Mission Together
Ministry Resources and Ideas for Church Leaders
March | 2022
Oakland Church Provides Meals for Those in Need

The Oakland Christian Church of Oakland, Iowa has taken on a new service project in their community.  On February 19th, members of the church gathered in their church kitchen to make up homemade meals to be distributed at a later time.

The meals were frozen and will be stored at the church until a need presents itself. When a need is discovered, members will deliver the meals to folks in the area who have had surgery or a loss in the family.

So far the ministry project has been well received by the congregation and community. Congratulations to Oakland Christian Church for trying something new, and for taking Jesus' call to feed the hungry seriously.

We hope that others may think about providing this sort of service in their community and taking care of their neighbors in this tangible way.

New Beginnings Christian Church in Urbandale, IA Becomes "Green Chalice Congregation"

New Beginnings Christian Church in Urbandale, Iowa recently became the region's newest Green Chalice congregation. Organizations that become certified by Green Chalice have made efforts to decrease their energy usage and carbon footprint, as well as meeting other sustainability goals.

Green Chalice is a ministry of our denomination and is dedicated to helping congregations, camps and seminaries "go green". As stated on their website, "Our mission is to connect Christian faith, spiritual practice and creation consciousness in order to demonstrate the fullness of God’s shalom."

To learn more about how to become a Green Chalice Congregation, Camp, or Seminary click here.

Congratulations, New Beginnings!
You are Invited to Participate in Ecumenical Advocacy Days

EAD 2022 calls us into solidarity to restore, protect, and expand voting rights in the United States and to realize human rights around the world. As people of faith, we know each person to be created in God’s image, imbued with dignity and having a voice that demands to be heard, heeded, and treated justly. We arise in unity, holding up a mirror to leaders of nations, putting injustice on display and tearing down the veil of oppression that obscures the beautiful, God-born light shining from within us all.

United States policymakers are citing election security to resurrect Jim Crow-era policies that restrict voting rights and further disenfranchise communities of color. States are withholding the right to vote from those with felony convictions, cruelly punishing them beyond the limits of a judge’s sentence. Smaller windows for early voting, reduced ability to vote by mail, and more restrictive ID rules make access to voting – a fundamental right – dependent on where you live. Our vote is our voice at the policy-making table; if a community isn’t represented at the ballot box, the issues affecting that community aren’t on the government’s agenda. This erasure of important voices shatters our national ideals and terminates the path to new creation envisioned by our faith.

We bear witness to a global increase in violent repression of journalists, activists, rights defenders, and social leaders. Political leaders around the world are using the pandemic as cover to boldly steal power and silence opposition through intimidation, torture, and murder. Our government is comfortably complicit in such abuses for economic gain and in the name of “national security,” but true security demands that human rights be protected everywhere. Those asserting the right to speak for their communities and shape policy should be free from fear for their lives. We are summoned by the Holy Spirit to act immediately in solidarity with the world, insisting on an end to repression and drawing attention to God’s image reflected in the rich diversity of humankind.
Global Ministries Prayer Calendar

Please hold these missionaries and their mission sites in your prayers.

March 6 – Brigitte Eale, Kenya

March 13 – Raul Santiago-Rivera, Puerto Rico

March 20 – John Campbell-Nelson, Indonesia

March 27 – Emmanuella Loccident, Morocco

Click here for weekly written prayers with an accompanying scripture verse for Global Ministries mission sites.


Regional Calendar of Events

March 4-6
UMwYC Meeting at the Christian Conference Center (Youth Retreats were canceled.)

March 15
Intern applications due

April 1-3
Junior Retreat at the Christian Conference Center

April 29-30
CCC Work Retreat

May 6-7
Committee on Ministry meeting

May 15
Installation of Regional Minister at the Christian Conference Center, 3pm

October 14-15
All Congregational Gathering of the Region

Keep Up with Mission & Ministry in the Upper Midwest

The start of a new year is a great time to make sure you receive all of the resources and news you want. Choose from up to 5 newsletters, including this one.


Interested in the Work of the Poor People's Campaign?

Click the image below to learn more.
Resources about Volunteers

The most recent magazine of the Insurance Board focuses entirely on church and ministry volunteers. There are many helpful resources in the Fall/Winter 2021 issue of The Steward, including an article on issues with volunteer drivers and how volunteers represent a church and its ministry, even if they are entirely unpaid. Read more here.
We Want to Hear about Your Ministry
Is your church doing something new or creative? Are you finding a unique way to serve a need in your community? We want to hear about it and share your story with the rest of the church! Our goal is to share at least one new idea from a congregation each time we publish this newsletter.

Please send your story to Tiff Williams, Associate Regional Minister, and she will get in contact with you about your ministry. Sharing your church's story could spark a new idea in a sister congregation. As Disciples Together, we will be stronger in our ministry to the world when we share what God is doing through us in our communities.
Christian Church in the Upper Midwest | www.uppermidwestcc.org