News

By Kiersten Rose When I was 21, my friends asked me to join them in singing the 1967 Youngbloods hit “Get Together” at our church. I was a new Christian with no knowledge of church music other than “Amazing Grace.” My ...

By Rev. Kim Jenne During the Pre-Conference Briefing on May 27, Bishop Bob Farr and Rev. T. Cody Collier presented a Conference update on culture work as it relates to race and ethnicity. In January 2021, Bishop Bob ...

God can do anything, you know — far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us. ...

Many of you have graciously asked how you can help our Louisiana neighbors in the aftermath of Hurricane Ida. Scott Burdin, Missouri Disaster Response Coordinator, has been in close contact with Louisiana Conference ...

By Amy Thompson, Missouri Conference Lay Leader While sitting in a training two months ago, the speaker mentioned that she had been missing joy in her life. This comment resonated with me. During the pandemic my joy has...

The United Methodist Committee on Relief’s response to the 7.2 magnitude earthquake that rocked Haiti on August 14 is underway. The quake, which particularly damaged the southern and western regions of the island, has ...

Those interested in supporting UMCOR’s response in Afghanistan and Haiti can make gifts online at https://umcmission.org/advance-project/982450/ or by checks sent to Global Ministries/UMCOR, P.O. Box 9068, New York, NY ...

It wasn't the "back to normal" summer that people had hoped for, but church camp did happen in the Missouri Conference in 2021, and youth enjoyed the opportunity to get together again.

Costner-Fulton grant helps fund small enterprise development ministry in rural church that aims to help local artisans find ways to derive profit from their skills.

Churches turn to YouthWorks for mission trips during a variable summer.

Missouri Conference Encourages Pastors to Make Use of Mental Health Benefits to Engage in Counseling

By Nikki Lerner Worship music can be one of the most divisive or unifying tools in the church today. It amazes me how many conversations I have had with fellow worship leaders and pastors centering around the subject of...

This year, your Missouri United Methodist Foundation was pleased to become a member/sponsor of the Nonprofit Risk Management Center. This membership, in turn, gives every UM church in the Missouri Conference an affiliate...

New Awakening Launches with Embrace of Community

By Amy Thompson, Missouri Conference Lay Leader If you know me well or heard me speak or lead a meeting, you are familiar with my interest in Brené Brown’s work. Her willingness to explore vulnerability, courage and ...

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 ...