Northern Flow/Mohawk

Weekly Newsletter

February 20, 2025

Contacting Northern Flow/Mohawk District Office

If you are trying to reach the district office please use the following information:

DS Rev. Weeden mikeweeden@unyumc.org

Email tammymcadam@unyumc.org

Phone 315-535-5149

Mailing Address PO Box 208 Gouverneur NY 13642

Office Hours Monday - Friday 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

If you would like to sign up for our weekly newsletter or would like to have something posted please email me. Articles need to be sent in by Wednesday by 3:00 p.m..

Massena First UMC invites you to partner with our newly created Neighborhood Hub. Partners help in collecting supplies, assembling kits, distributing kits, becoming trained in Early Response, volunteer in the physical hub. These are just examples of what you can do. There are so many more tasks.

We have been tasked to begin by stocking our hub with 100 cleaning kits (previously called Flood Buckets). The demand has been so great that there is a need to restock these kits in the Hubs. To that end, we would invite you to collect supplies for the kits, and bring them to Massena First UMC, 189 Main St on March 1st at 12:00 noon.

At that time, we will provide lunch, information about being a hub and a partner with the hub and how your church can be involved. We will conclude by putting together kits based upon the supplies we have collected. We believe, that working together as partners, we can have a vital hub serving our area.

This is a huge project and so needed in our area that the more “partners” we can identify, the better we would all be served. We would love to work together with you in this effort. If you are interested in learning more about the efforts,

please call the church office (315-769-8036) or email me at pastor@massenafumc.org.

Upper New York Ministry Shares Brochure for 2025

Now Available

What are Ministry Shares and how do they affect you and your church?

The Upper New York Conference Council of Finance and Administration (CFA) breaks it down for you in a brochure.

The continuing story of Ministry Shares: sharing God’s gifts with the world 2025.

This printable brochure explains everything you need to know about

Ministry Shares–how they are calculated, where the money goes, and how they affect you.

Download Brochure Here

ERT Basic Training

Celebrate UMCOR Sunday a day early by joining an Early Response Team Training on March 29th! This training will give you the skills you need to make a difference when disaster strikes in your community. You’ll learn key skills like roof tarping, debris removal, and how to care for survivors.

Date: March 29th, 9:00 A.M. - 5:00 P.M.

Location: Rush United Methodist Church ( 6200 Rush Lima Rd, Rush, NY)

Cost: $35 (includes materials, lunch, background check, and ID badge)

Questions: disasterresponse@unyumc.org

Click button below to learn of upcoming Mission Related Events

Information Here

United Women in Faith Offer Grants That Support Women, Children, and Youth

The Upper New York Conference United Women in Faith is dedicated to fostering positive change in communities by offering annual grants to non-profit and church-based organizations. These grants aim to uphold the teachings of Jesus Christ by directly addressing the needs of women, children, and youth within the Conference boundaries.

The grant program, running from July 1 to June 30 each year, provides vital support for projects that promote well-being, equality, and empowerment. Eligible initiatives must align with at least one of the following areas:

Promoting Wholeness: Projects that nurture the physical, emotional, mental, or spiritual well-being of women, children, and youth.
Combating Racism: Programs working to eliminate institutional racism, protect cultural identities, and preserve languages.
Advocacy: Efforts that champion the rights and needs of women, children, and youth.
Leadership Development: Opportunities designed to cultivate leadership skills.
Empowerment: Initiatives that encourage women to actively participate in decision-making at all levels of their lives.

The application process requires careful preparation, including a fully completed form and a detailed budget. Applications that do not meet these requirements will not be considered. While the grants offer significant support, they come with restrictions: funds cannot be used for salaries, honorariums, rent, or building improvements.

This program reflects the unwavering commitment of the Upper New York Conference United Women in Faith to build stronger, more equitable communities by investing in the lives of those most in need. Non-profits and church organizations within the Conference boundaries are encouraged to seize this opportunity to make a meaningful difference.

Application

A Free Gift for Lent 2025: Rest and Renewal Small Group Study

This Lent, UNY is excited to offer you Rest for the Lenten Soul: A Journey of Trust and Renewal, a completely free 6-week study designed to help individuals and small groups discover the sacred rhythm of rest.

Created through our Compelling Preaching Initiative, this study invites churches to pause, reflect, and embrace the renewal only God can provide this Lent. This free resource offers everything you need for a meaningful Lenten study.

What you’ll receive:

Weekly Themes: Dive into scriptures and devotions focused on preparation, wilderness, renewal, abiding, trust, and resting at the cross.
Practical Guidance: Engage in reflection, group discussion, and journaling prompts designed to deepen your connection to God.
A Companion Journal: While the study is free, we encourage participants to explore the God’s People: Rest. Work. Play. Journal, available on Amazon.com, to enhance their experience.

Join us in embracing rest and trust as we walk with Christ this Lent.

Details at a Glance:

Suggested Dates: March 9 – April 19, 2025
Audience: Ideal for individuals, small groups, or entire congregations.

Rest Lent 6 Week Study

Download Your Study Here

WHAT IS A STEWARD?

I have a devotional book sitting on my desk at the church. I usually only have office hours one day a week, so I don’t read this daily. The book is Giving to God: The Bible’s Good News about Living a Generous Life by Mark Allan Powell. Chapter 2 starts with a verse of scripture: Think of us this way, as servants of Christ and stewards of God’s mercies. (1 Corinthians 4:1).

We talk about stewardship in the church, but I think we focus on it as a way to raise money. Are we really practicing stewardship? Are we stewards? Remember, God created everything, so that means we don’t have ownership; we are only stewards. If you hired (or asked) someone to keep an eye on your home when you’re on vacation, they are a steward of your stuff. They don’t own it; their only responsibility is to make sure your stuff stays safe and is in the same condition as it was when you left.

I think we forget that we are stewards. Too often, we forget we’re only stewards and start to think that the property entrusted to us is actually our own.

We are stewards of what God has done. We didn’t choose to be. We just are. Don’t feel bad; I’m not trying to make you feel guilty. How about if we look at being a steward as something better than just a hired hand? What if it is part of our calling as Christians and disciples? God has entrusted us with caring for God’s creation.

“We are the agents through whom God has chosen to bring about God’s purposes: love and joy and peace.” [1]

Look around God’s creation. How can we be God’s agents?

Look around the church. How can we be God’s agents?

Look around what you have “control of”. How can we be God’s agents?

Don’t focus on how what you see betters your life and you. Try focusing on how what you do with it changes lives.

So what do you see?

Feel free to contact me at sranousacctg@twcny.rr.com or susanranous@unyumc.org

[1] Giving to God, p. 29