Renowned British Preacher to Lead Series of Events Celebrating Great Preaching at Lake Junaluska

LAKE JUNALUSKA, N.C. – Renowned British preacher, Dr. Reginald Mallett of England, will be preaching “Offer Them Christ” worship services in celebration of his 44 years of preaching and ministry at Lake Junaluska. Dr. Mallett has been compared to preaching great Billy Graham, as he has conducted preaching missions in many United Methodist Churches throughout the Southeastern Jurisdiction over the years. Visitors will have many chances to attend a service lead by Dr. Mallett, as he will be leading the Great Preaching Celebration, preaching at the Associates Weekend, The Older Adult Gathering, and several sermons at The Gathering of the Laity.

“Dr. Mallett is one of the most popular and sought-after preachers ever to preach at Lake Junaluska,” said Jimmy L. Carr, Executive Director. “He joins many other great preachers and speakers that have spoken at Stuart Auditorium, like Billy Graham, Jimmy Carter, Richard Nixon, and John Glenn.”

The worship services for The Great Preaching Celebration will be held on Thursday night, August 6th at 7:30 p.m. in the Harrell Center and on Sunday night, August 9th at 7:30 p.m. in the Stuart Auditorium. The services will also feature performances by Dr. Glenn Draper and the Junaluska Singers. The Sunday night Celebration Worship Service will be a time of testimonies and recognition of Dr. Mallett’s ministry and conclude with a sermon by Dr. Mallett. He will also be preaching Sunday morning’s worship service at 10:45 a.m. in the Stuart Auditorium.

Dr. Mallett will also be preaching during the Associates Weekend which will be held on August 7- 9 at 7:30 p.m. in the Stuart Auditorium. Associates Weekend will also feature the Bailey Mountain Cloggers and the Balsam Range Band, followed by a reception honoring Chief Junaluska 2009 in the Harrell Center.

Dr. Mallett will be the featured speaker at the “Older Adult Gathering,” August 10-13. The theme of the gathering is "To Serve the Present Age." It will include such things as worship, Bible study, workshops, and fellowship. The gathering is designed for older adults, as well as for persons working with older adults in their congregations.

Dr. Mallet has indicated that 2009 will probably be the last year that he and Brenda will be coming to the States.

When asked why he has continued to come back to the lake year after year, Dr. Mallett said, “Most of us have special places where we are acutely aware of God’s presence. For me, as for many, Lake Junaluska, North Carolina, is such a place. The setting is magnificent. The peacefulness of the lake and the surrounding majestic mountains speak powerfully of their Creator. Time and again we have been thrilled to hear the lordship of Christ affirmed and the challenge to Christian commitment presented.”

Dr. Mallett has written several books, some of which are autographed and will be available for purchase at the Branscomb-Allen Administrative Building at Lake Junaluska.

For further information about any of these events, please call 1-800-222-4930 or visit www.lakejunaluska.com/greatpreaching.aspx.

Intergenerational Event Grows Along with Participants’ Spiritual Lives

NASHVILLE, Tenn., June 1, 2009/GBOD/ — “Show me your ways, oh Lord,” cries the psalmist (Psalm 25:4). That is the theme this year for the Upper Room’s annual SOULfeast (www.upperroom/soulfeast) event to be held July 12-16 at Lake Junaluska, North Carolina.

The annual spiritual formation event will bring outstanding speakers and workshop leaders to guide people of all ages, both clergy and laity, who are searching for direction along their faith journey.

The Rev. Trevor Hudson, a best-selling author and pastor of Northfield Methodist Church in Benoni, South Africa, will be the featured speaker and preacher. “He has a very intimate way of sharing his stories and illuminating the Gospel,” says Sherry Elliot, who is coordinating the event for the Upper Room. The Upper Room is an ecumenical ministry of the United Methodist General Board of Discipleship.

Other preachers are the Rev. Vance Ross, deputy general secretary of GBOD; the Rev. Marjorie Thompson, a Presbyterian pastor and author of many resources of the Companions in Christ series; and the Rev. Jasmine Smothers, co-chair of the United Methodist Southeastern Jurisdiction’s Division on Ministries with Young People.

Smothers will be leading a new young adult component to SOULfeast. SOULfeast is an intergenerational event, and many young people have grown up attending. The young adult activities are designed to support those who have already graduated from high school and looking for their own way to grow spiritually along with their peers.

“We are one of the few intergenerational conferences in the church,” Elliot says. “A lot of our clergy are there and it allows them to bring their families.”

Nevertheless, SOULfeast is not just for clergy and their families. “We have soccer moms to seminary professors all gathered at this one event,” Elliot continues. “It just pulls together the best of Upper Room’s audiences.”

In 2001, SOULfeast drew 235 participants, last year there were 506 people. Organizers expect even more this year.

There are many and varied workshops to guide people along their faith journey. From “Hooping as a Spiritual Discipline” to “Finding God on the Internet,” from “Spirituality and Photography” to “Faith Questions for a Facebook Generation,” there is something for everyone.

Each day will have its own theme, following Christ on his own journey from baptism to the cross and Resurrection. On each step of the journey, participants are invited to examine their own steps. Attendees will walk on “the Way to the Jordan,” “the Way to Galilee,” “the Way up the Mountain,” “the Way into Jerusalem” and “the Way from the Empty Tomb.”

Many of the leaders and other authors will be on hand to sign their books including Hudson, Thompson, Mary Lou Redding, Daniel Vestal, Mindy Caliguire, Patricia Wilson and Derek Maul.

July will soon be here, so respond now. Let God rejuvenate your spiritual life.

Teens and young adults are entitled to a discounted rate of $75. Adult registration is $150, and children may attend for $60. Visit www.upperroom/soulfeast for more information. For lodging call (800) 222-4930

“The Sabbath Wire” – February 25, 2009
By Bishop Mike Coyner and shared here by Bishop Dick Wills

I bring your greetings on this Ash Wednesday as we begin the 40-day journey of Lent toward the Easter celebration.

Having returned recently from our trip to the Holy Land, I want to share with you the story of the Sabbath Wire as a reminder that we should not make the season of Lent a rigid set of rules but an opportunity for spiritual focus. Here is the story:

Every time I go to the Holy Land (this was my fourth trip), I see something new and learn something new. This trip it was the Sabbath Wire which surrounds the upper city of Tiberius on the Sea of Galilee. Our group stayed in lower Tiberius, along the Sea in a beautiful setting which includes hotels, docks for fishing boats, hot springs, and a modern city. However there is also an upper Tiberius which is home to a large population of very devout and Orthodox Jews. On this trip our guide pointed out that the upper city is surrounded by a Sabbath Wire, which looks much like a set of telephone poles with a single wire. The wire surrounds the city and marks the limit of a “Sabbath day’s journey” from the center of the town. It is there to prevent any devout Jew from walking too far on the Sabbath. The wire keeps them from breaking the Sabbath rule about “working” by walking too far. Likewise in the hotel where we stayed in Jerusalem there was a Sabbath elevator which automatically went up one single floor at a time without any buttons being pushed – because, again, to push a button is considered “work” and a violation of the Sabbath.

The sad thing, to me, about such rigid rules is that they actually miss the point of the Sabbath. In the Hebrew scriptures, the Sabbath is for rest, reflection, prayer, family time, and pleasant walks to enjoy God’s creation. So the rule about a “Sabbath day’s journey” is all about taking a pleasant stroll. How sad that a good thing – taking a stroll and enjoying God’s creation – has become a rigid rule complete with a wire to mark the limit of walking too far.

I trust that we will not make Lent into a time that is so rigid we miss its point. The point of Lent is prayer, preparation, reflection, repentance, and getting ready for Easter. It is not about giving up desserts or chocolate or some of the silly rules we have put upon ourselves. I suppose it is our rebellion against such silly rules that has caused so many of us to ignore Lent altogether.

Surely there must be a balance here so that we can gain the spiritual growth of Lent without hindering ourselves with rigid rules and superficial sacrifices. I hope that you will have a meaningful season of Lent, one which allows you to focus upon your journey of faith with Jesus. God bless you!

from Bishop Michael J. Coyner
Indiana Conference of The United Methodist Church

Bishop Wills' Life Journal entry for January 11, 2009: Blessed To Be A Blessing

S: Genesis 28:15 (The Message)
All the families of the Earth will bless themselves in you and your descendants. Yes. I’ll stay with you, I’ll protect you wherever you go, and I’ll bring you back to this very ground. I’ll stick with you until I’ve done everything I promised you.

O: Jacob heard God speak. The message was this: “Jacob, you are blessed and will be a blessing. I have a purpose for your life, and I’m going to complete it. I am with you and will not give up on you”

A: Sometimes it is difficult for me to see my way as a follower of Jesus. Like many people I want to be blessed by God. When I do not feel blessed, then these are the times I have a tendency to wander away from God and God’s Will. By that I forget I am to live as a person of faith and prayer who gives witness to the Jesus to lives in me.

What I read this morning reminds me I AM BLESSED ! Even when I feel sorry for myself, I am blessed especially when I look around at the other people in the world.

The important lesson given to Abraham and to Jacob is this: I am blessed, but these blessings from God are not for me. Genesis 12:2 I am blessed to be a blessing to others (my translation). Any blessings from God in my life are given me so I can be a blessing to others. This is a principle all followers of Jesus must realize if we are to find God’s purpose for our lives.

I once served a church which was blessed in unusual ways. The Bible taught me to teach our people that we were very blessed (even though there were many problems). This blessing was not for our church, but rather the blessing was so we could be a blessing to others. Since we were blessed, this translated to paying the first 13% of everything we received in offerings that weekend to the Conference for our apportionments. Like the tithe, we gave more than a tithe by writing a check each Monday to the Conference to be applied to our Apportionment askings. We were blessed and we had to live into being a blessing to others. We did this by trusting God. We learned to trust God that the other 87% of the offering would be enough for that week as a church.

Being a blessing means more than giving money to Conference Apportionments. It means giving our blessings to people no one else wanted. That was my purpose and the purpose of our church.

Even in the hardest times, I could trust God was with me (us) and would not give up on us.

P: Father thank you for the many blessings in my life. Help me to remember each day these blessings are not for me. They are blessings so I can be a blessing to all who you send into my life. Thank you! Love, Dick

Y: I give up the notion of just wanting blessings from God just for myself.

Bishop Wills’ Life Journal entry for January 4, 2009 – “A New Year Commitment”

S: Genesis 9: 1 (The Message)
God said, “Prosper! Reproduce! Fill the Earth! Every living creature – birds and fish – will fall under your spell and you will be afraid of you. You’re responsible for them.

O: All of nature is God’s gift to all of us. Every person should feel responsible for all of the life on our planet. We are responsible.

A: In these days, I am more aware than ever how important it is to be good stewards of God’s creation. There was a time when I took creation for granted. I was careless about the planet and what I was doing to harm creation. I was a good person, but careless.

This morning this scripture reminds me as I begin a new year, I must take extra steps to care for this world of ours. For me it means a lot of little things. Recycle papers, plastic and anything else which can be used again.

It means not driving places where I could walk or use public transportation. It means driving a hybrid car and being conscious of my carbon footprint everyday. (actually I had never thought of my carbon footprint until recent years).

It means for me not to take any living thing for granted. All of life is God’s gift to me and every other person.

In this new year I want to be a better steward of creation. I want to take specific steps to be a good steward. After all, just as God told Noah he was responsible, so too I am responsible for all of creation.

P: Lord, thank you for this day. Help me be aware of all the things I can do to be a better steward of all of life. Love, Dick

Y: I will be conscious of my responsibility to care for all of creation