February 2019 | St. Luke's United Methodist Church

26 02, 2019

A Message from Tom Pace from the General Conference of the United Methodist Church

Sally Penning2019-02-26T18:54:50-06:00February 26th, 2019|All blogs, Inside-Out with Dr. Tom Pace, Uncategorized|0 Comments

Friends, The called session of the General Conference of the United Methodist Church to deal with issues around same sex marriage and ordination is concluding. The body passed an amended version of the plan called “The Traditional Plan,” which continues the current United Methodist position that same sex weddings cannot be officiated by our clergy or in our churches, and self-avowed practicing LGBT men and women may not be ordained. It also adds increased accountability for bishops and boards of ministry in enforcing this covenant. However, many of the components to increase that accountability already have been ruled in violation [...]

22 02, 2019

A special called session of the General Conference of the United Methodist

Sally Penning2019-02-22T09:09:19-06:00February 22nd, 2019|All blogs, Inside-Out with Dr. Tom Pace, Uncategorized|0 Comments

A special called session of the General Conference of the United Methodist denomination will be meeting in St. Louis from Saturday, February 23 – Tuesday, February 26. The purpose of the session is to make decisions regarding whether United Methodist churches or clergy are permitted to hold or officiate at same-sex weddings, and whether Annual Conferences can ordain self-avowed, practicing homosexual men and women. Ordinarily, the General Conference of the church meets every four years, with lay and clergy delegates from Annual Conferences around the world. In the regular session of the General Conference in 2016, a special commission (The [...]

22 02, 2019

Talking too much and doing too little

Sally Penning2019-02-22T09:02:07-06:00February 22nd, 2019|Inside-Out with Dr. Tom Pace|0 Comments

A PERSONAL PRAYER God of love, I was reading a book this week and words jumped off the page at me. I think I heard you speaking to me through the text: "It's an obvious but often overlooked truth: Nothing changes until there is a change in behavior. Nothing has changed until people start acting differently." (Tod Bolsinger, Canoeing the Mountains: Christian Leadership in Uncharted Territory.) The author's intent was to teach about leadership, but the words spoke to me about my own life. I crave a closer relationship with you. I long to be sanctified by the power of your Holy [...]

21 02, 2019

The Called Session of General Conference of the United Methodist Church

Sally Penning2019-02-22T09:04:09-06:00February 21st, 2019|All blogs, Inside-Out with Dr. Tom Pace|1 Comment

A special called session of the General Conference of the United Methodist denomination will be meeting in St. Louis from Saturday, February 23 – Tuesday, February 26. The purpose of the session is to make decisions regarding whether United Methodist churches or clergy are permitted to hold or officiate at same-sex weddings, and whether Annual Conferences can ordain self-avowed, practicing homosexual men and women. Ordinarily, the General Conference of the church meets every four years, with lay and clergy delegates from Annual Conferences around the world. In the regular session of the General Conference in 2016, a special [...]

15 02, 2019

60 Years of Bliss, by Gibbs Macdaniel, Jr.

Sally Penning2019-02-15T08:58:29-06:00February 15th, 2019|All blogs, We Tell Our Stories|1 Comment

As I was sitting in Miss Dolly Harrel’s homeroom at Alamo Heights High School in San Antonio in 1953, in walked a NEW girl! WHO IS THAT??!! Grace Nan Jennings. She bowled me over. It was “love at first sight.” I was barely sixteen. We dated through graduation in 1954 and went on to UT-Austin where the competition became more intense. Nan pledged Tri Delt, was an advisor at Littlefield dormitory for two years, was inducted into Orange Jackets and was a Good Fellow. She was one of the most popular and attractive ladies on campus. I was [...]

15 02, 2019

Living and loving like Jesus

Sally Penning2019-02-15T09:47:34-06:00February 15th, 2019|All blogs, Inside-Out with Dr. Tom Pace|0 Comments

Last Sunday, we talked about the vision for all of St. Luke's family of ministries - St. Luke's church, The Story Houston, Gethsemane, Nick Finnegan Counseling Center, St. Luke's Day School and After School and Summer Camps, as well as Bridges Academy. We are all are striving for the vision of "A city transformed by the love of Jesus." Each of those ministries has its own mission statement, all of which work to bring about our common vision. This is our north star, and it is the why we do what we do. This week, we will talk [...]

8 02, 2019

A Great Cloud of Witnesses, by Warren Fisher

Sally Penning2019-02-08T10:25:19-06:00February 8th, 2019|All blogs, We Tell Our Stories|0 Comments

I love the idea of our Year of Gratitude because I have so much to be grateful for…and so many people to thank. Dr. Pace’s challenge has caused me to think anew about all of the people who have touched my life and influenced my faith journey. It starts with my parents, of course, who made it our family habit to be in church every Sunday morning, and took my brother and me back for choir practices and Methodist Youth Fellowship. More significantly, they modeled faith for us at home and everywhere else. Then I think about my [...]

8 02, 2019

Special Edition

Sally Penning2019-02-08T10:01:08-06:00February 8th, 2019|All blogs, Inside-Out with Dr. Tom Pace|0 Comments

Our inside-out habits: We pray. We study the Bible. We make friends. We tell our stories. We give ourselves away in generosity and service. Friends, this Sunday I begin a special three-part sermon series sharing a new statement for St. Luke's identity - vision, mission, spiritual journey, and inside-out habits. The sermon series is titled "A City Transformed." It is not a remake of who we are, as it simply gives us new language to talk about who we have always been - a church family that seeks to make an impact outside of our walls. But my hope is that [...]