Observing the widespread and severe effects of social disconnection on Americans’ health, Dr Vivek Murthy (Surgeon General of the United States) says that “loneliness and isolation represent profound threats to our health and well-being.” This reality reflects what our faith already teaches us: God created us for connection and community. Drawing on the experiences of the early church in scripture, let us relearn how God leads us into lives of meaningful relationship with Godself and one another.

Week 1: Connection Among Christians | Ephesians 4:1-6
Week 2: Connection with God | John 15:1-12
Week 3: Connection with Community | Hebrews 10:23-25
Week 4: Connection Across Barriers | Ephesians 2:11-22
Week 5: Connection with the Larger Church (World Communion Sunday) | 1 Corinthians 10:16-17

Grace is not merely a gift but God's invitation to a relationship that can change our lives and transform the world. In this series, we will delve into stories of transformation, connecting them to our everyday experiences. From feeling like outsiders to being part of a community, from fear to trust, from the “same old” to something creative and new – these are just a few of the transformations that God’s grace works in our lives. Say yes to grace and find new freedom in relation to yourself, others and even your personal and financial resources.   
Week 1: Called by Love | Luke 19:1-10
Week 2: “God Trusted Me with It!” | Matthew 25:14-30
Week 3: The Secret of Contentment | Philippians 4:1-7, 10-14, 19
Week 4: A Disciple’s Lifestyle | Luke 16:1-13

Laity Sunday 2024 | Mark 10:35-45
How we lead matters. When, out of fear or anxiety, we try to clamor to the top, Jesus calls us to a different way of leading - through humility, service, and action.

Following a powerful partnership journey to Tanzania, the United Methodists of Greater New Jersey have set forth on an ambitious mission: the “For Tanzania 2024” campaign.

The following is worship resources to aid in bringing this campaign to your local worshipping community. Together, we can build a church, support pastors, and make a lasting difference for our siblings in Christ across Tanzania.

Fall Kick-Off Series

The idea of talking about our faith and sharing it with others can cause strong reactions. Fear. Nerves. Excitement. Uncertainty. Let’s face it, telling the Good News of the Gospel can be difficult for lots of reasons, even when our faith is at its strongest. Yet a faith worth having is a faith worth sharing! Thankfully, scripture not only tells us to share our faith, it also helps us learn how, for our own time and place. Coming soon!

Week 1: The Great Commission | Matthew 28:16-20
Week 2: The Good News is for Everyone | Acts 10:30-48
Week 3: Meet People Where They Are | Acts 17:16-28
Week 4: The World Needs the Good News | John 3:11-20

Stewardship & Generosity Campaign Series

We get lots of messages about what is important, what the “good life” is, and everything we need to do – and have – to achieve it. Still, so many of us remain unsatisfied, chasing after the next thing in search of fulfilment. But there is good news for us! God desires for us to have lives of contentment, freedom from worry, and joy in abundance. And Jesus shows us the way there. As we learn how to find our contentment in God, we will also discover the beauty in giving. Our lives will be evidence that the good life is the generous life – a life through which the grace of God flows into the world.

Week 1: Living in a World of and with Scarcity | Matthew 6:24-34
Week 2: Finding Our Contentment with God: Spiritual Maturity | 1 Timothy 6:6-12
Week 3: The Gift of a Self-Emptying God | Ephesians 3:5-12
Week 4: Abundance is Communal and Connectional | John 6:1-14

The heart of worship is celebration! We celebrate who God is, what God has done for us in Jesus, and the new Spirit-filled lives we get to live because of it. By taking the time to celebrate God’s gifts to us — gifts of diversity, unity, promise, and new life – we are attuning ourselves to the good things in life, so that, even in times of struggle and hardship, we can be sustained. Designed for Summer/After Pentecost.

GNJ Clergy Team, Facilitator Gabby Corbet

Week 1: Celebrate Diversity | 1 Corinthians 12:12-20

Week 2: Celebrate Unity| Ephesians 4:1-16

Week 3: Celebrate Promise | Romans 4:3;13-25

Week 4: Celebrate New Life | Mark 5:35-43

Laity Sunday is observed on the third Sunday in October (October 16, 2022). Each year The United Methodist Church celebrates the ministry and witness of laypersons everywhere through a special service.

We often think of blessings as things we receive. While it is true that God, by grace, freely gives us all that we have, we are not just passive recipients of God’s blessings! Just as God blesses us through people in our lives, so does God promise to bless others through us. When we live from a place of gratitude for God’s gifts and trust in God’s provision, we can be agents of God’s blessing in our world.

Week 1: A Legacy of Blessings: “I Know Who I Am” | 2 Corinthians 9:1-5

Week 2: Blessed People Bless Others | 2 Corinthians 9:6-10

Week 3: Overflowing Blessings | 2 Corinthians 9:11-15

John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist movement, insisted that Christian faith was more than just a set of beliefs or a feeling. Faith changes our lives and results in faithful action in the world. The New Testament letter of James gives the same message. This series will look at John Wesley’s General Rules in connection with readings from James to show how our faith can come to life in all that we say and do.

This series follows the epistolary readings from the Revised Common Lectionary for Sept. 5- Sept. 26, 2021 [Year B].

Week 1: Genuine Faith | Scripture: James 2:1-7, 14-17
Week 2: Do No Harm | Scripture: James 3:1-12
Week 3: Do Good | Scripture: James 3:13-18, (4:1-3)
Week 4: Stay in Love with God | Scripture: James 5:13-20

(Stewardship Campaign Kit included)

When we face important decisions and opportunities in our lives, we often weigh the pros and cons. We often find reasons to avoid making changes and to keep doing things the same old way. But there comes a time when we must decide… are we going to play it safe or go all in? John 3:16 tells us that God loved us so much that he gave his only Son for us, “so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” God’s love for us is “all in!” In turn, when we put all our trust in God, our lives can be freed for unimaginable wonder. This series will explore what it means to be “all in” for God with all of our being and all that we have.

Week 1: The Risk | Scripture: John 3:16; Luke 5:1-11
Week 2: Common Good | Scripture: 1 Cor. 12:4-13
Week 3: No Strings Attached | Scripture: Acts 2:43-47
Week 4: Commit | Scripture: Ephesians 4:22-24, John 3:16

God is leading us to let go of the past and to embrace the new things God is doing.

Laity Sunday.