As we continue to engage in effective ministry during and after COVID-19, Bishop Lowry and the Cabinet are convinced that churches hoping to return to “the way things were” are not going to emerge from this season as healthy as those who are willing...
With firm conviction, Bishop Gerald O. Glenn of The New Deliverance Evangelistic Church in North Chesterfield, Virginia, held in-person worship on March 22 despite warnings about the need for social distancing. In the service Bishop Glenn declared, ...
Moderators Note: On Friday, April 24, Bishop Lowry issued the following statement regarding local churches going back to "in-person" worship during this continuing season of COVID-19 quarantine. The Cabinet and I are aware that many are anxious to ...
“Come, sinners, to the gospel feast, let every soul be Jesus guest. Ye need not one be left behind, for God hath bid all humankind. Come and partake the gospel feast, be saved from sin, in Jesus rest; O taste the goodness of our God, and eat his ...
In his latest video update to the Central Texas Conference, Bishop Lowry addresses several topics related to the ministries and business of the CTC - chief among them being what do the reported “reopening of Texas” plans mean for our local churches?...
Moderators Note: A video version of this blog from Bishop Lowry is available at the end of this post. Charles Wesley’s great resurrection hymn rings out: “Christ the Lord is ris'n today, Alleluia! Sons of men and angels say, Alleluia! Raise your ...
Do you recall the great promise given to Peter when Jesus tells him that “upon this rock I will build my church?” Jesus promises, “the gates of Hades [hell] will not prevail against it.” (Matthew 16:18, NRSV) Neither will the COVID-19 Coronavirus ...
In this time of crisis and pandemic, I invite you to breath deep and remember that Jesus is still Lord. May our response as Christ followers be that of a people guided by faith, not driven by fear. As the coronavirus, known as COVID-19, continues ...
When I started this blog site approximately 10 years ago, I chose to title it “This Focused Center” based on 2 Corinthians 5:14-15. “Our firm decision is to work from this focused center: One man died for everyone. That puts everyone in the same ...
United Theological Seminary and the Central Texas Conference of The United Methodist Church announced today (Jan. 30, 2020) that Bishop Lowry will become the first Bishop-in-Residence at United following his retirement as the episcopal leader of the...
Yesterday was Epiphany Day, the day of the traditional celebration of the wisemen’s (magi’s) arrival in Bethlehem. Matthew shares this profound offering from Gentile non-believers (probably followers of Zoroasterism). When they saw the star, they ...
Dean David Watson of United Theological Seminary will serve as the Guest Teacher for the 2019 Central Texas Annual Conference meeting. At the 109th annual gathering of the Central Texas Conference, we have the special privilege of having one of ...
For those following larger issues in the United Methodist Church in America, it is an understatement to assert that this is a time of fluid chaos. Conversations, and even threatened action for or against the recently concluded General Conference, ...
As I write, it is a Sunday afternoon and I have just returned to my office from sharing with Mooreville United Methodist Church in worship. While with those good and faithful people, I saw the Holy Spirit at work. But I am ahead of myself. Though ...
It was with sadness that I released the following announcement to the clergy and lay leaders of the Central Texas Conference on Dec. 28, 2018. I have received a complaint against Rev. Ben Disney, East District Superintendent based on ¶2702. 1 of...
In the second part of my Episcopal address last week at Annual Conference, I tried to offer some insight on seeking a way forward for us as a larger church. This came at the end of three separate presentations (one by Lay Leader Mike Ford, the 2nd by...
Members and Friends of the Central Texas Conference: On June 13, the Central Texas Annual Conference overwhelmingly passed a resolution condemning the current U.S. "zero tolerance" policy on immigration's practice of separating children from their ...
The news of the latest school shooting swept over me with a sense of despair. Somewhere in my watching I heard one of the high school students say something like, “I’m not surprised. Sooner or later it was bound to happen here.” My heart staggers in ...
Frost United Methodist Church is a part of a two point charge (with Blooming Grove UMC). The town itself has a population of less than 700 people. Rev. Kevin Diggs, the pastor of Frost UMC, was invited by some local folks at the Party Barn to share a...
Dear Friend in Christ, The Council of Bishops of The United Methodist Church came together earlier this week (Feb.25-28) with the primary purpose of receiving the most recent report from the Commission on A Way Forward. As you’ll recall, the ...
The following was released by the Council of Bishops late in the afternoon last Friday (Feb. 23). As I share it with you here, I ask that you continue to pray for the Council of Bishops and the Commission on A Way Forward, especially this week as the...
It was Herb Miller, an executive in Evangelism for the Disciples of Christ and prolific author on the subject of faith sharing, who wrote that virtually everyone comes to church for one of three reasons (if not actually a combination of all three) – ...
Tomorrow begins the season of Lent - the forty days of journey to the death of Jesus on the cross for our redemption and the triumph of Christ in the resurrection for our salvation. Historically, this has always been a time for Christians to follow ...
I sent this letter via email from our Conference database on January 10th to all the local church congregations and lay members across the Central Texas Conference, but I also wanted to share with you. May we continue the groundbreaking work done by ...
It is a famous story and even more famous poem, yet both the story and the poem bear repeating. In the early days of the Second World War, King George the VI gave a Christmas address to the British Empire. In the address he quoted a poem authored ...
Recently Mike Ramsdell, Executive Director of the Smith Center for Evangelism and Church Growth wrote a concise article which was printed in the Smith Center online newsletter. It is an outstanding summary about why numbers matter (each number ...
"I pray that they will be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. I pray that they also will be in us, so that the world will believe that you sent me." (John 17:21) Saturday, October 30th, I found myself with a group from the Central ...
In my last blog, I noted that I had been recently asked to review and write a publication "blurb" for two new books, Scripture and the Life of God by Dr. David Watson, Dean at United Theological Seminary and The Band Meeting: An Invitation to ...
The Apostle Paul famously called for a special offering for the Jerusalem Church and Christians suffering in hard times during a famine in the 40s A.D. Those words of almost two thousand years ago are easily echoed today in response to the great ...
John Wesley is purported to have said that “worship is the first and primary duty of the Christian.” This crucial act of biblical discipleship is clear. In his decisive interchange with the woman at the well, Jesus says, “But the time is coming - and...
This coming October, we have a significant opportunity to grow our missional outreach to those in our local communities through a CTC-sponsored event entitled ENGAGE: Transforming Missions. The ENGAGE Conference is scheduled for Oct. 6-7 at Temple ...
The following blog posting (“A Time for Courage: Part III) is the third and final section of my Episcopal Address given to the Central Texas Annual Conference on June 12, 2017. Part I was posted June 19th and Part II was posted June 21st. I remind ...
The following blog posting (“A Time for Courage: Part II) is the second section of my Episcopal Address given to the Central Texas Annual Conference June 12, 2017. Part I was posted on June 19th. --Bishop Mike Lowry, Resident Bishop of the Central ...
The following blog posting (A Time for Courage: Part I) is the first section of my Episcopal Address given to the Central Texas Annual Conference on June 12, 2017. The rest of the Episcopal Address will be shared in subsequent blogs. -- Bishop Mike ...
As you have most likely already read, the UMC Judicial Council released its ruling on the validity of Bishop Karen Oliveto’s election and consecration by the Western Jurisdiction. In its decision – Decision 1341 – the Judicial Council ruled that the...
Sunday afternoon, February 26th, the Central Texas Conference Core Team gathered to continue our work determining the WIG for the Conference’s future. I have written briefly on the concept of WIG before. The acronym WIG, in this instance, means the W...
This morning I drove down to Stillwater Lodge at Glen Lake Camp and Retreat Center. We begin a three-day Cabinet Inventory Retreat. Our first activity is worship and prayer. With our foundation and focus built on God as Father, Son and Holy Spirit, ...
For last 7 years as bishop of the Fort Worth Episcopal Area, The Central Texas Conference, I have stressed the critical importance and centrality of what I call the “big three” as the focus of our work as a Conference “energizing and equipping local ...
I sit at my keyboard and launch this blog on "Celebrations and a Loss Observed" mindful that today is Valentine’s Day. While flowers, candy and cards abound, I invite us to pause and remember the original Valentine. He was a Christian martyr and ...
Like many of you, my year has begun with a full slate of ministry activities. It began January 3rd with a day and a half in the office to answer emails and plow through paperwork accumulated from the Christmas – New Year break time. The afternoon of ...
Bishop Bruce Ough, President for the Council of Bishops has announced the selection of membership on the “The Commission on a Way Forward.” He has noted in his press release that the Commission is made up of 8 bishops, 11 laity, 11 elders, and 2 ...
N.T. Wright, Professor of New Testament and Early Christianity at the University of St. Andrews University in Scotland, author and retired Anglican bishop of Durham, England is coming to Perkins School of Theology at SMU November 15-17. Perkins ...
In response to Gov. Greg Abbott’s recent press release regarding Texas’ intention to withdraw from the federal refugee resettlement program , the United Methodist bishops in the state of Texas have issued the following statement. You will notice in ...
This has been a great week of learnings and sharings around the Conference. On Wednesday, Thursday and Friday of last week, we held our annual Fall Cabinet Retreat at Stillwater Lodge. As a part of our work together, we focused on team building, ...
One of great ministries taking place in the Central Texas Conference is Methodist Justice Ministry (MJM) under the leadership of Rev. Brooks Harrington. MJM is an outgrowth of First United Methodist Church of Fort Worth, Texas. Their website (http://...
The pictures and news reports are graphic. The flooding is historic in size and scope. The impact has been described as “catastrophic” by The Central Texas Conference’s Coordinator of Disaster Response Rev. Laraine Waughtal. Already the response by ...
At our recent Annual Conference meeting in Waco, we engaged a series of faith sharing exercises. They are simple tools or exercises that can be used in a Sunday School Class, a United Methodist Women’s group (UMW) or a United Methodist Men’s meeting ...
Central Texas Conference Episcopal Address given by Bishop Mike Lowry June 6, 2016 PART IV – “A Time for Courageous Leadership” Leadership development for both lay and clergy remains and must remain a top priority. To this end two years ago we ...
Central Texas Conference Episcopal Address given by Bishop Mike Lowry June 6, 2016 PART III – “The Sinews of Methodism and the Recovery of Evangelism” A second element in focusing on local congregations coincides with the importance of small group ...
Central Texas Conference Episcopal Address given by Bishop Mike Lowry June 6, 2016 PART II – “A Relentless Focus on the Mission” As we move into a new quadrennium the pathway before us is clear. We must retain a relentless focus on our mission – “to ...
Central Texas Conference Episcopal Address given June 6, 2016 by Bishop J. Michael Lowry PART I – “A New Thing” I am mindful what day today is as I stand to speak to you. This is the day is the 72nd anniversary of what is commonly known as simply ...
The news of another terrorist shooting and the tragic deaths of so many in the Pulse Nightclub rocks all of us with its senseless hate-filled violence. It addresses us all on so many levels – unchecked gun violence (examples are many: Sandy Hook, a ...
of the Central Texas Conference Of the United Methodist Church Shared with Opening Plenary Session of the 2016 Central Texas Conference, June 6, 2016 As most, if not all of you are aware, the recently concluded General Conference of the United ...
Today (Tuesday, May 31, 2016) as a spent time in my morning devotionals, one of the assigned texts for my reading was Matthew 7:15-20. 15 “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you dressed like sheep, but inside they are vicious wolves. 16 You ...
[caption id="attachment_2220" align="alignright" width="360"] Bishop Lowry presiding over a plenary session at General Conference 2016[/caption] Members of the Council of Bishops delayed their leaving Portland, Ore. following the end General ...
On May 10th the United Methodist General Conference will convene in Portland, Oregon. Quadrennially (every four years) General Conference meets as the highest ruling body of The United Methodist Church. General Conference alone can speak for the ...
The United Methodist Church has been engaged in a committed emphasis on building vital congregations who “make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.” Bishop John Schol from the Greater New Jersey Conference has been the lead ...
This Sunday night, February 28, at 9:45 p.m., I will pause for a special set-aside 15 minutes of prayer for the upcoming General Conference meeting of The United Methodist Church in Portland, Oregon in May. I invite others to join with me and with ...
This week we concluded Inventory in the Central Texas Conference. This is a yearly exercise which Bishops and their Cabinets go through. The Cabinet Inventory Retreat is a time of assessing where the Conference stands on retirements, new people ...
Sunday afternoon we started our yearly Cabinet Inventory Retreat. Once again we face a rising number of retirements. We are in the beginning states of implementing a new LASP (Learning Agility Sustained Performance) model for assessing clergy gifts ...
Rio Texas, Central Texas & the Work of a Bishop By now many regular readers of this blog are aware that I will be serving as one of four bishops providing episcopal supervision to the Rio Texas Conference until Sept. 1. Bishop Janice Huie (Texas ...
Amid all of the bad news we hear, often the good news gets lost. Many of us have experienced the reality of two manifestations of the church existing side by side within the same Conference. On the one hand there are those places of shrinkage, ...
I find myself slowly and impatiently (see my previous blog!) recovering from knee replacement surgery. I have just begun my second week at home dominated by physical therapy and much needed rest. As I do so, I hope to take some time to write a couple...
For the last two and a half days I have been in Franklin, Tennessee attending the New Room Conference. I was warned not to go. I was told that the New Room Conference was a gathering to plan the schism of the United Methodist Church over the issue of...
The words are so simple and common. They come at the conclusion of Matthew’s great story of the Savior’s birth. We read the story at Christmas but rarely focus on closing verses and still less preach on them. “When the magi had departed, an angel ...
Thursday night (September 10th) I drove home from a very engaging and fruitful Cabinet Retreat. This morning (September 11th) I left early to attend a two day Texas Health Resources (THR) Leadership Conference focusing on the critical theme of ...
Mike Bonem meets with Cabinet and Core Team © Before departing on a vacation to Ireland, Bishop Lowry invited Mike Bonem to be a guest blogger. Mike, the consultant leading the Exodus Project evaluation, met on June 17 with CTC’s Core Team and the ...
Mike Bonem meets with Cabinet and Core Team © Before departing on a vacation to Ireland, Bishop Lowry invited Mike Bonem to be a guest blogger. Mike, the consultant leading the Exodus Project evaluation, met on June 17 with the CTC’s Core Team and ...
Last week the Central Texas Conference (CTC) Core Leadership Team and Cabinet met to begin work on the seven recommendations adopted by the Central Texas Conference in the Exodus Project Evaluation Report. With the adoption of the Exodus Project ...
Texas Wesleyan University has been engaged in an award-winning advertisement campaign for student admissions. The campaign is built around a clever and insightful slogan, “Smaller. Smarter.” The slogan is clever in that it is easy to remember. It is...
A straightforward CNN news story reports the following: “They were sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, friends and fellow citizens. They were students and dreamers, pursuing their ambitions for a better life. And on Tuesday night, Kenyans ...
One of the great Focus Areas of the United Methodist Church during the last eight years has been combating killer diseases. In particular, the United Methodist Church has focused on combating the killer disease of malaria through Nothing But Nets and...
During this Advent time of preparation I find myself drawn again and again back to hymns and music, both ancient and contemporary with everything in between, as a way of expressing my faith. Dr. Shubert Ogden’s phrase – “we do theology in order that ...
We have so many wonderful ministries in the Central Texas Conference that it is hard to keep track of them all. The list goes on and on! One of those outstanding ministries is The Wesleyan Homes. All the way back in 1953, leadership in the Central ...
There a many great avenues of ministry taking place in the Central Texas Conference and around the larger church. One of them lies in new church development. It is important to remember that every church was at one point in its life a new church. ...
On returning home from the Council of Bishops week-long meeting in Oklahoma City, I find myself slowly getting back into the issues of ministry in our local setting. Among the disagreements at the Council, the great sign of encouragement was our ...
The great church leadership, administration and church growth guru of the late 20th century for mainline Protestantism was Dr. Lyle Schaller. Among the many insightful concepts he popularized was the notion of church typologies. Church typology is a ...
Over the past three weeks much (though not all) of the focus of my work has been on missions and missional issues facing the church. By missional, I broadly mean engaging in deeds of love, justice and mercy. This falls under the broad theological ...
On Wednesday (and again today - Friday, September 26th), the Central Texas Conference Mission Team share with key personal in an incredible experience called "Medical Camp." Leaving after morning chapel at the Maua Methodist Hospital, we drove for ...
The day opens with worship at 7:30 in the hospital chapel. The simple but pleasant sanctuary fills with hospital staff and we stand to sing. The music comes from an old British Methodist hymnal and is known to many of us. As the voices lift in song, ...
Today, Thursday, September 11, 2014, I went to the funeral service for one of saints of the Central Texas Conference, Robert H. Briles, Sr., “Bob.” Such occasions always lead me to reflect on life; its meaning and fragility. Bob went from being a ...
For the past year and a half, the Cabinet of the Central Texas Conference has been working with the Lencioni organization (The Table Group) in assimilating and implementing lessons from Lencioni’s bestselling book The Advantage: Why Organizational ...
The image of protestors angrily greeting three busloads of mostly women and children in San Diego is both vivid and powerful. Primal emotions were stirred. The victims were often terrified younger children. The great issue – immigration reform – is a...
EPISCOPAL ADDRESS TO THE CENTRAL TEXAS CONFERENCE OF THE UNITED METHODIST CHURCH June 9, 2014 By Bishop Mike Lowry © Be glad in the Lord always! Again I say, be glad! 5 Let your gentleness show in your treatment of all people. The Lord is near. 6 ...
As I write this blog we are finishing last minute preparations for the 148th meeting (counting all the various predecessors!) of the Central Texas Conference. Annual Conference is central to the notion of what Methodist’s are about. John Wesley, the ...
Last Thursday I flew to Syracuse, New York. Friday and Saturday mornings I made two separate presentations/bible studies to the Upper New York Conference of the United Methodist Church. It was a great time of making new friends, sharing and learning ...
I can still recall the thrill of listening to Bill Hybels, the Senior Pastor of Willow Creek Community Church, describe their mission well over two decades ago. “Willow Creek exists to turn irreligious people into fully devoted followers of Jesus ...
I am often asked, “What is the theme of this year’s Annual Conference?” For me, the answer is always the same. Our theme is “to energize and equip local congregations to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.” The theme ...
Saturday evening April 5th found Jolynn and me driving over to White’s Chapel UMC to participate in a special Taize “Pilgrimage of Trust” here in the northern part of Texas. Readers may well remember that the Central Texas Conference sponsored a ...
I had planned to write today’s blog on a new book written by John Flowers and Karen Vannoy entitled Adapt to Thrive. Life and death however have a way of intruding. The most recent tragedy at Fort Hood affects us deeply in the Central Texas ...
This blog is a special plea and invitation for young adults ages 18 to 35 to sign up for the Taize “Pilgrimage of Trust” that will be held at Whites Chapel UMC, April 4-6! You may do so by going to the Central Texas Conference Website www.ctcumc.org....
In mid-February I wrote a heartfelt blog congratulating Bliss Dodd for receiving the Perkins School of Theology Woodrow B. Seals Laity Award. In part I commented, “I cannot help but reflect that it was only a couple of weeks ago that I attended the ...
Roughly a decade ago, I slipped into a conference in an Austin, Texas hotel to take part in my first meeting as a member of the Grants Committee of the Texas Methodist Foundation (TMF). Chairing the meeting was one of the saints of the Central Texas ...
Numbers never tell the whole story. At the same time, numbers (or metrics) do offer critical insight that must not be ignored. One yearly numbers (or metrics) ritual in the United Methodist Church is a year-end close out of Connectional Mission ...
Last Friday I flew to Nashville, Tennessee for a special retirement celebration. With many (including a large passel of bishops and General Secretaries), we honored Rev. Karen Greenwaldt for 32 years of service to the general church at the General ...
A remarkable event took place at the 2013 meeting of the Central Texas Conference. During the Center for Evangelism and Church Growth report, four specific initiatives related to our core strategy of new church development were launched. 1. Lance ...
The third major core strategy that we have in the Central Texas Conference of the United Methodist Church is to engage and develop clergy and lay leadership. This is both simple and profound in its essence. A church, any church, will not exceed the ...
(This Blog is a part of a series of blogs sharing insights from the “Findings, Implications, & Recommendations” reported by Dr. Weems about the Central Texas Conference. This report analyzes key trends related to church size and clergy deployment ...
(This Blog is a part of a series of blogs sharing insights from the “Findings, Implications, & Recommendations” reported by Dr. Weems about the Central Texas Conference. This report analyzes key trends related to church size and clergy deployment ...
(This Blog is a part of a series of blogs sharing insights from the “Findings, Implications, & Recommendations” reported by Dr. Weems about the Central Texas Conference. This report analyzes key trends related to church size and clergy deployment ...
(This Blog is a part of a series of blogs sharing insights from the “Findings, Implications, & Recommendations” reported by Dr. Weems about the Central Texas Conference. This report analyzes key trends related to church size and clergy deployment ...
(This Blog is a part of a series of blogs sharing insights from the “Findings, Implications, & Recommendations” reported by Dr. Weems about the Central Texas Conference. This report analyzes key trends related to church size and clergy deployment ...
Please allow me a brief pause in my ongoing report on “Insights on Changes in Congregations, Clergy and Deployment” – reporting and reflecting on a detailed study of trends in the Central Texas Conference put together by the Lewis Center for ...
One of the absolutely crucial areas of concern for the United Methodist Church is leadership development. In a real sense, this is always true for any organization (church, business, military, non-profits, etc.) anywhere, at any time. The Call to ...
Beginning Monday, June 10th we will have the joy and privilege of having Dr. Kenda Creasy Dean as our Conference Teacher. She is renowned for her insight in ministry to youth and young adults. Significantly those insights translate beyond ministry to...
Last night I watched the reports on the tornadoes that ripped through the Granbury-Cleburne area. I could not help but remember the devastation caused to St. Barnabas and Arlington a little over a year ago. Like so many, I took time to pray for those...
This past Monday (February 11th) the Central Texas Conference Cabinet began its annual four day Inventory Retreat at Stillwater Lodge in Glen Rose. Together we will sift through the myriad of personnel issues that are before us as a part of the ...
Tomorrow the quadrennial meeting of the South Central Jurisdictional Conference will formally begin. Today, Tuesday, July 17th, we are meeting as a College of Bishops (that is the bishops of the South Central Jurisdiction, both active and retired). ...
Today (Monday, June 11th) finished my first full day at CTCYM (Central Texas Conference Youth Mission). Our young people are a joy as they come together in mission and service! We are building a wheel chair ramp for an older couple in great need. ...
Among the various actions taken by General Conference was an overwhelming vote (originally on the consent agenda) to end guaranteed appointments for ordained elders in the United Methodist Church. In brief, “under this new legislation, bishops and ...
When my son turned 15 we took him and a friend to Six Flags – Fiesta Texas in San Antonio in celebration. He couldn’t wait to try what was then the world’s largest wooden rollercoaster. Staring at this monster (called The Rattler), the friend decided...
The stated mission of the Central Texas Conference is to energize and equip local churches to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world. Local churches make disciples who engage (both individually and collectively) in world ...
Today (Friday, January 27, 2012) I have the joy of representing the Central Texas Conference and The United Methodist Church at the installation of Dr. Fred Slabach as the 20th President of Texas Wesleyan University. I believe the Trustees have ...
The lead article on the Central Texas Conference website is entitled “What are Your Plans for Christmas Sunday Services.” I want to strongly encourage pastors, directors of music, and other local church leaders to carefully read the article. ...
As we live into the Exodus Project, I remain deeply committed to the Cluster Group concept as a central tool for learning together and moving forward into the new future the Lord is calling us to. One of the initial learnings has come from Cluster ...
A good friend of mine, Bishop Paul Leeland, says, “When the caravan is moving, the dogs are barking.” As we have wrestled with appointments and are going through transition at the Conference office, I am reminded of Bishop Leeland’s pointed phrase. ...
In the run up to the Thanksgiving holiday, I attended two informative events. While distinctly different from each other, each is evidence of the creative reflection taking place across the United Methodist Church. Saturday, November 20th I attended ...
Often the Apostle Paul opens his letters with a phrase like “I thank my God for you ….” I think I understand what he was feeling. I am constantly thanking God for the Central Texas Conference and more personally for the privilege of being bishop of ...
Another Annual Conference is behind us and I find myself struggling with the paper work which any Conference generates. As I wrestle with an overflowing in-box of letters to answer, articles to write, and people to visit, some questions from ...