News Archive

BY REV. ADAM YOUNG Over the last two months, Sunny Lane United Methodist Church has been raising “fun” to hire a part-time Director of Children’s Ministry. The goal was to raise $20,000 to pay for ...

BY REV. EVAMARIE CAMPBELL Oklahoma United Methodist Camping Ministry has a place near and dear to my heart. As an elementary aged person, I remember being so excited to get to go to Camp to be a “...

BY REV. SHARON COCHRAN In the small town of Tishomingo, Oklahoma, a beacon of hope and inclusivity shines through the First United Methodist Church (UMC). Following a period of disaffiliation that ...

BY REV. DERREK BELASE One of the most beloved parts of annual conference is when we worship together. There is nothing like a group of United Methodists singing together and praising God by lifting ...

Everyone knows the obvious benefits of a connectional system like that in the United Methodist Church. Clergy and congregations are not alone: they can pool and share resources like employment ...

BY REV. DERREK BELASE One of the five dreams of our annual conference is the dream of revitalized faith communities and lighthouse churches. Since 2016, our conference has been asking local churches...

BY REV. ELIZABETH HORTON-WARE For decades, a movement has been quietly but powerfully shaping the landscape of youth ministry and community service across Oklahoma. Youth Force, organized through ...

Muskogee Bridges Out of Poverty focuses on empowering those in poverty to investigate the barriers that keep people from getting ahead and educates the entire community on the complexities of poverty....

By Rev. Shannon Rodenberg “If we try this thing I’ve been wanting to do since I moved here, will you all support me?” was the question I posed at the staff meeting when I introduced Holy Humor Sunday ...

BY REV. DERREK BELASE One of the five dreams of our annual conference is the dream of Communities Impacting Poverty. This comes out of the Council of Bishops’ request that each annual conference ...

The 2024 Special Sunday kit provides a full package of ready-to-use resources to help your church celebrate native American Ministries Sunday and define how we give, why we give and the impact we make...

BY JOEL ALLEN Skyline celebrates 50 years of service to the Oklahoma City community this year. Incorporated in 1974, Skyline has a long history of meeting needs within the metro. In 1964, the United ...

The 2024 session of the Oklahoma Annual Conference is scheduled for Thursday, May 30, through Saturday, June 1, in Oklahoma City. Sessions will be held at Oklahoma City University and Chapel Hill ...

BY REV. DERREK BELASE You are probably hearing that the General Conference of the United Methodist Church is coming up very soon. In fact, delegates from around the world will gather in Charlotte, NC ...

Legislation to provide for Worldwide Regionalization reflects the strong values of equity, respect for contextual mission settings, effective mutuality in mission, and legislative equality for ...

BY JENNIFFER HENDRICKS Caddo, Oklahoma, is located in north central Bryan County. It was named for the nearby Caddo Hills, site of an 1808 battle between the Caddo and Choctaw. The area was formally ...

BY CARMEN STAFFORD That’s right friends! It really happened. What a blessing it was to participate in that joyous occasion! I don’t know much at all about sports writing, but I know a lot about ...

BY REV. JOHN MILLER As we approach the season of Lent in reflection, and preparation for Easter, it’s essential to consider the meaningful ways in which we observe this period. One aspect that often ...

BY MEREDITH DAVISON AND CAITLIN DRYKE This past fall, Smiles of Faith, a mobile dental clinic, began seeing patients for free dental care. It was a day that had been in the works for a long time. Dr. ...

At the meeting of the Clergy Orders and Fellowship on Tuesday, January 9, 2024, Bishop Jimmy Nunn, on behalf of the Council of Bishops, honored Rev. Katie Paul with a certificate of completion from ...

Faith and community leaders are early responders to crises within their communities. The Trauma-Informed Faith Communities project of Crisis Care Ministries can help you be more trauma-informed and ...

The evening circle of United Women in Faith at Altus Grace UMC formed in January 2023. From this ecumenical group of working and retired ladies came the idea of a mission to assist others in our ...

BY TRICIA K. BROWN 1. Take a timeout. Church leadership is challenging. If you find yourself increasingly frustrated, depressed or stressed, put yourself in timeout. Find a nice, quiet spot alone, and...

BY MICHAELA DRAIN It is difficult to listen to stories in which you or someone you love is the bad guy. There are a lot of things that must go right to make this moment healing. The storyteller must ...

BY REV. DERREK BELASE The month of January is designated as Human Trafficking Awareness Month. The United Methodist program calendar designates January 11 as Human Trafficking Awareness Day. Bishop ...

BY SONJA TOBEY At our recent meeting of the orders, we discussed self-care particularly as it pertains to mental health. I, as many others, have typically received the mixed signals of “self-care” and...

In today’s digital society, a website is often more important than a building’s location, curb appeal, or signage. It’s important to ensure that your church has a robust, dynamic website that shares ...

Fostering children is a desperate need across the country. In Oklahoma, one Second Mile Ministry has risen to the challenge. The organization, Circle of Care, couldn’t do what it does without the help...

BY JOAN CUNDIFF HUBBARD In 1987, our choir director Jane Armstrong showed up at Perkins First UMC like Mary Poppins with multiple black suitcases and a smile on her face. She had purchased some ...

There’s a distinct emotion that you can only access when you’re engaged in loving service to people who are invisible to most of society. Maybe it’s a certain species of joy. Perhaps it’s a fraternity...

The disciples had been fishing all night and had caught nothing. When Jesus appears to them after his resurrection, he said to them, “Cast the net to the right side of the boat, and you will find ...

Conference staff share some of their favorite family recipes

With 139 fewer churches following the 2023 spate of closures and disaffiliations, the Oklahoma Conference of the United Methodist Church is in a position to make some decisions that are challenging ...

BY REV. CHUCK HORTON Early morning on the Monday after Thanksgiving, three organ experts from Church Organ Solutions in McKinney, Texas arrived at First United Methodist Church in Weatherford, ...

Rev. David Sanders, retired elder, passed away Wednesday, November 22, at his home in Chelsea, OK. David, along with his wife, Paula, had served the Chelsea Memorial UMC for 18 years up to the ...

BY REBEKAH HASTY Recently three representatives from the Oklahoma United Methodist Conference office attended Train-theTrainer: Safer Sanctuaries, in Kansas City, Missouri. Nancy Hamilton, Wanda ...

Dec. 25-26 - Ministry Center closed for Christmas. January 1 - Ministry Center closed for New Year’s Day. January 6 - Called Conference via Zoom. January 15 - Ministry Center closed for Martin ...

DALLAS (SMU) – The Lilly Endowment-funded initiative at Perkins School of Theology, “Testimony HQ,” has selected 11 congregations for the third and final cohort of developing thriving congregations ...

Speaking of youth and young adults, those who are heading for college should be interested in the following news. General Board of Higher Education and Ministry offers scholarships to students ...

BY MICHAELA DRAIN In the wake of many churches finding their way to separate, the Wichitas District Youth found a way to draw closer together. The inaugural Wichitas District Youth Rally on November ...

Currently, over 500 names are on lists across the state. Those names are members whose churches are now something other than United Methodist, and who are left without a home church. Forty churches ...

Five million dollars of medical debt has been abolished for the western half of the state of Oklahoma, including Oklahoma County. And it all began with paying off the church mortgage. In January of ...

by Ginger Strong Yukon is the Czech Capital of Oklahoma. It has been celebrating Czech heritage for many years. The community’s tradition is to have the Czech Festival on the first Saturday of ...

During the last day of the last of three special called conferences set to decide disaffiliations, the moon and sun danced across the sky, perfectly illustrating the fleeting nature of darkness in the...

by Megan Pippin On the morning of October 8, 2023, the sun was shining, and members of Grace United Methodist Church were ready to open their doors for their Grand Launch event. Grace UMC is led by ...

Donald Lee Harris, father of retired elder Rob Harris, and father in law to Trish Harris, full-time local pastor at Spencer/Nicoma Park, passed away October 9, 2023, at age 94 in Yukon, Okla. Harris ...

By Marlys Cervantes First United Methodist Church members began their observance of 130 years of service to the Ponca City community by hosting a “Stitches Through Time” quilt show honoring works from...

November. 11 - Veterans Day. November 22-23 - Ministry Center closed, Thanksgiving. December. 25-26 - Ministry Center closed, Christmas.