Will my church be part of a Connecting Mission?
The entire Annual Conference will be organized around the concept of Connecting Missions. Each group of ministries formed into a Connecting Mission will discern God's call in their work together and will determine together a faithful response to that call.

How is a Connecting Mission organized?
In consultation with congregations, ministry settings and faith-based communities, the ministry cabinet will form Connecting Missions. Each Connecting Mission has an ordained elder designated as coordinator to provide leadership, guidance and resources. Each Connection Mission will also have a leadership team made up of appointed clergy, the lay leader and one other lay peson from the partnering organizations. Each Connecting Mission will determine its own meeting schedule, though there will be at least one meeting per year with the district superintendent open to all who wish to attend.

What will Connecting Missions accomplish?
At the very least, every congregation will be more aware of what neighboring congregations are doing in ministry and mission. Based on the assumption that many churches together can do what individual churches cannot, Connecting Missions will enlarge the possibilities for mission and outreach for local congregations. Faith-based communities will pool resources such as ideas, personnel, financial and other resources to build stronger, broader ministries. Faith communities can also provide spiritual energy and renewed enthusiasm to each other for making disciples of Jesus Christ.

Why Connecting Missions?
One of the great strengths of The United Methodist Church is its commitment to a connectional life. No congregation stands alone. Every United Methodist congregation and ministry setting is connected to every other congregation and ministry setting locally and globally. No ministry is subservient to another. All United Methodists are summoned and sent by Christ to live and work together in mutual interdependence guided by the Spirit.

What does The Discipline  say?
"Connectionalism in the United Methodist tradition is multi-leveled, global in scope, local in thrust. Our connectionalism is not merely a linking of one charge conference to another. It is rather a vital web of interactive relationships. We are connected by sharing a common tradition of faith, including our Doctrinal Standards and General Rules; by sharing together a constitutional polity, including a leadership of general superintendency; by sharing a common mission, which we seek to carry out by working together in and through conferences that reflect the inclusive and missional character of our fellowship; by sharing a common ethos that characterizes our distinctive way of doing things. (Para. 103, 130, The Book of Discipline)