Join us for this fifth Sunday joint Sunday School. Our music director, AV, and organist, EunJoo, with Bill Bingham, will tell us about the status of our pipe organ, the repair options, and the process. For all of us who love and enjoy organ music in our worship services, this will be a good time to have an open conversation about how we can better care for and appreciate our beloved instrument.

Please join us for a regional advocacy webinar provided by Equality Texas, the largest statewide nonprofit fighting for equality for LGBTQIA+ Texans. In this webinar, we will learn how to advocate more for LGBTQIA+ rights in this challenging time and have more information about the current state of equality in Texas, including key legislative developments and the ways to engage in advocacy efforts at the capitol, including tips for providing testimony at the capitol and how to effectively meet with your lawmakers. Please email Pastor Earl for the Zoom link.

Join us for a happy hour fellowship sip and chat at Lazarus Brewery. All LGBTQIA+ folks welcome.

Questions? Contact AV at av@uumc.org.

Join us for the six-session study through Lent on Emeritus Pastor John Elford's book Our Hearts Were Strangely Lukewarm: The American Methodist Church and the Struggle with White Supremacy. This study, presented by the General Commission on Religion and Race of The United Methodist Church, will be facilitated by Pastors John and Earl. We will have a chance to reflect on the many ways that Anti-black racism in our history has harmed our Black neighbors and hurt our witness and mission as a church. We will also shine a light on how some Methodist Christians preached the prophetic gospel of inclusion and the hope of the Beloved Community. Join us in person or on Zoom!

Contact: Pastor Earl - PastorEarl@uumc.org

Click Here to Register

Do you like poetry (or tolerate it at least) and want to find community at the church? Come to Poetry Club! For this meeting I’d love for everyone to bring a spring time poem! It can be something you wrote, something you found on a random google search, or a poem near and dear to your heart. Do not stress about what you bring! We’ll go around and share poems and stories and all around have a great time. Feel free to bring a friend if you have someone interested as well!

Reach out to Blake Coleman for more info: blakeaverycoleman@icloud.com.

Food insecurity while in college can detrimentally impact students’ academic performance and well-being. According to the fall 2023 National College Health Assessment, 43.7% of UT students have experienced some form of food insecurity, and 19.7% of those students experienced very low food security. Dr. Chad Seales, Associate Professor of Religious Studies, and the Brian F. Bolton, Distinguished Professor in Secular Studies, will provide insights into the current food insecurity situation on campus, share with us the recent efforts to address this challenge, and discuss how we, as a congregation, can help support these initiatives.

Questions? Contact Pastor Earl at PastorEarl@uumc.org!

So many of us want to know how to respond to the administration's recent actions that have struck fear in many of our neighbors who may be subject to raids and deportations. UUMC will be offering two Zoom sessions next week to learn more about how we can help our neighbors and discuss what we can do as a church community. Church Council Chair, Sandy White, and Pastor Earl will share some guidance and resources from the United Methodist Church's national and conference leadership, as well as information from other organizations working in this area. These conversations will serve as a starting point as we seek to serve Christ faithfully in these difficult times. We will also be offering this info-session on February 16th at 4 pm.

Email Pastor Earl for the Zoom Link!

PastorEarl@uumc.org

So many of us want to know how to respond to the administration's recent actions that have struck fear in many of our neighbors who may be subject to raids and deportations. UUMC will be offering two Zoom sessions next week to learn more about how we can help our neighbors and discuss what we can do as a church community. Church Council Chair, Sandy White, and Pastor Earl will share some guidance and resources from the United Methodist Church's national and conference leadership, as well as information from other organizations working in this area. These conversations will serve as a starting point as we seek to serve Christ faithfully in these difficult times. We will also be offering this info-session on February 20th at 11 am.

Email Pastor Earl for the Zoom Link!

PastorEarl@uumc.org

The Caregivers Support Group will meet via Zoom on the Second Tuesday of each month at 6:30 pm. It is a safe place for persons to gather and share confidentially about the joys and challenges of caregiving.

JOIN US ON ZOOM

Please Note: Dates have changed to 1/28 - 2/25.

Are you interested in exploring John Wesley’s sermons and discovering how they are still relevant to us as Methodists for full inclusion and social justice? In this 5-week class, we will read Wesley’s core sermons guided by “Queering Wesley, Queering the Church” by Keegan Osinski. Together, we will reflect on how the spirit of Methodism can continue to shape our faith and practice in the 21st Century and how the legacy of Wesleyan holiness can inspire an expansive openness to the love and grace of God in queer Christian lives.

Questions? Contact Pastor Earl at PastorEarl@uumc.org!

Click Here to Register

Join us Thursday morning at 10 a.m. for a time of good conversation

Each class will begin with the sharing of a short story, and then spending some time breaking down text and discussing the lessons each of these stories leaves with us.

Questions? Contact Pastor Earl at PastorEarl@uumc.org!

Click here to register!

The Caregivers Support Group will meet via Zoom on the Second Tuesday of each month at 6:30 pm. It is a safe place for persons to gather and share confidentially about the joys and challenges of caregiving.

JOIN US ON ZOOM

The Longest Night service is a reflective time when we will hold sacred space for any who are experiencing a difficult time, or for whom the Christmas Season can spark memories of grief or loss. For all who struggle against the darkness, we will sing meditative and peaceful music, including some Taizé selections.

Questions? Contact AV at alicia@uumc.org!

Looking for some additional support? Check out our Longest Night Resources.

Everyone should sing at Christmas! Our Christmas Eve choir is open to all. If you're a college student returning home or a visitor attending with your family, you only need to attend this ONE rehearsal in order to join the choir on Christmas Eve at 5:30PM and/or 10:30PM. Singers are welcome to join even if they can only sing at ONE of the two services!

Attire for Christmas Eve singers is semi-formal concert blacks (slacks/skirts/blouse/button-ups) with red accents.

Email AV at alicia@uumc.org to sign up and with any questions!

(Previously Prime Time Lunch)

Join us for our annual Thanksgiving Lunch for our over 70 crowd. We will have music and great food from Pok-e-jo's Smokehouse and great time for fellowship.

Sundays
November 17 - December 1

Pastor Earl will be leading a three-week Sunday School class for those interested in learning more about Methodist beliefs and The United Methodist Church. The class will meet during the Sunday School hour from 9:45-10:45 in the Fellowship Hall.

Megan and Earl will lead a "Power of Planning" seminar during the Sunday School hour on November 10. This seminar is an opportunity for persons to gain information that can assist in end of life care decisions as well as memorial/funeral service planning. A few take-home resources will be provided and the time together will include the presentation of materials as well as time to visit with others at your table. Members of The UUMC Foundation will also provide information about opportunities to give to The Foundation.

Youth parents, come hang out by the fire in the Ulack's backyard. Bring your favorite beverage or nibble or just bring yourselves. Looking forward to a kid-free catch-up & getting to know you.

Questions? Contact Natasha at natasha@uumc.org!

In this chaotic and polarizing presidential election season, it can be hard to discern a way forward. Rhetoric escalates into shouting. Disagreements degenerate into fights. Sometimes Christian voices in these disputes seem to be not very Christian. How does our faith have an impact on our voice and vote? Should it have an impact? This Lunch and Learn, lead by Dr. David Jensen, will focus on the variety of ways Christians can engage in politics and suggest some ways of navigating disagreements in our broader society.

Questions? Contact Pastor Earl at PastorEarl@uumc.org

About Dr. David Jensen

A professor at Austin Seminary, Dr. David Jensen’s teaching and research focus on Reformed theology, interfaith dialogue, and the interconnections between Christian theology and daily life. He received an MAR from Yale Divinity School in 1994 and a PhD in theology from Vanderbilt University in 1999. Dr. Jensen is also the editor of “Compass,” a book series that encourages theological reflection on everyday practices.

Do you enjoy reading, listening to, or writing poetry? Check out UUMC's poetry group! They meet on the third Tuesday of every month at 7 PM. We'll rotate meeting locations around the area (usually homes). Gatherings usually entail everyone bringing a couple of poems that they want to share aloud. The poems can be your own, old faithfuls from your favorite poets, or newly-discovered pieces.

Reach out to Lauren Hanks for more info: laurennicolehanks@gmail.com.

What can we do, and how should we live as Christians in this season of political battles? Let us get together and talk about the topics of faith and politics (the politics of Jesus, church and state, democracy and Christian faith, and more) as the presidential election approaches.

This class will run through the Tuesday after the election, where we search for ways to process and find home, regardless of the outcome.

Click Here to Register

All are invited to an information session led by Finance Chair John Bridges and other members of the Finance Committee. We'll meet during the Sunday School hour in the Fellowship Hall for a time of hearing updates, goal sharing, and discussion.

This 5th Sunday offering comes at the start of our 2024 Stewardship Season, “People of Possibility”

University UMC and other churches in the university area are collaborating on a Habitat for Humanity house-building project. As a partnering church, we are contributing $5,000 to the project, and our August and September communion altar rail offerings will assist us in raising the necessary funds. We are excited about this opportunity to be in mission and ministry together! Stay posted for more details, and let Pastor Earl know if you are interested in being a part of the building day and/or if you have any questions.

Questions? Ready to sign up to build? Contact Pastor Earl.

Come join us in a time of Queer Fellowship! We will break bread together, share our joys and concerns, and enjoy each others company.

Join us to learn how to practice creating safe and inclusive spaces for LGBTQ+ people and the skills we need in order to be intentional allies. Rev. Nancy Mossman, the coordinator for the Rio Texas RMN Team, will be the facilitator and lead this five-week book study. This book study is for everyone as we all have space to grow and learn about creating inclusive spaces for others.

Nancy will use "The Savvy Ally, A Guide for Becoming a Skilled LGBTQ+ Advocate, 2nd edition," by Jeannie Gainsburg. Purchasing the book and reading it with the group will be helpful but not required.

Click Here to Register

All shareholders are welcome to come to a lunch prepared and served by the UUMC youth. Enjoy yummy food, good company & photos of our 2024 "Be the Neighbor" Mission Trip to St. Louis.

Questions? Contact Natasha!

After worship, we’ll have our UUMC Ministry Fair! The ministries of UUMC will each have a table explaining what they do, and where they need volunteers! The ministries will also be having a pie contest, which means everyone wins since there will be plenty of pie to go around. Come join us, eat some good pie and learn how you can share your talents with UUMC! 

We’re gonna have a whole day of events, for a UUMC Sunday Social. We hope to see you at a few of them!

Anyone looking to join a Sunday School is invited to come out, meet the different classes, learn about what topics they cover and find a good fit for you! 

We’re gonna have a whole day of events, for a UUMC Sunday Social. We hope to see you at a few of them!

Calling all tenors and basses (lower voiced friends) of any experience level- Let's get rowdy and raucous and let the tenors have the melody!! We'll sing some powerful and playful music just for the lower voices! We’ll perform in worship on Sunday, July 28.

We’ll rehearse on Wednesday, July 24 in the choir room from 7 - 8:30 pm. Afterwards we'll head to Draught House Pub & Brewery and share a pint, and a drinking song??

Questions? Contact AV!

We are celebrating BLUE JEAN SUNDAY July 21. Bring gently used or new bluejeans with you to worship to help stock our Fig Leaf Clothing Closet. Bluejeans (especially men's sizes 34-38) are in high demand so we appreciate any and all donations. You're encouraged to wear denim to worship as well!