ECW Test Site #2

Blog

  • Some Telling Stats

    The numbers of the 76th General Convention tell interesting stories. One is that we are a church that\’s diversifying. According to the Church\’s record keepers, included in the deputations are 85 African Americans, 53 Latinos/Hispanics, 17 Native Americans, 14 Asian Americans and 4 native Hawaiians. That\’s 16.1 percent of all deputies, compared to 15.3 percent in 2006 and 14 percent in 2003. Four percent declare themselves openly gay, compared to 3.2 percent and 1.9 percent in 2006 and 2003 respectively. The youngest deputies come from the dioceses of Western Michigan, Chicago and Wyoming.

    Another is that attending General Convention takes dedication, not to mention time and money. The turnover rate for the House of Deputies, comprised of laity and clergy, remains high: 43 percent are attending their first convention, compared to 45 percent in 2006 and 42 percent in 2003. I know the Diocese of NC\’s deputies have attended meetings over the past few days that have lasted until midnight, or after.

    \"\"Then there are the conversations that happen when you\’re making your way from one meeting to another. Martha Alexander knows all about it.

    \"\"The best defense is dressing comfortably and owning a good pair of walking shoes. I call this \”Bishops Ascending.\” A bit more poetic than \”Headed to the third floor, where the House of Bishops is located\”, don\’t you think?

    \"\"And whenever possible, laugh…

    \"\"and enjoy a quick lunch in the sunshine. Margo Acomb and Sonja Bennett have the right idea.\"\"

  • Point A to Point B. Caffeine needed.

    \"\"Look who I ran into at the Orange County Airport — Meg McCann, a General Convention deputy from Durham. After we elbowed our way in and successfully retrieved luggage…

     

    \"\"we squeezed into a Super Shuttle van…\"\"

     

    \"\"bound for the hotels nearest to Disneyland…

     

    \"\"and surrounding the Anaheim Convention Center.

    A steady flow of people are making their way here today. But the check-in lines are nothing compared to the line for those waiting for their Starbucks fix, morning, noon and night.

  • God\’s Grace

    The theme of this year\’s ECW Triennial is \”Grow in Grace\”. It was inspired by II Peter 3:18. I was feeling anything but graceful or grace-filled after arriving in Anaheim this afternoon about 2:30 pm PST. Getting up at 5 am for a 7:50 am flight from Raleigh-Durham International Airport to Dallas-Ft. Worth to the John Wayne Airport in Orange County, CA left me … tired. Got to the hotel, then into my room just long enough to deposit my bag before hustling next door to the Anaheim Convention Center to get the lay of the land and pick up my credentials.

    Triennial and General Convention, which run concurrently, don\’t officially begin until Wednesday, July 8. This means everything is still in a state of organized chaos. Lots of people have already arrived from around the country. Staff and volunteers were running around tending to hundreds of details that come with mounting events of this size. (I\’ll have more about size later.) It\’s to be expected, but it\’s also stress inducing. But as I stood there waiting for information about a series of pre-GC/Triennial meetings that will take place tomorrow, a woman approached with a warm smile and an outstretched hand. \”Hello,\” she said, \”I\’m so glad you\’re here. You look familiar. Do I know you?\” It was Katerina Whitley, a church journalist, author, dramatist and teacher, who used to live in Eastern North Carolina but now makes her home in North Carolina\’s mountains. Why yes, we had met, though it was years ago when she led a program for the ECW of the Diocese of NC.

    All grumpiness disappeared. Katerina, who grew up in Greece, has a lilting yet powerful voice. Literally and figuratively. I particularly like this quote from her: \”I am not interested in violence. I long for what is good and whole in humanity, even though I am quite aware of the darkness. Jesus expects us to be the light of the world and I try to remember this always.\” She is part of the Triennial program. I can\’t wait to hear what she has to say.

    A genuine spirit. An abiding faith freely shared. Grace, indeed.

  • The Carter Chronicle – May 2009

    Read news from Jason and Lisa Carter, missionaries in Equatorial Guinea.

  • Prayer Update from the Stocks – May 2009

    Prayer update for Paul and Pat Stock in Pakistan.

  • Prayer Update from the Stocks – April 2009

    Prayer update for Paul and Pat Stock in Pakistan.

  • Prayer Update from the Stocks – March 2009

    Prayer update for Paul and Pat Stock in Pakistan.

  • Thanks From Jason and Lisa Carter

    April 24, 2009

    Dear Episcopalian Women of NC:

    We wanted to send you a personal letter through the mail, but since we just received an anniversary card a few weeks ago (our anniversary was last July), we thought it best to send you an email instead!!!

    We just wanted to express our sincere thankfulness for your partnership in the Gospel; it truly amazes us and humbles us to know that you are committed to \”The Carter Team\” and to this little corner of the world here in Equatorial Guinea. We don\’t know what else to say, but we say it from our hearts: THANK YOU.

    Life continues to be full of both joys and challenges. Some days are full of joy – teaching classes at Centro Bíblico Bata (CBB) knowing that we are part of seeing the church grow both DEEP (in discipleship) and WIDE (in reaching out), being invited to teach at conferences and retreats, counseling folks through life issues, watching Kenyon grow up (with his monkey and 2 dogs) while learning English and Spanish – we thank God for the privilege of serving Him and for being involved in building His kingdom here in EG. Other days are full of challenges – getting stopped constantly by the traffic police (asking for \”papers\” but really wanting a bribe), dealing with the constant power outages, living amidst malaria, and facing the unrelenting challenge of the heat (the one activity that we never fail to do almost everyday is SWEAT!). In the midst of life and ministry here in EG, we just want to let you know that we never forget the sacrifice of those whose prayers and support keep us here on the field. Thanks for being an integral part of the ministry.

    Here in Africa, we are often reminded about the fragility of life. In the West, we often are able to insulate ourselves (although never completely) from the suffering that the rest of the world experiences on a daily basis. We were reminded of this fact a few weeks ago, when a girl from the church (Aliza our babysitter) told us that her cousin – a baby of 1 ½ years old – recently died after falling down a well after her drunk father left the baby alone with only an older sibling (6-7 years old). (In fact, not an uncommon practice here – kids raising kids). Aliza told us that recently this baby cousin had just recovered from a severe bout with malaria and before that had experienced bad case of typhoid – all that before 18 months of age. Lisa and I talked about how sad it was for such little ones to suffer soooo much in such a short time. We write this just to remind ourselves that life is such a gift of God – to enjoy the gift while it lasts. It seems like that at any given point, we know someone whose family member recently died or someone whose child is in the hospital. We are encouraged that – in the face of human suffering – the Gospel is being preached and lives being built on the Word of God.

    We want to say thank you for your prayers, your encouragement, and support.

    Many blessings from our family to yours!

    Jason & Lisa Carter

    (and Kenyon)

  • The Carter Chronicle – April 2009

    Read news from Jason and Lisa Carter, missionaries in Equatorial Guinea.

  • The Carter Chronicle – January 2009

    Read news from Jason and Lisa Carter, missionaries in Equatorial Guinea.