Discipleship Opportunities

Action and Advocacy 

The 2024 Peace with Justice Grant is now open for applications. Applicants must show their commitment to social justice advocacy. This includes advocacy for voting rights, immigration reform, gun violence prevention, human trafficking, and other justice-related concerns. The deadline is May 1.  Learn more and apply.

The Seeds of Security Annual Golf Tournament, which raises funds to assist domestic violence victims, will be held on Monday, May 13, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Hobbit’s Glen Golf Course in Columbia, Md. One option for those who want to support this important ministry of healing is to sponsor a hole during the tournament for $250. Individuals, groups, and churches can sponsor a hole and display a signature banner at the hole. Learn more.

Sign Up for the BWC Advocacy & Action Newsletter: The BWC’s Advocacy & Action Newsletter is a bi-monthly email with updates regarding the Advocacy & Action ministries, including our social action teams, legislative action, events, and announcements. This is a great way for individuals to stay updated on ways to get involved in the Advocacy & Action ministries. Sign up for the newsletter.

Mark your Calendars: 2024 Legislative Advocacy Days for federal legislation on Sept. 18; and for D.C. legislation on Oct. 23. 

Wellness and Missions

Churches asked to offer aid after bridge collapse: BWC churches are assisting Maryland officials to provide items to support the 136 foreign nationals residing on the seven ships stuck in the Port of Baltimore following the collapse of the Key Bridge. See the list of requested items and how you can help.

Mission u: Baltimore-Washington and Peninsula-Delaware Annual Conferences United Women in Faith and Wellness and Missions will host Mission u on July 20 at the Maritime Conference Center, Linthicum Heights, Md.

Applications for the BWC’s Quality of Life retreats for people living with HIV/AIDS, which will be held May 13 (for women only), Sept. 12, and Dec. 9, are now online. Learn more and apply.

Young People's Ministry

The BWC’s Young People’s Ministry will hold a Mental Health Symposium on May 18 from 3:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the BWC Mission Center in Fulton. The symposium, with speaker Lauren Jenkins, will provide youth and young adults, ages 13 - 35, with a space to raise awareness about mental health and suicide, have meaningful discussions on the power of resilience and faith and, through creative expressive activities, explore the importance of hope and connection. All attendees will gain tools and resources to support and invest in their mental health. The symposium will be facilitated by licensed and certified mental health professionals.

Delicious Camp Fundraiser: West River Center and Chef David Jannsen will host their second Grazing on Maryland fundraiser dinner on April 28 from 4 to 7 p.m. at the center, at 5100 Chalk Point Road in West River. Join them for a casual evening raising funds for scholarships for the summer camp. Learn more about the farmers, watermen and artisans whose food will be featured. Buy tickets.

Spend your summer growing! BWC's Camp Manidokan and West River Center are hiring: gain job and communication skills, make friends, grow your faith, and have fun this summer on staff. Learn more.

Looking for mission opportunities for your youth?
Consider CAMP JOY 2024.  For more than 30 years, youth groups from the Baltimore-Washington and Pen-Del Conferences have served the Appalachian region by providing home repairs. When they’re not working, the youth tent camp at Camp Harmison in Berkley Springs, W.Va. The camp is scheduled for July 7 - 13 and 14 - 20. For more information, visit the Hancock UMC website or contact Pastor Becki Wessinger at 301-678-6440. Join the meeting at https://us02web.zoom.us/j/7749106935?omn=86576751993; Meeting ID: 774 910 6935.

CAMP HOPE is a youth ministry in which teams of youth work with adult leaders from their church for one week to serve a homeowner in Allegany County with home improvement needs. This year’s two camping sessions, based in Frostburg, will be held the first two weeks of July. For more information, contact ​ .

New Faith Expressions

So you want to repurpose your building: Repurposing church property effectively is more than just a real estate transaction. Join the Rev. Joe Daniels and leaders from Emory UMC in Washington as they share their story of going from a part-time appointment and a congregation that was presumed dead to a revitalized congregation that facilitated the construction of a $60 million multi-use building project with 99 units of affordable housing. Even though God’s dream for your community and the resulting project may have a different missional focus, the process of preparing for development is the same. Join in this half-day experience on  May 18. Learn more

Leadership

Your mind is your best friend. But it can also be your worst enemy. If you’d like to learn how to better align your actions with your values, then Positive Intelligence (PQ) is for you. When you go through the seven-week PQ program, you will:

• Learn what's behind your unhelpful, automatic reactions.
• Develop the mental fitness to neutralize those reactions.
• Grow in your ability to function as a non-anxious presence.

The Center for Vital Leadership is offering two free information sessions. If you’d like to learn more, join Rod Miller and Jack Shitama on Wednesday, April 17, at 10:00 a.m. or Thursday, April 18, at 5:30 p.m. to learn about PQ and how you can participate. Register for the info session by clicking your desired day and time.

Renew -- Clergy Renewal Retreat: Join other clergy April 30 - May 2 at Pecometh Riverview Retreat Center in Centreville, Maryland. This Living Well retreat, led by the Rev Andy McClain, will not over-program you. In fact, you’ll be able to share meals, take walks, and simply be together. Time with a spiritual director or masseuse is available at an additional cost. The $319 registration fee includes two nights at single occupancy and five meals. Learn more and register.

Clergy Ethics: The workshop Caring for Self & Others through Healthy Boundaries, will be presented by Rev. Lindsay Geist, LCSW on Thursday, May 16, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Grace UMC at 5407 N Charles St. in  Baltimore. There will be two components of this training: an online learning platform portion and an in-person portion. The May 16 event will include lunch. Successful completion will earn 1.0 CEUs. The firm deadline to register is Friday, April 5, by noon. Learn more and register.

Applications for the next class of Certified Lay Ministers of the Baltimore-Washington Conference, Class of 2024-2026, are now being accepted. Learn more. Prospective CLM students must currently be a Certified Lay Servant or Certified Lay Speaker and must consult with their pastor before beginning the process. The website contains an application and information to be shared with your pastor, along with the steps and deadlines that must be taken before you can register for the first class. Registration closes July 1. The next class will start in September and is a two-year commitment. Questions can be directed to Linda Flanagan, Conference Director of Lay Servant Ministries Note: Those interested in taking the CLM modules online through Beadisciple.com must also complete the application process above before registering for the online modules and meet the BWC requirements during the training.

Living Well Clergy Renewal Retreats: The Living Well Clergy Renewal Initiative is a seven-month cycle comprised of two retreats as well as monthly cohort meetings between the retreats to process learnings and support each other throughout the journey. This brand new spring-to-fall cycle will meet at West River Center on October 29-31, 2024 with a registration deadline of March 22, 2024. Successful completion of the Living Well program qualifies for 3.3 CEUs. Learn more and register now

Level Up: provides lessons in church leadership from the Rev. Jack Shitama of the Center of Vital Leadership. In these short videos, church leaders will discover some of the best and most influential principles in today’s secular writing about leadership. Learn from the experts about how to transform yourself and the world.  A new video will premiere each Monday.

Across the Connection

#BeUMC Leader Toolkit: This grassroots effort celebrates what draws us to The United Methodist Church and what we aspire to be. The #BeUMC Leader Toolkit includes new resources to help local churches embrace the campaign by including the "#BeUMC" hashtag in social media posts. Learn more.

The 2024 United Methodist General Conference will be held April 23 – May 3, 2024, at the Charlotte Convention Center in Charlotte, North Carolina. Delegates from Africa, Europe, Asia and the U.S. will attend the 11-day gathering.

The 240th session of the BWC Annual Conference will be held Wednesday, May 29, through Friday, May 30, at the Hilton Hotel in Baltimore.