Friday September 25, 2009

Hello and welcome to the September 25 edition of the eSpirit of Wyoming!

A very short newsletter this week, as all hands are on deck around the Diocese focusing on CONVENTION!

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By Ms. Jessica Reynolds. Email: jessica@wyomingdiocese.org

Greetings from the windy city!
We are down to a week before convention. With that in mind, we are down to last call for those that would like to attend this year’s convention. If you have not done so, please let me know by Monday (September 28) if you will be attending all or part of the convention. Call the office at: 307-265-5200 or email me at jessica@wyomingdiocese.org.

Thanks,

-Jessica

43rd Annual Convention Agenda:
Thursday October 1
4-6~ Registration:
• The New Diocesan Office: 123 S. Durbin

7~ Opening Eucharist: Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori
• Grand Ballroom, Parkway Plaza

Friday, October 2
8:30~Worship:
• Grand Ballroom, Parkway Plaza

9-10~ Keynote Speaker: Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori
• Grand Ballroom Parkway Plaza

10-10:30~Honduras Mission Trip
• Grand Ballroom, Parkway Plaza

10:30-10:45~ Break

10:45-11:45~Ignite Mustard Seed
• Grand Ballroom, Parkway Plaza

11:45-Noon~Worship

Noon-1~Lunch
• American and Wyoming Rooms, Parkway Plaza

1-1:45~ Ignite Mustard Seed
• Grand Ballroom, Parkway Plaza
1:45-2:45~ General Convention Panel: The Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori, Bishop Bruce Caldwell, The Rev. Ann Fontaine and Dan Land
• Grand Ballroom, Parkway Plaza

2:45-3:00~Break

3:00-4:30~ Regional Discussion
• Each Region to have own room: See signs for details

4:30-5:00~ Breakout Groups
• Budget
o Cheyenne Room, Parkway Plaza
• Resolutions
o Shoshoni Room, Parkway Plaza

6:00~Reception
• Come have your picture taken with Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori
• Grand Ballroom, Parkway Plaza

7:00~ Dinner
• Grand Ballroom, Parkway Plaza

Saturday, October 3
8:30-9:00~ Worship:
• Grand Ballroom, Parkway Plaza

9:00-10:45~ Business Meeting
• Grand Ballroom, Parkway Plaza

10:45-11:00~ Break

11:00-12:00~ Foundation Business Meeting
• Grand Ballroom, Parkway Plaza

12:00-12:15~Noonday Prayer

12:15-1:30~ Lunch
• American Room, Parkway Plaza

1:30-3:00~ Business Meeting
• Grand Ballroom, Parkway Plaza

3:00-3:30~Break

3:30-5:00~ Business Meeting
• Grand Ballroom, Parkway Plaza

6:00~Reception
• Grand Ballroom, Parkway Plaza

7:00~ Bishop Caldwell’s Farewell Dinner

Sunday, October 4
8:30~Closing Eucharist: The Rt. Rev. Bruce Caldwell
• Grand Ballroom, Parkway Plaza

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By The Rev Kathy Robinson. Email: kathy@wyomingdiocese.org

Evangelism: Listening for God: Story Listening and Reflection

Kay Flores, a member of the diocesan evangelism team from St. Stephen’s, tells this story about her experience with evangelism this past summer.

I went to Wyoming Wilderness Camp aka HR Camp near Esterbrook, Wyoming during staff training. I arrived late in the evening just as the staff was relaxing with the movie "Australia." I watched with them, and enjoyed it a lot. The next morning, I spent time with the staff. We talked about the movie using two questions from the evangelism team: Who is the family? How do they show God's activity in the world? We had a great reflection - it was amazing to hear the staff members unpack the movie to get to where they saw God. We practiced the questions again using a story from my life.

We then moved to outdoor activities. The staff worked together on the high ropes course and on initiative games. After each activity, we asked the two questions. Each time, they were effective and opened up many thoughts about God and God's people.

Evangelism is about sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ. So what does Kay’s story have to do with evangelism? For many years, centuries really, Christianity was an integral part of our culture. But today we live with the sobering reality that up to 40% of the people in our towns and cities have never been a part of any church community. They don’t know the words, the symbols, the stories. For many of them Christianity is outdated nonsense at best or at worst the church is seen as a place of harsh judgment and hypocrisy. To share the Good News in such a world we must begin by first remembering that with Jesus Christ, God’s Kingdom – God’s Family – has already entered our world and is all around us. Seen this way, evangelism must begin by listening to all the stories that we hear and experience daily with the expectation that God will be active in their midst. This is what Kay did at HR camp. It is where evangelism needs to begin.

There are so many ways to do this. For Kay it was through reflecting on a movie, a personal story and a game. The Mustard Seed project is asking us all to use the two reflection questions to connect our work in the world with our faith. In Glendo we are beginning a new book study with a book about the value of skilled craftsmanship to see what it might say about God’s family. The possibilities are as endless as our imaginations. The key is practice practice, practice. All of this until we develop the “holy habit” of seeing God’s activity in the people we meet so that we may share the Good News with them through their stories and experiences.

So here is an invitation to all of you to have a little fun with your church friends and see how God’s family pops up in the most unlikely places. Need some help getting started? Check out the evangelism table at Convention or visit our website at wyoevangelism.ning.org.
 

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Check out Region 4 Ministry Developer The Rev Doug Wasinger's blog on his week to week happenings: http://holypilgrimage2009.blogspot.com/

Contact Doug at doug@wyomingdiocese.org

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