meals and vitamins will serve needy children, in the Stann Creek area of southern Belize, who may not have anything else to eat all day. Thank you. We are sincerely grateful for your dedication and for sharing our vision of a world without hunger," wrote Matt Casteel, a Stop Hunger Now program manager.

New leaders selected

• Christina Wolf has been elected to the General Commission on Archives & History as the jurisdiction’s representative. She is archivist for Oklahoma United Methodists, caring for the Church’s historical records housed in the library on the OCU campus.

• D.A. Bennett, pastor of OKC-St. Andrew’s, now chairs the Order of Elders in the Conference. Phil Greenwald, an associate pastor at OKC-St. Luke’s, continues to chair the Order of Deacons, and Mike Mahaffey remains leader for the Fellowship of Local Pastors. Rev. Mahaffey is appointed to Fairview (at Slapout) and Catesby churches, Woodward District. He also is president of the National Fellowship.

Photo by Holly McCray

LEADING THE WAY

Bob Spinks, left, and Chuck Stewart prepare to open an Aug. 25 seminar sponsored by the Conference Board of Laity and held at Oklahoma City University. Dr. Spinks, an OCU professor, led the program on effective teamwork, based on his book "Strengths Based Leadership." Stewart is Conference lay leader. Most attendees were district and conference lay leaders and directors of Lay Servant Ministries (formerly called Lay Speaking Ministries), from both the Oklahoma and Oklahoma Indian Missionary Conferences.

Save the date Youth Workers Gathering

April 26-27

OKC-Church of the Servant

www.youtheology.org/youthworkers2013

(a program of Saint Paul School of Theology)