News & Updates

June 22, 2023

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Dear Prairie North District friends,

As I transition out of the Prairie North District superintendency, I want to take the time to thank each one of you, clergy and laity, for your commitment and faithfulness to serve the Lord in your different congregations, communities, and beyond.

My heart is full of gratitude to the Lord for all the signs of love, appreciation, and support and for the opportunity God has given me to serve as the Prairie North District Superintendent for the last four years.

Farewells are difficult, but farewells allow us to reflect on where we’ve been together. It helps us appreciate one another, value our work together, and look at the future with faith and hope.

During these past years, there were moments of great joy and celebration, there were moments of uncertainty and pandemic, and there were tears of frustration and discouragement, but we have walked in faith, hope, and love, and, personally, I have enjoyed every moment among you: visiting churches, preaching in different events, meeting with pastors, inviting churches to pray for one another, enjoying breakfast/lunch with clusters, sharing words of hope, presiding over church conferences, etc. I have appreciated our work together these past years.

God’s Will is perfect! and yes, there are many things we don’t know or don’t understand when we say yes to the Lord, but what we know for sure is that God is with us; he will never leave nor forsake. So, let’s continue trusting in his guidance and direction, and let's work hard to be the disciples that Jesus wants us to be wherever we are.

I’m transitioning into the Director of Connectional Ministries role in our conference, and because we are connectional and members of the body called United Methodist, I know that we will cross paths in the future as we continue serving the Lord.

Once again, thank you for welcoming me and allowing me to be your District Superintendent for the last four years.

“Finally, brothers and sisters, rejoice! Strive for full restoration, encourage one another, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you.” – 2 Cor. 13:11 (NIV)

To God be the Glory!!

Rev. Fabiola Grandon-Mayer

Outgoing Prairie North District Superintendent

View a slideshow of photos of Rev. Fabiola Grandon Mayer with people from across the district.

UM Men Give $20K to Feed Hungry Neighbors

The Prairie North District UM Men showed how much they care about their neighbors when they donated $20,400 from their annual Winter Hunger Concert to seven food pantries in the Rockford area. More people will have enough to eat because of this generous gift. WREX-TV news in Rockford featured the story.

View the story.

Congratulations Belivdere: First United Methodist Church

The One Matters Discipleship Award highlights churches who have in recent years moved from zero baptisms and zero professions of faith into positive numbers. First United Methodist Church in Belvidere is the 2023 winner for Prairie North.

So far in the Charge Conference year, they have received 6 professions of faith and celebrated one baptism. Last year they baptized 5 and received one profession of faith. Read more of their story.

Watch the One Matters Award presentation here.

Congratulations Evans UMC in Rockford!

The John Wesley Mission Links Award is given out to the church that has the highest mission link giving per member. Evans UMC in Rockford donated $4,925 in Mission Links dollars, which equals 74% per capita.

Mission Links churches have given 100% of their apportionments and supported projects in each of the 7 giving areas. (Special Sundays, Global Advance Projects, Missionary Support, UMCOR/Emergency Relief Projects, U.S.-Based Advances, NIC Conference Projects, and NIC District Projects).

Thank you for living out the Beatitudes and being a blessing for projects around the block and around the world.

Annual Conference Updates

Read news articles about all that happened during our busy three days of Annual Conference on the news page of our website here. Articles include the Bishop's State of the Conference Address, the Shepherding Team talking about change, a listing of those highlighted in the Celebration of Ministry, discussing the practices of civil conversations during Laity Convocation, disaffiliations, and more. Check out this chart for a summary of the legislation results.

Videos and Photos

If you were unable to attend Annual Conference, missed any moments or want to share portions with your congregation, most of the videos are posted on our Vimeo channel. You'll also find some videos that we ran out of time to show. Click on this Vimeo Showcase to find all of the Services, including the powerful Korean Peace Reflection and Prayer, a Bible Study with Dr. Rolf Nolasco (2 parts), Bishop Dan Schwerin's Episcopal Address, a Laity Address from Mark Manzi, Hwa-Young Chong and Liz Gracie for the Shepherding Team reminding us that Urgency is Not Enough, and more. All of the plenary sessions are available on the NIC YouTube channel here.

To view photos from the three days, click here. For Ordination photos, click here.

Good work, Northern Illinois Conference, for donating about 7,000 pounds of goods to the Midwest Mission truck through the Mission Challenge! We helped provide for their most urgent needs.

If you missed out on the challenge, don’t worry. A list of the most needed items can be found here. There are also online shopping and donation options (see the side bar on the page here). You also can always send donations to the center directly or drop off at the NIC permanent sites:

Lake North: Maywood: Neighborhood UMC or Glenview UMC
Lake South: New Lenox UMC
Prairie Central: Fox River Grove: Community
Prairie North: Lanark UMC

Churches and individuals across the Northern Illinois Conference responded with overwhelming generosity to this year's Bishop's Appeal to help support migrant needs in our community. A total of over $23,000 was raised so far. If you missed bringing your church's donation, you can still donate online.

Watch the Bishop's Appeal presentation from Annual Conference here.

HAPPENING AROUND THE CONFERENCE

Prepare for the Fall NIC Book Club

For more than 10 years, retired Bishop Kenneth L. Carder’s book, Living our Beliefs: The United Methodist Way, has been a staple for essential reading by the United Methodist Church Discipleship Ministries. The prayerful reading and study of this book provides an understanding of the beliefs and practices of the United Methodist Church as defined in Part II of The Book of Discipline.

Rev. G. Morris Jarkloh, Chair of The Discipleship Task Force NIC Book Club, invites you to join us as we learn together. If you’re interested in being a Discussion Leader, please sign up by clicking here.

Learn more about the NIC Book Club here.

LOCAL CHURCH RESOURCES

We need your photos!

We are looking to highlight Mission Trips and VBS Programs in the NIC district eNews later this summer. We need your photos! Please send any photos and short descriptions to lsmith@umcnic.org.

It's Appointment Change Season.

In the months of June and July, many United Methodist congregations are in the midst of a pastoral change. Perhaps the pastor your church has known for years is being appointed to another congregation or retiring, and a new pastor is on the way. Many of our churches are welcoming new pastors. Find resources for welcoming a new pastor here.

Do you know why United Methodists have itinernant pastors? Check out this article from Ask the UMC about why United Methodist pastors change churches.

Grants Available to Help Strengthen the Ethnic Local Church

Discipleship Ministries is pleased to offer the Racial Ethnic Local Church Concerns (RELCC) Grant, which provides funding to support the ethnic local church through leadership training, small groups, worship, stewardship, and spiritual formation as it engages in developing disciple-making systems inside the church walls and in the community. Applications are due September 30, 2023. Click here for more information.

Did you or someone you know participate in the March on Washington in 1963?

The Anti-racism Task Force is currently planning a 60-Year Anniversary Celebration of the 8/28/1963 March on Washington. If you know someone who participated in the 1963 March on Washington, please contact Amania Drane at adrane@umcnic.org. Additional details will be forthcoming.

What is your DNA?

The Discipleship Task Force will be rolling out a new initiative called Disciple Nurturing Attitude or DNA. DNA will provide opportunities for small group learning, engagement, prayer, and Biblical insight around your mental, physical, and nutritional health. If you are interested in volunteering on the planning team, please email Amania Drane at adrane@umcnic.org.

NIC Prayer Network Monthly Zoom Meetings

The NIC Prayer Network is an entryway for joining in common prayer for the ministries of the Northern Illinois Conference. The next meeting is Friday, July 14 at 10:00 am. All are invited to join. No preparation is necessary, just log in. The Zoom link is available here. Meeting ID: 897 7835 0821 Passcode: 152529

If you’d like to pray but have other appointments at that time, email us DiscipleshipTF@umcnic.org and request the agenda or add to the agenda. Also, pray along each week for clergy, churches, leaders, and NIC Advances by visiting the Prayer Network website.

Other Resources

#BeUMC Resources -Tool Kits, Social Media Kits, Graphics, and more.
Social Media Shareables - Free graphics for social media for different events, months, and ministries. (Through Outreach, log-in is needed, but resources are free)
UMC Giving Resources - Mission Moments, Special Sunday Info, Leader Kits, Pew Cards, and more.
United Media Resource Center - Lending library of Christian materials for local churches, small groups, pastors, children, and individuals.

Like Us on Facebook: Prairie North District

Rev. Fabiola Grandon-Mayer

Prairie North District Superintendent

fgrandon-mayer@umcnic.org

312 346 9766 Ext. 781

Debra Rogers

Administrative Assistant

drogers@umcnic.org

630-465-2941

Do you have news to share?

We are always looking for stories of what is happening in your church. We welcome articles from churches highlighting ministries, outreach, and missions that tell the story of being vital Christians. Events considered should be of conference-wide appeal and United Methodist-related.

District eNews are sent out the 2nd and 4th Thursdays of the month. Please submit stories and events by end of business on the 2nd and 4th Mondays. Space is limited. Stories of fewer than 250 words are preferred. Submissions will be edited at the discretion of Communications staff. Information can be emailed to communications@umcnic.org.

Check out our Submit News page for more details.

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