Weekly Greeting - August 28, 2026

I spent most of last week at Beersheba Springs Assembly in Grundy County. 

Beersheba Springs is one of three camp and retreat centers in the Tennessee-Western Kentucky Conference. It began as a luxury health resort in the early 19th century due to its mineral-rich spring and cool temperatures. Shortly after, it was purchased by John Armfield, a wealthy Louisiana slave trader and developer, and during the Civil War it fell into disrepair. The Tennessee Conference of the United Methodist Church purchased it in 1941 and since that time it has been a much-beloved hub of camping and retreat ministry for United Methodists in middle Tennessee. 

I was there as part of my work with the conference Board of Ordained Ministry. Each year in late fall our residents in ministry gather for a weeklong retreat where they prepare to be interviewed for full connection membership as elders and deacons in the Tennessee-Western Kentucky Conference. This year five of us from the Board gathered with fourteen residents as they created personal development plans, explored rhythms of silence and study that will sustain them throughout their ministries, and even completed paperwork that they will turn in prior to their board interviews. 

There was plenty of time for relaxation and rest, but there was also a lot of work to be done. The fourteen residents are still learning how to articulate their calls to ministry and how to express them both in writing and in oral interviews. They are still discerning what God is calling them to do within the realm of vocational ministry. They are seeking wisdom from each other as they create fruitful ministries in the churches and other contexts where they serve. 

It is such an honor to attend this retreat with our residents each year as they grow in faith and explore God’s call on their lives. It is a reminder that God is always calling us, whether we are clergy or laypeople. Part of the holy work of discipleship is learning to listen to that call and discern where it is God is asking us to use our gifts and abilities for the sake of God’s Kingdom. 

Seeking God’s call with all of you,

Mary Beth