This Week's Issue of The Current Week in Review

January 13, 2017

Persons needing rooms for Covenant Keepers 2017 may secure a reservation at the East Peoria Holiday Inn Express, 1100 Bass Pro Drive, East Peoria. Reservations can be made by calling directly 309-694-9800. The block code is UMC for the CK2017 rate of $114 per night.

Bishop White's birthday letter to Martin Luther King, Jr.

In his annual "birthday letter" to the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., retired United Methodist Bishop Woodie W. White tells how he almost didn't write this year because he needed more time to sort out the results of the election.

Bishop White was the first general secretary of the General Commission on Religion and Race and served as the episcopal leader of the Illinois Area from 1984 to 1992 and the Indiana Area from 1992 to 2004 before retiring. Most recently, he has been bishop-in-residence at Candler School of Theology in Atlanta, Ga.

Read Bishop White's 2017 letter...

Bishop Beard to speak twice on MLK weekend

Bishop Frank Beard will be speaking at Fairview Heights Christ UMC today as part of the church's Martin Luther King, Jr. celebration. Beard will be the keynote speaker and soprano Katherine Jolly will be the musical guest.

The service will be at 7 p.m. in the chapel of the church's main campus in Fairview Heights.

Beard will also be speaking at Springfield Kumler UMC on Monday, Jan. 16 at 5 p.m. The 5 p.m. service is part of a Illinois Area United Methodist Joint Service honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., which begins at noon. The church is located 600 N. 5th St. in Springfield and its sponsors are the United Methodist churches of the Sangamon River District.

Peoria First UMC will host its annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Commemorative Service and Awards Ceremony following the Freedom March on Monday, Jan. 16. The service will be held in the church's sanctuary from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m.

There will be a Freedom March preceding the service. Persons interested in participating should assemble at 2:30 p.m. at the Romeo B. Garrett Cultural Center at Bradley University, 824 N. Duryea. Participants will walk to Peoria First UMC afterward.

Download flyer...

Bishop issues call to prayer for Jan. 22-28

Bishop Frank J. Beard is asking that the Illinois Great Rivers Conference set aside the week of Jan. 22-28, 2017, as a Week of Prayer for the Way Forward Commission and its work.

The week selected is part of a church-wide call to prayer in 2017 and 2018 as the Commission moves forward its work. Bishops of the church have covenanted with one another to pray 15 minutes each day for the Commission. The second phase is involving each individual annual conference in prayer for a week.

Read more...

IRS announces business mileage rates for 2017

The Internal Revenue Service Tuesday issued the 2017 optional standard mileage rates used to calculate the deductible costs of operating an automobile for business purposes.
Beginning on Jan. 1, 2017, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or panel trucks) will be: 53.5 cents per mile for business miles driven, down from 54 cents for 2016.

Read more...

Keaton endowment almost fully funded

The Nashville office for Africa University reported this week that the Bishop Jonathan and Beverly Keaton endowment is closing in on its $1 million mark. To date, the endowment fund balance is $996,957 -- just $3,043 short of the goal.

Bishop Frank Beard has asked Bishop and Mrs. Keaton to represent the Illinois Great Rivers Conference at Africa University in March where a celebration has been planned for the completion of the AU Making Dreams Possible campaign.

When completed, IGRC will have 12 endowed scholarships for AU students -- an increase of eight. Endowed scholarships only spend the principal of the invested funds, meaning scholarships are granted in perpetuity.

Year-end reports available online

EZRA - the on-line tool for local churches to report their year-end statistics - is now available. One church has already submitted all three tables! We will be sending out instructions and reminders, but if you want to get a jump on it, the website is http://ezra.gcfa.org

The username for your church is the six-digit number assigned to your church by GCFA (it is the same number found on your remittance reports from my office). The initial password is password. You will be prompted to change the password when you enter the system for the first time.

Deadline to submit your reports is March 31, 2017.

Record apportionment receipts for 2016

The IGRC has closed its financial books on 2016 and churches remitted a record 94.52 percent in apportionments -- the highest percentage received since the merger of the former Central and Southern Illinois conferences.

Thank you so much, faithful pastors, local church leaders and members!

The record showing was significant in that pastors reported three poor attendance Sundays in a row which impacted offerings: Dec. 18 (ice); Dec. 25 and Jan. 1.

One option some churches may wish to consider is automatic electronic giving. Some churches that have adopted electronic giving has reported increases up to 15 percent in giving.
There are many services available, but GCFA already has a partnership with Vanco:

http://www.electronicdonations.com/um/index.html

Also, a mobile giving ap has already been set up for you:

http://www.joyfully2umc.org/

Read more here: http://www.bnd.com/news/local/community/ofallon-progress/article118421298.html#storylink=cpy

New Liberian bishop to focus on pastor's salaries

During his induction Dec. 31 as the new United Methodist bishop of Liberia, Bishop Samuel J. Quire Jr. said he wants to find ways to augment pastor salaries, especially rural pastors.

"We will explore means of augmenting pastor salaries, especially our rural pastors that have little or no support from their congregation," Quire said. He said church leaders also will strengthen the local churches by providing spiritual as well as psychological and moral support for pastors and their families.

"We must continue to develop and improve the resources, so that when we have to give an account to God, we will show how we have multiplied what we have," he said.

Read more...

Pastors' salaries have been one of the foci of the 10-year-old Liberian partnership. IGRC congregations that wish to donate to this initiative may do so through Conference Advance Special #2217 with the designation #15124A, Liberian Pastors' Salaries.

Annual Conference 2017 shortened by a half day

Bishop Frank J. Beard, in consultation with the Executive Team of the Annual Conference Sessions committee has announced that the 2017 Annual Conference will be held June 8-10 at the Peoria Civic Center.

Plans are to have the clergy and laity sessions begin at 10 a.m. Thursday with the opening worship set for 1:30 p.m. Thursday afternoon with the Service of Ordination and Commissioning being held on Saturday morning.

While the shorter agenda may not actually result in persons being able to reduce the number of lodging nights, it is an ongoing attempt at listening to attendees and trying to make the schedule easier for those who must take time off from their work to attend.

The Sessions Committee will be working on streamlining the agenda and further announcements will be made as plans unfold.

The 2017 theme is Let's Get Fired Up! and will focus on ministries to children.

Photos for the clergy directory will also be taken at the annual conference session as well as at Covenant Keepers Jan. 30-31 at the East Peoria Holiday Inn.

Preparing for Inauguration Day

The overall number of United Methodists in the U.S. Congress has dipped to 40, but at least two appointees to President-elect Donald Trump's Cabinet are United Methodists -- Attorney General-designate and Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions and United Nations Ambassador-designate and South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley.

Read more...

United Methodists from across the country plan to have house parties on the evening of Jan. 20 to pray and talk about ways to affirm Wesleyan values and explore challenges ahead as the 45th president takes office.

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In a Jan. 9 letter to U.S. Senators, the Rev. Susan Henry-Crowe, top executive of the United Methodist Board of Church and Society, asked that each nominee for the new Trump Administration be considered using the values of dignity, justice, peace and the common good.