General Assembly Meeting June 25-July 4 - The 226^th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (USA) will meet from June 25,2024 through July 4, 2024. Commissioners will meet online for committee meetings on June 25-27. Commissioners will gather in Salt Lake City, Utah for plenary sessions from June 29 – July 4. 

If you would like to observe the work of the General Assembly, all 12 committee meetings and all plenary sessions will be livestreamed on the GA 226 homepage.  This homepage will have plenty of other useful information about the Assembly including the docket. Click here to learn more.

Please Check Your Church's Directory Page! We want to keep our Presbytery Directory as up-to-date as possible so it will be the most helpful for us all, but that cannot happen without your help. Please take a moment to open the directory (the password is presbyarkconnect, all lower case, no spaces) and make sure everything is correct on your church's page - staff? Clerk of Session? Contact information? If changes need to be made, email them to Julie Price.

Thank you so much!

Do you know someone who has the right combination of gifts and calling to serve on one of the presbytery committees or ministries? Well, it is Nominations season in the Presbytery of Arkansas and we are looking for more than a few good Presbyterians to help lead our ministries into the next chapter of our life together.

Do you feel called to serve Christ in a new way? The Presbytery of Arkansas needs volunteer leaders with wide-ranging gifts and skills. There are positions open on all committees and ministries. Click here to review the 2024 Nominations Form for information on open positions and the skills needed for each. This form can also be found at presbyark.org/Resources/Presbytery Documents.

With a little help from you, the Committee on Nominations will put together a slate of candidates for the October presbytery meeting and before you can say "BINGO!" we will be off and running in the new year with the class of 2027!

Update From The Board of Pensions - Visit Season of Rebuilding for information about the new plan and for the 2025 Decision Guide for Minister Benefits, a helpful tool to assist congregations and ministers with calculating dues for next year for the Covenant Package, Congregational Pastors Package, and Transitional Pastor’s Participation.

Boundaries Training Options - As we were reminded at last Presbytery meeting, the Book of Order requires that all pastors, including CREs, complete boundary training. If you have not turned in your proof of completing your training by August 31^st, you and your session will receive personal communication reminding you of your failure to complete this training and of the upcoming hard deadline. If you have not turned in your proof of completing this training by December 31^st, you will face disciplinary actions. 

Because no one wants any of our pastors to reach this point, here are two easy ways to meet this important requirement. The Synod of the Sun, through Leaderwise, offers specialized training for clergy to promote mental health, emotional resilience, and overall well-being. Participants leave with a personalized prevention plan. This training takes place over 2 days and is offered at NO COST to you. The next opportunity for this training takes place August 27-28. There are only 75 openings in each session and the next session won't take place until November, so click here and register today!

Your other option is to complete the Safe Gatherings “Clergy Ethics and Congregational Boundaries” course. This 2-hour, 7-module course addresses common predicaments posed by ministry life. A certificate of completion is presented upon successful passing of the final exam. You can complete this training at your own convenience, but it will cost you $29.  Click here to register. 

Whether you choose the free option that you complete over two days or the self-pay option that you complete in just two hours, get signed up today. Hopefully everyone will get this requirement taken care of before any of the deadlines hit!

Help for Church Education! The Presbytery Resource Team has been talking about forming a group made up of staff educators and lay people in the church that are in charge of Christian Education. The purpose would be to inspire each other by sharing ideas, resources, and information.

I am currently working on creating a list of these people along with their contact information. I have gone through our directory and paid staff are listed (hopefully all is current, so please check), but I need churches to contact me and let me know who is over their education. Please email information to Julie Price.

The Church Financial Leadership Coaching Program provides a trained coach to guide you to a better understanding of church finances. 

During this FREE 12-month program they will work with you to accomplish the following:

1. Establish goals for your time together. 

2. Face church finance and generosity challenges within your congregation. 

3. Think through a plan to create a culture of generosity within your congregation. 

This program is provided at no cost. Click here to learn more.

A New Cohort Opportunity! Your congregation is committed to living out the counter-cultural values of Jesus Christ, but how is that commitment changing the behaviors and culture in your community?

Preaching for Change  is a 2 year initiative that accompanies congregational leaders as they seek to embody antiracist practices as a way of being. Through the transformative work of worship, these practices have the potential to be a catalyst for change that leads towards liberation.

Applications to form a cohort are due on July 31.  If you are interested in learning more about this initiative and the possibility of working alongside other leaders in the Presbytery of Arkansas, email LeAnn Hodges, the Coordinator for the Preaching for Change Initiative.

Youthquake 2024! Youth in grades 6 through 12 are invited to attend YouthQuake on September 13-15, 2024! This youth conference is a Presbytery of Arkansas tradition and a highlight of the year. Youth can expect time in small groups, worship, a keynote speaker, music, and games all at our beloved Ferncliff Camp and Conference Center in Little Rock, AR.

Click here to learn more and register!

Social Media 101 online FREE workshop! The Presbytery's Resource Team has hired media specialist Christen Kinard to lead an online workshop on September 26 from 4:00 to 6:00 pm. This is your opportunity to bring along other people from your congregation that might be interested in learning the basics of building your church's social media presence and why this is so important for reaching people. This workshop will demystify social media platforms and teach you how to use them most effectively in connecting with your congregation and beyond.

Click here today and register!

Onward Leadership Institute 2024 - Join the Sharechurch community along with Adam Hamilton and Brian McClaren, September 25-27 in Leewood, KS, for their annual conference. You can attend in-person or online. This is a wonderful conference and folks from our presbytery are likely to be attending.

Click here for information and registration.

IMAGINE: Life in the Margins - Join the Synod of the Sun, November 6-8 in New Orleans and explore, listen, and learn from ministry partners and communities operating at the intersection of systemic poverty, structural racism, and congregational vitality.

Click here for more information and to register.

Mission Grants 2024, Round 2! Does your church have a dream for a new mission or of expanding a current one, but you don't quite have enough funds? The Mission of the Church Committee is offering grants of up to $1500 for qualifying projects.

Click here to learn more and register. The deadline to apply is July 15!

Church Financial Leadership Grants Available - If you are a pastor, commissioned ruling elder (CRE), a leader of a 1001 New Worshiping Community or a member of a stewardship team, the Presbyterian Foundation has Church Financial Leadership Grants available. The grants will enable you to institute best practices for church financial leadership, introduce you to new models of giving and stewardship, and offer you new ways to talk about money and form generous disciples within your church. Click here.

$1000 Grants Available From Columbia Seminary - The Wonder of Worship program at Columbia Theological Seminary is offering a second round of grants of $1,000 to congregations nationally looking to enhance the engagement of children in their corporate workspaces.

Wonder of Worship is funded through Lilly Endowment’s Nurturing Children Through Worship and Prayer Initiative. The aim of the national initiative is to support faith-based organizations as they help children grow in faith and deepen their relationships with God.

Click here to learn more and apply.

Six Tips for Assembling Disaster Kits - According to FEMA, of more than 3,000 counties in the United States, 99% of U.S. counties experienced a flood event from 1996 to 2022. Here in Arkansas, we know all too well the devastation of flooding and tornadoes. Disaster cleanup buckets are one of several pre-assembled kits Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA) invites individuals, groups, and congregations to prepare and donate as a tangible offering of compassion and care that can be shared with our neighbors in need at just the right time. Click here to learn more.

Persuasive Promotion for Church Leaders - For help on ideas to better promote your church events, Here is a recording of John Arnold's workshop on Persuasive Promotion. Everyone is also invited to join the Persuasive Promotion for church Leaders Facebook group.

Meet Doug Cartwright, new pastor at First, Harrison. Doug comes to us from the Presbytery of the Inland Northwest where he served a church in Post Falls, Idaho. For someone originally from Arkansas, who was ordained and installed in a congregation in Texas, this was a rather significant change heading that far north. After spending the past eight and a half years up in the Pacific Northwest, he said he sensed that another change was on the horizon. When he found out about the call open at First Presbyterian Church in Harrison, he could not help but wonder if this might be a place God was calling him to. After much prayer and discernment, he sensed that God was calling him back to his roots…to the actual town where he was born and raised. He says he is excited about the next chapter in this journey for him at FPC Harrison, and he cannot wait to see what God has in store.

Summer day camp event Sponsored by the AR Black Presbyterian Caucus in Monticello AR (Holmes Chapel) on June 1, 2024. We had 67 youth from the Caucus Churches (ages 4-18) attend the event. In addition, there were another 25+ adults to chaperone, prepare food, manage registration, distribute gift bags, etc. Pastor Goldmon and Rev Carrington led the praise and worship service. Workshop topics included: Money Management, FASFA, Neighborhood Safety, and Bullying.

Elder's Retreat Recap - On June 7-9, 24 elders from 17 different congregations gathered at the University of the Ozarks for an Elders’ Retreat sponsored by the Thriving in Rural Ministry Program. Elders were given a basic course on preaching by Stewart Smith, a practical course on the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper by Phillip Blackburn, and an introduction to public speaking by Professor of Media Communications at the U of O, Russell Jones. The purpose was to help Ruling Elders gain exposure to these vital areas of congregational life. Elders were able to explore their sense of call to pulpit and table, build relationships with one another, and reflect on the changing nature of the Church. One participant wrote of the experience, "I not only learned and was exposed to so much but I met amazing friends whom I will cherish.” All meals, lodging and expenses were paid by the Thriving in Rural Ministry program at the University of the Ozarks. There will be another gathering for Ruling Elders this fall, and we expect to have at least 3 Ruling Elder events in 2025. For more information about the retreat that just finished, or to express interest in future gatherings, email Phillip Blackburn