Voice of the Conference

Communications are vital for any organization, and the Global Methodist Church is no different. The GMC of Virginia has an amazing team working behind the scenes to help our congregations connect with our mission, with the leadership, and with one another. Near the beginning of this year Sarah Bailey stepped up to lead this vital team.

Sarah grew up in church, but true transformation came into her life as she came into her teen years. During that time when so many begin feeling disconnected and isolated, she pressed into the life of her church and youth group, and into God’s call on her life. In that pressing in, she found a place of belonging and love that has shaped her life and ministry. She is currently an elder in the Global Methodist Church and serves as the pastor of Clover Hill Church in Dayton, Virginia. It was the overwhelming desire to help others know the welcoming love that comes with belonging to Christ and His people that led her to allow God to transform frustration to service.

Sarah has been part of the team establishing and growing the GMC in Virginia from the beginning, and as with any new organization, we’ve had growing pains. One area of struggle in particular has been effectively communicating the work that’s being done for the kingdom and connecting those who are doing the work with those who need to hear about it so they can join in. As Sarah longed to see better connection and communication, that sense of discontent became a call to action. After much prayer she reached out to leadership to offer to join the Communications Team.

And God has been moving! When I asked Sarah about her favorite part of the job so far, she joked a bit about more meetings, but shared how fun and amazing it has been to have a “front row seat to some of the things God is doing.” Her efforts to build connections with the leadership, the Conference team, and others throughout the conference brings a sense of joy and organization to the work of telling God’s story here in Virginia.

I asked Sarah to share a little bit about her vision and plans for the Communications Team as we continue to move forward. She laid out three areas of focus:

1. Coordination of better sharing of announcements, events and resources while still sharing them in the greater context of our mission – to make disciples of Jesus Christ and spread scriptural holiness around the world.
2. To use our communications spaces to witness boldly to the good news of Jesus Christ, and what He is doing in Virginia, in our churches, and in the movement of the GMC around the world.
3. And her greatest passion and excitement – to grow into a resource that fosters connection throughout the conference, offering spaces for our people to connect, facilitating working together, and sharing the things we learn and encouragement as we grow together.

A few ideas for that last point… We are launching a new phase of the website soon that will include pages of resources for churches and a way for people across the conference to contribute ideas and tools that have helped them grow. We are exploring text group options, a central listing of missions based in Virginia, and other partnership opportunities to help us all partner together in God’s work.

Do you have friends, family, or church members who want to be better informed? Invite them to:

1. Sign up for the newsletter, prayer zoom reminders, and/or upcoming event emails and be sure to actually read them!
2. Like us on Facebook and Instagram – we use our social to share events, encouragement, information from our Conference leaders, and broader GMC information.
3. Consider joining the Conference Prayer Zoom (bi-weekly) or the Monthly Multiplication Prayer Zoom (1st Thursdays at noon) where we pray together and Conference leaders share a bit about what is happening in the Conference.

Are you feeling a little frustrated, disconnected, or out of the loop? Maybe God is calling YOU to be a part of communications here in Virginia. Consider a call to:

1. Volunteer!!!! – Our whole team is made up of volunteers, and most of us wear multiple hats. Many hands make light work. You can find specific skill sets that would be helpful here. But, more generally, we would love to have one or more members from every district in Viriginia on our Communications Team to help us stay in touch with what’s happening across this vast and glorious commonwealth.
2. Make sure we have up to date information for you and your churches – Many congregations changed names, websites, Facebook accounts, and even phone numbers during the last two years. We are working to make sure all our church information is up to date, but we need YOUR help.
3. Sharing is Helping – Follow us on social and share posts on Facebook and Instagram. Word of mouth is still the best communication, and social media shares are an easy word of mouth from you to your friends about what is happening in God’s kingdom here in Virginia.
4. Lastly – be praying for us! Nothing good happens in the kingdom of God without the help of God Himself. The Communications Team, the leadership and all the teams here in the GMC of Virginia desire your prayers as we all join together to make disciples of Jesus Christ.