events

Bishop’s Retreat

Registration
Keynote Speaker
Schedule

Registration:

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The 2019 Bishop's Retreat is October 22-24, 2019 at the RIT Inn and Conference Center in Rochester, NY. The theme is, “Biblical Risk Takers” and the keynote speaker is the Rev. Grace Imathiu.

Keynote Speaker: Rev. Grace Imathiu

On July 1, 2018, Bishop Sally Dyck appointed the Rev. Grace Imathiu as senior pastor at First United Methodist Church in Evanston, Illinois. Rev. Grace Imathiu was appointed Senior Pastor of Community UMC in July 2012 after serving eight years as Lead Pastor in Brown Deer, Wisconsin and earlier as Senior Pastor at Green Bay UMC, a position which included season tickets to Packers games. Go Pack Go!  Rev. Imathiu has also served churches in Kenya as a church planter; a superintendent minister overseeing 68 rural churches in Nkubu; and an urban minister to an ecumenical congregation in Nairobi with strong outreach to the neighboring slums of Kawangware. Pastor Grace is intimately familiar with the Church in its many theological expressions and social locations.

Schedule (draft and can change):
* indicates when childcare is available

Tuesday, Oct. 22, 2019
Lunch on your own
12:00 p.m. - Registration begins
12:00 p.m. - 9 p.m. - Prayer Room                                                                           
2 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. - Opening Worship* (Check-in beginning at 3) -Ballroom
3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. - Keynote Speaker*-  Ballroom
4:30 p.m. - 6 p.m. - Free Time/Time to check-in, unpack, unwind
6p.m. – 7 p.m. - Prayer/Dinner Buffet (Included)- Ballroom
7:15 p.m. – 8:15 p.m. - Meeting of the Orders/Fellowship/Spouses- breakout rooms
8:30 p.m. – 9:30 p.m. – Evening Event (optional) Q& A with Bishop Webb  Ballroom

Wednesday, Oct. 23
7:30 – 8:00 a.m. – Hymn Sing with Sharon Rankins-Burd- ballroom
8 a.m. – 9:00 p.m. - Prayer room open all day                                                          
8 a.m. – 9:00 a.m. - Breakfast (Included)                                                                  
9:00 a.m. – 9:30 a.m. – Worship*
9:30 – 11:00 a.m. Keynote Speaker*
11:15 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. - Morning Workshops*- Breakout rooms

1. Workshop 1 – Clergy Taxes – Rev. Susan Ranous, Chair of CF&A & CPA

   1. Clergy are treated differently under the tax code than virtually anybody else in the country. They have advantages and disadvantages that no one else has. Often, confusion exists concerning clergy compensation, deductions and expenses. This course will help us gain a better understanding of the current tax laws that affect clergy today.

      At the end of this workshop, you will have a better understanding of the unique issues faced by a United Methodist Clergy Person.  Topics will include: Defining the Dual-Status Tax Classification of Clergy, Defining What a Clergy Person Is, What Responsibilities the Church Has, What Responsibilities Clergy Has, Describing the Housing Allowance Exclusion, Discussing Exemptions and Deductions, and Completing Your Tax Filing Forms.

2. Workshop 2 – Technology – Michael Porter

   1. The use of new media and technology in churches has been a growing sensation in worship services for several years now. Some churches claim it transforms its congregation and strengthens its communities. But what about applying this technology beyond just the Sunday Services. Based on SHALOM; Sharing His Amazing Love On Media, this workshop will help you understand what and how media can help, not only in our Sunday services, but in outreach and missions as well.

3. Workshop 3 – Creativity Covenant – led by Lisa Kisselstein
   1. Healing Through the Arts with God’s Story – How many times have you heard someone say "I'm not creative?" Have you said it yourself? Yet God gifts us with infinite creative variety all around, every day. And we are all made in imago Dei - so each one of us is also creative in our own unique ways, and each voice matters! Open a short time in your retreat for creative Biblical journaling through God's Story from the Gospel of John, and consider ways to create space for your own spiritual nurture, and perhaps foster a creative covenant in your own faith communities.
4. Workshop 4 – Multi-Cultural, Multi-Lingual Worship and Disciple-Making – led by Rev. Dave Masland
   1. Is your community becoming more and more ethnically diverse? Is God bringing your congregation into relationship with people who come from other cultures, and speak other languages? Do you feel called to make your worship and small groups more welcoming to people for whom English is their second language? If you answer YES to any of those questions, this workshop is for you! Gather with Dave Masland and a number of church planters who are planting multi-cultural, multi-lingual churches. Learn why it’s so important for Spanish/Japanese/African language churches to provide for English speakers immediately upon planting their new church. Learn how they are incorporating the best of various cultures into their congregational life together. Learn how they prepare for and present multi-lingual worship. Come learn with us what God is doing to create churches that look and feel like the diverse Kingdom of God!

12:30 p.m. - 2 p.m. - Lunch Buffet (Included)                                                        

Optional: 2:00 p.m.– 3:15 p.m. Afternoon Workshops*- Breakout rooms

1. Workshop 1 – Clergy Taxes – Rev. Susan Ranous, Chair of CF&A & CPA

   1. Clergy are treated differently under the tax code than virtually anybody else in the country. They have advantages and disadvantages that no one else has. Often, confusion exists concerning clergy compensation, deductions and expenses. This course will help us gain a better understanding of the current tax laws that affect clergy today.

      At the end of this workshop, you will have a better understanding of the unique issues faced by a United Methodist Clergy Person.  Topics will include: Defining the Dual-Status Tax Classification of Clergy, Defining What a Clergy Person Is, What Responsibilities the Church Has, What Responsibilities Clergy Has, Describing the Housing Allowance Exclusion, Discussing Exemptions and Deductions, and Completing Your Tax Filing Forms.

2. Workshop 2 – Technology – Michael Porter

   1. The use of new media and technology in churches has been a growing sensation in worship services for several years now. Some churches claim it transforms its congregation and strengthens its communities. But what about applying this technology beyond just the Sunday Services. Based on SHALOM; Sharing His Amazing Love On Media, this workshop will help you understand what and how media can help, not only in our Sunday services, but in outreach and missions as well.

3. Workshop 3 – Creativity Covenant – led by Lisa Kisselstein
   1. Healing Through the Arts with God’s Story – How many times have you heard someone say "I'm not creative?" Have you said it yourself? Yet God gifts us with infinite creative variety all around, every day. And we are all made in imago Dei - so each one of us is also creative in our own unique ways, and each voice matters! Open a short time in your retreat for creative Biblical journaling through God's Story from the Gospel of John, and consider ways to create space for your own spiritual nurture, and perhaps foster a creative covenant in your own faith communities.
4. Workshop 4 – Multi-Cultural, Multi-Lingual Worship and Disciple-Making – led by Rev. Dave Masland
   1. Is your community becoming more and more ethnically diverse? Is God bringing your congregation into relationship with people who come from other cultures, and speak other languages? Do you feel called to make your worship and small groups more welcoming to people for whom English is their second language? If you answer YES to any of those questions, this workshop is for you! Gather with Dave Masland and a number of church planters who are planting multi-cultural, multi-lingual churches. Learn why it’s so important for Spanish/Japanese/African language churches to provide for English speakers immediately upon planting their new church. Learn how they are incorporating the best of various cultures into their congregational life together. Learn how they prepare for and present multi-lingual worship. Come learn with us what God is doing to create churches that look and feel like the diverse Kingdom of God!

2 - 7 p.m. - Free time; Dinner on your own
6:45 p.m. – time to gather before evening event- Ballroom
7 p.m. - Keynote Speaker*- Ballroom
8 p.m. –Fun night- Ballroom

Thursday, Oct. 24, 2019
7:30 – 8:00 a.m. – Hymn Sing with Sharon Rankins-Burd- Ballroom
8 a.m. -10:00 a.m. - Prayer room                                                                                           
8 a.m. – 9 a.m. - Breakfast (included)                                                                       
9 a.m. – 9:30 a.m. – Worship*                                                                                  
9:30 - 11:00 a.m. - Keynote Speaker*- Ballroom
11:00 a.m. - Closing worship*- Ballroom
11:30 a.m. - Load vehicles, pack Head Home

Participants can earn 1.0 full Continuing Education Unit (CEU) this year at the retreat.