This annual observance gives local and district units a chance to study and reflect on a particular theme each year and to designate funds for ministries related to the theme for the year.
This Year’s Theme
A Call to Prayer and Self-Denial is an opportunity for women to reflect on the gospel of Christ and make an offering that helps sustain ministry around the country and the world. Every year, United Methodist Women members participate in A Call to Prayer and Self-Denial observance. In response to God’s love and grace, offerings collected through A Call to Prayer and Self-Denial support worthy initiatives that relate to each year’s mission focus.
The mission focus for 2019 is "Building a Thriving Generation of Children and Youth Worldwide," which provides an opportunity for United Methodist Women members to learn more about the difficult circumstances children and youth face at home and abroad. All offerings received from A Call to Prayer and Self-Denial observance this year will go to programs that promote well-being and equal opportunities for children and youth in need, including:
- Advocacy to end the school-to-prison pipeline.
- Anti-violence and child protection programs.
- Afterschool and wraparound programs.
- Vocational livelihood training for refugees and vulnerable children and youth.
- Formal and informational workshops on healthy living.
- Equal access to education.
- Access to educational and life opportunities for children with disabilities.
For 150 years, United Methodist Women members and their foremothers have advocated for children and youth around the world. United Methodist Women supports church and grassroots organizations that offer vulnerable and oppressed children opportunities to thrive—from providing access to education for youth in Haiti and Liberia to social support services for vulnerable infants and children in the United States. In the coming years, United Methodist Women will pay attention to children marginalized by the legal system. Focus will be on interrupting the school-to-prison pipeline to advocate for a 25 percent decrease in the number of arrests of children and youth in schools, with specific focus on youth populations most impacted. United Methodist Women is also seeking the redesign of zero-tolerance policies in schools so that they protect rather than criminalize children.
One hundred percent of the offering will go directly to fund these projects.
A Call to Prayer and Self-Denial brochure
(English, Korean and Spanish in one PDF.)
Get A Call to Prayer and Self-Denial resources through the e-store or download:
Prayer Card Program Order Form Poster
Planning an Observance
We encourage you to commemorate A Call to Prayer and Self-Denial on one day during the first few months of the year.
Be creative. The following ideas offer some possibilities:
- Plan a dedication service based on the order of worship reproduced from the Program Book.
- Download a poster to invite members and others to the dedication service.
- Plan a quiet day or retreat for all members of your unit and anyone interested. Use the appropriate year’s Quiet Day Service in the United Methodist Women Program Book, available through the e-store.
- Plan a prayer vigil for your church or unit using the Prayer Calendar along with the Quiet Day Service.
- Explore with your pastor the possibility of having your United Methodist Women unit lead a Quiet Day Service for a Sunday-morning worship service.
- Prepare a meal as part of a year’s observance.
- Distribute the Prayer Card to members who are absent. Order additional cards to give to friends.
Giving Makes a Difference
By your sacrificial giving to A Call to Prayer and Self-Denial, you, United Methodist Women members and predecessor organizations over the years have:
- Built and equipped schools, libraries and clinics.
- Trained rural and urban women for specialized ministries.
- Provided nutrition and medical assistance for thousands of women, children and youth.
- Offered relief to those uprooted by wars and other disasters.
- Advocated for public policy changes to benefit women and children.
- Produced long-term economic benefits through income-generation and other self-help projects.