Bishop Leeland announces an appointment change to the Western North Carolina Cabinet

Rev. Beth Crissman will be appointed as Senior Pastor of West Market Street United Methodist Church in Greensboro, NC. Beth has served as the District Superintendent and Chief Missional Strategist in the Blue Ridge District in the Western North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church since 2016. Prior to her appointment as District Superintendent, she pastored churches across the WNCC and with her husband Rev. Kelly Crissman served as the founders and directors of Plowpoint, a non-profit organization which trained teams of clergy and laity throughout the United Methodist Church for the transformation of leaders, churches, and communities. Beth is the author of four books: Longing to Belong, How We Lead, Stepping in the Stream, and Choosing the Faithful Path, and multiple other curricula to develop and strengthen disciples and leaders in the local church. Beth has served on several boards and agencies within the Conference and other United Methodist-related institutions including Equitable Compensation, Congregational Development, Givens Estates, and UNC-Asheville Wesley Foundation. Beth, a native of Graham, N.C. is a graduate of the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill (BS Nursing), University of California-Los Angeles (MNursing-Family Nurse Practitioner), and Emory University (MDiv). She and Kelly have two grown children, James and Maddie.
Rev. Dr. Mark Ralls will be appointed as District Superintendent of the Blue Ridge District. Mark has served as Senior Pastor of First Hendersonville since 2015. He is a graduate of UNC Chapel Hill (A.B., 1988), Duke Divinity School (M.Div., 1991) and Princeton Theological Seminary (Ph.D., 1999). He has served Providence, Charlotte, St. Timothy Brevard, Epworth, Concord, Asbury First, Rochester, NY, Centenary, Winston-Salem. Mark is the co-author of Is This All There Is?: And Other Big Questions About God and Life with Andy Langford. He is also active in Blue Ridge Emmaus and St. Baldrick's Foundation. Mark was born in Charlotte, NC into a parsonage family and lived in several mountain towns in Western North Carolina and attended high school in Asheville. Mark worked on the summer staff of Lake Junaluska for seven summers. There, he met his wife Jennifer, daughter of Rev. Jimmy and Julia Jones (Florida Conference). Jennifer is a School Psychologist with the Buncombe County School System.
Resources for Vital Congregations
CHURCH LEADERSHIP
Lewis Center for Church Leadership
Lewis Center for Church Leadership: Books
Lewis Center for Church Leadership: Serve Your Neighbor
GBHEM Leadership Resources
Living Faithfully: Human Sexuality and the United Methodist Church
Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations
Ted Talks: The Power of Vulnerability
Ted Talks: The Price of Invulnerability
Meditations on the Ministry of All Christians
DISCIPLE FORMATION:
A Disciple’s Path; A Guide for United Methodist
Lewis Center for Church Leadership: Adult Christian Studies from the Wesley Ministry Network
Traveling Together: A Guide for Disciple Forming Congregations
WESLEYAN STUDIES:
Living As United Methodist Christians
Methodist Doctrine: The Essentials
Reclaiming our Wesleyan Tradition: John Wesley’s Sermons for Today
John Wesley Sermons: Anthology
REACHING PEOPLE:
Evangelism & Theology in the Wesleyan Spirit
Fresh Expressions: Dinner Church
Lewis Center for Church Leadership: Reach New Disciples
Lewis Center for Church Leadership: 50 Ways to Reach People
Community: The Structure of Belonging
RESOURCES TO CONNECT WITH THE COMMUNITY:
GRANTS:
The Royce and Jane Reynolds Ministry Fund Grants
OTHER:
The Appalachian District Church Vitality Team has been prayerfully seeking ways to help support you and the ministries of your local congregation during this COVID-19 pandemic. Together they have diligently researched and connected with others throughout the conference and our denomination to identify resources and offer them to you. We hope they will be helpful to you and bless you greatly in leading your churches and communities through this unprecedented time. We are very grateful to the District Vitality Team and other contributors for their great work on this resource.
This faithful team has created three documents, two of which you are receiving today. They include:
- Family Home Worship – designed to help families establish a regular worship space within their homes as well as a time where they can worship together.
- Tech Strategies – to help guide you in selecting effective tools and resources within your budget to best communicate in the digital world.
We believe these resources will be of great benefit to you. Also know that the District Vitality Team is available to answer any questions you might have in regards to the documents attached. If you have questions, you may email Rev. Howard Fleming at hfleming@wnccumc.net.
- Resources