200th Session of the Annual Conference: Observations

It was Friday morning, June 19, 2009, and I had just arrived at the Adams Mark Hotel in downtown Buffalo for the beginning of annual conference. This being my first time to attend the conference, I was not sure what to expect. I approached the registration table, received my packet, and headed for the assembly area in the main ballroom. The assembly room was set up with a stage on one end, flanked by large screens on either side, and rows of tables and chairs set-up to accommodate about 700 members of annual conference.

The first session began at 9:00 a.m. and was for the laity only. Scott Johnson, Conference Lay Leader, presided over the session. The theme of the session focused on the results UMC is experiencing because of our attentiveness to what goes on inside the walls of our church buildings. The declining number of members over the past 50 years is the result of this inward focus. This became a recurring theme for the entire conference session.

Survey Results of Local Congregations

The Board of Laity has surveyed local congregations and found the following:

Most local churches felt they had experienced spiritual growth over the past year.
Local churches felt that on average, 30% of their membership were engaged in ministry to others.
There was little response to the question of what percentage of regular attendees might have witnessed during the past year or what percentage of regular attendees invited someone to church over the past year.
Local churches felt that about 60% of members were using their spiritual gifts.
About 52% of the local churches saw an increase in giving from the previous year.

The Board of Laity stressed that we need to own the fact that we must witness beyond the walls of our church. The issue we face is not one of decline, but what we are called by God to do. We must manifest ourselves by being in ministry to others.

"What Is Our Mission?"

After the laity session, the entire body convened for the opening worship service, led by our Bishop, Marcus Matthews. Bishop Matthews’s sermon titled “What is Our Mission?” followed the theme raised during the laity session. Bishop Matthews encouraged all of us to step out of our comfort zone in order to grow spiritually. By telling our story of how God came into our lives, by bringing souls to Christ, and by changing our focus from the internal issues that consume us to the needs of the community around us, we will grow spiritually as well as in numbers. Bishop Matthews stressed the importance of the local church providing support, encouragement, strength, and purpose for its members and community. It is important for each church member to be engaged in prayer, and for the church to provide a time for us to “come together and love the hell out of each other.” For by doing this we can move each other from whatever troubling influence we may be experiencing to the Hope that Gods provides.

Interesting UMC Facts

The balance of the morning and afternoon was spent hearing and receiving the various conference committee reports. Here are some interesting facts presented in some of the sessions:

Our denomination is experiencing tremendous growth in various parts of the world outside the United States.
The average age of our membership in the U.S. is 57.
We are not effectively reaching youth and young adults – they represent only 4.6% of our membership.
U.S. membership has declined by over 8 million since the 1930s.
There are currently 850 elders under the age of 35. In 1985, this number was 3,402.
We have lost members every year for the last 40 years.
There are twice as many women active in the UMC as men.
While giving has shown an increase every year for the past 15 years, the number of givers is declining.
In 2004, 42% of local congregations did not take in a single member by profession of faith.
The United States of America is the third largest mission field in the world, as measured by the percentage of people not attending church.

We profess that the UMC has Open Doors, Open Hearts, Open Minds – the communities around us are looking for us to prove it. We need to return to John Wesley’s focus of being committed to the transformation of society. The UMC has identified the following four major areas where we need to focus our efforts:

1. Develop Leaders
2. Create New Places for People
3. Eliminate Poverty
4. Improve Health Globally

"Rethink Church" Campaign

As a local church, we must determine how we will live out the vision of John Wesley’s principles of do no harm, do good, and love God in the context of these four focus areas. The UMC has started a campaign of “What if we RETHINK CHURCH?” “What if church weren’t just a place we go, but something we do?” Rethinking church is about taking action. It is a wake-up call reminding us of the many needs of human beings, whether they are in our own backyard or around the world. It is a call to action for all United Methodists to become involved together in a world bigger that one individual’s reach. A new generation of seekers and believers is yearning for something more, something deeper, and something relevant. This new generation believes that actions speak louder than words.

Willing To Do What God Wants?

The evening session was a Bible study lead by Bishop Paul Leeland of the Alabama-West Florida Conference. Bishop Leeland posed the question “Are we willing to do what God wants us to do, or to do what we want to do?” He recited the following poem:

As the covered wagon rolled and pitched
Along the prairie track,
One sat looking forward and one sat looking back.
One searched the wide horizon for a bright and better day;
And, one saw the disappointing road
‘Til it too slipped away.
As the covered wagon rolled and pitched along the prairie track
One sat looking forward and one sat looking back.
Author Unknown

That is really the question, isn’t it? What shape is the lens we use to look at our United Methodist ministry? He went on to share his hope and desire for our ministry:

We will affirm the Spirit of God dwells in our people; not in our programs and church facilities.
That Every Congregation can be a healthier, evangelistic, and missional church regardless of size.
That we can fulfill the Great Commission by starting new churches.
That we can fulfill the Great Commission by starting new faith communities in areas where there has been no Christian presence or witness.
That we can change the role of our conference staff and district superintendents to claim every soul within the bounds of their district for Jesus Christ.

Bishop Leeland went on to say, “We are beginning our 225th Annual Conference in North America. What kind of future there will be for United Methodists depends on how early we are willing to get up in the morning, how willing we are to Model and Teach the General Rules reflecting Christ’s Love among us, and how serious we are about ministering and not just being ministered to. As we quietly slip past Milepost 225, we can take great pride in our acquisition of property and erection of buildings – including hospitals, clinics, retirement homes, children’s homes, and conference camps. But these things are not the church. What we need are people to match our buildings, a vision to match the height of our highest steeples, a harmony of purpose to match the superb music of our congregations, a ministry as strategic as our location, and a love as broad and inclusive as the heart of God.”

“You, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High;
For you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
To give his people knowledge of salvation
By the forgiveness of their sins.
In the tender compassion of our God
The dawn from on high shall break upon us,
to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death,
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.”
Luke 1: 76-79

Heritage of Hope

Day two of the annual conference, June 20, was spent receiving reports from the district superintendents, voting on proposed changes to the Constitution of the UMC, and a report from the New ACT team members. The New ACT team is responsible for much of the preliminary planning that has gone on regarding the merger of the four existing conferences of Western NY, North Central, Wyoming, and Troy into the Upper New York conference. This merger will take place in July 2010. For more information about the merger or to keep abreast of the conference proceedings, log on to www.newconferences.info and www.uppernewyork.org.

One of the most moving events at the annual conference was the “Celebrating a Heritage of Hope” service, which celebrated the life and ministry of clergy and their spouses who passed away since the last annual conference. It was truly an honor to be part of this service, which celebrated the commitment these individuals had to “tending of the flock” as they spread God’s love and the message of hope.

After dinner, there was a time of “Telling the Story of the WNY Conference,” which was a history lesson of sorts. It was interesting to learn about the past 200 years including how our conference was established and how it has changed over the years.

Attending the Annual Conference was an interesting and rewarding experience. The foundations of our denomination are strong, but there is much work to do. In John Wesley’s sermon titled “The Character of a Methodist,” he defined a Methodist as one who has “the love of God shed abroad in his heart by the Holy Spirit given unto him,” and who “loves the Lord his God with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his mind, and with all his strength.” Let us take that character out into our community and world and be a light to all who might seek to find the love of God.

Dave Reichard
Coordinating Lay Leader
June 2009