News

C. DeWitt Foard and Associates, PA, CPAs, a nationally renown accounting firm and also the Western NC Conference’s auditors, is offering WNC clergy $50 off usual tax preparation fees for 2020 returns. Simply mention you are a WNC clergyperson or spouse to receive the discount. Returns can be submitted from all regions of the conference.

The Zoom recordings of the Conference-wide Winter Training Webinar series are now available. If you were unable to attend live, you still glean from the wisdom of our keynote speaker, Jason Moore, and breakout leaders from across the conference on topics such as "Telling the Old Story in New Times," "Financial Faithfulness in Uncertain Times," "Evangelism and Disciplemaking in a Pandemic," and so much more.

Rev. Amy Vaughan, pastor of Marvin UMC, took having Bible study in a bar to the next level when she decided to team up with Rev. Mike Collins, pastor of Emmanuel Lutheran Church, and brought Hops and Hymns to downtown Lincolnton. Rev. Amy had been attending Wild Goose Festival for years and was first introduced to the concept of hops and hymns there. She remembers looking around at the festival and seeing everyone singing along, even those who had grown up in the church but left because they ...

In observation of the Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday and the upcoming inauguration of Joe Biden as the 46th president of the United States, the Council of Bishops President Bishop Cynthia Fierro Harvey has issued a call to action letter.

On January 22, at 10 a.m., join Partners in Health and Wholeness, an initiative of the North Carolina Council of Churches, in partnership with the NC Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) for a webinar on the COVID-19 vaccine roll out in our communities. We will discuss where we are now in the process, what things will look like going forward, and how faith communities can assist in this process while continuing to slow the spread. Participants are invited to bring questions, concerns, and ideas to this conversation.

There is something about a new year that invites a desire to release and claim. Many people were eager to release the hardships of 2020 and claim the hope of 2021. Individually, we have the opportunity to reflect more deeply, more spiritually on what we wish to release and claim. Survivors of abuse and trauma particularly need this opportunity. That is because we often build walls to protect ourselves but they often keep out the very things we desire. In the book, Awakening the Light: A Going-Forward Survivors to Thrivers Story, Tambry Harris talks about the powerful wall she constructed to protect herself. This story describes the vulnerability needed to look and see the wall you have built up and then how to dismantle it.

E-News - January 13, 2021 E-News is an email newsletter sent out by the Western North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church. It contains important news, stories, and events from around our conference. Submit articles for the next e-news. Submit events. NEWS 2021 WNCC Martin Luther King, Jr Commemoration  Saturday, January 16, 2021, 10 a.m. EST. The WNC Black Methodists for Church Renewal, the Justice & ...

An Offering page has been set up for the 2021 WNCC Martin Luther King, Jr. Commemoration which takes place on Saturday, January 16, 2021 from 10:00 am-11:30 am. The Commemoration will be conducted virtually via FaceBook Live and YouTube Live.  Click here for more information on the event and the keynote speaker, as well as the links to join the virtual meeting. Beloved Community Center in Greensboro will be the beneficiary of this year's offering.  You can make a donation via credit card by ...

An offering site has been set up for the 2021 WNCC Martin Luther King, Jr. Commemoration on Saturday, January 16, 2021 from 10:00 am -11:30 am. The Commemoration will be conducted virtually via FaceBook Live and YouTube Live. Click here for more information on the event and the key-note speaker, as well as the links to join the virtual meeting. Beloved Community Center in Greensboro will be the beneficiary of this year's offering.  You can donate by credit card by clicking here. If you prefer ...

In this episode, Melissa McGill talks with Rev. Brandon Lazarus, an ordained elder in our Conference and the Director of the LEAD conference. Learn more about Brandon’s story, the role LEAD has played in his life and ministry and how you can get involved in this creative community. LEAD creates space for Christian leaders to be vulnerable and courageous, connects them around their hopes for the future, and equips them to bring those hopes into reality.

Congress approves and President signs new Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 which includes a new round of Payroll Protection Program loans.  Once again, nonprofit organizations, including churches, are eligible to apply, regardless of whether the entity received a loan in the first rounds.

January 8, 2021   To my colleagues in ministry, I am aware that we approach this coming Sunday following the national crisis over the last 48 hours with heavy, confused, and dismayed feelings.  Our congregations will be listening carefully to your words and anticipating signs of hope in the midst of the confusion and the divided nature of our nation.   First, I would remind us that we are spiritual leaders who acknowledge that God’s light in Christ is a gift to overcome the darkness.  This has ...

This Advent, the Spirit of God moved through Concord UMC's Advent Acts of Worship in Giving.

Even in the midst of restrictions, Davidson UMC helped to share the abundance of God this Christmas season!

E-News is an email newsletter sent out by the Western North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church. It contains important news, stories, and events from around our conference. This week's E-News includes the newest Means of Grace episode with Rev. Dr. Sam Wells, the Winter Leadership Training Webinar Series, and the MLK, Jr. Commemoration Service.

The United Methodist Board of Global Ministries has 350 missionaries serving in 70 different nations, said the Rev. Judy Chung, executive director of missionary service. The highest numbers are located, in order, in Africa, North America and Asia.

Check out the latest Mission Engagement Blog.

The Explore Summer Internship exists to help young adults (18-25 years old) discern their call to vocational ministry by providing an environment for exploring their gifts and giving the intern opportunities to explore particular aspects of ministry and/or program development in a safe and encouraging environment.   The internship is a hands-on experience in a church setting or a church affiliated organization. Interns engage in a broad range of ministerial work and/or program development then reflect on their experiences. Interns are not meant to fill a certain hole in the ministerial staff, they are to be given opportunities to experience the full breadth of pastoral ministry; to discover, dream, develop and deliver, to learn by doing as well as by observing and discussing. Application deadline is February 25th, 2021.

In this episode, we have a guest host, Parker Haynes, pastor of Trinity UMC in King, NC and member of the Leadership Development Team. He interviews the Rev. Dr. Samuel Wells, Vicar of St. Martin-in-the-Fields in London, parish priest of the Church of England, and former Dean of Duke Chapel, and research professor of Christian ethics at Duke Divinity School. Dr. Wells speaks to us as a follow-up to a recent webinar that he participated in through Duke Divinity School called “Soul- Tending in a Virtual Age: How to Preach, Pastor, and Disciple in these Challenging Times.”

The Internal Revenue Services has released reimbursable mileage rates for 2021. Beginning on January 1, 2021, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or panel trucks) will be: 56 cents per mile driven for business use, down 1.5 cents from the rate for 2020, 16 cents per mile driven for medical, or moving purposes for qualified active duty members of the Armed Forces, down 1 cent from the rate for 2020, and 14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable ...

Statistical Reporting for 2020 is READY and AVAILABLE! UPDATE: Conference Financial information for each local church has been updated and included now your EZRA tables.   The GCFA/Western North Carolina Conference statistical system will open on January 2, 2021 and be available for input of 2020 information.  All statistical information must be entered and complete by Monday, February 1, 2021.  In order to access the system, you can do so in the following manner:   Access http://ezra.gcfa.org...

Project AGAPE is a collaborative effort that we share with our sister Conference, the North Carolina Conference. For 27 years, United Methodists of North Carolina have built churches, schools and medical clinics and have sponsored homes for children. And yet, today, the need is greater than ever before. On September 27, the region in which the Project AGAPE compound is located suffered a massive attack by the state-sponsored terrorist group, Azerbaijan. That was followed by 44 days of cluster ...

In case you missed any of the Ministry Innovation Stories in 2020, the links to the stories are listed below by date.  “God Plays Indoor Soccer” (June 30, 2020) https://www.wnccumc.org/newsdetail/god-plays-indoor-soccer-14115172   “Still Waters Landing – Harvesting a God-sized Dream” (July 15, 2020)  https://www.wnccumc.org/newsdetail/still-waters-landing-harvesting-a-god-sized-dream-14129688   “St. Luke’s Dinner Church – Gathering Re-imagined” (August 3, 2020) https://www.wnccumc.org/newsdetai...

E-News is an email newsletter sent out by the Western North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church. It contains important news, stories, and events from around our conference. This week's E-News includes the WNCC Christmas Service, COVID-19 Resources for faith communities from the NCDHHS, the Top 10 Episodes of Means of Grace, and more!

2020 is coming to a close and now is the time to start planning your training needs for the new year! The Caring Congregation is excited to announce that our next National Webinar has been set for February 26-27, 2021. This live streamed 2-day event covers the Basic CCM Model of Care Training to equip and inspire your staff and volunteers to revitalize your church's care ministry. Take advantage of our Holiday Discount and save $50 per registrant now through Epiphany Jan 6, 2021.

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services released the following information for faith communities as you make decisions about the best way to keep your community and congregation members safe and well this winter.

The 2020 Journal is now available for viewing and download on the WNCC Administration page!

Means of Grace, a podcast from the Western North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church, equips church leaders through expertise and examples. The podcast launched in October 2019, went weekly in October 2020, and hit 10,000 downloads in November 2020. We’ll be back on January 5, 2021 with new episodes but in the meantime, check out our top ten episodes by listener numbers.

E-News - December 16, 2020 E-News is an email newsletter sent out by the Western North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church. It contains important news, stories, and events from around our conference. Submit articles for the next e-news. Submit events. NEWS SouthPark Church Unveils New Home Seven years after embarking on a journey to share God’s love in a bold, new way, Sharon United Methodist Church has reached its destination. With...

COVID-19 brought many new challenges, including checking in worship attenders for safety and contract-tracing protocols. In order to help you streamline this process - as well to keep it paperless and contact-free - the Western NC Conference is pleased to introduce Check Inz, a safe way to check people into your location or event that is easy, secure, and socially distanced approved! Sign up is now active to join the BETA test group. The app will be ready for full release in mid-January. For additional questions, contact Chris Hampton, director of web and database administration, at champton@wnccumc.org.

Seven years after embarking on a journey to share God’s love in a bold, new way, Sharon United Methodist Church has reached its destination. With a new name – SouthPark Church – and a new home amid apartments, businesses and even a hotel, the congregation is eagerly welcoming all in need of faith, hope and love.

During the last ten months, small groups have had to adapt. Some small groups started meeting through videoconference, some found ways to meet through physical distancing, and sadly, some stopped meeting altogether. What some churches have found during this time is that even following the COVID-19 crisis, there will be an ongoing need for the use of online small groups. The question is how do we do online small group ministry well? Join the panel of Scott Hughes, Angela Schaffner, and Allen White as they discuss ways to start and improve online small group ministry.

Like most events during the pandemic, our District Winter Leadership Training Events will look a little different for 2021. Rather than hosting in-person events in each district, we will offer a series of Conference-wide training webinars during the week of January 10-14 to resource and equip all areas of your Church leadership. Jason Moore of Midnight Oil Productions will lead the keynote webinar to launch the series on “Telling the Old Story in a New Time.” Other topics will include: Financial Faithfulness in Uncertain Times, The Ministry of the Staff-Parish Relations Committee, Evangelism During A Pandemic, Leadership During a Pandemic for Church Councils, Racial Equity and Justice, Courageous Conversations, and much more.

On the Sunday after Christmas, the Western NC Conference will offer a conference-wide virtual worship with a homily from the Bishop, music and liturgy from pastors and churches around our conference. Clergy and worship leaders, take a much-needed break after the Advent season and worship with friends around the conference.

In this episode, our host panel take look back at 2020. Melissa, Jesse, Luke, Kim, Caroline and Brian share their favorite moments, challenges they faced and what they’re looking forward to for 2021. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from the Means of Grace team. We will be back with new episodes on January 5, 2021.

Despite the trials and tribulations of 2020 brought by the COVID-19 pandemic, bishops in The United Methodist Church are calling on United Methodists and other people of faith to be optimistic about 2021 and to trust that God will make things better in the coming year.

E-News is an email newsletter sent out by the Western North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church. It contains important news, stories, and events from around our conference.

The Mission Response Center in Terrell has extra cleaning supplies available for pickup upon request. Items include: dish soap, laundry detergent, scrubbing pads, air freshener, bleach, all purpose cleaner, clotheslines/pins, and trash bags.

The NC COVID-19 County Alert System gives individuals, businesses, community organizations, and public officials another tool to understand the community spread in their county and to make decisions about actions to slow the spread of the virus. The Bishop and Cabinet urge pastors and church leaders to use this system to monitor their county and to reconsider their decision to hold indoor worship, particularly if their county is “red." All local churches are asked to use extreme caution in response to the recent rapid spread of the virus. We thank the United Methodists across Western North Carolina for “loving their neighbor” by doing all that they can do to limit the spread of COVID-19.

We scanned the internet for resources that will be of interest and value to you and your ministries. This week's roundup includes: free resources from ShareFaith for a safe, social-distanced Christmas worship experience, a new free course form UM Communications on leading remote worship, 3 ways to encourage giving during a pandemic, and more!

This letter is to inform you of recent actions (Friday, November 20, 2020) taken by the SEJ Committee on Finance and Administration (CFA) that will affect the annual conferences of the SEJ.

In this episode, Caroline Wood talks with Rev. Bruce Stanley, President and CEO of the Methodist Home for Children. The MHFC believes that every child deserves a chance. They provide safe, stable homes where children can thrive and live to their full, God-given potential. While not always traditional, an MHC home is where child and family are equipped to succeed.

Check out the latest Mission Engagement Blog.

Pack your bags for a virtual trip to Rwanda, Kenya, and India! Glimpse the kingdom of God with orphaned and vulnerable children around the world lifting themselves permanently out of poverty. What does this unique travel experience include?

Nara Melkonyan, Director of Project Agape, gives an update on the impact of the Armenian-Azerbaijan war on Project AGAPE's ministries.

E-News is an email newsletter sent out by the Western North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church. It contains important news, stories, and events from around our conference.

We scanned the internet for resources that will be of interest and value to you and your ministries. This week's roundup includes: an Advent Playlist from the WNCC Resource Center, ways to safely add personal interaction to virtual Christmas celebrations, ideas to inspire a better financial start to 2021, and more!

The late Royce Reynolds, philanthropist and founder of Crown Automotive, has secured a faithful legacy with a bequest to the United Methodist Foundation of Western North Carolina, Inc. It is the largest single gift ever received by the Foundation, which has a mission of building the Church for generations to come.

Christian Community Development Association, in partnership with Sojourners, Matthew 25/Mateo 25, and Duke Divinity School, is excited to present The Church, Immigration, and Racialized Policing Non-Degree Certificate Program. This cohort program seeks to develop ecclesial imagination and equip North Carolina-based Latinx and African American pastors, ministry leaders, and their congregations so that they may respond effectively, on multiple levels, to the pastoral crisis’ happening in their communities, particularly related to immigration and racialized policing issues.