This coming June, something that I have been working for my whole life will happen: I will be ordained as an elder into the United Methodist Church. I would like to thank all of you for your encouragement and willingness to be in ministry with me. You have been extremely supportive of my calling and my journey towards ordination in the four years that I have been with you. Many of you, however, have also expressed your confusion as to what this means for the church and for me. So I’d like to take this opportunity to answer the three most frequently asked questions:

In the United Methodist Church, people are ordained elders after a “probationary period” in which they have to serve a church full-time. Without my years of ministry here, I wouldn’t be able to be ordained! By ordaining me, our Annual Conference is stating that they affirm my calling as a pastor and will employ me for as long as I am called to ministry. That’s a huge commitment on their part. The “probationary period” helps to make sure that everyone understands what they are committing to.

To be perfectly honest, not much changes at all! Ordination vows are very similar to wedding vows—if you weren’t already living into them, no one would marry you! The only true difference is my relationship with the Conference. As an ordained elder I am now allowed to do sacraments, weddings, etc. outside of this parish, whereas in my probationary status I was only allowed to do any of those things with people from this church. I will continue to be at Eden Prairie UMC as long as the Cabinet (the Cabinet consists of the Bishop and the 6 District Superintendents) approves of my appointment here. Each year the Staff Parish Committee at Prairie Church evaluates how they think the relationship between the church and myself is going and writes their recommendation of whether I stay or go. The Cabinet reads that review, is in dialogue with me, and looks at the needs of the Conference. They work hard to be faithful to all pieces when making decisions.

My ordination as an elder means that the Conference affirms my gifts of ministry, particularly in the areas of Word (preaching, teaching, etc.), Sacrament (administering baptism and communion), Order (organizing and administrating the life of the church), and Service (serving those in need of God’s grace and love.) At my ordination, I will have to respond affirmatively to the following questions which were written by John Wesley and have been asked of every ordained elder since the beginning of Methodism:

1) Have you faith in Christ?

2) Are you going on to perfection? (Meaning Wesley’s perfection)

3) Do you expect to be made perfect in love in this life?

4) Are you earnestly striving after it?

5) Are you resolved to devote yourself wholly to God and his work?

6) Do you know the General Rules of our Church?

7) Will you keep them?

8) Have you studied the doctrines of The United Methodist Church?

9) After full examination, do you believe that our doctrines are in harmony with the Holy Scriptures?

10) Will you preach and maintain them?

11) Have you studied our form of Church discipline and polity?

12) Do you approve our Church government and polity?

13) Will you support and maintain them?

14) Will you diligently instruct the children in every place?

15) Will you visit from house to house?

16) Will you recommend fasting or abstinence, both by precept and example?

17) Are you determined to employ all your time in the work of God?

18) Are you in debt so as to embarrass you in your work?

19) Will you observe the following directions?

a. Be diligent. Never be unemployed. Never be triflingly employed. Never trifle away time; neither spend any more time at any one place than is strictly necessary.

b. Be punctual. Do everything exactly at the time. And do not mend our rules, but keep them; not for wrath, but for conscience’ sake.

As you can see, it’s probably good for everyone’s sake that I’ve had several years to think through whether I am able and willing to answer these questions affirmatively! I wonder how you would respond to each of these questions—which ones do you think are only for those being ordained elders and which ones are challenging questions for all Christians to consider? How would you respond?

Trustee ministry team and Sybil LaMothe for doing the cleaning chores while our custodian, Rick LaMothe, is away on some vacation time.

Prairie Church people— “Prairie Church has honored our covenant for FULL payment of your apportionments for four years. WE THANK YOU for honoring our covenant for full apportionment payment and are very pleased to release the final 25% of the unpaid amount, a total of $52,527. Thank you for your support of our shared ministry!” - Barbara Carroll, Minnesota Annual Conference

REMEMBER IN YOUR PRAYERS those who grieve the death of loved ones:

Lori Johnson’s Uncle Ken

On May 7, 14 and 21 there is opportunity once again to contribute to the annual Love Offering which will be brought to the Minnesota Annual Conference meeting in St. Cloud, May 30th thru June 2nd.

The Love Offering this year, as all years, is directed toward three areas:

World—30% will go toward children who suffer and die from malaria through a new Community-based Malaria Prevention Program starting in Sierra Leone.

Nation—30% will go toward displaced children and families here in the United States due to natural disasters, thru Kids Helping Kids, Native American Hurricane Relief and Mississippi and Louisiana Annual Conferences.

Minnesota—30% will go toward Hmong and Hispanic United Methodist children and families for spiritual and financial support.