Tonight we came together to praise God, to hear the holy word, and to seek for ourselves and others the power, presence, and direction of the Holy Spirit. We celebrated a sacred moment for 27 licensed local pastors, 18 provisional elders and deacons, two ordained deacons, and 16 ordained elders.  The magnificent Ben Hill UMC Choir set the tone for the service.  Rev. Dr. Alice Rogers preached on Paul's First Letter to the Corinthians, Corinthians 12:4-14, 26-34. She described the vast and ...

More than 600 laity gathered for the North Georgia Conference laity lunch on Wednesday, June 12. Speaker Dr. Tom Jackson, a long-time member of the Conference and an active member of Athens First UMC, spoke to the laity. Afterward many asked if he would share the text of his message and he agreed. His address is below: Address By Dr. Tom Jackson to the 2019 Laity Lunch   When Bill Martin extended his most gracious invitation to speak to you today, I was humbled, I was honored, and frankly, I ...

More than 2,000 North Georgia United Methodists and guests will arrive in Athens next week for the 2019 Annual Conference session. Bishop Sue Haupert-Johnson will preside over the four-day annual "family reunion" June 11-14. The focus will be on our theme, "One With Each Other." "I love to gather at Annual Conference to celebrate our common mission, share how we can better introduce folks to Jesus Christ, and energize our leadership to go home and serve sacrificially," said Bishop Sue. The ...

There is rich tradition at the North Georgia Annual Conference, but with each session, there are also exciting updates and changes to look forward to as we gather for our United Methodist Family Reunion! Here are a few new things to expect at Annual Conference 2019:  1 - Serving Together Our related agencies are coming together to host an afternoon of fun, service, and barbecue on Tuesday! The event will immediately follow the close of the June 11 afternoon session of Annual Conference. Be sure...

RESOURCES: Download a 1-minute video, bulletin and website verbiage, slide presentation, bulletin inserts and more.  Bishop Sue Haupert-Johnson has named the Pastoral Care Program of Wesley Woods as the recipient of the 2019 North Georgia Annual Conference Special Offering.       Your giving to the conference-wide offering will make it possible for more than 1800 older adults across the Wesley Woods communities to continue their faith journey with the support of a team of loving, compassionate ...

Photo: Dr. Gary Mason speaks at the East Belfast Mission in Northern Ireland in 2008 at an event attended by Queen Elizabeth.  Dr. Gary Mason, a world-renowned and heavily consulted Methodist pastor, will be our guest speaker at the 2019 North Georgia Annual Conference on the topic of peacebuilding and reconciliation. Mason directs a conflict transformation organization based in Belfast called "Rethinking Conflict." He spent 27 years as a Methodist clergy person in parish ministry in Belfast ...

Photo: Volunteers in action at an Action Ministries "We Serve" event in LaGrange! North Georgia Annual Conference related agencies are coming together to host an afternoon of fun, service, and barbecue! The event will immediately follow the close of the Tuesday, June 11, afternoon session of Annual Conference and all members are needed and encouraged to attend.  “Serving With Each Other,” will highlight our work together through our agencies and emphasize our conference theme. It will take ...

Continuing a tradition that began in 2017, clergy will form a processional into the Service of Licensing, Commissioning, and Ordination at the 2019 Annual Conference. The service will be Thursday, June 13, at 7:30 p.m. in the Theater of The Classic Center. Participating clergy will surround their new colleagues as an outward sign of welcome and covenant community in this service. All clergy are encouraged to participate. No registration is required, however, participants are asked to wear robes...

The North Georgia Conference Board of Laity has announced that a familiar face (and voice) will be this year's speaker at the Annual Conference Laity Luncheon.  Dr. Tom Jackson is an active member of Athens First UMC, a long-time lay member of the North Georgia Annual Conference, and a four-term member of the North Georgia Delegation to General Conference. Before retiring in 2017, Tom spent 27 years in the senior administration of the University of Georgia, the last nine of those years as Vice...

Members of the North Georgia Annual Conference will elect delegates to the 2020 General and Jurisdictional Conferences during the 2019 Annual Conference Session, June 11-14, at the Classic Center in Athens.  General Conference is the global gathering of The United Methodist Church where mission and ministry priorities are established and The Book of Discipline is reviewed for revisions. General Conference is the policy-setting body of The United Methodist Church. The 2020 General Conference ...