News
June 01, 2017
Recognized for Reaching Out
The Missouri Conference tried something new this year. Rather than presenting awards during Annual Conference Session, they opted to instead have an award banquet in Columbia. This allowed more time for the presentations...
June 01, 2017
Understanding Injustice
The Office of Mission, Service and Justice announced a partnership with Kingdom House in St. Louis to assist local churches in understanding issues of injustice in their communities. A designated gift from a third ...
June 01, 2017
We Are Alive
Over the last three months, I have had the privilege of traveling and preaching nearly every Sunday in one of our churches in the Missouri Conference. It’s been marvelous to see the life, enthusiasm and renewed vitality ...
June 01, 2017
Worship Music Camp
By Ryan McLouth This month I wanted to take a moment to share with you a new and special opportunity that Central Methodist University will be offering this summer. Building off of the successes of our “CMU Alive!” ...
May 10, 2017
A Methodist Milestone: Missouri Methodist Foundation Celebrates 50th Year
The Missouri United Methodist Foundation is having a birthday. “We are probably going to try and celebrate for at least 18 months!” states David Atkins, the Foundation’s executive director. “It really is a major ...
May 10, 2017
Annual Conference Promo Flier
May 10, 2017
Baxter to be Southeast District Superintendent
Rev. Bruce Baxter is about to make a big move in one sense, but geographically he isn’t moving at all. He will be the next Southeast District superintendent. “The district office is about a mile from my house. My ...
May 10, 2017
Connecting Through Conference
By Amy Thompson One of the things that I love about United Methodism is the connectional system. The connectional system reminds me how we are all connected in working for the Kingdom of God. We are not in the Kingdom– ...
May 10, 2017
Filling the Diaper Gap
Talking about diapers often elicits giggles, but for parents, paying for diapers is a serious business, especially when money is short for all the bills. There is no government assistance program that helps parents in ...
May 10, 2017
Kim's Kids
Illmo United Methodist Church of Scott City has carried on the giving and caring work begun by lifetime member Kim Eifert by starting Kim’s Kids in 2015. Kim Eifert was a devoted para-educator at Scott City Public ...
May 10, 2017
Letter from the Editor: Aiming for Accuracy
A pastor whom I hold in high regard suggested to me that when I cover a presentation for this publication that I give speakers an opportunity to review the story before it goes to press. It’s a good suggestion, and is ...
May 10, 2017
Mozambique Initiative: Introducing Madison Denton
Hello all! My name is Madi, and I’m the new Mozambique Initiative intern. I am very excited to be here! My hope over the next year is to begin building connections with some of you. The best way to get the ball rolling...
May 10, 2017
Muzzling the Axe
By Ryan McLouth Help! I’ve done everything that everyone has suggested, but my electric guitar player is still too loud! This is the number one frustration that I hear from worship leaders, music directors, and music ...
May 10, 2017
Now Read This: The Vile Practices of Church Leadership: Finance & Administration
Nathaniel Berneking grew up in Herculaneum, Missouri, a small town on the Mississippi River about 35 minutes south of downtown St. Louis. He graduated from both the College of Arts & Sciences (’98) and Law School (’01) ...
May 10, 2017
Parting Shot
By Eric Mattson Are you awake? My photography increasingly becomes an act of silent worship in which my aim is to notice the creative face of God. Looking at the world through my lens helps keep my soul awake to what ...
May 10, 2017
Passing the Baton
We are in the season of moving time for United Methodist clergy. Many of our clergy are in the process of receiving the news of a new appointment and churches are receiving the news of a new pastor. All of this is a ...
May 10, 2017
Responding to Disaster
When Missy Lindner was asked to help with the Volunteer Reception Center following the tornado that struck Oak Grove on March 6, she said sure. She hadn’t been told that “help” meant she would be responsible for ...
May 10, 2017
Small Church Next Gen Ministry
By Katie Nix Remember, back in the day, when we use to have a ton of kids at church? I wish we could be more like the big church down the street that has a million teenagers in youth group. Sunday used to be church day,...
May 10, 2017
Walking in Eternity
By Hal Knight What is “true religion” for Wesley? In his sermon “Walking by Sight and Walking by Faith” he describes it as “no less than living in eternity, and walking in eternity,” and thereby “walking in the love of ...
May 10, 2017
Women in Ministry
Being a woman in ministry often means being the first; the first woman pastor a church has received ever or in a while; the first to pioneer and pave a new way, standing on the shoulders of the many who went before in ...
May 08, 2017
Mission, Service and Justice Team Partners with Kingdom House in Addressing Issues of Injustice
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Media Contact: Kim Jenne, Director of Connectional Ministries kjenne@moumethodist.org (573) 441-1770 Mission, Service and Justice Team Partners with Kingdom House in Addressing Issues of Injustice...
May 03, 2017
Spring Flooding Update
Missouri has experienced flood damage in multiple parts of the state with anticipated impact still to come as rivers continue to crest. Missouri state officials are asking that the UMC not send volunteers at this time ...
April 25, 2017
UMC Bishops Call Special Session of General Conference for 2019
The Council of Bishops (COB) has called a Special Session of the General Conference of The United Methodist Church (UMC) to be held February 23-26, 2019 in St. Louis, Missouri. You can read the full letter sent to the ...
April 20, 2017
Award Night Honors 2017 Conference Winners
On April 19, award winners, family, friends and colleagues gathered at the Champagne Ballroom for awards night. The Missouri Annual Conference honored the winners of the Robert and Martha Marble Mission Award; the Unity ...
April 20, 2017
Ray Buckley to Speak at Lay Servant Training
April 11, 2017
Baxter to be Appointed to Cabinet
Rev. Bruce Baxter is about to make a big move in one sense, but geographically he isn’t moving at all. He will be the next Southeast District superintendent. “The district office is about a mile from my house. My ...
March 24, 2017
2017 Annual Conference Offerings
Sunday Morning Worship The Chicuque Rural Hospital (CRH) is a United Methodist supported hospital with more than 150 beds in Mozambique. CRH provides healthcare services to more than 500,000 people in the Inhambane ...
March 24, 2017
A Night to Shine
Three years ago the Tim Tebow Foundation launched at Night to Shine, a formal dance for people with special needs. This year First UMC in Sedalia hosted the event for a second time. More than 150,000 volunteers in more...
March 24, 2017
Arriving in Style
When you see a stretch limo cruise by, you probably wonder who is inside. A celebrity, a CEO of a large company, a foreign dignitary? For people in the know in Peculiar, they are more likely to think, “Probably some kids...
March 24, 2017
Christian
My Dad once said I should be a preacher. His advice wasn’t based on my oratory skills. I couldn’t have been worse in that area. I’m also sure he didn’t think I was in possession of some wisdom that needed to be bestowed ...
March 24, 2017
Cyclone Dineo in Mozambique Prompts Lenten Giving Campaign
On February 15, Cyclone Dineo devastated Methodism’s heart in Mozambique. More than 100 churches and their parsonages were impacted. The historic mission stations of Cambine and Chicuque also sustained significant ...
March 24, 2017
Deny Thy Self
By Hal Knight While John Wesley used the term “disciple” rarely, the great exception is his sermon on “Self-Denial.” There Wesley explores the meaning of the words of Jesus in Luke 9:23: “If any want to become my ...
March 24, 2017
Global Mission Fellow Works with Jubilee Initiative to Combat Predatory Lending
By Larry R. Hygh, Jr. “I was born and raised a Methodist and had this feeling from when I was little that I wanted to do something cool when I grew up,” says Margaret “Maggie” Lohmeyer. That “something cool” for ...
March 24, 2017
Lent: A Journey in Preparations
We all know the experience of getting ready for something: Getting ready for a trip, for a birthday party, for Christmas, a big meal or company. What does it mean to get ready when you don’t know for what you’re ...
March 24, 2017
Love and ... Gift Annuities
On paper, Deane and Fancine Thompson might not seem to have a lot in common. She grew up in University City in St. Louis; he grew up on a farm in Indiana. He is an engineer and number-cruncher by training; she is a ...
March 24, 2017
Notre Maison: Our House
Gertrude Bein-Aime was a nun with Missionaries for Charity. The organization, founded by Mother Teresa, has two facilities in Haiti, a home for children, in which they provide care to children who are malnourished and ...
March 24, 2017
Parting Shot
By Eric Mattson Art drew me into photography, and photography has shaken hands with my ministry. Modern photographers tend to care about things like technical mastery, creative composition and lighting, originality and ...
March 24, 2017
Reaching Youth Via Tech
By Ryan McLouth The last few weeks we’ve been talking about technology, sound production and notation—all practical components of worship. This month, let’s talk about getting youth involved with worship. I think ...
March 24, 2017
Respire
In January of 2011, 24-year-old Megan Boudreaux went to Haiti committed to help and trusting that God would guide her to a way to do that. What started out as a small feeding program quickly grew to be a school ...
March 24, 2017
Show No Mercy in Doing Justice
By John Miller When Methodists met, and John Wesley was in their midst, he often took special offerings for the poor, including five in one day from what his brother Charles called the “same poor exhausted people!” ...
March 24, 2017
Soul Connections
Soul Connections is a Missouri Conference retreat that aims to help clergy and laity take spiritual conversations deeper than they have an opportunity to do in their typical day-to-day life. It is structured so the ...
March 24, 2017
Summer Fun with the Bible
Spring has sprung, which means summer is just around the corner. For many churches, summer means Vacation Bible School. Let’s take a look at what’s been going on with VBS at a few of our local churches around the ...
March 24, 2017
Transformational
What does a church do when it has a small lot in front of it that accumulates trash and debris? One young woman at Jefferson Avenue had a vision of establishing a Memory Garden to honor individuals in a pleasant, serene...
March 03, 2017
10th Annual Leadership Institute Featuring Popular Speaker, Reverend Dr. Mike Slaughter
On April 27, 2017, Reverend Dr. Mike Slaughter will present “The Passionate Church: Ignite Your Church and Change the World” at the 10th Annual Leadership Institute at Central Methodist University, sponsored by the ...
March 03, 2017
5 Things You Missed at WOW17
At WOW17, speaker Rev. Telley Gadson had the crowd shouting “WOW!” in awe of what God has done; and what an awe-filled weekend it was. In late January, youth from the state gathered in Springfield for a WOW weekend ...
March 03, 2017
Education and the church in Mozambique
By Craig Stevenson 2016 proved to be a wonderful year. Thanks to the generosity of our congregations and people within Missouri, the Mozambique Initiative provided $670,271.56 in ministry support last year. We drilled...
March 03, 2017
Four Corners: Southeast
Ask someone in mid-Missouri to name a town in the southeast corner of the state, and the answer you’ll probably get is Cape Girardeau. That answer would probably get a chuckle out of someone in Pemiscot County, where ...
March 03, 2017
Getting Closer to God During Lent
By Amy Thompson Well, Missouri Methodists, we are entering the season of Lent. Lent is the 40 days prior to Easter, excluding Sundays. It begins with Ash Wednesday. If you have attended an Ash Wednesday service then you...
March 03, 2017
Missouri in Haiti
Last year the Missouri Conference celebrated 200 years of Methodism and recognized churches that had been around since the beginning. Haiti celebrated 200 years of Methodism last month. The current relationship between ...
March 03, 2017
Motivation Behind Discipleship
By Dr. Hal Knight What motivates someone to be a disciple of Jesus Christ? While not using the term “disciple,” John Wesley identifies two types of motivations to follow Jesus, both of which are in response to God and ...