Please join us in congratulating Colton Lott as he joins First Christian Church El Reno as Senior Minister. Colton was installed at FCC El Reno on September 10, 2018.
Regional Minister Rev. Pam Holt performed the Liturgy of Installation.
Have you ever found yourself in the presence of someone who was greatly overwhelmed, and you felt powerless to ease their pain? Recently while participating in a meeting for a rally to highlight the plight of people living under the oppression of poverty, the moderator of the meeting was being criticized by the participants because he apparently made a decision without securing approval from the group.
Because of this, the group felt left out and their emotions started getting reactive. Soon, I felt my own anxiety increasing. I took a deep breath and asked the group, “What do you need today?” Slowly, the tone of the meeting changed. Words like trust, confidence, and fairness began to emerge. I wondered, “Is this not what God asks us every day, beckoning us to the ministry of reconciliation?”
It seemed as if in the midst of our tensions and anxieties God was asking us, “What do you need today to embrace my call?”
In the verse preceding the well-known verse of Micah 6:8, The Message version reads, “How can I stand up before God and show proper respect to the high God?” The prophet ponders on response to God, “shall I give… the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?” God has created and empowered each of us numerous gifts, passions, and experiences for how we respond to the prophet Micah’s question.
But, what if we changed the question? What if in the midst of our emotions, feelings, anxieties, and even as we ponder the sins of our souls, we stopped to ask God “What do you need from me today?”
Last year’s special offering reminded us that everyone has a story, would you join us this year and let yours be one of doing justice, loving mercy and walking humbly before God?
Through your giving to Reconciliation Ministry, our churches are hosting “One Bag of Tea” conversations where everyone voice is valued; our Youth are leading and teaching faith-rooted activism; and our leaders are developing and participating in educational opportunities that promote justice that heals and love that binds us together with our God and neighbors.
Will You Embrace the Call?
The Special Offering is used to fund our Church’s mission imperative to become an pro-reconciling and anti-racist church utilizing experiential education, inclusive worship and intentional dialogue. Our efforts to promote healing, relationship and restoration in the whole family of God are enlivened by funds from this offering. Through it we are able to provide programs for leadership development, curriculum for dialogue and learning, and partnerships within the Church and our communities.
Recent events have reignited the conversation about human brokenness evidenced in the sin of racism and perpetuated in our institutional structures and systems. Your generous giving to Reconciliation Ministry is transforming lives and strengthening Christ’s witness in the world showing that we love one another, even as Christ continues to love us!
Donations on behalf of emergency grants on behalf of impacted communities and congregations toward healing for the communities of Ferguson, Staten Island, Charleston, S.C., and Baltimore can be directed to the Reconciliation Annual Fund/Racial Justice Response.
To contribute to Reconciliation Ministry Annual Fund click HERE. Thank you in advance for your prayerful support.
Lexington Theological Seminary Hosts a Webinar Series called “Creating Vital Congregations” hosted by Dr. Bruce A. Barkhauer on September 25, 2018 from 12:30pm – 2:30pm.
Participants will come away with a biblical and theological understanding of stewardship as well as planning and programming ideas that are proven to work in congregations just like yours.
Dr. Bruce A. Barkhauer was called as the first Minister for Faith and Giving for the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in 2010, after 25 years of parish ministry. Since that time he has engaged the whole church in conversations about generosity and offered transformative ways for congregations to think about stewardship.
Register HERE.
Need more information? Contact Deena Ainslie at 859-280-1212 or dainslie@lextheo.edu
You are invited to the 2018 Preaching Conference titled “Preaching God’s Word to a Changed World” on September 28 – 29, 2018 at First Presbyterian Church located at 709 S. Boston, Tulsa, OK.
The conference includes lectures and workshops for Ordained, Commissioned, and Lay Pastors. Keynote Speaker, Rev. Dr. Thomas G. Long.
Conference Flyer
Conference Info and Schedule
Conference Overview
Friday, September 28th
Saturday, September 29th
Conference Registration: Limited to 60 Participants
For information/registration, call 918-582-3077 Registration costs $125
Registration Form
Conference Co-Sponsors: Eastern Oklahoma Presbytery and Omaha Presbyterian Seminary Foundation
The September 7 – 8, 2018 WOW Training has been rescheduled for October 12 – 13, 2018. Click HERE to register.
Western Oaks Christian Church will host a Children Worship of Wonder (WOW) Training on October 12 – 13, 2018. This event is sponsored by Disciples Family and Children’s Ministries of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and will be led by Rev. Julia Jordan Gillett. The cost of the training is $120.00 per person.
Training in Children Worship & Wonder is based on methods put forth in the book, Young Children and Worship, by Sonja M. Stewart and Jerome W. Berryman. In Children Worship & Wonder Centers, children hear Bible stories and learn about God as they experience the presence of God. The Bible stories are told in a way that allows the listeners to enter into the stories and respond out of their own life experiences. In Children Worship & Wonder the children also learn the meaning of church traditions and have opportunities to participate in worship practices.
For more information call Western Oaks Christian Church at 405-789-8812
Touchstone Energy Cooperatives of Oklahoma and K20 Center honor innovative technology use in the classroom. Please join us in congratulating Milton Bowens, Pastor at Shepherd Street Christian Church Chickasha, for receiving the 2018 Central Region SKIE Award. Milton received this honor for his innovative technology use in the classroom.
Click HERE to read the full article published by Oklahoma Living Magazine.
A training is available October 1 – 3 in Augusta, Kansas to learn how to lead your church during interim times, in times of crisis or transition. To register click HERE.
On Wednesday, September 19, First Christian Church Stillwater and Stillwater World-Wide welcome Rev. Shannon Fleck, Executive Director of Oklahoma Conference of Churches to host the Ecumenical Social Justice Event for Refugees, Immigrants and Dreamers. To read more about this event click HERE.
For more information contact Cara Beer at 405-624-9549
Disciples Home Missions and the Office of Disciples Men would like to share with you a position description for the newly posted position of Director of Disciples Men.
Application instructions are included within the description HERE. Please call Kelly Harris at (317) 713-2666 with any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask!
Western Oaks Christian Church (8100 NW 23rd, Oklahoma City, OK) is hosting a two day ASIST (Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training) workshop on
Friday, October 26 & Saturday, October 27, 2018 designed to prepare participants to perform suicide intervention (from recognizing warning signs all the way through safety planning).
The goal of this training is to equip members of our communities with real time skills to recognize, directly ask, and skillfully intervene and assist people, who are having suicidal thoughts and/or plans, to find a “turning point” whereby reason for living is seen, acknowledged, and a plan of safety developed.
It is not a treatment plan or a form of counseling, rather it is an evidence-based model that anyone can use to reduce suicidality and start the conversation toward safety.
Friday October 26: Register 4:30pm / Training 5:00pm – 9:00pm
Saturday October 27: Check-in 8:30am / Training 9:00am – 4:00pm
The tuition is $60 (cost of materials). Some scholarships are available. CEUs are available.
We invite and encourage other churches / organizations throughout the Region to host a two day ASIST workshop or minimally a safeTALK workshop (this half-day training is designed to alleviate the taboo of speaking about suicide; to recognize, directly ask, and refer people with suicidal thoughts to intervention resources).
Contact Cecilia Tolley at 405.513.1334 for further information, registration, or workshop planning.