Dear friends and members of University UMC:
I’m in Corpus Christi this weekend for the Río Texas Conference’s Annual Conference. Some of us refer to it as a family reunion and the older I get the more that analogy fits. It is good to catch up with colleagues and to reconnect with church members I knew from other congregations I’ve served in the past. And it is a special joy for me to spend quality time with our incredible UUMC delegation, as well as my family. This year I failed to take a picture of our delegation at our annual meal before the start of the conference, but I’ve placed the names of our delegation below. Keep them in prayer as they travel back to Austin tomorrow. I’m also holding in prayer our incredible University UMC sanctuary choir as they travel to Corpus today and lead music for this year’s ordination service. We are so proud of and excited for this invitation!
It’s been a wonderful time of fellowship and learning. Bishop Harvey’s episcopal address was on fire as she challenged our need as a conference to raise up more people of color in leadership, to listen to the voices of young people who are “annoyed that they have to clean up the adults’ mess," to stand with immigrant communities and a woman’s ability to make their own decisions about their healthcare and body. She referenced Ashely Boggan’s book Wesleyan Vile-tality which I highly recommend. (It’s perfect for a Sunday School or other small group study.) After decades of struggling to lift harmful language from the Book of Discipline, Boggan’s book invites us to reclaim our Wesleyan roots as people who bend the rules in order to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with God. At one point in her book, Boggan writes, “you cannot identify with John Wesley without constantly seeking to ensure that all people, no matter who they are, how they identify, or where they come from, feel worthy of God’s love, have their basic physical and bodily needs met, and more.”
I also give you today, a few pictures from evening walks along the shore - windy but beautiful walks! Earlier in the day a brief but mighty storm rolled in leaving behind a spectacular show of colors in the sky.
