Medley has served in the position for three four-year terms, originally taking office on January 1, 2002. Medley’s new term will begin on January 1, 2014, and will end on December 31, 2015.

ABCUSA President Ruth Clark said, “We are delighted that Dr. A. Roy Medley will serve as General Secretary of American Baptist Churches USA through 2015. This additional two-year term will allow us to work together to insure that the Transformed by the Spirit initiative will spread throughout the denomination and become part of our mission DNA. We are grateful for his leadership and vision and pray God’s blessing on him as he continues his leadership.”

Discussing his continuing service as General Secretary, Medley said, “For everything there is a season – a time to plant and to build. I want to see the initiatives we have recently planted be watered and cultivated so that their roots might sink deep into our life as a community of faith. It is my hope that by serving another two years beyond the end of my current term as General Secretary, I might be able to tend these tender shoots of renewal and hope as they become mature and established.”

As General Secretary, Medley has focused his ministry in several key areas. His vision for the denomination is a fellowship of strong, missional churches, focused on spreading the Good News of Jesus Christ and “serving as the hands and feet of Christ.” He has supported work among Baptists worldwide, particularly areas like Burma, once associated with American Baptist missions. Medley also serves as President-Elect of the National Council of Churches of Christ.

Peace issues have been an important focus for Medley, who has been instrumental in bringing together Baptists and Muslims in dialogue to explore common ground between the two faith traditions.

American Baptist Churches is one of the most diverse Christian denominations today, with over 5,200 local congregations comprised of 1.3 million members, across the United States and Puerto Rico, all engaged in God’s mission around the world.

God’s Graffiti is a motivational resource for youth and an educational tool for youth leaders and seminary students. Each chapter contains questions for digging deeper for further exploration and to aid in self reflection.

“Using profound examples from the Bible, Romal Tune teaches that you are not alone in this world, as many others have travelled down similar paths. Read and apply the precepts in God’s Graffiti and discover how much God loves you and how you can learn to love yourself.” —Sean Covey, Author, Motivational Speaker, Senior Vice President of Innovation at Franklin Covey

About the Author:
Romal Tune is Founder and Executive Administrator of two touchstone organizations dedicated to connecting faith communities, corporate and public entities, social-change advocates, and underserved young people: the national non-profit Faith For Change, which solicits community involvement with high-needs schools, and FFC Consulting, which engages and connects companies and organizations with the faith-based community at large. A regular contributor to the Huffington Post as well as other publications, Tune is also a popular motivational speaker and teacher. He graduated magna cum laude from Howard University and Duke Divinity School.

Format:  Trade Paper Size: 5.5″ x 8.5″ Pub Date: June 2013
ISBN: 978-0-8170-1733-0 Price: $13.99 Distribution: Spring Arbor/Ingram Book Co.
Cat: Christian Ministry/ Pages: 151 Anchor Distributors, STL Distribution, Baker & Taylor Youth

About Judson Press:
Founded in 1824, Judson Press is a publishing ministry of the American Baptist Home Mission Societies, American Baptist Churches USA. It is committed to producing Christ-centered leadership resources for the transformation of individuals, congregations, communities, and cultures.

American Baptist Churches is one of the most diverse Christian denominations today, with over 5,200 local congregations comprised of 1.3 million members, across the United States and Puerto Rico, all engaged in God’s mission around the world.

During this high-intensity three-day weekend, about 40 participants will explore God’s call on their lives with experienced missionaries, global leaders and IM staff, many of whom are former missionaries themselves.

“Embracing My Call” will be the topic of two morning sessions led by  the Rev. Dr. Lee B. Spitzer, executive minister and senior regional pastor of the American Baptist Churches of New Jersey. Author of books on discipleship and the spiritual journey, Spitzer has preached the gospel and taught on spirituality in the former Soviet Union, Estonia, Japan, Myanmar (Burma), the Philippines, Brazil, Egypt, the Congo, Zambia, Uganda and Haiti.

Part 1 of Spitzer’s two-session workshop will focus on “Embracing My Call – A Spiritual Journey Perspective.” The group will explore the following questions:

·         How do I discern if it is God’s will to become a missionary?

·         How does God prepare a person to become a missionary?

·         How do I discover where God wants me to serve and what ministries I should embrace?

In Part 2 “Embracing My Call – A Friendship Circles Perspective,” Spitzer will delve more deeply into critical relational aspects of missionary service. The group will discuss:

·         How will my possible call impact my circles of friendship?

·         How do I communicate my possible call to my friends and other people?

·         How do I enhance and grow my friendship circles as I embrace my missionary call?

“We are very excited about Lee’s topics,” noted Rev. Jim Bell, IM’s director of Recruitment. “It will encourage prospective missionaries to really attend to their need to cultivate spiritual and relational vitality for long-term missionary service.”

Other featured speakers include: Rev. Dr. Stan Slade, IM global consultant Theological Education and IM associate executive director Program, and Dr. Reid Trulson, IM executive director and former missionary in Europe. The worship leader is Mr. Jared Messer, various worship leader at churches and events for over 20 years.

In addition to the workshops, participants will take part in worship, inspirational messages, interactive sessions and personal reflection time. They will combine to make this a powerful discernment experience.  Participants will leave with a clear understanding of next steps.

To see the full schedule, read biographies on the speakers and to register, go to http://www.internationalministries.org/read/47661-embrace-the-cause-retreat.

The cost for the three-day conference is $80, plus meals and housing. Limited scholarship help is available from International Ministries. Write to recruitment@internationalministries.org or call 800 222-3872 ext. 2245.

For more information, contact Jim Bell: jim.bell@abc-usa.org.

American Baptist International Ministries was organized in 1814 as the first Baptist international mission agency in America. It began its pioneer mission work in Burma and today works in Asia, Africa, Europe, the Middle East and the Americas serving more than 1,800 long-term and short-term missionaries. Its central mission is to help people come to faith in Jesus, grow in their relationship with God, and change their worlds through the power of the Spirit. It works with respected partners in over 70 countries in ministries that meet human need.

American Baptist Churches is one of the most diverse Christian denominations today, with over 5,200 local congregations comprised of 1.3 million members, across the United States and Puerto Rico, all engaged in God’s mission around the world.

Preaching Funerals in the Black Church: Bringing Perspective to Pain by Peter M. Wherry is an invaluable guide for ministering to families and the community in times of grief, dying, and death. This resource offers practical wisdom transcending traditions, cultures, and faith perspectives.

Chapters include practical wisdom about:

• How “preaching” begins long before the funeral service starts
• Finding and selecting the text
• How to make the most of sermon structure in funeral preach

Preaching Funerals in the Black Church: Bringing Perspective to Pain provides sermons by noted preachers that demonstrate effective methods and structure. Contributors include:

• Claude R. Alexander Jr.
• Brad Braxton
• Nathan Dell
• Debra Haggins
• Toney L. McNair Jr.
• Gregory K. Moss
• Peter M. Wherry
• Mary H. Young

This work is intended both for seminarians and scholars as well as for pastors who crave an accessible but substantial resource for priming the pump for preaching when the burden of grief and the busyness of ministry cause inspiration to run dry.

About the Author:  
Peter M. Wherry, MDiv, DMin, currently serves as pastor of Mayfield Memorial Missionary Baptist Church in Charlotte, North Carolina. In more than thirty years of ministry, he has had experience in a wide variety of settings, as pastor, preacher, professor, and musician. He has ministered internationally and preached from coast to coast in the United States. He has taught courses at Regent University in Virginia Beach, Virginia, and the Samuel DeWitt Proctor School of Theology in Richmond, Virginia, and he serves as doctoral advisor at Hood Theological Seminary in Salisbury, North Carolina. 

Format:  Trade Paper             Size: 5.5″ x 8.5″          Pub Date: June 2013
ISBN: 978-0-8170-1735-4      Price: $13.99              Distribution: Spring Arbor/Ingram Book Co.
Cat: Christian Ministry/       Pages: 138                  Anchor Distributors, STL Distribution, Baker & Taylor
Preaching/Pastoral Resource

About Judson Press:
Founded in 1824, Judson Press is a publishing ministry of the American Baptist Home Mission Societies, American Baptist Churches USA. It is committed to producing Christ-centered leadership resources for the transformation of individuals, congregations, communities, and cultures.

American Baptist Churches is one of the most diverse Christian denominations today, with over 5,200 local congregations comprised of 1.3 million members, across the United States and Puerto Rico, all engaged in God’s mission around the world.

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“Be still and know that I am God.” – Psalm 46:10

“Do you struggle for balance between prayer and activity?”
This question, which sits atop the “Rhythms of the Spirit” website, is an invitation. Yes, to the conference, but most importantly, by it we are each invited into honest reflection and prayerful examination of the rhythm and balance of life in the Spirit “playing out” in our lives. I will tell you: it has served to do this in me!

“Do you struggle for balance?”
Yes. In fact, I recently awoke to the awareness that I had lost my balance. It was a loss that had developed gradually, as one “yes” followed another, this good work was added to that, and one more meeting was scheduled after another (there is, after all, always more to do in the name of God). And so it was that, as the calendar filled and the tempo of the days accelerated, the healthy rhythms of my life were overwhelmed by the noise and pace of what Henri Nouwen once called “many-ness and much-ness.”

What was it that fostered this awakening in me? It was an intentional time of silence and solitude . . . a scheduled stopping and stilling . . . days of paying attention. For, even as my daily rhythms eroded, the structure of my larger life and ministry is built around a rhythm of engagement and sabbatical. Thus, according to the calendar, by the grace of God, and due to the wisdom of the faith community I serve, it was time to be still.

“Be still and know . . .” It was a gentle rising, birthed by the Spirit in a seemingly unrelated collection of moments occurring over the course of the month. I observed a group of swallows dipping and diving, and then resting between performances. I began to watch our resident hummingbird (the epitome of perpetual motion, right?) return repeatedly to the same spot on a power line to cease all activity and simply sit. And he does so every day. And then, grace upon grace, I found myself cradling my newly-born granddaughter in my arms; wondering over her, looking into her eyes, and absorbing the essential truth: this is what it means to receive and rest in love freely outpoured . . . Now I am well on the way to finding a new rhythm, guided by the Spirit and accompanied by faithful companions on the way.

In “A Hidden Wholeness,” Parker Palmer likens the soul to a wild animal that emerges only as we “walk quietly” and “sit patiently.” I understood this the day a doe and her yearling appeared within yards of where I sat in silence and solitude. I believe the same is true and necessary for discerning the rhythms of the Spirit. The turn – or return – to a Spirit-guided rhythm is accomplished by the ceasing of the arrhythmia that so easily becomes our norm. In the space thereby created, the Spirit invites honest reflection and guides us into places of fresh rhythm and new balance.

The psalmist reveals that deep relational knowing is nurtured in stillness. It is for this reason that the “Rhythms of the Spirit” conference is being created and offered. I encourage you to join me for this time set aside for syncing our souls to the ways of the Spirit. Balance doesn’t need to be a struggle.

Jeff Savage
Pastor, First Baptist Church of Springfield, Oregon

Through the SYFF Program, ABF is helping churches to develop a planned giving program in three major phases:  Vision, Communication and Celebration.  Begin this transformative process with a conversation with American Baptist Foundation.

• First, based on mission and vision, ABF works with ministry leadership to develop a ministry-sustaining pathway to build a legacy fund for their church,
• Then, ABF supplies guidance, education and resources to assist the church in achieving its goals.
• Finally, ABF provides professional investment & endowment resources along with planned giving administration services.

Click here for more information on SYFF resources

For more information, contact us by email at abfadmin@abc-usa.org or by phone at 610-768-2035.
American Baptist Churches is one of the most diverse Christian denominations today, with over 5,200 local congregations comprised of 1.3 million members, across the United States and Puerto Rico, all engaged in God’s mission around the world.

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Registration is now CLOSED.  On-site registration will be available in Overland Park on Wednesday, June 19, 2013, at 4:00pm.

Visit www.americanbaptists2013.com for more information!

New Jersey
While the first two weeks of the Hurricane Sandy response effort “Coming Together for New Jersey…Rebuild, Renew and Restore” took place May 4-11 and June 1-8, volunteers are needed July 13-20 and Aug. 10-17. This effort is co-sponsored by American Baptist Churches of New Jersey. 

Louisiana
Continuing eight years after hurricanes Katrina and Rita ravaged the Gulf Coast, Ecumenical Work Week is slated for Aug. 4-10 in New Orleans. This year’s effort will once again include painting, laying sheet rock, cutting grass and running errands. Neither construction skills nor training is required. Unskilled volunteers will be supervised by skilled workers.

Oklahoma
American Baptist Men USA is currently providing tornado cleanup in Moore, Okla., but ABHMS seeks additional volunteers to send via Cooperative Baptist Fellowship. From debris removal to donation resource center work, volunteer opportunities for all ages and skill levels are available. A $10 charge per person per day provides sleeping space, showers and three meals.  Please bring your own bedding and tools if possible. 

For additional information and to register for volunteer mission opportunities, visit www.abhms.org and click “Volunteer,” or contact Victoria Goff, ABHMS national coordinator, Volunteer Ministries, at victoria.goff@abhms.org, 800-222-3872, x2449, or 610-768-2449.

 American Baptist Home Mission Societies—the domestic mission arm of American Baptist Churches USA—ministers as the caring heart and serving hands of Jesus Christ across the United States and Puerto Rico through a multitude of initiatives that focus on discipleship, community and justice.

American Baptist Churches is one of the most diverse Christian denominations today, with over 5,200 local congregations comprised of 1.3 million members, across the United States and Puerto Rico, all engaged in God’s mission around the world.

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Conference attendee Curtis Ramsey-Lucas, managing director, Resource Development, American Baptist Home Mission Societies (ABHMS), welcomed the dialogue. “We need a new conversation about mental health services and supports—one that addresses the stigma of mental illness that too often prevents persons from seeking treatment,” says Ramsey-Lucas.

The event convened advocates, elected officials, faith leaders and others to discuss ways to reduce the stigma of mental illness.

 “Too many Americans who struggle with mental health illnesses are still suffering in silence, rather than seeking help,” said Obama. “And we need to see [to] it that men and women who would never hesitate to go see a doctor if they had a broken arm or came down with the flu, that they have that same attitude when it comes to their mental health.”

For its part, ABHMS continues to encourage American Baptists to make use of “Grounded in Faith: Resources on Mental Health and Gun Violence.” This compendium of resources can be used to initiate conversations among students, parents, neighbors and colleagues with conflicting views; to provide guidance to study groups and workshops; to support advocacy to protect the rights and dignity of people with disabilities; and to inform national organizations, state and federal policy makers and officials about this complex subject.

A project of the Interfaith Disability Advocacy Coalition (IDAC), of which ABHMS is a member, “Grounded in Faith” was published in April by the American Association of People with Disabilities and is available on ABHMS’ website at www.abhms.org > Ministries & Programs > Justice Ministries > Disabilities Ministries.

The mission of IDAC is to mobilize the religious community to take action on disability policy issues with Congress, the president and administration, and society at large. IDAC is a diverse, nonpartisan advocacy coalition of 32 national religious organizations—including Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu and Sikh traditions—whose core spiritual values affirm the rights and dignity of people with disabilities. ABHMS provides leadership for the coalition through participation on its steering committee.

American Baptist Home Mission Societies—the domestic mission arm of American Baptist Churches USA—ministers as the caring heart and serving hands of Jesus Christ across the United States and Puerto Rico through a multitude of initiatives that focus on discipleship, community and justice.

American Baptist Churches is one of the most diverse Christian denominations today, with over 5,200 local congregations comprised of 1.3 million members, across the United States and Puerto Rico, all engaged in God’s mission around the world.

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This model cell—part of ABHMS’ Mission Summit exhibit—is intended as a prayer site. Built by former inmate José Ramón Alicea, the “prayer cell” expresses Alicea’s gratitude to God and reminds fellow followers of Christ to keep prisoners in their thoughts and prayers.

During Alicea’s incarceration, he and his family received care and inspiration through prayer support generated by ABHMS’s Prisoner Re-entry and Aftercare Ministry. After his release, Alicea witnessed God’s unfailing love through the encouragement of First Hispanic Baptist Church, Lancaster, Pa., which participated in the ABHMS ministry. He turned to Christ and was baptized March 24, 2013—a result of the ministry’s continued compassion and prayer.

Along with prayer support, ABHMS’ Prisoner Re-entry and Aftercare Ministry provides education about individual and family issues related to incarceration as well as resources and networking for churches that minister to released inmates, referred to as “returning citizens.” Churches can participate in many ways, from gathering essentials needed to re-enter society after incarceration—such as clothing and toiletries—to providing emotional counseling and job training.

ABHMS’ Prisoner Re-entry and Aftercare Ministry seeks to transform churches into “Stations of Hope,” where returning citizens can come for unconditional acceptance and hope. Stations of Hope congregations seek to walk alongside returning citizens to offer them a second chance and guide them in their new freedom.

ABHMS invites Mission Summit participants to visit Alicea’s prayer cell for contemplation and prayer.

For more information, visit www.abhms.org > Ministries & Programs > Justice Ministries > Prisoner Re-entry and Aftercare Ministry, or contact the Rev. Fela Barrueto, national coordinator, at fela.barrueto@abhms.org or 1-800-222-3872, x2493.   

To register for the Mission Summit/Biennial, visit www.abc-usa.org and click the “Mission Summit” logo.

American Baptist Home Mission Societies—the domestic mission arm of American Baptist Churches USA—ministers as the caring heart and serving hands of Jesus Christ across the United States and Puerto Rico through a multitude of initiatives that focus on discipleship, community and justice.

American Baptist Churches is one of the most diverse Christian denominations today, with over 5,200 local congregations comprised of 1.3 million members, across the United States and Puerto Rico, all engaged in God’s mission around the world.

Printable PDF