Volume 13 April 2021 Issue 4 DISTRICT STAFF Dear Friends, District Superintendent Barry Burns [email protected] As we celebrate Easter in the Christian church, we are reminded Ass’t to the Dist. Supt. Lynda Lockwood that God is a God of hope, resurrection, new life, and Grace. [email protected] And as we continue to work our way through the Covid 19 pan- Office Administrator demic, and see example after example of brokenness, violence, Lesley Moore [email protected] and hopelessness in our culture, we need this message of hope Rev. Barry Burns now more than ever. Northwest Plains District Superintendent I know this has been a terribly difficult year for all of us. None of us are left unaffected by the pandemic, the continued acts of race based violence, the shootings that have killed so many innocent people, and the vitriolic presidential election that magnified the divide that has opened up in our world. If the truth be known we are left weary, questioning, and at times hopeless. But that is exactly the time we most need this Easter message where the darkness He is Risen of Good Friday gives way to the dawning of new life on Easter morning. Where we can shout with confidence that Christ is risen! The tomb couldn’t hold him! That death and darkness is not the end of this story! So, even though we know that there are bound to be dark days ahead, we are not without hope. I know that this can sound naïve when there are so many challeng- es in front of us, but with God’s promise to always be with us, now is not the time to give up. Now is the time to engage even more fully than we have before and take on the challenges that are facing us. Speak out whenever and wherever you see injustice. Love others, especially those who are difficult to love. Share the hope we have in Christ with those who find it difficult to see hope. Being the church is so much more than simply striving to preserve ourselves. Northwest Plains District May you experience the hope of the risen Christ in this season of Easter! United Methodist Church 910 E. Third Street Ottawa, OH 45875 Telephone: 419.523.9901 800.589.7828 FAX 419.523.3479 E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.northwestplainsdistrict.org Page 2 Northwest Plains Compass April 2021 WELCOME AMY HAINES April 2021 Northwest Plains Compass Page 3 Happy Easter Season! For the 50 days after Easter through the Day of Pentecost we celebrate Christ’s resurrection and ascension, and the giving of the Holy Spir- it. I don’t know about you but I am ready to celebrate. This past year has been difficult, challenging, uncertain, and deadly. This past year has also shown great growth, challenges meet through creativity, steadfast faithfulness, and new life in the midst of death. Sounds like we have had an Easter year instead of an Easter season, so how are we allowing this past year to bring new transformation into Rev. Lynda Lockwood our lives? How has God spoken to you throughout this past year? What new Assistant to the District things have you learned about God? What has been strengthened and what have Superintendent you needed to let go? Where and how has God been revealed to you? As you ponder and answer these questions in your head, may your answers not just remain in your head but may you glorify God with your whole being, may your hearts be uplifted and may you celebrate the One who was and is!!! Lynda A LITTLE NOTE FROM LYNDA: Thank you NWP for your prayers and cards after my brother's passing. I greatly appreci- ate your support. Thank you again! In Christ, Lynda Bishops cancel May 8 General Conference The United Methodist Council of Bishops has canceled its call for a special virtual General Conference on May 8. The bishops made the decision to cancel during a March 22 online meeting that was closed to the public. The bishops also announced that they plan to use their regularly scheduled April meeting to discuss results of listening sessions and discern a possible new timeline. “Much has been learned over the past few weeks and the extended timeline will allow for even deeper listening by the bishops at the general church level but also in our residential settings,” Bishop Cynthia Fierro Harvey, Council of Bishops president and leader of the Louisiana Conference, said in a press statement after the meeting. Last month, the bishops called the special one-day session on the same day the Commission on the General Conference announced that COVID-19’s threat had forced the postponement of the global de- nomination’s top lawmaking assembly a second time. The full General Conference, originally set for May 2020, is now set for Aug. 29-Sept. 6, 2022. The meeting venue is still Minneapolis. Page 4 Northwest Plains Compass April 2021 NWP Directors of Pulpit Supply Pastors, if you are in need of Sunday morning pulpit supply and would like to arrange for a Lay Speaker to fill in for you, please contact our District Directors of Pulpit Supply. • Linda Hoover is responsible for the southern part of NWP District including Allen, Auglaize, Hardin, Mercer, Van Wert and Wyandot counties. She can be reached at 567.204.0329 or by email at [email protected]. • Larry Zuvers is responsible for the northern part of NWP District including Defiance, Hancock, Henry, Paulding, Putnam, and Williams counties. He can be reached at 419.636.2329 or by email at [email protected] Campaign Vision and Purpose Our purpose is to multiply the number of vibrant, robust, effective congregations and in turn multiply the number of people who are choosing to live in the hope of Jesus Christ, being shaped from the inside out by the justice, love and peace that Jesus brings to us all. IF we sincerely believe that God is calling us to offer Christ in a Wesleyan way, passionately and respectfully, that is relevant to our cultural context and inspires hope and new life… AND we are sincere in asking God to send one more person, family, or child for us to love and disciple… THEN we are called to come together to plant new churches and nurture congregational vitality in order to reach The district staff will be praying each week for new people of all ages and life circumstances and connect them with Jesus Christ. 3 different appointments (church and pastor): For more information on the Light the Way Campaign contact: Rev. Stanley Ling/[email protected], Rev. Sue Nilson Kibbey/[email protected], Mr. Brad Aycock/[email protected] IN NEED for Lay Members At-Large to AC Any lay members of Northwest Plains churches who wish to be considered as a lay member at-large from the District to Annual Conference this year should contact the NWP District office to express their interest in being considered for an open spot. Annual Conference will be held virtually June 6 and 7. Contact the District Office with any questions. April 2021 Northwest Plains Compass Page 5 Owning our stuff Dear friends of Jesus Christ: I was crestfallen a week ago today when I heard about the tragic loss of life and the enormous physical and moral injury inflicted upon those left behind. My dismay is multi-layered. First of all, there is an apparent sin- gling out of a particular racial, ethnic group. I am well aware that the pre- sumed perpetrator claims otherwise regarding targeting. But layered up- on the clear ratcheting up of violence in word and deed toward Asian Americans, race and ethnicity cannot be discounted as a salient factor. The resurgence of anti-Asian rhetoric and violence is hardly new. Old as it is it is nevertheless unacceptable in a civil society. It is abhorrent for people of Christian faith. Or at least it ought to be. We are those who make the claim that upon every person is stamped the image of God. If that which we have preached and taught is true it cannot be true only as an intellectual exer- cise. It must be embodied. Secondly the alleged gunman claims in affect that he was trying to exorcise the demonic forces that haunted him. I fully support anyone running in the opposite direction of bad be- haviors. But running toward firearms and then turning them outward toward the perceived source of temptation is bad theology and terrible sociology. It is too simplistic and places all of ones troubles outside of the self and is therefore and avoidance of real soul work. Further, in the light of the gospel of Jesus Christ, violence as a problem-solving method personal or societal is short sighted at best and no solution at all at worst. We have been tracing the life and ministry of Jesus during these Lenten days. Next week, Holy Week, we reach a particular climax. One of the things that dawns on me anew at this stage in the liturgical cycle each year is how much Jesus identifies with our hopes and dreams as well as our pain and suffering. In the course of that he seeks to break the cycles of violence, rage, alienation, and hatred. The message of every Easter is his victory over the worst makes it possible for us to be victorious over all the obstacles to living a God centered, abundant life. But it starts with owning our stuff and standing with all of our wounded fellow pilgrims on the human journey.