‘Creation, Evolution and Intelligent Design’ Eastern PA laity will get another double portion of the conference’s annual Laity Academy in 2024—a biannual pairing that has succeeded in drawing participants since late 2021, when online and onsite courses were offered as …

Leadership Academy adds 4 new Teachable courses, now totaling 7
The EPA&GNJ Leadership Academy has launched four new online courses to help church leaders learn more about the challenges and growth opportunities in church leadership, United Methodist racial history, community outreach for missional engagement, and the work of lay leaders …

Church invites all to come ‘Help Build Hope’ again
Bethel Hill United Methodist Church in Lansdale invites all to come “Help Build Hope” April 5-7 through an inspiring homebuilding mission project jointly sponsored with Christ United Methodist Church Lansdale. The annual, weekend project began in 2021, when the Covid …

3 Tools for Ministry academies will offer learning for leaders
Blessed are those who find wisdom, those who gain understanding. —Proverbs 3:13 Several hundred lay and clergy members of Eastern PA will spend three brief but full Saturday mornings in February and March drilling down into a deep well in …

NextGen coordinator to share wisdom with peers at Youth Leader Days
Register for IGNITE’s Youth Leader Days now: January 27 at West Chester UMC, in Eastern PA, and February 24 at Aldersgate UMC in East Brunswick, NJ. Michael Nelson, a dynamic youth pastor at Norwood (PA) United Methodist Church and a …

Denman Evangelism Award nominations extended to Jan. 19
Dear brothers and sisters, honor those who are your leaders in the Lord’s work. (1 Thessalonians 5:12) The deadline to submit nominations for the 2024 Harry Denman Evangelism Awards is extended to January 19. The Eastern PA Conference Cabinet and …

Men’s retreat creates band of brothers through labors of love
Eastern PA’s United Methodist Men (UMM) discovered truly “how good and pleasant it is for brothers to dwell together in unity,” (Psalm 133) during a weekend men’s retreat in November, sponsored by Lansdale United Methodist Church’s men’s ministry. The …

EPA, seminaries explore cultivating a Culture of Call
The number of young elders in The United Methodist Church reached a record low number in 2023, the Lewis Center for Church Leadership at Wesley Theological Seminary, reported in October. (The center also published in May, “Who will be God’s …

Church packs 10,000+ meals to donate in 1 special day
Members of Cedarville United Methodist Church in Pottstown (North Coventry) celebrated the church’s 150th anniversary in “Mission First” style, by packing 10,800 high-nutrition meals up in a single day to help feed children and families in need around the world. …

Vision + Teamwork = Success
“Be united in the same mind and the same purpose.” (I Corinthians 1:10b NRSV) A compelling vision, paired with a competent and committed team, can accomplish extraordinary feats of mission. The president of my graduate school alma mater recently shared …