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Are you affected by substance abuse?
Are you affected by someone's substance abuse — someone else's or your own? Substance abuse can be alcohol, drugs, gambling or a combination of these. And it is not limited to these.
If someone's substance abuse is causing stress, there are places you can go to for help.
Here are some resources that might be helpful to you.
Resource Web sites for Addiction Ministries
The Great Plains Conference is active in opposing the death penalty and works with other ecumenical agencies to lobby against continuing the practice.
Social Principles, United Methodist Book of Discipline, ¶164G:
We believe the death penalty denies the power of Christ to redeem, restore and transform all human beings. The United Methodist Church is deeply concerned about crime throughout the world and the value of any life taken by a murder or homicide. We believe all human life is sacred and created by God and therefore, we must see all human life as significant and valuable. When governments implement the death penalty (capital punishment), then the life of the convicted person is devalued and all possibility of change in that person’s life ends. We believe in the resurrection of Jesus Christ and that the possibility of reconciliation with Christ comes through repentance. This gift of reconciliation is offered to all individuals without exception and gives all life new dignity and sacredness. For this reason, we oppose the death penalty (capital punishment) and urge its elimination from all criminal codes.
The United Methodist Church and the Great Plains Conference strive to make churches and ministries accessible to all people, regardless of physical or other limitations.
One way the church works to expand opportunities is through the Disability Ministries Committee.
The committee states on its website that it is dedicated to opening hearts, minds, and doors for people of all abilities in The United Methodist Church. As an agency of the church, it draws its mandate from the story in Luke that tells how many people displayed through their actions that the man was part of their community.
Explore the committee’s website at umcdmc.org to learn more.
Gun violence has been a concern of United Methodists for decades. The 2012 Book of Resolutions includes Resolution #3426 Gun Violence (adopted 2000, revised and readopted in 2008). There were also other resolutions regarding gun violence before that.
The Great Plains Conference passed the resolution “Christians Respond to Gun Violence” in June 2014.
A variety of study materials are available:
Resources can also be found at:
Every day, thousands of men, women and children go to bed with empty stomachs. Jesus taught the importance of reaching out to those that are less fortunate by offering food, clothing and shelter for their needs. The Great Plains Conference works to target this call on a local, interdenominational and global level.
Every year, the United Methodist Men gather and donate potatoes to the Society of St. Andrew's yearly 'Potato Drop.' This organization, which is a Christian ministry dedicated to gleaning America’s fields and feeding America’s hungry, redirects thousands of commercially-rejected potatoes to soup kitchens, reservations, food pantries, low-income housing areas, local churches and hunger agencies throughout the United States for distribution to the poor.
Click here to learn more about this effort.
The NUMB (Nebraska United Methodist Bike) Ride for Hunger celebrates more than 20 years of feeding the hungry of the world. NUMB has contributed over $1 million to reduce hunger since the first ride in 1996 to a variety hunger projects. NUMB is sponsored by the Great Plains United Methodist Risk Taking Mission and Justice Team.
NUMB is a three-day ride that features a circle route with daily mileage around 65 miles. In 2010, all 93 Nebraska counties had been included in a ride and donations approached a half million dollars.
View a video, story and photo gallery from the 2017 NUMB Bike Ride.
For more information and registration, visit www.numbride.org. You can also follow NUMB on Facebook.
United Methodists offer hunger relief through the United Methodist Committee on Relief as well. UMCOR partners with other charitable organizations providing relief to children living in poverty around the globe.
Resources