TUESDAY, JUNE 9, 2009

Morning Worship was led by Rev. Rudy Rasmus.

Gathering music was led by Aaron Niequist.

Bishop Hutchinson officially convened the business session.

The opening prayer was given by Rev. Anice Moses.

Mrs. Barbara Wade, representing the Committee on the Journal, reported that she had reviewed the minutes for the Sessions of Annual Conference for Monday, June 8, 2009, and they seemed to be in order. She recommended that they be accepted as they stand. They were accepted by the Conference.

LAITY ADDRESS

Bishop Hutchinson, Dr. Cottrill, Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

The Board of Laity (BOL) Report begins on page 62 in the Pre-Conference Journal.

It is indeed an honor to give the first Laity Address of the new quadrennium as your new Conference Lay Leader. I would be remiss if I did not ask our outgoing Board of Laity members to stand so that you can see these hard working individuals once again and give them your thanks.  PLEASE STAND.

Sadly, we have to say, “good bye” to a current Board member, the Rev. Jared Williams since he was ordained last night, and thus is no longer a layman.

This Board was under the able service of the former Conference Lay Leader, Mr. George “Buzzy” Anding, who continues to work with us as our parliamentarian and legal council. Buzzy is a great spiritual leader, Wesleyan to the core, and leaves a tremendous legacy for others to follow. His older sister, Corre, provided some insight into the roots of Buzzy’s religiosity, which I would like to share with you now.

Buzzy is the youngest child and only son of an extremely adoring mother. So much so that he was clearly her favorite in the family. His two older sisters, both aspiring United Methodist women and therefore acutely aware of the social justice implications of such favoritism, sought to rectify the inequality with direct action. They took the young toddler, tied him up carefully, and threw him into a trash can – in a magnificent effort to solve their dilemma. Alas, their well crafted plans were for naught. Buzzy’s mother rescued him…and she had to do it more than once, according to Buzzy.

I can only surmise that the young Buzzy learned many great spiritual lessons from these experiences. Being saved was certainly important, but he also learned first hand Wesley’s admonition to his followers:  that it is very important to “flee from the wrath to come!!”….Thank you, Buzzy.

I have yet to learn the histories of the current Board, well except for my husband Keith’s, but I do want you to meet our new Board and hear a tiny bit of what we are doing. Our BOL already had a rousing introduction earlier during the Laity Session led by our Head Cheerleader, Mrs. Carolyn Dove and her youth team. Carolyn reported yesterday at our Laity Session that the Daughenbaugh-Matheny Scholarship Fund has awarded 18 scholarships to our fine Methodist students thanks to the hard work of our Bishop, District Superintendents and District Lay Leaders.

We have to give thanks, as well, to our Conference presidents Mrs. Edna Hickman of the United Methodist Women, Mr. Gard Wayt of the United Methodist Men, and Miss Hannah Grantham of the United Methodist Youth Fellowship for creatively promoting participation through their mission and discipleship outreach.

Mr. Tim Hebert is wearing two hats as the head of our Lay Speaking Schools and as the point person on our Certified Lay Minister program, which you will hear more about later.

The 1000 Club, under Mr. Walter Weiss’s direction, has been very busy. After going through a very thorough process, their Executive Committee made a proposal yesterday to the laity of the Conference that was voted upon and accepted. The proposal asked that funds held for a new church start in Grambling, which has been put on hold for the time being, be used instead as a loan for Lafayette’s Emanuel UMC’s purchase of land and for another new church start elsewhere in the Conference. The money is to be repaid into the Grambling fund as soon as possible.

Board Secretary Mrs. Marverne Terrell and Board Treasurer Mrs. Glennell Cottrill provide the organizational structure for our Board, while the Members at Large and the former Conference Lay leaders keep us on track. Dr. Anita Crump does that for me and I am grateful. Our ex-officio members, Rev. Roger Lathan, Dr. Donald Cottrill, and Ms Rhonda Whitley make sure we stay connected and the District Lay Leaders drive the action of our outreach.

Mrs. Joyce Robinson, our Associate Lay Leader, is a major part of this great team and was hostess to our Laity Breakfast this morning. Saints football player, Mr. Jon Stinchcomb, did a great job as speaker to a packed crowd. We are very grateful that he stepped up to the plate or should I say, “took the ball and ran with it?” In short, you have a fine Board worthy of the Louisiana Annual Conference.

This Board, in partnership with the clergy, is asked this year to seek out new faces in new places as part of a four-year long campaign to discover what sparks the attention of the unchurched. We are to “Rethink Church” and the way we do things. The symbol chosen for this evangelistic thrust is the door or the doors. Everywhere in our church you can see all kinds of doors:  here on the internet, in the media, and in multiple discussions of the church’s future. Even our Public Service Announcements proclaim that we are the church of “Open Minds, Open Hearts, and Open Doors.” Did you notice that President Obama’s speech at Notre Dame used our theme as he told his audience that Catholics believed in Open Hearts and Open Minds? So the word, praise God, is going forth.

But as I look at the images and hear our wonderful, effective message, a nagging thought surfaces through my persnickety mind. What if some of our doors are not open? It reminds me of a story that Bishop Richard Looney tells about his Sunday school class in my home church in Waynesville, North Carolina. The name of the Sunday school class, he says, is “the Open Door.” During the summer the church’s air conditioning does not keep the classroom cool, so the members have a sign on the door that says, “The Open Door Sunday School Class. Please keep the door closed at all times.”

The story illustrates one of the challenges of this campaign;…what do we do when the doors are not open;…or when the doors are open, but no one wants to come in;…or for that matter, when the doors are open, but the members refuse to go out?

Denominational leaders are certainly aware of these concerns and doing what they can to meet the challenge. Many are urging us to lead beyond the walls; restructure our boards and agencies; start new churches; add Contemporary Services; use more technology; become more orthodox; become more progressive; recapture the Great Narrative; stop accommodating cultural mores; make the main thing, the main thing; and return to core Wesleyan rules:  Do no harm, Do good, and Stay in Love with God.

We are reminded that we have one mission statement, two major aims, three forms of grace, four foci, the quadrilateral, five practices of faithful congregations, seven – or more – means of grace (depending on whom is counting), power in the Connection, and a theology – my belief too – that is the best in Christendom. Methodism is a virtual cornucopia of programs, plans and promises. If left brain dominance opens doors, then by golly, we’re there.

But what if it takes more than creative planning and effective outreach to win others to Christ? What if all of our good plans and actions, as Buzzy’s older sisters learned, isn’t enough? What if some of the doors, despite heroic efforts, stay shut? What then do we do?

Well…nothing…Sometimes we just have to do our best and leave the rest to God. In other words, Trust in the Lord, wait patiently for his voice, stand ready, and then let the Holy Spirit lead the way. Maybe, just maybe, God has something else to teach us about evangelism beyond our plans and programs.

Both our faith and historical evidence verify this. A Jewish saying proclaims that “life happens when you are making other plans.” Just as we settle happily…or unhappily into our familiar ruts, accommodating to the planned course of our lives; God, moving in the Karios of eternity, surprises us with his serendipitous grace and shows us a different future; a different path. Just as we sing in our Conference song, “Who can explore His strange design?”

And if it plays out in our lives this way, how much more apparent is “His Strange Design” played out in history? How often have contemporary chroniclers closed the door on an era, only to discover subsequently that in the margins of that era’s grand design, God is writing his own story in a much larger narrative? Think about it….
---The symbol of extreme cruelty and death used by the Romans for centuries to terrify their enemies and warn people away, now, sanctified by Ultimate Sacrifice, invites millions into a life of sanctuary and grace. OR
---Roman roads built to connect military outposts throughout their conquered lands were used more productively by Paul and the Disciples to spread the Message to the world that peace in Christ Jesus was at hand. OR
---The quiet, repetitive, tedious work of obedient monks copying manuscripts in isolated monasteries throughout the Dark Ages spawned the birth of the Renaissance and the Protestant Reformation. OR
---Two brothers growing up in a small, chilly outpost of outcasts strangely warmed the hearts of their country by preaching outside the closed doors of their moribund churches, thereby saving England from the violent revolutions that destroyed other parts of Europe…and later Russia.
---And today, thousands of Louisiana United Methodists are offered new life by a lay movement begun in another country, in another language, under the auspices of another religion that sneaked past our church during the peak of Methodism’s influence in numbers and resources and returned at the very moment that we needed to unleash the bonds of the Spirit. That Movement of course, is Cursillo, the Mother of the Three Day Weekends Renewals.

“Who can explore his strange design?”

So, you can see why I’m excited about what God might be doing under the cover of His will while we make our plans, chart our course, and pray. I can’t wait to experience the tipping point for spectacular renewal and look forward to its coming soon. I may have some evidence, in fact, that God may be just about ready. It comes from Jon Meachan’s article in Newsweek over Easter. Mr. Meachan, Newsweek’s Senior Editor, believes that Christianity is on the decline in America. He quotes notable figures and dismal statistics to prove his point that we are entering a post-Christian period just as Europe and other Western countries have done earlier. His report is just the latest in a myriad of pessimistic utterances that tout our demise.

With such doom and gloom in the world, I can’t help but believe that God is about to surprise us again because I know that just when the world declares that the party is over, our Creator brings out the covered dish feast and starts the music all over again!!!

In other words, God is God…The Spirit moves where it will…The Deity we worship is the same person who appeared in the midst of the frightened disciples in the upper room WHEN THE DOOR WAS CLOSED AND LOCKED. If the door isn’t open, then He comes in anyway, finding whatever portal that is available and using whomever’s willing heart says, “yes.”

Sometimes the portal is a window.

One of my favorite historical accounts in Women’s History is the “Ladies of Seneca Falls, NY.” The women gathered at a Methodist Church in 1848 to write up a declaration of voting rights for their sisters…just as they had done earlier in the push for voting rights for Blacks and other oppressed populations. Although they had been assured that they could meet at the chapel, when the women gathered they found the door firmly locked because of the opposition to their cause. The women, undeterred, simply found an open window, climbed in, replete in gloves, hats, gown, and petticoats;…opened the door and held the meeting that would lead to the granting of women’s suffrage 72 years later.

Well, that’s what the Board of Laity is doing;…seeking open doors when possible or open windows when not…and praying for guidance all the way.

One new initiative from the Board of Laity that has looked for an opening for awhile is the Certified Lay Minister program approved by the 2004 General Conference. Were it not for the dogged perseverance of Mr. Tim Hebert and offer of help by the Rev. John Edd Harper to anchor the training and guidelines in our Conference, this new opportunity to claim and honor the work of our laity might have died on the vine. While the General Church has structured the training to strengthen the role of supply pastor for small, poorly resourced pulpits, our task force has chosen to widen the mission and scope of the office by stressing training that enhances the gifts and talents of the laos; lay people called out into ministries that strengthen the community and church. In other words, a Certified Lay Minister is someone who brings his or her expertise, vocational experience, love of God, and passion to serve, places it under the loving arm of the church and works in partnership with the ordained clergy to fill gaps and strengthen service in all areas of Kingdom Building and not just in the important work of filling small church pulpits.

The office is already being used productively in other conferences. One District Superintendent in Pennsylvania uses 17 Certified Lay Ministers in her District, only one of whom works as a supply pastor.

Additionally, the General Board of Discipleship received a $50,000 grant from the Foundation for Evangelism for a proposal to use this lay ministry to train evangelists, especially in Hispanic and other ethnic churches where lay pastors and their lay leaders are building congregations. (I’m tempted to remind us here that this is how the American Methodist church was built, but I won’t.)

Tim and John Edd, with the help of Mrs. Carolyn Dove and Mr. Bryan Core, who is our Conference’s first Certified Lay Minister, held an all day workshop on April 25th, to introduce this position and begin the first training. Twenty adventurous individuals showed up to pioneer this effort and begin a journey that has the potential to enrich our Conference life beyond measure. If we can just begin to think beyond the narrow confines of our appointed institutional rounds and yoke the talents of lay people who want to use their gifts for outreach and mission but are not called to ordained ministry.

Tim can give you information on this and has already contacted the graduates of Lay Speaking Schools since that is the first step in the process. You can also access the Conference website for information. As you can see, I am very excited about the potential for such a ministry if we will open our hearts and creative minds to such an opportunity.

The other new Board of Laity initiative that can open many doors is one that has already been lifted up by Dr. Don Cottrill yesterday.

RETHINK:EVANGELISM provides a way for those of us who talk the talk to walk the walk. All you have to do is get yourself and your friends to the Alexandria Riverfront Center on Saturday, November 14, pay $20 or $30 each (depending on how much you procrastinate) and listen to one of the best preachers in America, Dr. Tony Campolo, teach us how to reach out to others. Then, during the next year, you simply invite an unchurched person into discipleship. How easy is that?

I urge you, beg you, and am counting on all of you as leaders in our churches, to go back, motivate your congregations, pray diligently and participate fully in the PRIMARY MISSION OF OUR CHURCH, which is, TO MAKE DISCIPLES OF JESUS CHRIST FOR THE TRANSFORMATION OF THE WORLD.

My hope is that these initiatives and the ongoing work of our Board will give impetus for us to build a much needed laity infrastructure for rapid communication. We can do it with today’s technology if we have the will and do a much better job of connecting the dots. If you are a local church lay leader, please, please make sure that your District Lay Leader has your e-mail address and/or phone number. I suspect we have a vast network of individuals just waiting for the invitation to do more for the Kingdom if they knew what to do.

And if God has already put an idea in your head and a mission in your heart, then please, please contact us with your idea or hound your pastor about it. We want people with passion in our work. I pray that the day of putting a person’s name in a space just to have the space filled or telling an individual that the church job you are asking them to do won’t take much time, is over. We have too much talent in our congregations to do less than what god is challenging us to do.

Whenever I think of what little we are asked to do in these times, I think of a different period when life was much harder and the challenges so much more compelling. On Christmas Eve, 1784, 63 lay preachers, with an average age of 30, gathered together from all over the Northeast in a small meeting house appropriately called Lovely Lane in Baltimore, Maryland. They had ridden miles through bad weather to organize their societies into a conference and elect their first American Bishop, Frances Asbury. The meeting was short. As Luccock and Garrison reported in Endless Line of Splendor (1992), “The appointments were made; the final prayer offered; and it was almost as though some of the men leaped through the windows of the chapel (italics mine) onto their horses to be on their way. The King’s business required haste and got it. The day after the Conference, Asbury rode 30 miles, through frost and snow, to Fairfax, Virginia. Thomas Coke started a six month preaching tour of the South.” (P. 40)

So, I ask you, are we called to do any less today for the “King’s business”?

Please…Please…Find a door and if one isn’t open, look for a window and wait for God to bless the rest.  Amen.

The Conference thanked Mrs. Kreutziger with a standing ovation.

Mr. Hap Martin, representing the Conference Board of Trustees, presented seven resolutions. The resolutions were:  Resolution One to ratify the acceptance of the donation from First United Methodist Church of Shreveport of the Shreveport condominium property; Resolution Two to ratify the grant of an oil, gas and mineral lease on the Tooke Cemetery Property, Bienville Parish; Resolution Three to discontinue and abandon Indian Village United Methodist Church, Monroe District; Resolution Four to discontinue and abandon Oak Park United Methodist Church, Lake Charles District; Resolution Five to discontinue and abandon Faith United Methodist Church, Shreveport District; Resolution Six to authorize the donation of the Mitchell Cemetery, Shreveport District; Resolution Seven to ratify the donation of the Bonne Idee Cemetery, Monroe District. One verbal report was added, stating that the final payment in the crude oil fund distribution being made from the United Methodist Church to all of the conferences, done on a equal share to each in the conference. This distribution is the amount $735.72. The financial administration of the Board of Trustees voted that this money be used and transferred to the Central Conference Pension Initiative to help fund that initiative. The resolutions, including the verbal report added, were received and approved. Bishop Hutchinson thanked Mr. Hap Martin for his work on the Board.

Rev. Steve Stephens presented New Places for New Faces. He then recognized representatives from the following new churches who made commitments as planters to reach new people for Christ:  Faith Crossing United Methodist Church, The Well United Methodist Church, and NewSong United Methodist Church. A short video was shown from each church. He asked that each church in the Conference do their part in sharing the harvesting work of God.

Bishop Hutchinson thanked Kathy Moore, his Executive Administrator, for all the time she devoted to the Conference alter and her hard work. The Conference gave her a standing ovation.

Bishop Hutchinson made announcements.

The opening hymn “Sweet, Sweet Spirit” was led by Rev. Darryl A. Tate to start the Service of Recognition of the Retirees.

Rev. Tate introduced the retirees:  Kenneth McLaurin Fisher, Freddie Charles Henderson, Willie Lee Henry, Lawrence Wayne Howington, James Thomas Logan, Robert Gene Rowland, Doris Riley Sheppard, and Inez Daggs Williams. There was one retiree from last year who was unable to attend the Conference last year, Carl Rhoads. Each retiree gave a short speech. Also retiring but not present:  Mary Sloan Baugh, Charles Robert Cosentino, Robert Eldred Hollis, Jr., and Joor Penn Morgan.

The Conference stood and gave thanks to the retirees.

In the Service of the Passing of the Mantle, the mantle was passed from Rev. Freddie Henderson, representing the retiring class, to Rev. Jacqueline E. C. King, representing the new full member class.

The Service of the Recognition of the Retirees was closed with the hymn “We are Marching.”

Rev. Tate made announcements about the recovery work to be done at the dismissal of the Conference and thanked Rev. Yvonne Dayries for all her help in getting ready for this day.

Mr. Fred Loy gave the Courtesy Committee Report. He shared concerns and prayer requests.           

Bishop Hutchinson welcomed Arleeta Terrell to speak to the Conference on behalf of the City of Kenner. She welcomed the Conference to Kenner and gave thanks on behalf of the mayor for being here. She also gave her appreciation to the Conference for the work they are doing in New Orleans.

Rev. Larry Miller made announcements.

Closing prayer was led by Dr. Carl Rhoads.