Author: Shaquez Dickens
Engaging Mission 2020 is for all ages
Please note: Due to the uncertainty about when restrictions will be lifted for public gatherings, the Ohio Conference Leadership Team has decided to cancel this event. Save the date: Ohio Conference will hold a missional festival, Engaging Mission 2020, at Bluffton University June 26-28, 2020. Featured presenters will be Seth and Theresa Crissman of Virginia Mennonite Missions. (See http://bit.ly/VMMCrissmans…
Interested in developing leaders? Ohio Conference could use your help
How can Ohio Conference best develop pastoral leaders for today and for the future? The Ohio Conference Ministry Development Team (MDT) is forming a resource team to promote leadership development in our congregations. The MDT is seeking individuals, male and female, credentialed and lay leaders, who are interested in working at leadership development to serve on the team. If you…
Immigration Resource Team seeks your stories
From the Immigration Resource Team: It has been eight months since Annual Conference Assembly, when delegates overwhelmingly passed a resolution on immigration. That resolution contained both individual and congregational components, along with suggestions for contacting elected representatives on state and national levels. Delegates agreed to “encourage our churches….to pray for the Spirit’s leading in seeking to minister to the needs…
MennoCon21 and MWC Assembly to meet at same time
MennoCon21 and Mennonite World Conference Assembly scheduling conflict: MennoCon21, the upcoming Mennonite Church USA convention, will take place July 6-10, 2021, at the Duke Energy Convention Center in Cincinnati, Ohio. This schedule overlaps with the Mennonite World Conference (MWC) assembly in Semarang, Indonesia, on July 6-11. Read more: http://bit.ly/MennoCon21andMWC.
Thankful for the incarnation!
By Dick Barrett Conference Minister We are entering into the special time of year when we celebrate Thanksgiving and Christmas. Thanksgiving was originally a religious holiday in which people paused to give thanks to God for the blessings of the harvest. Thanksgiving is followed by the beginning of Advent as Christians prepare to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. Unfortunately,…
Wind of the Spirit enlivens MDI
Small groups begin to multiply By Laurie Oswald Robinson Mennonite Mission Network NEWTON, Kansas (Mennonite Mission Network) — After coming up empty-handed on volunteers for disciple groups within his congregation last fall, Pastor Robert Esh at Valley View Mennonite Church in Spartansburg, Pennsylvania, couldn’t help but feel downhearted about his vision-casting. No matter how hard he campaigned, no one wanted…
Local congregations pack 175 immigrant detainee care kits
By Jennifer Steiner MCC Great Lakes On Oct. 2, area congregations gathered at Orrville Mennonite Church to learn about the current situation for border detainees and to work together on a tangible response. In a little over an hour, volunteers had packed 175 immigration detainee care kits to provide much-needed supplies for those being released from border detention. Volunteers assembled…
Border learning tour highlights immigration struggles
By Paula Snyder Belousek Ohio Conference Assistant Moderator At our last Annual Conference Assembly, Ohio Conference delegates passed an Immigration Resolution, and one of the components challenges members of the Conference to become better informed about the issues surrounding immigration. In response, I took the opportunity to travel to Tucson, Arizona, with other Mennonite Church USA (MC USA) leaders following the…
Church planting conversation begins
On Oct. 15 interested persons gathered at the Ohio Conference office for a conversation about planting new Visible Kingdom Communities. This meeting was an initial conversation about what the process of starting new church communities may look like in Ohio. Several people who could not attend in person took part in the conversation via a video conference. The conversation included…
Mennonite Healthcare Fellowship welcomes new members
Join the conversation on faith and health! Mennonite Healthcare Fellowship (MHF) invites any Anabaptist working or interested in any healthcare field to join MHF. Students, practitioners, retirees — you are all welcome! Write to info@mennohealth.org, call 888-406-3643 or go to www.mennohealth.org/JoinTheConversation. For more information, please see the MHF flier: http://bit.ly/2019MHFFlier.
Congregations encouraged to apply for Spread the Peace Grants
To encourage congregations and conferences to “spread the peace” in and beyond Mennonite Church USA, the Peace and Justice Support Network of Mennonite Mission Network has small start-up and sustaining grants available. Funds will be given to those meeting the following criteria and as funding allows: To Mennonite congregations or conferences for projects based in the United States. For church…
Giving to Conference increases in September
Giving to the Ohio Conference increased during September, according to figures provided by Financial Coordinator Stan Helmuth. Total receipts for the month were $34,991, the highest monthly amount so far in this fiscal year. Expenses for September totaled just $23,520, resulting in a surplus of $11,471 for the month. That surplus helped to reduce the Conference’s running deficit. As of…
Join MCC’s Great Winter Warm-Up
Mennonite Central Committee is celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2020 with a comforter-making campaign. The goal is to complete 6,500 comforters for distribution to people in need all around the world. As part of this campaign, on Jan. 17 and 18, Salem Mennonite Church in Kidron will host The Great Winter Warm-Up, a comforter-making event. All are invited to attend…
Check CommonWord for Advent resources
Looking for additional Advent resources? Check CommonWord for possibilities, including free downloadable resources. Go to http://bit.ly/CommonWordAdvent to start exploring. CommonWord is a collaboration of Mennonite Church Canada and Canadian Mennonite University.
If you get one of these requests, don’t reply
A note from the Ohio Conference Leadership Team: It has come to our attention that several Ohio Conference pastors have been hacked recently, supposedly sending out emails and most recently, text messages, asking for gift cards. These requests are, of course, not legitimate. The office of Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost recommends that recipients of these text messages simply block…
Ohio Conference leaders share at Constituency Leaders Council
By Paula Snyder Belousek Assistant Moderator Conference Minister Dick Barrett, Moderator Lynn Miller and Assistant Moderator Paula Snyder Belousek presented information about the Ohio Conference during the Oct. 17-18 meeting of Mennonite Church USA’s Constituency Leaders Council in Glendale, Arizona. Each conference and constituency group gave 10-minute presentations over the two days of the Constituency Leaders Council (CLC). Each group answered…
Congregations to share stories at regional gatherings
Ohio Conference is holding four fall regional gatherings beginning the week of Oct. 21. These gatherings are not just for delegates from Ohio Conference but for all who would like to learn about the exciting things that are taking place in Conference and our congregations. There will be a time of fellowship and sharing. We are asking congregations to answer…
Hesston’s Weekend College to offer Bib Lit course to congregations
Hesston, Kansas — As Hesston College prepares its new church leadership program — the Center for Anabaptist Leadership and Learning (CALL) — it is also offering its famous Biblical Literature course to congregations and other groups across the country in an arrangement called Weekend College. Instead of requiring people to travel to Hesston, Weekend College will bring Hesston College professors…
Churches come together for World Communion Sunday
Ohio Conference congregations from Wayne and Summit counties gathered at Central Christian School on the afternoon of Oct. 6 for a World Communion Sunday service. The worship service was a partnership of several local Mennonite churches and the Swahili Community Church of Akron, a Congolese Mennonite congregation. The worship service was held in English, Spanish and Swahili and included prayer,…
2019 Advent guide for families is now available
Anabaptist Faith Formation and Mennonite Church USA are offering a free, downloadable guide for family worship during Advent written by Elsie Rempel. This resource, titled Waiting and Wondering, is designed for parents to use at home with their children. With this free worship guide, families can create a space to notice important questions and bring them to God. For six weeks from…
Camp Luz to host spiritual direction event for pastors
Ohio Conference will be offering a day-long event to introduce the concept of spiritual direction to pastors on Feb. 4 at Camp Luz in Kidron. Led by Janice Hershberger, Randy Murray, and Christine Nafziger, attendees will learn about spiritual direction while also experiencing how spiritual direction functions. Registration cost is $25 and includes the event and lunch. Lodging and breakfast…
Hesston conference to examine ‘the good life’
Save the date: Hesston College in Hesston, Kansas, will host the 2020 edition of its Anabaptist Vision and Discipleship Series Feb. 21-23, 2020. The theme for this conference will be “Living More with More: Redefining the Good Life.” The conference will seek to answer the questions, “What truly is the good life and how do we get there? How do…
Everence event to focus on faith and values
Everence is sponsoring a “Faith and Values in the Marketplace” workshop on Monday, Oct. 21, from 7 to 9 p.m. at The Gardens at Homestead, 8233 S.R. 241, Mt. Hope. The theme for this event is “Learning: a lifetime journey.” Please see the event flier for details. This workshop is especially designed for business families, pastors, community leaders and key…
The Mennonite seeks submissions for December issue
The Mennonite Inc. invites your original submissions for the December 2019 issue focusing on the theme “the unexpected.” Submissions are due to Editor@TheMennonite.org no later than Nov. 1. For more information about this theme, see http://bit.ly/TheMennoniteDec2019.
Explore a call to ministry with Journey
When God calls someone to ministry, a journey begins. Perhaps you are on that journey. Perhaps you are looking for mentors and companions along the way. Ohio Conference invites you to join Journey: A Missional Leadership Development Program. This program is for pastors and other congregational leaders who are called without specific training for ministry or who are exploring a…
Delegate News – Fall 2019
Plan to attend a regional gathering As part of our Gathered & Sent initiative Ohio Conference will be holding four regional gatherings this fall. These gatherings are in place of our traditional fall cluster meetings and are intended not just for pastors and delegates but for all persons from our congregations who want to learn about the exciting things that are…
Join the church planting conversation
Individuals from around Ohio Conference are invited to participate in Visible Kingdom Communities, a church planting conversation, on Tuesday, Oct. 15, from 1 to 3 p.m. at the Ohio Conference office, 5358 Kidron Road, Kidron. For those who cannot attend in person, a video conferencing option will be available. If you would like to take part in this conversation, please…
Adriel benefit set for Oct. 24
Adriel is holding a fall benefit dinner at its Archbold office Oct. 24 from 5 to 7:30 p.m. This year’s event will include a catered dinner, presentations about Adriel’s mission and impact, and a live auction. Go to http://bit.ly/AdrielFall2019Benefit to download a registration form.
Four fall regional gatherings scheduled
As part of our Gathered & Sent initiative Ohio Conference will be holding four regional gatherings this fall. These gatherings are in place of our traditional fall cluster meetings and are intended not just for pastors and delegates but for all persons from our congregations who want to learn about the exciting things that are going on in the congregations around…
Prayer volunteers sought
Prayer volunteers needed: The Ohio Conference Ministry Development Team has affirmed Growing Visible Kingdom Communities (formerly known as church planting) as a priority. An initial conversation for interested people has been scheduled for Oct. 15, 2019, at the Ohio Conference Office in Kidron from 1 to 3 p.m. If you feel led to help provide prayer support for this conversation, please…