– Kim R. Smith, Sound District Lay Leader
A few years ago, we had a 5-gallon pot holding a fig tree cutting. It was at most 12 inches tall. Now the fig tree is over 15 feet tall and just as wide all the way around…it’s MASSIVE. This summer it is absolutely covered with figs! Every single branch has multiple little fig pods. I find myself just staring at it in amazement many mornings.
Who would have thought something so tiny could grow so fast? We have come to accept that we won’t get many of the figs. Birds and squirrels get them before we can pull them from the branches, but that’s okay! The sweet fruit would throw off my husband’s blood sugar anyway. Sometimes we plant and grow things for the joy of sharing with others anyway, right?
Right now, many of our smaller churches are wanting to plant new things for others AND THEMSELVES but are struggling with how exactly to do it in a meaningful way. One thing that I have noticed as I visit your churches is that each of you has something another could use in a beautiful way. What would happen if we shared our gardens with each other?
What if one church is struggling to form a UWF, but your sister church down the road has an active unit? Could you find ways to join forces and help others grow? Faith is not a competition and as United Methodists, we are all in this work TOGETHER.
I have noticed some like my own, struggling with music while others are flourishing in that area. Is there a way for one to help plant seeds with the other in ways that help both congregations grow something even MORE beautiful?
Maybe your congregation is small and Bible studies are not accessible to all, share the Upper Room mediations and the Pray as You Go App with those hungry to ground their souls and then meet for breakfast or lunch and talk about the meditations from the week. Make everything accessible to hungry hearts.
Are your members like most laity said they were at annual conference, craving more of a connection with the District and Conference? Can someone “own” sharing that information within your church family? Add the connection pieces as part of your regular newsletters, websites, and social media platforms. The more connected ONE member of the congregation becomes; the better chance of seeds being planted for the larger community.
I believe, that not unlike my fig tree, small things strategically planted and nurtured… can grow quickly and in surprisingly beautiful ways. I have included SOME of the connection links you might like to share with your congregations. Plant these links in a place that will nurture growth.
Book Club | NC Conference UMW (nccumw.org)
Mission u – July 22 & July 29 in person or Zoom | Fairway District (fairwaydistrictnc.org)
Sound District – SOUND DISTRICT United Women in Faith (soundumw.org)
United Women in Faith | Love in Action (uwfaith.org)
Daily Meditations
Pray as you go – Pray as you go (pray-as-you-go.org)
The Upper Room This is the link for the Disciplines online
The Upper Room This is the link for the Upper Room Daily Devotions online
North Carolina Conference of The United Methodist Church (nccumc.org) From this site, you can register for conference email, find trainings across the conference and more!
Sound District | North Carolina Conference of The United Methodist Church (sounddistrictnc.org) From this site, you can see Sound District update, sign up for our newsletter, and stay up to date.
This is the link to follow the Sound District on Facebook where you can find lots of great information, devotions, and inspiration on a daily basis. Facebook