As I sat down to write this blog post, news started coming in of an active shooter at Mansfield Timberview High School. The Conference staff is joining with people of goodwill to pray for all those involved and that a peace-filled resolution to what...
Like most Americans, I can remember precisely where I was on the morning of September 11, 2001. I had been the Senior Pastor of University UMC in San Antonio for just five and a half weeks. That morning, I was preparing for a staff meeting when ...
These are indeed unprecedented times. The gravity of the season in which we find ourselves can be devastating – and is for many. It only takes a quick scan of your newsfeed to become overwhelmed by the images of hospitals setting up COVID care ...
On Tuesday, March 2, Governor Gregg Abbott issued an Executive Order (GA-34) that ended the current statewide mask mandate in Texas and sets Wednesday, March 10 as the date in which all businesses, organizations and facilities in the state are ...
The Sunday after the great winter storm of 2021, many members of the Cabinet and Conference staff leadership team dispersed across the Central Texas Conference to visit various churches and communities damaged by the cold, snow, bursting pipes and ...
As I write this blog (Friday afternoon, Feb. 19), we are working as a Conference Team with District Superintendents (DS) and members of the District Discipleship Teams to provide assistance and disaster relief across the Central Texas Conference. ...
Moderators Note: As the temperatures finally begin to climb above freezing in Texas and frozen pipes begin to thaw, pipes that burst during the deep freeze will begin to leak and could cause damage quickly. Authorities suggest that you locate the ...
We are living in a time where we seem to be continually facing societal struggles that come at us at an almost blistering pace. Of course, there are all the ongoing and ever changing (yet seemingly never-changing) issues related to the COVID-19 ...
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?...
The Pandemic swept through the world. It is said that 5, 000 died in one day in Rome. Anyone with resources and means fled from major cities and sought sanctuary in remote locations. Social distancing was practiced long before the term was ever ...
Arguably, the most insightful piece of writing I have read during this season of chaos we call the “COVID-19 Coronavirus crisis” is based on a "Redemptive Edge" podcast by Andy Crouch, Kurt Keilhacker and Dave Blanchard called "Leading Beyond the ...
I am reprinting, with permission, an article that originally appeared on Facebook. It is written by Professor Peter Bellini. Dr. Bellini serves as Associate Professor of Evangelization in the Heisel Chair at United Theological Seminary. Some of you ...
In a video message to the Central Texas Conference, Bishop Lowry comments on how the Cabinet of the CTC is guiding churches and church leaders to respond to the ever-evolving novel coronavirus COVID-19 crisis. As city, county, state and federal ...
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 ...
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, ...
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 ...