A special message in advance of the special called session of General Conference for the West Virginia Conference of The United Methodist Church
Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,
This Saturday delegates from around the world are gathering for a time of prayer in advance of the special called session of General Conference. The first session of General Conference begins with worship Sunday morning at 8:00 am (CST) and sessions are set to conclude each day at 6:30 pm (CST). Each day the delegates will begin and end their work with worship and prayer.
In meeting with the delegates from West Virginia we have come up with a plan to keep our WVUMC family informed about the events of each day. After the close of worship each evening the members of the delegation will meet with our Director of Communications to record a message to send back home. This message, with photos from the day, will be sent via email and shared on social media and the conference website. We anticipate this going out by 8:00 pm (CST).
Each morning we will also send a message to begin our day, with prayers from Bishop Sandra Steiner Ball and links to the previous day’s proceedings including the Daily Christian Advocate, the publication of record for General Conference. This message will also be sent via email and posted on the conference Facebook page and website.
Already we have gathered at wvumc.org/gc2019 resources that will be helpful in following the proceedings of General Conference. As Bishop Sandra has shared, this is a season for steadfastness, patience, and prayer, never losing sight of the mission that we have been given from Christ in Matthew 28:19-20:
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Please be in prayer for our General Conference delegates and for all of those who are serving including our Bishops, alternate delegates, communication teams, pages, marshals, volunteers, and guests.
As Bishop Sandra Steiner Ball reminded us as she visited each district in the West Virginia Conference over the past month: “Most importantly, no matter what happens in February we have work to do here and now. There are souls that need the saving power of Jesus Christ, there are people to feed, and there are lives to be touched and served by God’s love in Jesus’ name.”
Grace and peace,
Rev. Deborah Coble
Director of Communications
West Virginia Conference of The United Methodist Church
Some helpful links:
If your church would like to host a prayer vigil, any time over the next week, there are excellent resources at umcprays.org. We invite you to continue to pray from 2:23-2:26 each day.
If you are not already signed up to receive the Short Circuit: you may sign up to receive the twice-daily emails from our General Conference delegation at this link.
Like the WVUMC Facebook page to follow updates via social media. Updates will also be posted on the WVUMC conference website.
Watch the live stream of the General Conference proceedings beginning Saturday morning at 9:00 am CST.
To review the schedule, rules, petitions, and reports read the Advanced Edition of the Daily Christian Advocate.