Excitement filled the air as more than 500 leaders of Alabama Baptist church Woman’s Missionary Union (WMU) organizations and women’s ministries met for their annual Women’s Leadership Equipping and Enrichment conference and biennial business meeting July 24–26 at Shocco Springs Baptist Conference Center in Talladega.
The conference, which followed the theme “Compelled,” offered basic and next-level training workshops for church and associational leaders. In addition, there were general interest workshops covering such topics as Engaging the Next Generation, Expanding Your Worldview: Alabama and Beyond, Cross-cultural Friendships, Communicating With Purpose and How to Jump-start Your Prayer Ministry.
Workshops on missions were led by representatives from the International Mission Board and the North American Mission Board (NAMB), as well as representatives from national WMU, the Alabama Baptist State Board of Missions (SBOM) and various statewide and local missions organizations. Topics included Reaching the World in Michigan, Sharing the Gospel in Latin America & Asia and International Missions in Alabama.
Alabama WMU President Rosalie Hunt taught the worship session Bible studies and related several stories from her 2005 biography of missionaries Ann and Adoniram Judson, noting that they were compelled to share the gospel in Burma. Telling the women that she enjoys alliteration, she asked them, “What is your personal providential passion that is peculiarly particular to you?”
Kim Hardy, a NAMB missionary in Michigan, led worship for the event, and she and her husband, Dexter, described their work as church planters in a state with a population of 10 million, of whom approximately 7.5 million are lost. Dexter Hardy called Michigan a “frontier missions field for Southern Baptists.”
Rick Lance, SBOM executive director, affirmed the relationship between Alabama WMU and the SBOM. “We work hand-in-hand together on many projects and especially our partnership with Michigan, which is our stateside partnership, and the partnerships we have in Guatemala and Ukraine. We have no greater support of the Cooperative Program than the women of WMU. I join you in the challenge of the 21st century. I think our greatest days are ahead,” he told attendees.
A special track for the weekend was the Emerging Leaders Forum, which comprised 24 girls in grades 9–12 who were invited to attend because they have demonstrated leadership ability and potential in their churches and communities.
During the business meeting, several announcements brought enthusiastic applause and even standing ovations. Candace McIntosh, executive director of Alabama WMU, announced that in December 2008, the entire debt for the organization’s WorldSong Camp in Cook Springs, incurred in 1990 for $2.4 million, was paid off. “Every dollar you gave represents a life that was touched whether it was a summer camper or a school group visiting for a one-day Global Classroom,” McIntosh said to those gathered.
A new mission statement also was introduced. “We wanted a concise statement of what Alabama WMU stands for, something we could include on our publications and Web site and could be easily remembered,” McIntosh said. The new mission statement is “Alabama Woman’s Missionary Union encourages missional living by challenging, equipping and empowering Alabama Baptists to fulfill the Great Commission of Jesus Christ.”
The meeting also marked the unveiling of the revamped Alabama WMU Web site, www.alabamawmu.org. According to McIntosh, changes in the Web site were three years in the making and more changes will be made in the near future.
During the meeting, new officers were elected: president, Becky Luther (see story, this page), East Gadsden Baptist Church; vice president, Shelby Parris, New Haven Baptist Church, Anniston; and recording secretary, Diane Causey, Glynwood Baptist Church, Prattville. New members of the board of trustees were elected as well. They are Stuart Calvert, Pleasant Grove Baptist Church, Albertville; Barbara Owen, First Baptist Church, Montgomery; Alicia Robertson, Vaughn Forest Baptist Church, Montgomery; Anna Speir, First Baptist Church, Selma; and Anthony Humphries, First Baptist Church, Oxford.
According to McIntosh, Alabama WMU has numerous plans for the future. “We want to begin planning missions trips to sites nearby,” she said. “Our prayer-walking trips to New Orleans were so successful, and that has made us want to offer shorter trips, which are less expensive.”
For more information about future events, visit the Web site or call 1-800-264-1225.
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