Wilmington District Lay Council

Good Morning Wilmington District Lay Council and Pastors,

I pray everyone is having a blessed week. Please read this message in full as it covers multiple upcoming events and a reminder.

Reminder: The 2024 Book of Discipline is now available for pre-order and sale. Each church has been provided with an order form that is due to be returned to Mrs. Janice Robbins by Wednesday September 3^rd. The cost per book is $36.00.

5th Sunday Lay Service is this Sunday at Walters Chapel. It is the last 5^th Sunday program of the conference year and will start at 3PM. The general agenda will include the following:

· Meditation Message

· District Necrology Report

· Lay Convention Overview

· New Approved Legislation

· New Connectional Lay Council Officer Introduction

Lay Day is the 4^th Sunday in September, September 28^th, @ 3PM and will be held at St. Mark. This is our last and annual service which will include:

· Lay Message

· District Lay Council Elections

· District Lay Council Installation

· Life Member Stoling

(Please, review the dress/attire for Life Members and new Life Members for this event.)

Section 2. Wearing Occasions and Apparel. The stole is to be worn on Annual Lay Sunday celebrated the

third Sunday in October or other designated dates; District, Annual, and Regional meetings; Evangelistic

Retreat; Quadrennial Convocation, Quadrennial Convention, and Lay Council celebrations. The stole shall

be worn by women over a solid black dress or a black suit, including pant suits (with a solid white blouse,

optional). Men shall wear a black suit with a white shirt and a black or gold tie. Children (age 12 and under) may wear black or white attire. Only the Life Member pin can be worn on the left side of the stole above the emblem.

Life members must be dressed in all black apparel when being stoled during local, district, or annual

conference Life Member Stoling Ceremonies.

Optional, the stole may be honorably worn at funerals of deceased life members.

I hope this provides some clarity and the ability to plan.

Note: The Life Member certificate and Life Member card should be presented during the morning service on September 28th at the Local Church using the attached liturgy.

Thank you and be blessed,

Darryl W. Dyson, Sr. 33° - President

Wilmington District Lay Council

Cape Fear Conference

Eastern North Carolina Episcopal District

African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church

MGySgt/USMC Retired

Blog: https://wilmingtondistrictlaycouncil.blogspot.com/

Email: coachdarryldysonsr@gmail.com

Cell Phone: 540.295.2509

Christian Education: Hello Wilmington District! Please see the email below from Rev Barrett! Thank you, Cassandra C.

Good afternoon, everyone!

I pray that this finds you doing well. I wanted to share some exciting updates from CED.

CED Month - As you know, September is CED Month in Zion. I am excited to share that the theme for CED Month 2025 is "F.R.E.S.H. Fire: Reclaiming the Past, Igniting the Future". Linked here is a copy of this year's CED Month Resource Guide which includes an explanation of this year's theme and the CED Sunday Worship Guide. The guide will be distributed later today. Please click this link to download this year's CED Month information: https://we.tl/t-1uzofZ9axJ
- Additionally, we are working to make a greater push for our CED Sunday Offering, and we need your help! This year, we have set a stretch goal of $30k. We are targeting 1,000 of our educators, congregations, districts, and conferences to join us with a seed of $30. I would be very grateful for your support in encouraging participation!
- We will also hold our annual Thrive on Thursdays lecture series every Thursday evening in September. This year, we are excited to welcome members of the Board of Bishops who will lead each session.

Elevate 2025- Registration for Elevate 2025 is on track to launch on September 1. The room block will also go live as well at that time. Winter Meeting promotional materials are also in the CED Month guide.

- Our goal for this meeting is 2,200 registrations.
- Please note that we are actively seeking vendors and sponsors for our meetings. Any help that the board can provide to connect us with additional resources is greatly appreciated!
Quadrennial Convention on CED - I know that you (and many others) are eagerly anticipating information about our summer convention. As you may know, our church's summer conventions are coordinated in tandem with the meeting of the Connectional Council. Once those plans have been solidified on that end, we will be able to make a formal announcement. We hope to be able to share more information in the next 2 weeks.

As always, thank you for your support and prayers. I am grateful for your leadership and for what the Lord is doing in our Zion's Christian Education Department.

Many blessings,

Rev. Barrett

Young Adult Missionary AME Zion: Support Domestic Violence Survivors. Due Oct. 19th at Price Cathedral

WH&OMS: Honoring 90 years old and older Life Members

The Department of Church Growth & Development: The State of Your Church Course Curriculum & The Kingdom Agenda Master Class Series

Dear Zion Family,

We are excited to invite you to SAVE THE DATE for an empowering experience brought to you by the Department of Church Growth & Development, in collaboration with The Board of Bishops and the Department of Records, Research & Archives.

Join us on a transformational journey—Monday nights @ 8 PM (EST) beginning Sept.  8 as we explore The State of Your Church Course Curriculum & The Kingdom Agenda Master Class Series!

Here’s What’s Coming Up:

State of Your Church Course Curriculum

Our course curriculum—unfolding over two semesters—will provide a framework for evaluating, renewing, and strengthening your congregation from the inside out. We’ll explore the 7 Dimension of Flourishing People & 15 Dimensions of Thriving Churches to help us apply these key principles to our local ministries. Click the images below to learn more about each dimension!

The Kingdom Agenda Master Class Series

This Master Class Series features 10 impactful sessions crafted to shift our focus from mere church maintenance to a vibrant Kingdom mentality. Below is a sneak peek at some of the topics.

Stay tuned for registration details and additional info. In the meantime, join us in a Connectional Week of Prayer & Fasting, September 2nd - 8th, 2025. Click the image below to download the Fasting Guide.

Need a Reminder?

Signup to receive text message updates & reminders from the Department about upcoming trainings & events. Just text the word “CONNECT” to

(833) 266-5356

Yours in Christ,

Rev. Dr. Eleazar Merriweather

Executive Director

Department of Church Growth & Development

The A.M.E. Zion Church

The Wilmington District