The North Central District -Florida Conference

The North Central District of the Florida Conference is one of eight districts in the Conference.  Districts are generally not defined by county, but in a general sense, the North Central District covers portions of Marion, Alachua, Sumter, Lake Citrus, Hernando, Pasco and Levy Counties.

Please consider sponsoring a table at the First Annual Fundraising Banquet to support The Oasis at LCI - a ministry of the Florida Annual Conference and operating inside of Lowell Correctional Institution in Ocala, Florida.  Tickets are $50 each or $250 for a table of 8.    We also need items for our silent auction.  Gift cards, trips, retail items, and professional services are all welcome!  Tickets can be purchased at:

www.lakedeatonumc.com and click on "sign up."  To donate auction items, contact Kris Schonewolf at PastorKrisLCI@comcast.net or 302.363.5351. 

 1-8-2022 

UPDATED COURSE ANNOUNCEMENT

COVID-19 CONTINGENCY PLAN ACTIVATED

North Central District Lay Servant Ministry Advanced Course

Session 1 of 3 - January 22, 2022 – 8:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.

Via live Zoom On-line Meeting

Course sessions 2 and 3 dates and times will be determined by polling the class on January 22 and will be based upon simple majority poll results. You must attend all three (3) sessions to successfully earn a course completion certificate.

Our planned face-to-face training day has become impossible due to the serious spike in COVID-19 cases and the health risks posed by meeting face-to-face for a long training day. Fortunately, we have implemented this contingency plan which makes this new advanced LSM course available to everyone who has access to a computer, laptop, tablet, iPad, or Smartphone with internet connectivity. The requirement is that any of these devices you may use need to have a camera and microphone present and capable of interacting during a Zoom on-line meeting. Even if you have never attended a Zoom meeting or course, you will benefit from participating and trying something new.

Opening Ourselves to Grace: Basic Christian Practices   with Jack Tarburton and David Palmer (NEW Advanced Lay Servant Course) This advanced course helps lay servant leaders embrace and communicate a Wesleyan understanding of basic Christian practices (works of piety and mercy) as means of grace. A number of video segments are used to enhance discussion and the course experience. Required participant guide: “Opening Ourselves to Grace: The Means of Grace and Discipleship” Steven W. Manskar. **You must download your participant guide and read it in advance of the course.

Required Participant Guide Available as a free PDF download at Opening_Ourselves_to_Grace.pdf (s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com) 

This course is now being offered free of charge. If you have already registered and paid for the face-to-face formatted course, you DO NOT need to register again, and your fee will be reimbursed from the Florida Conference Office. It may take at least two (2) weeks for this process to be completed therefore your patience is appreciated. Registration deadline is now Monday January 17 by 11:00 p.m.     

                                         Available Seats: 60

Once registered, you will be provided the Zoom Meeting invitation via a separate email to use to access the course’s Zoom meetings. The first of 3 class meetings will be held on Saturday January 22 from 8:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. and the course is expected to finish no later than Saturday February 5, 2022.

**Please understand all registrants are required to download and read their own participant guide. Books will NOT be mailed to you or provided at the time of the training. Please be sure to download your guide early. You must read the entire guide prior to the class and be prepared to discuss it during the course. If you have difficulty downloading the guide at home, please contact your church office for assistance.

All North Central District Advanced Lay Servant Ministries courses meet the requirements for initial certification as a Lay Servant (The Basic and One (1) Advanced Course) and continuing education requirements for currently Certified Lay Servants, Lay Speakers or Lay Ministers. The North Central District’s Certified Lay Servants at all levels are currently under an extension of time until June 30, 2022, to meet their single, advanced course continuing education requirement.

If you are registered for the course and have a last-minute emergency or become unable to attend any class session for any serious reason, please contact LSM Director David Palmer at (352) 598-9823.