Keeping Our Vision Alive
What would the New York Annual Conference look like if all its members took the vision seriously, and each day woke up ready, by God’s grace, to live it out?
We need to embrace our vision! A simple, but easily overlooked fact in doing this is to know what it says! I would like to challenge the laity of this conference to do the following:
Commit the vision statement to memory.
“The New York Annual Conference, by the grace of god, embodies a beloved community of hope, building up a healthy body of christ, with heart warmed United Methodists in mission for the transformation of the world.”
Engage in ongoing Bible study around the vision statement. Some congregations have already done the initial study entitled, “Be Thou Our Vision . . . Making the Vision Statement Our Own.” It is not too late to engage in this wonderful six week study if you have not already done so, or to revisit it if you did it before.
Maintain your own spiritual health through personal and corporate Bible study, prayer, fasting and worship. Continually renew your mind and your spirit. “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—His good, pleasing and perfect will.” (Romans 12:2 NIV) I recommend for your reading and rereading Rueben Job’s, “Three Simple Rules: A Wesleyan Way of Living.”
Pray, prepare and practice sharing the transforming love of Jesus with as many people as you can. Make use of the many resources available to help you to do this: lay speaking school, websites such as www.gbod.org/evangelism, and evangelism outreach opportunities provided by your local church, district and conference.
Laity of the New York Annual Conference, let us increase our resolve to live out our vision! Let us continue to be in mission for Jesus Christ in our homes, churches, communities and our world.
We are laity, and our ministry matters!
Peace
By: Renata Smith On 1/2/2009