The General Board of Pension and Health Benefits and the office of the Central Conference Pension Initiative (CCPI) recently announced the attainment of $21,227,601 to fund pensions for the central conferences (those outside the United States). Of this total, the North Georgia Conferencersquo;s contributions are now at $1,361,651.

This milestone comes approximately two years after CCPI launched its initial fundraising effort, and 10 years after CCPI was created with a General Conference 2000

Matthew 25:40 tells us that what we do for the least among us, we do for Him.
For five decades, North Georgia Methodists have answered this call by supporting the good works of Action Ministries through financial gifts, volunteer service, and prayer. Action Ministries is doing good for the most vulnerable among us throughout the North Georgia Conference through its ministry to the hungry, the homeless, and the addicted.
Economic conditions in the past few years have affected people in every

By PHIL SCHROEDER
Fantastic workshops and outstanding speakersmdash;thatrsquo;s what you will find at the IN Conference at Dunwoody UMC, Sept. 14-16. We have some of the finest experts in the country presenting workshops and keynote speeches.

The IN Conference is a nationwide training event for church leaders, staff, lay leaders and more, covering the essentials of church management programing and church health. Churches of all sizes will come away with new ideas, practical application an

BYNORAMARTINEZ

It was on Easter Sunday 2002 when the North Georgia Annual Conference celebrated its first annual conference-wide Bilingual Latino Celebration. This was a worship service focused on celebrating what God was doing among the Latino community in our area.

We have come so far since that Easter morning.At the end of 2001, the North Georgia Conference had 1,088 Hispanic members.Eight years later, at the end of 2009, our conference had 2,141 Hispanic members.We celebrate a growth

United Methodist News Service, Nashville, Tenn.:For less than the cost of a matinee movie ticket or a couple of gallons of gas, you can place the New Testament in the hands of a spiritual seeker who has responded to The United Methodist Churchrsquo;s advertisements.

This is United Methodist Communicationsrsquo; message to the church, as the agency begins offering the Rethink Church Edition Common English Bible (New Testament) at no cost to seekers who request it when they visit the Rethin

Thanks to churches and individual investors, the Georgia United Methodist Foundation Development Fund provides the funds to build, expand, renovate and refinance churches throughout the North and South Georgia conferences.
Because the demand for low-interest loans from churches statewide currently exceeds the funds available, the foundation has increased certificate rates for the first time in 18 months. Effective September 1, 2010, new investors in the Development Fund will earn 3.75% on 4-y

Thanks to all who have helped in the rebuilding of homes following the September 2009 flood in Cobb County west of Atlanta. We have been blessed with a steady stream of teams and individuals that have come to work for a day, several days or a couple of weeks. As a result we have been able to get over 40 homeowners back in their homes.
However, the work is not yet done. We recently learned that we will be getting a few more homes that need complete inside rebuilds. So once again your help is nee

Organizers of Beyond These Walls 2010 Mission Conference, planned for Oct. 7-9 at McEachern Memorial UMC in Powder Springs, want to help you transform your congregation and equip members for life-transforming ministry.

ldquo;Best of the bestrdquo; missions teaching and training will help you and your leadership mobilize, revitalize, and equip your congregation members so that they can fulfill their divine calling ndash; making disciples of all the nations.

Keynote speakers will be Dr.