A weekly news update from The Alaska United Methodist Conference
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CrossOver to Life! | Week Five
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A bright star in the night sky
By Bishop Elaine JW Stanovsky
CrossOver reflection for
Week Five
• Beginning Dec. 30, 2018 & Watch Night
A baby was born who turned the world on its head. Lives are changed by Jesus, who opens our eyes to God’s transforming love and justice. We celebrate his birth extravagantly, because we understand that his life, death and resurrection are awesome in their creative power—maybe even awe-ful in their disruptive power. They show us that life is not in vain, that the most violent powers of sin and death cannot snuff out the hope that burns in our hearts, even at times like a small, flickering flame.
The story of Jesus turns us inside out as we sing, “the hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight.” I pray that your very personal hopes and fears are met by Jesus in the New Year.
This week, United Methodists will carry our very public hopes and fears from 2018 into 2019 as the year turns. A special session of General Conference in February will seek a way forward out of decades of strife over whether and how the Church will welcome and include, or reject and exclude, people based upon their sexual identities and orientations.
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Here is the apportionment report as of December 28. Checks mailed to the Treasurer's office around that date may not be reflected in this report. Churches have until
January 6
to send in their 2018 apportionments. Please notify
Pam Kaiser
or
Brant Henshaw
if you are putting a check in the mail before for that deadline.
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Save the date! Winter Rendezvous is coming
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Please save the date for the upcoming Winter Rendezvous meetings which will be held at the Conference Center (1660 Patterson Street, Anchorage). Block Thursday, February 7 through Saturday, February 9 (with Wednesday, February 6 as a travel day for clergy) off on your calendars if you are on a conference committee that will be meeting next month. Specific details are still being worked on but we wanted to make sure you had the basics.
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Pop up mission project for AK Child & Family
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Would you like to help make t-shirt pillows for each resident at AK Child and Family? Well, come to the United Methodist Church of Chugiak on January 16 and/or 17, 2019.
Each shirt will have the resident's name printed on it. On January 20, the pillows will be distributed during a Naming Ceremony.
Last year we assembled 60+ t-shirts. So, if we have lots of machine operators and stuffers, one day might suffice. Stay as long as you are able. Lunch is included.
More details to come.
Jan Wachsmuth
United Methodist Church of Chugiak
862-0194
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This Mission Immersion weekend will offer opportunities to grow in our faith as we serve our local community. We will gather in fellowship with youth from across Alaska for this Mission Immersion Experience. Some of the places we've served at in past Mission Immersions include Habitat Restore, FISH, Pioneer Home, Anchorage Rescue Mission, Beans Cafe & Habitat for Humanity. We'll meet on Friday night and have a time of worship & fellowship. We stay overnight at St. John and then go out into Anchorage and serve all day Saturday!
January 18 at 7 p.m. - January 19th at 4:30 p.m.
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Council of Bishops' letter to the global LGBTQ
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At the fall meeting of the Council of Bishops at St. Simon’s Island, Georgia, bishops approved a motion to send a pastoral letter to the Global LGBTQ community. A writing team, composed of a bishop from each central conference and jurisdiction, completed this task, on behalf of the Council. The letter follows.
We share this letter with you as an expression of our desire to strengthen the body of Christ. We confess our participation in the harm we have done to one another and to the LGBTQ community. In offering this letter we bear witness to the light of Jesus Christ, which enlightens everyone and is coming into the world (John 1: 9). And we pray that in the days ahead we will, with him, grow and become strong, that we will be filled with wisdom, and that the favor of God will rest upon us (Luke 2: 40).
The peace of the Lord,
+Ken Carter
Resident Bishop, Florida Conference President, Council of Bishops
The United Methodist Church
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2019 Standard Mileage Rates
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Beginning on Jan. 1, 2019, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or panel trucks) will be 58 cents per mile driven for business use, up 3.5 cents from the rate for 2018.
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4: Charge Conference - Aldersgate UMC
5: Charge Conference - Douglas Community UMC
6: Charge Conference - First UMC Ketchikan
7: Charge Conference - First UMC Anchorage/First Samoan UMC of Anchorage
8: Charge Conference - Anchor Park
13: Charge Conference - First UMC Fairbanks
15-17: GNW Cabinet meeting in Portland - Carlo attending
18: Charge Conference - UMC of Sitka
18-25: Week of Prayer for Christian Unity
20: Charge Conference - Turnagain UMC
21: GC 2019/2020 Delegation Meeting
22: Charge Conference - St. John UMC
23: Charge Conference - Palmer UM Fellowship
25: Charge Conference - Homer UMC
27: Charge Conference - Northern Light United Church
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7-9: Winter Rendezvous meetings
11-12: GNW Cabinet meeting
23-26: General Conference Special Session
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Upcoming Clergy Birthdays
January 5 -
Janice Carlton
January 18 -
Karen Dammann
February 19 -
Steve Fisher
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Conference Office
907-333-5050
Superintendent Carlo
907-854-8340
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The Conference Office hours are:
Monday - Thursday: 9:00 am - 3:00 pm
Friday: 9:00 am - 11:30 am
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Submissions
- If you have an article or event that you would like to share with the rest of the conference, submit it to the conference office by Tuesday at 9:00 am for consideration.
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The mission of the United Methodist Church is to make disciples of Jesus Christ. Held and supported by the transforming relationship with God through Christ, we of the Alaska United Methodist Conference seek to be a community that creates a home for all peoples, finds our hope through grace and journeys together in God's preferred future.
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The Alaska Untied Methodist Conference
1660 Patterson Street, Anchorage, AK 99504
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