News

By Rev. Sandy Nenadal, Assistant to the Bishop It’s moving season in the United Methodist Church. This summer United Methodist pastors in Missouri have been moving to new locations, preparing to begin ministry with new ...

By Sarah Hultine Massengale, Community Engagement Specialist in Community Economic Development, University of Missouri Extension in Dent County The holidays aren’t yet on the horizon, but let’s talk a minute about the ...

By Rev. May Saou, Worship Pastor at North Cross UMC in Kansas City In a pandemic-era conversation with our lead pastor, I was caught by the question: “If people have the option to worship online anywhere in the world, ...

The Council of Bishops (COB) of The United Methodist Church has approved episcopal supervision recommendations for the South Central Jurisdiction (SCJ), due to the retirement of two bishops. The recommendations were made...

Recovery ministry finds a new partner in Missouri church.

“This mystery has been kept in the dark for a long time, but now it’s out in the open. God wanted everyone, not just Jews, to know this rich and glorious secret inside and out, regardless of their background, regardless ...

Second-career pastor comes from an unusual first career.

By Lori Bruens, Heartland District Co-Lay Leader Over the years, I have come to a specific mantra. At the beginning of the year, I anticipate that I will be different by the end of the year than on January 1. Over the ...

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued new guidance that may allow reducing restrictions on gatherings particularly in outdoor spaces.  In the spirit of doing no harm, Bishop Farr suggests that local...

By Rev. Sandy Nenadal Watching the news as March neared its end, I was struck by the amount of grief and loss people in our nation are experiencing. Over 550,000 people have died from COVID-19. The economic impact of ...

The NextGen Conversations podcast seeks to empower NextGen leaders to create dynamic, Christ-centered ministries. In its debut season, we spoke with several Missouri ministry leaders about concepts and ideas that are ...

Missouri Area United Methodist Bishop Robert Farr joined Archbishop Mitchell Rozanski of the Catholic Church and other faith leaders at the Cardinal Rigali Center in St. Louis on Wednesday morning to express opposition ...

Missouri Methodists have role in shaping major league baseball.

Three Missouri Conference clergywomen follow their call to be foster and adoptive mothers while following their call to ministry.

  Based on where we currently are in the vaccination rollout and in our efforts to do no harm, we have decided to hold this year’s annual conference session virtually with invitation-only in-person attendance. This ...

Earth Day is April 22, 2021. The United Methodist Creation Justice Movement is providing these tips as a tool to equip church members, families, and individuals to respond to God’s call to care for creation and do ...

By Jill Wondel, Associate Conference Lay Leader During Lent this year, my small group has been studying the Psalms. We’ve had wonderful conversations, reflecting on the stories behind the Psalms and imagining both what ...

By Rev. Karen Shearer, pastor of Grace UMC (Madison) I had arrived on a good day. Betty was awake in her recliner and smiled at me as I entered her room. Her baby doll was resting in her arms and every so often, she ...

A Springfield church uses local events to relate the journey of the Stations of the Cross to modern times.

When I sought the election as bishop in 2016, I never imagined the degree of disruption (the pandemic, denominational issues, racial injustices and political turmoil) we would have experienced this last 18 months. My ...

By Lauren Miers Martin Leathers takes the phrase “skin in the game” literally. The Gathering Students Pastor said for $10,000 he would shave the beard he had been growing for three years. Every fall since 2018, The ...

Bishop Bob Farr announced his plan for the supervision of the Mark Twain district due to the planned June retirement of current District Superintendent Steve Pinnell.   “I have named Rev. Mi Hyeon Lee as the District ...

Our first General Rule as United Methodists is to “do no harm.” This extends to our mission relationships. We want to “do no harm” with our volunteer activity or with the people we serve. Our goal as United Methodist ...

On Saturday, February 27, 16 churches and over 100 students and leaders gathered virtually for LEAP, a one-day youth conference. Seven speakers shared on the Fruits of the Spirit and offered relevant, actionable messages...

Zion and New Covenant conduct food distributions every week.

By Lucas Endicott While all of us have been impacted by COVID-19, people in Mozambique have especially felt the weight of the pandemic.   In Mozambique, those who earn a daily wage by working in the fields or selling ...

Maintaining faith, courage and energy in the face of these challenging times can be a bit daunting. However, daunting times are nothing new to the Christian faith. As we travel through this season of Lent, we are ...

Bishop Farr intends to host a virtual clergy conversation to unpack the news released today about further postponement of General Conference 2020 and the announced special session on May 8, which you can read more about ...

Churches should prepare to help people through a wave of grief as we begin to come together again.

Some churches are going beyond enhancing their online presence and beginning to think about it as a new church site.

The Missouri Conference Mission Council has voted unanimously to recommend that the Missouri Conference reduce the number of districts from nine to five beginning July 1, 2022. A proposal will be brought to annual ...

By Rev. Sandy Nenadal The season of Lent will soon be upon us, and so much has happened in our nation. We continue to face rising infections and deaths from COVID-19. The Capitol building was rocked by violence, and a ...

We’re celebrating a few of Black leaders who were important to Missouri United Methodist History. Rev. Dr. John Doggett Rev. Dr. John Doggett answered his call to ministry on the west coast, where he started a ...

A United Methodist church uses its fellowship hall for a vaccination clinic.

In response to continued conversation and action as it relates to race and ethnicity, Bishop Robert Farr announces the formation of a Task Force on Race and Culture.   In consultation with Conference leadership, Bishop ...

The Missouri Conference will revisit in-person worship guidance on or around May 1. As we’ve entered a new year, we encourage our churches to remain vigilant in their safety precautions related to COVID-19. Even with ...

By Lauren Miers Parents of school-aged children know keeping kids motivated to continue their online distance learning schoolwork is difficult. Rev. Charity Goodwin and her sister Tramaine Williams encouraged their ...

Several pastors in the Missouri Conference have experienced the coronavirus first-hand.

A bell on a stand in front of a church is a familiar scene. The bell had often been in the steeple of a former building and was moved when the church moved to a new location. Three bells, however, is much more unusual. ...

Church of the Resurrection puts people to work serving the community on the MLK Day holiday.

 What happened at the U.S. Capitol yesterday was un-American. It was not okay. Even as we affirm the rights of freedom of speech and to peacefully assemble, the peaceful transition of power is a pillar of a democracy and...

A new production facility has been built for manufacturing mobility carts, formerly known as PETs.

The year 2020 was full of many “firsts” and a season of “we’ve never done it like that before.” Sometimes the changes were easy and sometimes they were extremely hard and long. It was certainly a year of adjustments. Now...

Hear how University UMC in University City, Missouri, is reaching out and empowering its neighbors through the Open Door Food pantry.

One St. Louis church set out to make sure Black community members made their voices heard through voting education.  

Della Lamb prepares to welcome new neighbors.

Hear how Unity UMC is building bridges in and impacting its community through a micro-loan program.  

Looking for a biblically-based sermon in order to take a Sunday off following Christmas? Rev. Dr. Bruce Baxter, Southeast District Superintendent, has made his sermon, Finishing Well (2 Timothy 4:6-8, Philippians ...

High-tech musical lights display draws droves to small rural church.

Fall and spring are my favorite seasons of the year. In spring,everything comes back to life from a season of cold, darkness and dormancy. New life begins to spring forth and baseball begins. In fall, the colors change; ...