News

3/10/2022

This winter Grace UMC in Covington has opened its doors as the local warming center location and will continue the outreach through the end of March. In partnership with the City of Covington, nine churches in the area are assisting with this project, including Covington First UMC.   The warming center operates 7 days a week from 5 pm through 8 am for people who need a warm place to sleep. The Rev. Dr. Robert Crawford, pastor of Grace, shared that guests are served dinner, breakfast, and given a...

1/5/2022

By Becky Nicovich In October 2021, a Little Free Pantry was installed on the campus of Harmony Grove UMC in Lilburn. For those unfamiliar with the Little Free Pantry concept, it is based on the Little Free Library® model, except the box is stocked with food and hygiene items instead of books. And though the box "lives" on the church campus, it belongs to the community. Anyone is welcome to take items from the box and anyone is welcome to place items in the box. The box is accessible 24/7. There...

12/2/2021

The Barnes Evaluation and Administration Team has wrapped up its work for 2021 having invested $783,914.00 in innovative mission and ministry in the North Georgia Conference! The BEAT Team, entrusted by our Annual Conference to receive grant applications and make the best mission investments possible for the whole of the conference, funded 14 grants across 6 districts. The grants vary from funding for mold remediation to funding for a community park, digital ministry to a medical clinic. "For ...

11/11/2021

Following the fall of Kabul, an estimated 75,000 Afghans are arriving in the United States to rebuild their lives. They are fleeing retribution or persecution from the Taliban and have one goal: to live in safety. The United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) is supporting long-time partner Church World Service (CWS) in welcoming, resettling, and providing these families with housing, legal assistance, case management, mental health support, medical care, school enrollment, and community ...

12/11/2019

The North Georgia Conference is nearing the end of its 10-year Bridges Mission initiative. The work of the Bridges effort is a model for international mission with a focus on strengthening two-way partnerships and relationships through long-term commitment.  Generous gifts from North Georgia United Methodists have enabled year-end giving to four Bridges partners for transformative ministries.  The following funding plan was enthusiastically approved by the Conference Board of Advocacy and ...

11/14/2019

Global Ministries will commission 67 new EarthKeepers including 5 from North Georgia Global Ministries will commission 67 new EarthKeepers from 23 annual conferences in an online service on November 19, 2019 at 8 pm at www.umcmission.org/live. Five of the new EarthKeepers are from North Georgia: Marcel Cantu Didier Monga Shari Ponder Temekia Powell Cheryl Taylor This service will affirm the EarthKeepers in their call to the ministry of creation care and will bless their work in their ...

8/15/2019

By Rev. Rob Bruce Well planned and executed short term mission trips prove to be one of the most effective paths of disciple formation. Living into Matthew 25:34–40 (NRSV) participants put “sweat equity” into their discipleship formation. This has been the case for McEver Road UMC and our work at Red Bird Mission Conference Work Camp. Located in coal-rich southeastern Kentucky amidst some of the poorest counties in the US, mission work there takes participants out of their comfort zones and ...

6/27/2019

UMCOR (United Methodist Committee on Relief) shares the following message to United Methodists. In light of the recent news about children in U.S. government holding facilities along the U.S.-Mexico border, the United Methodist Committee on Relief has received numerous requests to respond. We have heard the plea for action from the church. Unfortunately, the facilities in question are managed in such a way that precludes even UMCOR’s assistance. Access to these government facilities is ...

4/11/2019

Guests arriving to the Global Ministries Bicentennial. (Photo: Jennifer Silver, Global Ministries) Celebrating its origins that trace back to the work of a freeborn African-American among the Wyandotte Native American people in the 1800s, the General Board of Global Ministries of The United Methodist Church celebrated its 200th anniversary with events focused on the future of Methodist mission during changing times.  The bicentennial celebration recognizes the 200th anniversary of the founding ...

3/28/2019

The Louise D. Park Eye Fund of the North Georgia Conference was established for “the treatment of patients who are in definite need of financial assistance in order to secure the indicated treatment of disorders of the eye or eyes which would result in blindness if such treatment were not otherwise available.”  After many years, the Conference Board of Trustees recognizes that neither churches, clergy, or the North Georgia Conference are utilizing the fund in a significant and meaningful way. ...

12/20/2018

VIDEO: Message from Bishop Sue in Southwest Georgia By SYBIL DAVIDSON The sounds of buzzing chainsaws and raking debris replaced the typical sounds of the season for a team of 20 volunteers from the North Georgia Conference, including Bishop Sue Haupert-Johnson and Atlanta-Marietta District Superintendent Rev. Terry Walton, who spent four days serving our neighbors in Southwest Georgia this week.  Despite (or perhaps because of) it being the week before Christmas, churches across the AMAR ...

10/1/2018

Plans are underway for a team from the North Georgia Conference to visit The Philippines February 3-11, 2019, and you are invited to take part. The Conference has secured 12 Delta seats at a cost of $1556 per person. The total cost of the trip has not yet been fixed, but we estimate it will be approximately $2200-2500.  To secure a spot please send $800/ person, plus full passport name, number and expiration date, gender, and birthdate to the conference office by October 19. An early email ...

8/30/2018

By SYBIL DAVIDSON Two young missionaries from Noth Georgia recently returned from two years of international service through the UMC's Global Missions Fellows program. Trisha Manns of Impact UMC in East Point served in South Korea and Jessica Stewart of Glennhaven UMC in Decatur served in Capetown, South Africa.  Trisha worked in the South Korean Department of Peace and Reconciliation as a liaison with English-speaking partners. The organization has been at work for 30 years to end the ...

7/27/2018

Bishop's Panel at Georgia Pastors' School with Bishop Sue Haupert-Johnson and Bishop Lawson Bryan. Moderated by Rev. Matt Nelson. (Photo courtesy of the South Georgia Annual Conference) By JESSICA BRADFORD For many years, hundreds of active and retired clergy have convened near the banks of historic Frederica River at Epworth By The Sea for the annual Georgia Pastors’ School. Pastors’ School provides inspiration, education, worship, fellowship, fun and relaxation for North and South Georgia ...

7/17/2018

Do you feel called to reach the unreached? Creating new places for new faces is one of the most effective ways we can do that. And you don't have to do it alone. That's why the North Georgia Conference developed the NExT Leadership Academy.  We've found that there are 10 essentials for successful church start-ups: Call, Vision, Launch, People, Funding, Preaching, Leadership, Family, Staffing, and Systems.  Through NExT, you'll get exposed to these essentials in action, be inspired by ...

2/8/2018

Campus ministry, plus a Connectional Ministries grant, plus a local church partner equals 25,000 pounds of potatoes to hunger ministries in Atlanta. By Sybil Davidson Last fall the Georgia Tech Wesley Foundation hosted a “Potato Drop” at Tenth Street Underwood UMC near campus. The Wesley Foundation received 25,000 lbs pounds of gleaned potatoes from The Society of St. Andrew to distribute to hunger organizations.   Wesley Foundation staff and students connected with other student volunteers ...

8/10/2017

There is an urgent need for construction teams in the Lumberton, NC region, which is still recovering from significant damage from Hurricane Matthew. The North Carolina Annual Conference shared that there is a need “like never before” for volunteer teams in August, September and throughout the fall. Teams are need for framing, roofing, electrical, and plumbing assistance. Any and all volunteers are welcome, but the need for those skilled in these four areas are critical at this point. To ...

8/9/2017

Michael Black and Nathan Brasfield (center) with EarthKeeper facilitators Susan Mullin, John Hill, Jenny Phillips, and Jerome Sahabandhu Michael Black, a member of Decatur First UMC, and Nathan Brasfield, a student at Candler School of Theology, recently joined the ranks of five previous EarthKeepers in the North Georgia Conference. From August 1-6, Nathan and Michael received training through Global Ministries at Mount Sequoyah Retreat Center and commissioning at Trinity United Methodist ...

7/21/2017

Here’s an opportunity for office volunteers that could be fun for individuals or “friend groups” of 2 or 3 people from a church. VOLUNTEERS NEEDED UMCOR is seeking willing volunteers to help make badges for dedicated early response team members and others who respond to humanitarian need following disasters. An UMCOR badge reassures survivors and officials alike of the wearer’s connection to UMCOR and the people of the United Methodist Church. Volunteers for badge-making will receive training,...

6/22/2017

The North Georgia Conference Bridges partnerships are based on a 50/50 relationship between our Conference and Methodist mission colleagues around the world. Rev. Herzen Andone, Conference Director of Connectional Ministries, gave an update to members of the 2017 Annual Conference on three Bridges. The Bridge to El Salvador has been active every year since its launch, according to Andone. Two teams from the LaGrange District and one from LaGrange College travel to El Salvador each year and are ...