liberal, inclusive, LGBTQ friendly, all denominations, progressive, welcoming

Ag Life and You

Did you know that there’s a service available in all 254 counties in Texas and in Oklahoma that offers programs, tools, and resources to help you grow better tomatoes, live more healthy lives, protect the environment, strengthen our communities and enrich youth? Neither did the worship team! On Sunday, Joyce White from the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service will give us an overview of how they can help people everywhere.

Joyce grew up in the 4-H program and her mother was a leader so you can say that she has spent most of her life in Extension in one way or the other. Her Bachelor’s degree is Secondary Education – Home Economics major and her Master’s degree is in Education with an emphasis on Curriculum & Instruction.

And Crown Thy Good

Jerry Harris, Jim Holmes, L.D. Clark, and Bruce Cameron

Armistice Day was first observed November 11th in 1919, on the anniversary of the armistice with Germany. The tradition continued informally. Then President Coolidge called for national observations on Nov. 11 with appropriate ceremonies; F.D.R. signed it into law as a holiday; Eisenhower renamed it Veteran’s Day. L.B.J moved it to the 4^th Monday in October via the Uniform Holiday Bill and President Ford returned the date to November 11.

The next time Veteran’s Day falls on a Sunday is in 2029 which led the worship team to ask four veterans in our congregation to speak. The topic? Veteran’s Day. Come listen to four perspectives on this holiday which has been tinkered with by more presidents than most other national holidays.

Becoming Great

What would it take for members of the human community to become great in relation to each other and the rest of life on our planet? What cultural, economic, social, and spiritual paths might help lead us to become one of the greatest generations for each other and the earth as a whole?

The Rev. Dr. Mark Y.A. Davies. Mark is the Wimberly Professor of Social and Ecological Ethics; Director of the World House Institute for Social and Ecological Responsibility; and Executive Director of the Leadership. Education, and Development Hub North America for the General Board of Higher Education and Ministry at Oklahoma City University where he has worked in both teaching and administration for 22 years. He is a United Methodist minister and holds a Ph.D. in Social Ethics, from Boston University.

Mark engages in advocacy and activism in the areas of peace, social justice, and ecological sustainability. Locally this is expressed through his work with the Human Community Network, which works to create non-violent systemic change for a just and flourishing human and ecological community through collaboration, education, innovation, and action.

Study. Learn. Question. Die.

We trace the origins of our Unitarian heritage to the mid sixteenth century to one man. After years of study he concluded the theological basis for the Holy Trinity was mistaken and said so in his book On the Errors of the Trinity. Pretty ballsy given the ironclad hold religion had on the world. Both Catholics and Protestants branded his anti-trinitarian writing heretical. He was burned to death 465 years ago yesterday, Oct. 27,1553. Fortunately for us, one copy of his book did not go up in flames. If it had, Unitarianism might never have been permitted to exist.

This I Believe – Credo Sunday

We all have a foundation upon which we build our religious philosophy. It is nestled deep in our soul rather than printed in any brochure and hungers to be shared. It comes from the depth of our own thought and heart. It is the core of our individual spiritual path. Credo literally means, “I give my heart and loyalty to…” Astute credos marry the gifts of both intellect and spirit. Credos spur presenters to select highlights from their religious odyssey, highlighting those affirmations that sustain them during the happy and hard days and nights of life.

The worship team invited a few members once or twice a year to offer their credo statement. They are asked several months in advance because writing out what you give your heart and loyalty to takes some thought.
Following the morning assembly, everyone is invited to tarry for lunch, catered by Dickey’s Barbecue Pit and remain for the Fall Congregational Meeting which starts at 1 pm.

Holding it Together While You Ride Out the Storm

Those storms are never in the forecast. They pop up and knock you off course in an instant. My storm began like a flash of lightening – a quick misstep off a curb – but it blew up into a full cyclone, pulling my whole life into its whirling spin.

Transforming the Revolving Door

One in four Americans will experience a mental health disorder in their life time. It is a human issue that affects us all. So, too, the myths about those with mental health issues who are no more likely to be violent than anyone else, but they are much more likely to have contact with the criminal justice system. Nearly half the inmates in county jails have mental health issues.

On Sunday, our guest will talk about some collaborative programs that have reduced recidivism among those with mental health issues from 67% to 11%. These programs are transforming the revolving door.

Whitney Redden, a graduate of Austin College, earned a MA in Counseling Psychology at TWU, and is a licensed professional counselor. She has worked with the Battering Intervention program, Children’s Advocacy Center and now is at the Texoma Community Center. She currently is the president of the local National Alliance on Mental Illness chapter and is an adjunct professor at SOSU.

Building Racial Unity: Conversations and Relationships

In 2016, our congregation realized we were unintentionally practicing Isolationism. We were a white congregation in a white suburb, living in a “bubble” but feeling genuinely troubled by the growing chasm between black and white people. We decided to reach out intentionally across the color line to meet each other, to talk, to create friendships, to learn and to walk in solidarity with one another in the community. I would like to share our story with you: by building relationships we build racial unity.

Jeanne is a recently retired, married, mother of two teenage boys. Her faith tradition is United Methodist and she is a member at Trietsch Memorial United Methodist Church in Flower Mound, whose motto is Open Minds, Open Hearts and Open Doors. Jeanne is passionate about meeting new people, building relationships and learning new things.

Water Communion Sunday

Water is required for all living things to exist. Given this fact, it is an enigma why human race permits some to pollute, poison, steal or hoard this very essence of existence. This year’s water communion will focus on our collective treatment of water: one global, one national, and one local.

Bring a small container of water with you whether it comes from an actual place you’ve been, or from a virtual location – some place you’d enjoy visiting. Together we’ll look at ways to be better stewards of streams, rivers, lakes, and oceans, so our great grandchildren will not parish.

Coexistence is Not Enough

The challenges of our time are too great for people of different faiths to simply get along. The urgency of now requires people of all faiths along with people of no particular faith to move beyond coexistence to work together in the human community for the transformation of the world towards peace, justice, and sustainability.