St. Stephen's United Methodist Church of Houston

06/14/2026

Sunday Worship Recap: June 14, 2026

Despite the stormy weather, many gathered for worship at St. Stephen's UMC, where warm coffee, donuts, and fellowship brightened a rainy morning.

Our scripture from Matthew focused on Jesus sending the disciples to continue his ministry, empowering them to share God's love with others.

During Children's Moment, we compared God's mission to picking apples from a tree. If only one person gathers the fruit, much of it will spoil. But when many people help, more fruit is saved. In the same way, sharing God's love is a task for all of us so that no one misses the opportunity to hear the good news.

Pastor Trey reflected on Jesus' instructions to the disciples. Rather than giving detailed directions, Jesus sent them out in faith, warning that some would reject their message and that following him would involve risk and sacrifice. Even so, the mission was worth it because it brought lost sheep back to God's fold.

The sermon reminded us that the church is not a building but its people. Every person is unique, making ministry both challenging and unpredictable. Sharing the gospel often brings chaos, but it is a worthy calling. As we enter the world, we're invited to consider not only how we respond to life's chaos, but also what kind of impact we ourselves create.

Join us next Sunday, Father's Day (June 21), beginning with a steak and egg breakfast at 8:30 a.m. Family Worship follows at 9:15 a.m., Traditional Worship at 10:30 a.m., and we'll commission our UM ARMY mission team before they depart for Nacogdoches.

06/14/2026

Please join us on YouTube today.

The official YouTube account of St. Stephen's United Methodist Church in Houston, Texas. Please visit our website at stshtx.org, or check out our link tree for up-to-date info about how to connect with us: https://linktr.ee/stshtx

06/13/2026

Jesus Meets Chaos with Love.

06/12/2026

Understanding Tax Collectors in Jesus Time.

06/11/2026

Bible Study tonight (June 11th) at 6:30 p.m. in Room 101 and on ZOOM. This will be the last Bible Study until August.

Bible Study - Small Books Big Truth

The ZOOM link is:
https://zoom.us/j/93962264498...
Meeting ID: 939 6226 4498
Passcode: 276936

Did you know that some of Paul’s interoffice memos got saved for posterity? Did you know that John was capable of writing concisely when he wanted to? Did you know that New Testament contains two attributed to brothers of Jesus?

1 and 2 Peter, 1, 2, and 3 John, Titus, Philemon, and Jude have three things in common. They’re short. They’re often ignored, and they include incredible insight into who God is, how we should follow God, and what the early church was like.

Small Books, Big Truth dives deep into each of these bite sized expressions of our theological and historical roots. Join us on Thursdays at 6:30 p.m. in room 101 or on ZOOM.

06/11/2026

No chaos can stop God's love.

06/07/2026

New Ministry Alert 🚨

You can now purchase a Rainbow Loom band bracelet made by some of the children at St. Stephen's, and all proceeds will go back to the church.

This ministry was created by Rachel Fisher and Madelyn Finnegan (with contributions from other children in worship). During worship on 6/7, they created bands for sale, made a pricing sign, and a money box for the donations.

If you are looking to support the next local non-profit for a good cause, it'll be here on Sunday mornings.

06/07/2026

Sunday Worship Recap - June 6th, 2026.

Today was the first Sunday of June, which meant we celebrated with Holy Communion.

Our scripture came from the Gospel of Matthew and told the story of Matthew's own call to follow Jesus, the healing of the bleeding woman, and the raising from the dead of a young girl.

In Children's Moment, Matthew's call was compared to those times we use an item not for its intended use. Mr. Steven uses his car key to open the youth room door not because it is supposed to open the door, but because it kind of works even though it's the wrong thing. When Jesus asked Matthew to follow Him, many thought that Jesus was trying to recruit the wrong people. They were mad that Matthew - a tax collector in league with Rome - would be deemed worthy. Jesus made the point clearly. We are ALL worthy regardless of who we are or what we have done. There is no wrong tool for the job. There is no wrong person to be loved by Christ.

Pastor Trey's sermon started off by setting the scene as to why tax collectors were so hated. They were taking money from their neighbors to feed the power of Rome, but more than that, they were harnessing the might of Rome to steal from their friends, loved ones, and neighbors, too. Jesus called Matthew and surprised many people who couldn't understand why he was associating with sinners. Jesus response was essentially "because he needs help, and I am help."

This remains true for us today. Jesus called Matthew not just because he wanted to hang around with Matthew (He did), but also as a clear message throughout the ages. It does not matter who you are, what choices you have made, where you come from, what you've done, what you've thought, where you have gone wrong... There is a God with arms wide open, waiting for you to accept the embrace that has always been available to us, has never receded, and never will.

At the end of the service, we were blessed to be able to welcome Keshawn, Sammie, and our new Assistant Family Ministries Director Briona Jones into membership at St. Stephen's UMC.

Join us next Sunday for traditional worship in the Sanctuary at 10:30 a.m.

06/07/2026

06/06/2026

The Summer Evangel: June & July 2026 Edition

https://thechurchco-production.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/sites/1111/2026/06/June-and-July-2026.pdf

Good news! As you may have noticed above, we have hired a new Assistant Family Ministries Director - Briona Jones. The time has come that we direct more resources and choose to be proactive in our approach to our growing Family Ministries. Briona (or Bri) started at St. Stephen's on June 1st and we are all looking forward to working with her.

Briona will not be the only new face at St. Stephen's this summer. We will have a team of social media interns joining the staff until the fall.

By now, schools are out, so we are officially in summer mode. There are MANY summer camps either at St. Stephen's or including St. Stephen's. In this issue, you can find out when they are and also the many ways in which you can support them too.

There's also news of a new Sunday school study, facilities updates, Pastor Trey's annual summer reading list, and more!

You can read all about all of these things and more in the Summer Evangel.