“How did you spend your summer vacation?” The typical beginning-of-the-school-year essay will be a little weird this year. Like everything else in the “Season of Weirdness,” going on vacation in the year 2020 has been a very unusual experience for those who have been able to do so. I just took two weeks off. We had planned…
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Editor’s Note: Rev. Phil Estes is this week’s guest author. Don’t miss Phil’s sermon on Sunday at 9:30 and 11 a.m. Once in a while Old Testament texts are the focus of a sermon. This is one of those times. Honestly, I’m more comfortable with the New Testament. So, isn’t it like God, during a time…
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Editor’s Note: Nick Reinhardt-Swierk is this week’s guest author. Don’t miss Nick’s sermon on Sunday at 9:30 and 11 a.m. Lately, it feels like there is little to do except laugh. I laugh with joy when I get to see friends. I laugh at the funny memes, quotes, and videos that my friends share on Facebook.…
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This week, we have the benefit of a parable that Jesus actually explains! In Matthew 13, Jesus shares the “Parable of the Good Soil,” and then he talks with his disciples about what it could mean. This is rare. Most of the time, Jesus just tells us the story and lets us wonder about what…
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With the continuing rise of the numbers being reported by the St. Louis Metropolitan Pandemic Task Force, Manchester UMC’s move to “Phase Three” of our Pandemic Plan will not be happening at the end of July, as we had hoped. We will continue to monitor the trends and plan to reassess the situation on Sunday,…
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Our next worship series here at Manchester is going to be a really “good” one. In fact, we are calling it “Good Stories.” Four weeks, four parables, each with something in it that is called “good.” However, each story has a bit of a twist. The part of the story that is called “good” may not…
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As we wrap up our three week series, “Sin and Forgiveness,” we’ll be thinking about a really BIG idea. In fact, you might say it’s the biggest idea. It’s an idea that actually lasts forever. Because the idea is … well, lasting forever. Sunday we will be thinking together about “Eternal Life.” Our finite minds truly cannot…
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Sudden expired the legal strife, ’Twas then I ceased to grieve;My second, real, living life I then began to live. – Charles Wesley, “O For A Thousand Tongues to Sing” The Wesley hymn “O For A Thousand Tongues to Sing” has a bajillion verses. (Ok, not quite a bajillion. It actually has 17.) And so obviously…
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On Sunday morning we begin a short worship series on “Sin and Forgiveness.” It is only a three week series, and I understand that it will only scratch the surface of such complicated and important doctrines as these. But it is good to spend at least a little bit of time reflecting on the realities…
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Manchester UMC will move into “Phase Two” of our “Pandemic Plan for Mission and Ministry” on Monday, June 1st. “Phase Two” of our four-phase plan is designed for when local authorities have partially or fully lifted stay-at-home orders, but we are still significantly limiting on-site church gatherings. Click here for an overview of the plan.…
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It has been so fun for me to spend these last few weeks thinking and talking about Methodism! It is always important to be reminded of our roots every now and then–where we have come from, how we got here. But more than that, we’ve been thinking about how the experiences of the past and…
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Good news, everyone! The church is NOT re-opening. (Um, pastor… did you just say “NOT re-opening?”) Yes, indeed I did! The church is not re-opening when the “Stay at Home” orders lift, because THE CHURCH NEVER CLOSED! I am so grateful for all the wonderful ways you have continued to be the church during this…
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You have no doubt heard that Missouri is starting to “re-open” this week. And it’s likely you’ve wondered what that means for us, for the church. Well, first of all … the church never actually closed, right? I mean, we have been worshiping, learning, giving, serving, and connecting this entire season of weirdness. Sure, it…
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The Methodist movement originated in an 18th century revival season known as “The Great Awakening.” In Britain and the American colonies, the church experienced a renewal of religious devotion, a deepening awareness of the movement of the Holy Spirit, and a re-framing of salvation as an experience of the heart, not just an academic exercise.…
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Evangelism these days looks more like tech support. Helping people get connected with Jesus in a time of “stay at home orders” looks like helping people get internet access. Inviting people to church looks like “Liking” and “Sharing” social media posts or creating “Watch Parties.” Sharing the love of God with a neighbor looks like…
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Guess what? Easter has started! Yeah, April 12th was only the beginning of Eastertide. We actually get Easter for the next fifty (count ‘em – 50) days! We get SEVEN SUNDAYS of Easter, taking us all the way to Pentecost, on May 31st. We carry the joy and astonishment of Easter with us beyond a…
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In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Manchester UMC has moved its ministries online wherever possible. We will continue to live out our promise to be the church through “our prayers, our presence, our gifts, our service, and our witness.” Quick Links NEW! Communion Circles. During this pandemic, Communion Circles are a special opportunity for us…
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129 Woods Mill Rd.
Manchester, MO 63011
Tel: 636-394-7506
Office Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday
