News

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Bishop Goodpaster Calls for Building Bridges on 10th Anniversary of September 11   from reports by United Methodist Communications   In a statement just released from Bishop Larry M. Goodpaster, president of the UMC Council of Bishops (photo right), United Methodists around the world are being asked to commemorate the upcoming 10th anniversary of September 11, 2001 with prayer and a focus on interfaith connection. In his statement, Bishop Goodpaster highlights his and the Council of Bishops’ ...

by Vance Morton* The General Board of Pension and Health Benefits (GBPHB) sent out word earlier today that they have decided to extend the Early Bird registration for the 2011 Clergy Benefits Academy through next Friday, September 9, 2011 a.d. Those registering by the Sept. 9 deadline will receive a discounted rate of $119 ($209.00 with spouse), the fee increases to $149.00 ($239.00 with spouse) after Sept. 8.   What do you get for that fee? Good question – according to the good folks at the ...

New UMC-sponsored poll looks at American attitudes towards global citizenship by United Methodist Communications www.umcpresscenter.org   A decade after 9/11, only 16 percent of Americans believe terrorism is the most important issue in the world, according to a new survey on Americans’ interest in international concerns and related behaviors.   Economic weakness and unemployment were identified as the chief concern for most Americans, with twice as many respondents citing it as the most ...

by Kyland Dobbins*   The past several days have yet again served to remind how quickly lives can be turned upside down in the wake of a natural disaster. They have also served to remind how quickly the people of the Central Texas Conference are to offer assistance to those affected. As our brothers and sisters across the eastern seaboard of the United States and (closer to home) Palo Pinto County are beginning the long journey of picking up the pieces and moving on, we have already heard from ...

by Vance Morton* As I was trolling around the interwebernet today I thought that I'd pop over toYouTube and see if there were any good clips from Reggie McNeal to help whet my appetite for our upcoming Fall Summit. Well, of course there were...it's YouTube, that site has clips of everything. Below are two that I found that I thought you might find interesting. The first (on the left) is an interview with Reggie before this year's On Target Evangelism conference. The other (on the right) is a ...

by Vance Morton*   As the temperatures remain firmly locked in the triple digits and continue to bake those of us who live, work and worship within the Central Texas Conference, it is hard to think anything related to Fall is close at hand. But, if you’ll take a closer look at the calendar, our annual Fall Summit featuring the teachings of Reggie McNeal, a world-renowned authority on shifting the focus of your church into a missional mindset, is but a few short weeks away – Sept. 10 to be exact....

The Methodist Children’s Home (MCH) in Waco has received word that the Council on Accreditation (COA) has granted reaccreditation to the institution. Methodist Children’s Home President Tim Brown received word of the reaccreditation earlier this month in a letter from Richard Klarberg, president and chief executive officer of COA. This recognition marks MCH as one of only 32 organizations in Texas to have received COA accreditation. “Reaccreditation is a tremendous achievement that demonstrates...

by Amy Banta*   A diverse youth group from Ridglea UMC recently returned from a successful mission trip in Eureka Springs, Arkansas that left such an impact on the mission’s recipients, Elveto and Theo Walker, their tales of their generosity found the ear of the local newspaper, the Arkansas Carroll County News. While diversity in a group of missionaries from the CTC may not be all that unique (and ain’t that a good thing?!) it is the particular brand of diversity of which this group was forged ...

by Amy Banta*   The Central Texas Conference seems to be continuously finding new ways of making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world, and Rev. Jason Valendy, associate minister at Arlington Heights UMC, is no exception. For him, “re-thinking Church” is more than just changing how the Sunday worship hour is conducted. After reading Andy Crouch’s Culture Making, he began to realize that as Christians, it is all too easy for us to “critique, condemn, copy and consume ...

by Vance Morton* - from reports at joshuamission.wordpress.com   Ten representatives of First United Methodist Church of Joshua will arrive in Port-au-Prince, Haiti this Wednesday, Aug. 3, for a 10-day service project that includes rebuilding classroom security walls, plumbing, electrical work and constructing a playground area for a school near Puit Blains in Port-au-Prince. (Pictured - back row: Michael Hartman, Debbie Lehman, Nicole Hutchison, Rev. Lara Whitley, and Alan Eastering; front row:...

by Vance Morton*   The Central Texas Conference is thrilled to announce a unique opportunity to come together and hear from one of the leading experts of the day on how to transform yourself and your church into a more missional mindset. Please join us Saturday, Sept. 10 at First Methodist Church Mansfield, for a conversation with Reggie McNeal, church leadership specialist and author of best sellers “The Present Future” and “Missional Renaissance,” – both definitive works on the widespread ...

by Vance Morton* and Dawne Phillips** On Sept. 16-17, you can gather seeds for sowing, build skills and develop confidence to build God's kingdom at REAP, a conference focused on “Renewing, Equipping, Affirming, Preparing” those in ministry with children, youth, adults and spiritual formation. This year’s event will be held at Memorial Drive United Methodist Church in Houston. REAP is a regional event sponsored by the Christian Educators Fellowship of the Texas Annual Conference, a group ...

by Vance Morton* and Leanne Johnston**   The youth of Epworth UMC recently returned from Youth 2011 at Purdue University with more than memories and life-altering experiences. They arrived back in Arlington, Texas as the 2011 Champions of the Wesleyan Quadrilateral Competition (WQC) - a quiz competition with questions concerning scripture, experience, reason and tradition. [Pictured in the photo right are Allison Cyrier, Katie Donaldson, Suzanne Winter (second row), Amy Miller, Lacy Pulliam, ...

Bishop Lowry is asking that the people and churches of the Central Texas conference continue to be diligent in lifting up prayers for the people of Norway. As the reports from Norway continue to pour in regarding the July 22 bombings and shootings in Norway, it is clear that it will take much time and support for the people of that normally peaceful country try to come to grips with what is now the deadliest attack in that country since WWII. Yet, even in the midst of such horror, tales of ...

“And so, after waiting patiently, Abraham received what was promised.” (Hebrews 6:15 NIV) div style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;line-height: normal">While the promise of downloadable videos from this year’s annual conference pales in comparison to the promise God made Abraham, the patience shown by the people of the Central Texas Conference has been remarkable as you have waited a month for something that should have been available much more quickly. However, due to an unforeseen ...

This page is currently under construction, but functional...so please pardon our cyber-dust. The following are the three sessions from Adam Hamilton's presentations to Annual Conference and the Laity video that Steve McIver, Central Texas Conference Lay Leader, debuted during his laity address in Waco. Thank you all very much for your patience in getting these out to you - I'll bore you with my techinical tales of woe over coffee sometime. Blessings - J.Vance Morton, Central Texas Conference ...

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click here for video http://ct.brickriver.com/files/oVideos/09_WhyPromo_PC5SFKYJ.wmv

For more than 60 years the people of the United Methodist Church have donated generously to an official giving program known as The Advance. These donations (more than $1.2 billion so far)  have all been made via second-mile giving – in other words, contributions that are given after a congregation has met its "first-mile" responsibility to support the United Methodist Church's missions and ministries through World Service and other apportioned funds. While each Annual Conference of the United ...