<p> Mississippi Conference of the UMC Ordination/Full Connection Elder Written Material and Sermon Specifications</p><p>Specifications are provided for these sections:</p><p>I. Bible Study II. Theological Questions III. Sermon Manuscript and Digital Video </p><p>Documents should be named in the following format:  Bible Study_First Name Middle Name Last Name (e.g., Bible Study_John Mark Doe)  Theological Questions_First Name Middle Name Last Name (e.g., Theological Questions_John Mark Doe)  Sermon Manuscript_First Name Middle Name Last Name (e.g., Sermon Manuscript_John Mark Doe)</p><p>Document should include the following page formatting:  Each page header of your document should include: Your Full Name (First, Middle, and Last)  Each page footer of your document should include pagination, showing page number of total pages (e.g., Page 1 of 20).</p><p>Using eBridge File Import 1. Click IMPORT (nex to Retrieve and Scan).</p><p>2. Click on BROWSE to find the document you would like to import into eBridge.</p><p>3. Once you have selected your item to upload, verity that the path is filled out to the left of the Browse button.</p><p>4. Index your document or image.</p><p>Your Last Name, Your First Name ONLY Preferred Name – Skip Conference Status (Use drop down and select track) Document Type (Use drop down and select form) District (Use drop down and select district) Document Date mm/dd/yyyy (8 digits) Confidential (Use drop down) 5. Click the IMPORT button at the bottom of the page. 6. A green confirmation message will appear at the top of the window.</p><p>Page 1 of 5 Rev. 09/2013 Additional Information  ONLY a pdf file is to be uploaded.</p><p> Upload COMPLETED documents only</p><p>I. Bible Study Requirements </p><p>1. Prepare an outline for the teaching of a Bible study on any book of the Bible. Your outline does not need to be more than two pages and may be single-spaced.</p><p>2. In addition to the outline, submit a complete text of your first session of the study. You should also include the setting, the intended audience, how many sessions you would use, the teaching methodology, and a bibliography. The reader will be looking for comprehension of the book, your approach to the task of teaching and the use of proper English grammar in your presentation.</p><p>Plagiarize – to steal and pass off (the ideas and words of another) as one’s own, to use a created production without crediting the source, to commit literary theft, to present as a new and original idea derived from an existing source. (Webster’s Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary)</p><p>Plagiarism is serious offense. Borrowing ideas or material from someone via any means of media without acknowledging the source is considered plagiarizing. Give credit where credit is due, please.</p><p>II. Theological Questions (The Book of Discipline 2016)</p><p>Please answer thoroughly the following questions. (Include the complete question, then the answer in submitted manuscript. Answers should be double-spaced).</p><p>A. Theology</p><p>1. Give examples of how the practice of ministry has affected your experience and understanding of:</p><p>(a) God</p><p>(b) Humanity</p><p>(c) The need for divine grace</p><p>(d) The Lordship of Jesus Christ</p><p>(e) The work of the Holy Spirit</p><p>(f) The meaning and significance of the Sacraments</p><p>(g) The kingdom of God</p><p>(h) Resurrection and eternal life</p><p>2. How do you understand the following traditional evangelical doctrines: (a) repentance; (b) justification; (c) regeneration; (d) sanctification? What are the marks of the Christian life?</p><p>Page 2 of 5 3. How has the practice of ministry informed your understanding of the nature and mission of the Church? What are its primary challenges today?</p><p>4. The United Methodist Church holds that Scripture, tradition, experience, and reason are sources and norms for belief and practice, but that the Bible is primary among them. What is your understanding of this theological position of the Church, and how has your practice of ministry been affected by this understanding</p><p>B. Vocation</p><p>1. How has the experience of ministry shaped your understanding of your vocation as an ordained elder?</p><p>C. The Practice of Ministry</p><p>1. How has the practice of ministry affected your understanding of the expectations and obligations of the itinerant system? Do you offer yourself without reserve to be appointed and to serve as the appointive authority may determine?</p><p>2. Describe and evaluate your personal gifts for ministry and how they have resulted in fruitful ministry. What would be your areas of strength and areas in which you need to be strengthened in order to be more fruitful in ministry?</p><p>3. For the sake of the mission of Jesus Christ in the world and the most effective witness to the Christian gospel and in consideration of your influence as an ordained minister, are you willing to make a complete dedication of yourself to the highest ideals of the Christian life; and to this end will you agree to exercise responsible self-control by personal habits conductive to physical health, intentional intellectual development, fidelity in marriage and celibacy in singleness, integrity in all personal relationships, social responsibility, and growth in grace and the knowledge and love of God?</p><p>4. Provide evidence of your willingness to relate yourself in ministry to all persons without regard to race, color, ethnicity, national origin, social status, gender, sexual orientation, age economic condition, or disability.</p><p>5. Will you regard all pastoral conversations of a confessional nature as a trust between the person concerned and God?</p><p>6. Provide evidence of experience in peace and justice ministries.</p><p>Page 3 of 5 III. Sermon Instructions </p><p>1. Complete the Sermon Background Information Sheet.</p><p>2. Import your sermon manuscript into eBridge (www.eBridge.com).</p><p>3. Upload a church bulletin into eBridge. Note: Pay attention to copyright laws.</p><p>4. Provide a digital recording in YouTube format of your sermon during a worship service before a live congregation. Please include the entire service on YouTube. </p><p> a. Go to YouTube.com </p><p> b. Sign into your YouTube account. Username: [email protected] Password: WordsofJesus</p><p> c. Click on Upload at the top of the page.</p><p> d. Before you start uploading the video you can chose the video privacy settings.</p><p> e. Select the video you'd like to upload from your computer. You can also create a video slideshow or import a video from Google Photos. </p><p> f. As the video is uploading you can edit both the basic information and the advanced settings of the video, and decide if you want to notify subscribers (if you uncheck this option no communication will be shared with your subscribers). Partners will also be able to adjust their Monetization settings.</p><p> g. Click Publish to finish uploading a public video to YouTube. If you set the video privacy setting to Private or Unlisted, just click Done to finish the upload or click Share to privately share your video.</p><p> h. If you haven’t clicked Publish, your video won’t be viewable by other people. You can always publish your video at a later time in your Video Manager.</p><p>Once the upload is completed we will send you an email to notify you that your video is done uploading and processing. You can then forward that email to friends or family for easy sharing. If you prefer not to receive notification, you can opt out by visiting your email settings. </p><p>Page 4 of 5 You can see video for uploading a video to Youtube by going to: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hlxqk0iHp5w.</p><p>5. The sermon’s Scriptural text should come from the lectionary texts scheduled for November 26, 2017, Christ The King/Reign of Christ Sunday or December 31, 2017, the First Sunday after Christmas Day.</p><p>6. The sermon will be evaluated on content and delivery. Attention will be given to Scriptural exegesis, theological development, logical flow of ideas, vivid illustrations, eye contact, animation, grammar, and more. The sermon should reflect your best effort.</p><p>Page 5 of 5 </p>