Finding God in Wild and Wonderful West Virginia -- District 6 State Leaders Meeting

Michael Lamson
May 23, 2008

In April, the State Leaders in District 6 gathered for our bimonthly meeting. We met in West Virginia, hosted by Claudette Kambara, the State Leader. As the providence is changing and Blessed Central Families are asked to take more responsibility in helping America fulfill her role as the Elder Son Nation, we need God’s guidance more than ever before.

In District 6, the State Leaders come together every 2 months to share about the mission work, pray for each other, and to seek Gods guidance for the work we have been called to do. The meeting in West Virginia was an amazing experience, and I could see God working through our unity and our desire to support all the families in the district.

This meeting provided us with the opportunity to share about our states and explore the things which are working as well, as those that are not. Our main focus was on two areas -- finding new members between the ages of 18 and 35 and giving the blessing to as many people as possible. We discussed the financial situation of each state and the district and reviewed income and expense reports. We examined the progress of our district website www.ffwpudistrict6.org, and discussed ways to create a unified vision, mission, and purpose on a district level. We also shared about the Family Fellowship (small group) developments.

From the reports, it became clear that our families have been growing happier and healthier over the last year. Even though we still have a long way to go, we on the way to getting where God needs us to be. Activities on the local, state, and national levels plus the amazing work of Hyung Jin Nim and Yeon Ah Nim through www.tworiversvip.org are all helping members find a new sense of value and provide them opportunities to connect with the providence.

As a district, our focus will be on growing our membership and becoming a blessing movement. Through the witnessing summits, a core group of members are in place to develop a summit on the district level and begin to create programs and strategies to grow our movement in the district. Our youth will work together to reach out to other young people through programs relevant to young people. Our families will reach out to other families through Family Fellowship groups and other programs targeting the needs of families.

Family Fellowship Groups (small groups) will become the central focus of this development as we move from a church with small groups to a church of small groups. We decided that Sunday programs should be a gathering of small groups focused on celebration and thanking God for His blessings through praise and worship-centered music and messages.

We will also start to develop an active Blessing movement to Bless our friends and our communities. Our youth will help single young people begin their spiritual journey through the matching process and the blessing. Our families will focus on sharing the good news of the blessing and change of blood lineage with other families and married couples.

Our website will bring the district members into a new age of belonging and unity by crafting a clear vision, a shared identity, and a clear presentation of who we are, what we believe, what we do, and how to join us.

We also decided on help all members understand the value and the benefits of tithing. God wants to give us more than we need so that we can make the world a better place, but many of us are falling short in our desire or willingness to give back to God, through the church, some of what He has given us. If families develop good habits of giving, God will recognize this and want to bless us even more. We also realized that, as leaders, we have fallen short in offering up the tithing members have given. Over the last year, we have been able to create a system in each state that allows all income and expenses to be recognized, reported clearly, and honored. If we continue to develop this, members can receive even more blessing as leaders care for what is given and offer it up to Heaven.

I have so much confidence in our State Leaders and was moved to tears as they shared about their difficulties and the difficulties of the families in their states. We have gone such an amazing course over the last 30 years. When I look at the leaders, I can see that God is moved. It became clear that our biggest gift for Heaven was that we made ourselves available to True Parents. It is also clear that God does not always call the equipped, but He always equips the called. On the foundation of our sacrifice and unity with the True Family, we have touched people all over the world and have a presence in almost every country. This has been accomplished in a short 54 years. Think what we can do over the next 10 years with all we have experienced and who we have become. This is our time to shine, as we invest more, pray more, and harvest the fruits that have been prepared.

At each meeting we always find a way to explore nature and look for an adventure which gives us and Heavenly Father a much-needed break from all the restoration issues at hand. In West Virginia, we decided to challenge the New River in a whitewater raft. It is true that we are old and made of achy, breaky parts, but we did it, we enjoyed it, and we survived.