Rev. Kerry Smith continues Chapter 5's dive into grace by discussing prevenient grace, or the grace that goes before. Before what? Before we can know God or even understand God, or God's grace, prevenient grace is God's constant and continual pursuit of us. God's perpetual wooing of us.

Kerry used Psalm 139 as the text to discuss prevenient grace. Check out this week's sermon, then find other aspects of the service on our website or our app.

This Sunday we welcome our new Senior Pastor, Rev. Kerry Smith. Kerry kicked off chapter 5, "Free but Costly." Throughout this chapter we will be focusing on grace, and more specifically, John Wesley's understanding of grace, and his understanding of the process of salvation. Kerry began this chapter looking at the story of Jacob, specifically Genesis 32:22—33:4. 

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In the midst of difficult situations, Monica Frazier invites us to take our Bibles in one hand, and the newspaper in the other as we wrestle with our theology and troubling times in our culture. You are empowered to use your voice, to speak out, to work!

Monica preached from Luke 24:44-53. 

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Rev. Keith Boone shared the incredible story of grace present in the story of Saul becoming Paul in Acts 9.

To continue our journey through Chapter 4: Flawed but Empowered, Rev. Phil Dieke preached from Acts 10. As he indicates in his sermon the entire chapter of Acts 10 is so good, and has much to offer. Thus, take some time to read it in its entirety. Phil focused specifically on Peter and his progressive approach to a faith he held so dear. An approach that allowed him to institute change, an approach that allowed the birth of the church to spread far beyond Jerusalem. Peter wasn't perfect in his approach, but he did allow for progress, and most importantly allowed for the Holy Spirit to show up and do her work... even when he wasn't expecting it.

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What a way for Rev. Mitchell Boone to conclude a decade of ministry at White Rock UMC, and more generally in East Dallas. If you haven't heard, Mitchell has been appointed as the Senior Pastor at First UMC Dallas, beginning July 1, 2022. If you'd like to reach out to Mitchell, you can still email him at [email protected] to send him well wishes.

Enjoy this final sermon, and farewell from Mitchell.

This week Rev. Mitchell Boone kicked off Chapter 4 of Unfold Series. This chapter is title "Flawed but Empowered." Once again, we find ourselves faced with a very challenging and tough week. Following the school shooting in Uvalde, TX Mitchell addressed Ascension Sunday through the lens of pain, suffering, and so much grief being felt following this horrible event. Mitchell doesn't hold back, we hope you'll listen and let us know your thoughts. 

If you are feeling hopeless or simply in need of somebody to talk to, or if you are looking for ways to respond and mobilize around gun violence, gun safety, and gun reform, email Rev. Phil Dieke ([email protected]).

The work of the North Texas Conference Board of Church and Society is to raise awareness regarding issues of justice, raise and distribute funds for the work of justice, and provide opportunities for local churches and individuals to engage in the work of justice. This month's episode covers all bases as Rev. Phil Dieke, Board Chair, interviews two previous Peace with Justice grant recipients and fellow board member Rev. James Minor who is coordinating an auction to raise fund for the Peace with Justice grants.

The first grant recipient we hear from is Janet Fisher. Janet is a member of First UMC Denton and co-founder,  with her husband Dennis, of Marfa Ministry. Marfa Ministry works with eight Eurasian United Methodist Churches, seven in Russian and one in Ukraine. Janet shares how the Peace with Justice grant helped support their work with these ministries and also shares the struggle these ministries have experienced given the ongoing war in Ukraine. There are many ways to get involved with the work of Marfa Ministries, including buying some of their art and/or puzzles! Learn more about this incredible ministry here.

The second grant recipient we hear from is Rev. Cathy Sweeney. Though she currently serves at Arapaho UMC in Richardson, Cathy received the grant when she was serving at Christ UMC in Plano where they started a warming station in partnership with The Salvation Army. This has become an ecumenical project reaching across Plano and the greater Collin County area. You can read more about their work and sign up to volunteer or donate here. 

Finally, we hear from Rev. James Minor, a retired clergyperson in the North Texas Conference. James serves on the NTC Board of Church and Society, specifically as the Peace with Justice coordinator. James has a great passion to raise money for these grants so local congregations will feel supported and encouraged to engage in the work of justice in their own communities or all around the world. If you or your local congregation would like to donate items for the auction in June, you can do so by filling out this form. The more items collected, the more money raised. There will be a silent auction as well as an inperson auction on Tuesday, June 7 at Hamilton Park UMC. Stay tuned for more info regarding this auction.  

If you'd like more information on these ministries, the upcoming auction, or Church and Society you can contact the individuals via email:

Rev. Mitchell Boone shared the Easter story found in Luke 24:1-12. He talked about preaching on Easter being like telling a joke everybody already knows the ending to, they want you to finish the joke, but you better do a good job telling it. The Easter story is something we celebrate every year, but the reality of Easter often goes back up on the shelf after Easter Sunday, and is kept there until we bring it down again next year. Mitchell encouraged us to embrace Easter each and everyday, even though it doesn't feel like Easter for many today, or other days. 

Mitchell received two applauses during this sermon. You'll have to listen to hear why!

May you experience the truth of Easter each and everyday. If you are struggling to make sense of Easter in your head, or feel the truth of Easter in your heart, reach out to us. We'd love to talk with you. You can email us at [email protected].

*Note: there was a glitch with Dexter's audio, so we took down the original episode and reposted. Our apologies.

This week was a special episode as Rebecca and Phil were joined by Mitchell and Dexter. In this episode the team reflected on Easter, this being the last episode before Rebecca's renewal leave, and quite possibly Mitchell's final episode before he is reappointed to First UMC Dallas.

This is a really fun episode with great reflections on the beauty of Easter, a little roast of Mitchell, and also some great theological conversations. Let us know what you thought about our Easter worship or any other topic discussed in this episode.

As always, you can email us at [email protected]