Econnection: April 4, 2024

EConnection

Apr 4

Written By Renee Moreno

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Please Note: The building will be closed and our staff will be working remotely on Monday, April 8 to allow everyone the opportunity to enjoy the eclipse. Please don’t hesitate to reach out by phone or email.

Featured Events

Cap10K

This Sunday

The Statesman Cap10K is this Sunday. This race doesn’t come near the church and ends much earlier than the Austin Marathon, so we don’t expect it to affect everyone getting to church. However, we recommend everyone review the course map to check if their usual route will be impacted.

Road Closure Information

Newcomers Brunch

April 7 | 9:45 am | Fellowship Hall

New to UUMC? Have questions about the Church? Want to get connected? Come hang out with our Pastors over a simple breakfast. Learn more, ask your questions and get connected! Contact Pastor Earl or Pastor Teresa with any questions!

Lunch & Learn

April 21 @ 12:15 pm

Climate change is a scientific problem, but the church's response to it should be driven by the Greatest Commandment: Love God and love your neighbor. Come and hear from Dr. Becca Edwards (Texas Impact) about how the church's mission of Love depends on the faithfulness of US Christians in the work of climate change mitigation.

Learn More

Parents’ Night Out

April 27 | 5 - 8:30 pm

Parents! Drop your kiddos off at the church with Jillian and childcare folks for fun, games, and pizza. Have the night to yourself or join other parents for your own fun and fellowship!

Church-Wide Spring Picnic

April 28 | 12 - 2:30 pm

Join your UUMC community for food, yard games and fellowship. Food will be provided but we encourage you to bring your own drinks, desserts and games/toys!! Corn Hole, Frisbees and the like will be around. ALL are welcome so head over right after the service!

Worship | Sunday @ 11 am
Online or In-Person

Join us for worship as we enjoy Bluegrass Sunday! This annual tradition at UUMC celebrates the joy of the Easter season with music from some of our own church members sharing bluegrass music. Our 11am in person Sanctuary service will include holy communion and our pre-recorded service premiers on our youtube channel at 11am. As we enjoy music this Sunday there will be no sermon, but we will hear the Gospel Lesson from John about “Doubting Thomas.” This Sunday we are also collecting a special offering for UMCOR and you can read below for more details.

Art has the power to render sorrow beautiful, make loneliness a shared experience, and transform despair into hope… Music, like all art, gives pain and our most wrenching emotions voice, language, and form, so that it can be recognized and shared. The magic of the high lonesome sound* is the magic of all art: the ability to both capture our pain and deliver us from it at the same time… The transformative power of art is in this sharing. Without connection or collective engagement, what we hear is simply a caged song of sorrow and despair; we find no liberation in it. It’s the sharing of art that whispers, “You’re not alone.”

– Brene Brown

News

Altar Rail Offering

As the humanitarian relief and development arm of The United Methodist Church, the United Methodist Committee on Relief–UMCOR–assists United Methodists and churches to become involved globally in direct ministry to persons in need. UMCOR comes alongside those who suffer from natural or human-caused disasters–famine, hurricane, war, flood, fire or other events–to alleviate suffering and serve as a source of help and hope for the vulnerable. UMCOR provides relief, response and long-term recovery grants when events overwhelm a community’s ability to recover on their own. UMCOR also provides technical support and training for partners to address emerging and ongoing issues related to disaster relief, recovery, and long-term health and development. This Sunday’s altar rail offering is collected for UMCOR and the ongoing recovering efforts following the recent Texas fires.

General Conference

The postponed 2020 General Conference will be held April 23-May 3, 2024 at Charlotte Convention Center in Charlotte, North Carolina. We’ve compiled a list of resources including articles about General Conference and information on attending a webinar led by some of our Rio Texas Conference Delegates.

Learn More about General Conference

Easter Service

It was such a joy to see so many people in the Sanctuary on Sunday! If you’d like to experience the Easter Sanctuary Service, it’s now available on our YouTube page!

Watch the Service

Eclipse Glasses

The total solar eclipse is Monday! Make sure you have scratch- and hole-free eclipse glasses that meet the ISO 12312-2 standard. Not all on Amazon are from reputable manufacturers, so find safe sources of glasses here. If you need eclipse safety glasses, see Robyn Ross after Sunday's service