News Archive

Church wide resource Thanks to the generosity of the Oklahoma Methodist Foundation, each member of the recent annual conference session was gifted the book On Love: 20 Lessons for the World We Seek ...

We’re working on a project, and we’d love your help! Have you (or someone in your family) submitted your DNA to one of the ancestry sites? Do you have a map of your origins (like the one pictured here...

Rev. Dr. Derrek Belase, Rev. Connie Gibson & Joe Holt, CPA Since 2017, our conference has been using a Consent Calendar to expedite our business proceedings and allow us to focus on ministry reports ...

Rev. Dr. 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 ...

by Rev. Dr. Derrek Belase This year’s Day of Learning preceding Annual Conference will take place on Wednesday, May 28 at Boston Avenue UMC in Tulsa.  The Day of Learning is open to anyone who wants ...

Funding Terminated  On Monday, April 28, officials with Project Transformation Oklahoma (PTOK) were notified of the immediate termination of their AmeriCorps grant. PTOK is the conference’s summer ...

by Rev. Tim McHugh Over the last several years I have been involved in disaster relief in some way or another, and it has had an incredible impact on my faith walk and my ministry life. Under the ...

Perkins First United Methodist Church has a ministry called Neighborhood Ministries which is a regional food bank site that passes out bags of groceries, produce, meat and snacks twice monthly. ...

We asked Dana Parker, our resident disaster response expert, for advice on different disaster scenarios. This is what she said. If an individual has a disaster Before Create a disaster plan for ...

by Discipleship Ministries A little-known but fascinating corner of United Methodist mission work consists of a small corps of retirees scattered throughout the country. They call themselves Nomads. ...

By United Methodist Creation Justice Team 1. Gather Your Core Team Start with at least two or three committed individuals—Jesus said that’s enough for him to be present! Identify additional people ...

By Dana Parker John and Susan (not their real names) had built their beautiful home on a hill near the Verdigris River in Claremore, Oklahoma. For more than 20 years they raised their family and ...

By Rev. Carlos Ramirez “After he took his seat at the table with them, he took the bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Their eyes were opened and they recognized him, but he disappeared ...

By Jena Barber This month, the day before Easter, Oklahomans - and others across the nation and the world - will observe the 30th anniversary of the single most deadly act of domestic terrorism in the...

by Rev. Jinx Barber Easter, the semicolon, and the promise they share. As children, many of us were taught grammar lessons that stuck with us. One particular lesson, perhaps, was the function of the ...

by Rev. Desi Sharp While it might be tempting to skip from the joyful waving of the palms and shouts of Alleluia on Palm Sunday directly to the transcendent awe of the resurrection on Easter morning, ...

by Rev. Carlos Ramirez To me the celebration of Maundy Thursday is one of the most special worship services in Lent and, in particular, during Holy Week. As a pastor in the local church, I always ...

by Rev. Tari Carbaugh It was our last Palm Sunday at our old Bartlesville First United Methodist Church facility.  We had purchased 64 acres and were building a beautiful, new campus.  Since it was ...

By Dr. Robin Goggs “Don’t ever make decisions based on fear. Make decisions based on hope and possibility. Make decisions based on what should happen, not what shouldn’t.” – Michelle Obama These ...

OKUMC Disaster Response has had many kinds of vehicles and trailers to assist in response. As it became harder to maintain all this equipment, we have sold or given them to other agencies to use.  One...

by Rev. Dr. Derrek Belase As we have shared in the last two editions of Contact, one of the unique elements of United Methodist Polity is that while the General Conference can consider and approve ...

The Commission on Status and Role of Women (COSROW) is now accepting nominations for the 2025 Frances E. Willard Award. Deadline: April 15, 2025. Download the nomination form here.  Every year, COSROW...

Bedford Theatre is a new ministry of Nichols Hills United Methodist Church. This spring an exciting new ministry has begun in Nichols Hills. Bedford Theatre is a family-friendly volunteer community ...

United Women in Faith’s Assembly 2026 is themed “Dream it! Believe it! Do it!” It will take place in Indianapolis, Indiana, May 15-17, 2026. Registration for the event will open on Sept. 1, 2025. What...

Congregations across the conference gathered on Ash Wednesday to mark the beginning of the season of Lent. At the conference office, Rev.Terry Koehn offered a message and various attendees ...

OKUMC Communications welcomes contributions. We want to hear all UM voices, all UM ideas, and all UM points of view. We'd love to hear from you - clergy or laity! If you have a story - even if it ...

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St. Paul’s UMC in Duncan has initiated a new church within our church called Messy Church. It is the first Messy Church in the Oklahoma Conference which debuted December, 2024. The tag line for the ...

by Dr. Robyn Goggs, DMin, LPC “Blessed are the peacemakers.”   What does it mean to be a peacemaker?  Recently, I had the opportunity to take my son, a high school senior, to explore the “Disneyland ...

From the General Committee on Religion & Race (GCORR) 1. Preach and teach about the sin of racism. United Methodist doctrine, moral and social teaching, and theological teachings clearly denounce ...

By Jena Barber Stephen Colbert, who hosts a major network late-night show, used to have a Comedy Central show created around his alter ego, Stephen Colbert - emphasis on the “fancy” and “French” ...

Rev. Dr. Thomas Hoffmann  In 2014, I was asked to co-pastor a church in a neighborhood of no ethnic majority and speaking multiple languages. With a Latino clergyperson, together we tried to assist a ...

by Rev. Carlos Ramirez We United Methodists are not particularly known for our emphasis on “the end times.” We may associate these types of messages with an evangelical preacher under a tent in a ...

By Rev. Twila Gibbens In Tulsa, faith communities, city counselors and a creative guild have joined together to provide an option for those who wish “to do something about gun violence”. St. Paul’s ...

While preparing for this month’s issue, I came across a few opportunities to learn more about anti-racism - and to do something to help. First, I found out about a study - and a book - called Our ...

by Rev. Twila Gibbens History My dad was a United Methodist pastor. He engaged in pulpit exchanges with African American churches in small town appointments in the 1960s. When desegregation came to ...

We Shall Overcome Jacqueline Deveraux leads the congregation and the choir in a soaring rendition of We Shall Overcome. Watch it here. We Are At a Crossroads Rev. Joseph W. Daniels Jr., lead ...