John Louk

What do we do when someone dies? Where is heaven? What is our theology? What is our ritual (practice)? I am offering this seminar on death and funerals to look at the funeral liturgy of the United Methodist Church, to read a short paper examining the Christian theology and practice surrounding death and resurrection, and to do some thinking and planning about our own funerals. All materials will be provided. This seminar will be beneficial for everyone regardless of age. It will meet twice. Session 1 will be offered on Wednesday, July 27 at 10:30 am and again on Thursday, July 28 at 6:30 pm. Session 2 will be offered on Wednesday, August 3 at 10:30 am and again on Thursday, August 4 at 6:30 pm. You do not need to attend both Wednesday morning and Thursday evening sessions as they are the same each week. In addition to the group time, I will meet with participants individually to discuss funeral plans, if they wish.

I am starting my fourth year as the pastor of Salem. In many ways it feels like a fresh start. We are past the chaos and destruction of the flood three years ago. We have landed in our new location. We have not only stabilized we are growing. We have a Study Committee doing the foundational research for a future building project. This is an exciting time.   Over the last three years, we have moved forward simply by taking the next step. Now our next step is to form up the church staff. A church staff is a group of people working together to lead the congregation. Three places in the New Testament Paul refers to a “co-worker” in ministry (Romans 16:9; Philippians 2:25; 1 Thessalonians 3:2). The Greek word that’s used is “sunergos,” which means working together. This is where we get our English word, “synergy.” Synergy means the combined activities of a group is greater than the sum of the individual parts. As Ecclesiastes 4:9 says: “Two are better than one, because they have a good...

I am home from Annual Conference. This year we heard the preaching and teaching of Mike Slaughter, pastor of Ginghamsburg (United Methodist) Church. Mike and his staff have had a big influence on me over the years. I invite you to watch the video of Mike's teaching session at Annual Conference. He speaks about the mission project "Christmas Is Not Your Birthday," the one leadership board of twelve people, the DNA of a missional movement and more. In this second video, Mike speaks directly to the lay people of the United Methodist Church in Iowa.

We have taken the first step necessary for Salem's future construction, establishing a Study Committee. Anna Dunnwald, Kristy Flack, Dave Jandik, Dan Whitaker, Kathy Wickham, and I are working together to meet the requirements of The Book of Discipline (2008). ¶2543  Planning and Financing Requirements for Local Church Buildings mandates a Study Committee to analyze the needs of the church and community; project the potential membership with average attendance; write up the church’s program of ministry; and develop an accessibility plan. After the Study Committee finishes its work, it presents its report to the Charge Conference in order to authorize the building project and elect a Building Committee.   In order to accomplish our task, we are using a congregational study from the book Direct Hit: Aiming Real Leaders at the Mission Field by Paul D. Borden [Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2006] p. 127ff. This detailed study examines Salem’s history, demographics, comm...

Annual Conference, the yearly gathering of Iowa United Methodists, occurs June 4-7 in Des Moines. This year, Momodu Kamara is representing Salem along with me, and Rev. Dave and Dorothy Higdon are members of the Annual Conference too. You can keep up with what is happening at Annual Conference by checking out www.iaumc.org/annualsession . There you will see news items, announcements, photos, videos, a link to a live stream so you can watch video of what is happening live, and a twitter feed. Momodu is preaching on the Sunday following Annual Conference and will give a report to the congregation.

Check out this article : "Why a Baptist Pastor Became a United Methodist." It highlights some interesting things about us United Methodists. What do you think?