Giving Thanks

There's no question this has been a challenging season. But we still have much for which to give thanks. We asked you, our South Georgia UM family and friends, what you’re thankful for during this season of giving thanks. We are thankful for our wonderful #sgaumc family! Here’s what you shared with us:

I am very thankful that I can live a life knowing that I’m doing what I am supposed to be doing. I am so grateful for the great mentors, friends, and people that I get to do life with. In youth ministry you become so involved in families' lives that they become like family. I’m so thankful that I get to live into that. Throughout life’s journey, it’s hard to look back and not be thankful for what God has done for you. Oftentimes your perception of reality and your reality are not the same. When you truly stop and think about how blessed you truly are, it can change your perception. Then, when you are looking at your reality, you can truly be thankful for all God has given you. Derek Harrison, Tifton First UMC

I am so grateful for the faithfulness of God’s grace. The last couple of years have been challenging for many and yet God’s grace is evident in spite of. It can’t be ignored and for that, I am thankful! Rev. Abra Lattany-Reed, Director of Diversity and Justice Ministries

I’m extremely thankful for the friendship of clergy colleagues. I have a close group of friends in ministry who know exactly what I am going through! We check in on each other, we encourage each other, we talk through sermons together, and we pray for each other. I am very thankful to walk through life with them as my friends! Rev. Jack Varnell, Hawkinsville UMC

I am thankful for the people around that support me and care for my life and ministry. Rev. Daniel Medina, Nueva Vida UMC

I am thankful for MUSIC! Music speaks to my soul. Music is a huge part of my worship experience. Whether contemporary or traditional, it brings me closest to the foot of the cross. Ivy Kratzer, Waycross First UMC

I am so thankful for all the beauty of the world that God has provided us with that goes unnoticed each day! Susan Wilcox, Broxton UMC

This Thanksgiving I am thankful for so much. On May 1st, after a lot of prayer, I stepped out on faith and retired. After being in the workforce for so long it has been quite an adjustment. I was diagnosed over two years ago with Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) Stage 3, and today I’m finally back to normal. My kidneys are healthy again. I am thankful that God walks beside me every day. I am thankful for my church family who has become like my very own. And those are just two things I am thankful for this Thanksgiving. Martha Cabiness, St. Mark UMC, Douglas

In this season of denominational confusion and questioning, in my disaster role, I am thankful for volunteers who can step across denominational division. During the recent relief efforts post Hurricane Idalia, I was blessed to rely on early response trained (ERT) individuals from within and outside of South Georgia. They came to Berrien, Cook, Lowndes and other counties and worked with affected survivors. Many of these volunteers were no longer UMC-affiliated, but responded to the call nonetheless. I counted over 110 ERT volunteers who worked almost 1,250 hours in a span of about three and half weeks. They helped 98 residents to include one damaged church in South Nashville, GA. For these volunteers, I am thankful. Luis Morales, SGA Conference Disaster Response Coordinator

I am thankful for all the opportunities the United Methodist Church has provided to me so that I can serve others.  My experience and training with UMCOR provided a path for me to find a job that I love in humanitarian service and I am thankful for a career that allows me to live out my faith every day. Kelly Crane, Coastal District & Northeast District Disaster Coordinator 

As I think over the past year with a thankful heart, I realize that in my little corner of Savannah, Georgia known as Baldwin Park, my family, dear friends, colleagues and neighbors are well. Where things are not well, I can see Godly direction. Our home is safe, secure, and nourished. In our house, we have had productive and satisfying work, and have been called to service through great organizations in meaningful ways. I am thankful that there was no coastal hurricane while my mother battles dementia in skilled nursing. Hurricanes and skilled nursing just don’t go well together. As I am writing this piece for The Advocate, I am most thankful for my home church, Wesley Monumental, and the denomination of which my family has been a part for many generations - the United Methodist Church. We are blessed by an amazing and loving church family. With focused clergy, dedicated lay leadership and a caring congregation Wesley has continued to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world through a pandemic, a congressional campaign providing two opposing candidates from our church balcony and the disruption of disaffiliation. Wesley Monumental stuck to John Wesley’s three simple rules. It is a daily blessing. I am thankful for the June email before annual conference inviting me to serve well beyond the local church. I am thankful for my two new colleagues in service, John and Scott - and our two hour working lunches. Getting to know the churches of the Coastal district, there are great opportunities ahead for discipleship and service as United Methodists. Not to be accused of wearing rose colored glasses, I am well aware that there is turmoil, hurt, warfare, hatred, exclusion and division all around. But I am thankful that in my home, my neighborhood, my church, and in the mighty presence of God, blessings abound. Scott Cleaveland, Coastal District Lay Leader

In this season of Thanksgiving, I am thankful for new lives born into our family, which helped to ease the sadness of losing a beloved family member this summer. As Psalm 100:5 says, for the Lord is good and his love endures forever, his faithfulness continues through all generations. Thank you, Lord, for your many blessings in all seasons of life. Karen Forrester, Southwest District Lay Leader