EDOT missioner Jason Evans provides practical tips for how to minister to your neighbors and community in a missional context. You can watch the video here.

The 60th Annual Diocesan Adult Choral Festival will take place Saturday, October 21, at St. James’, Houston, (3129 Southmore Boulevard). Choirs will gather, beginning at 10 a.m., for a day of rehearsals with guest conductor Dr. Giles Brightwell of St. Thomas’, Houston. All singers in the Diocese are welcome to register and join the combined choirs. Cost for the day, including lunch and snacks, is $20. More information and registration can be found  here.

Bishop  Andy Doyle talks about his new book The Jesus Heist: Recovering the Gospel from the Church in a new video trailer. "This book will flip the script of many Bible stories, allowing us to hear Jesus' call to change as one that is directed at us rather than as one we should direct toward others," Doyle said. Read more here.

St. Andrew's, Bryan, invites the community to its150th Birthday celebration on Friday, October 6, 2017, 5:30-8:30 p.m. as part of First Friday downtown Bryan events. The birthday celebration features singer and songwriter Joey McGee, tours of the church, children's activities and light refreshments. Learn more at standrewsbcs.org.

The 2018 Council will be held in Waco, Thursday, February 15-Saturday, February 17. Nominations are now open through November 10 and position descriptions are listed on the Council information page on the website here. Only electronic forms will be accepted for nominations this year and a link is included on the page. Deadline for resolutions, Constitution and Canon changes/amendments is November 15. Special pricing at convention hotels is available through January 11, 2018 or until the block of rooms are reserved. If you are interested in nominating a convocational youth delegate, please click the link on the Council page for details and a nomination form. Pre-council videos, a schedule and workshops will be listed on the page when they become available. 

The annual Open Enrollment period for health benefits will be from Monday, October 23, 2017 to Friday, November 10, 2017. There will be two Open Enrollment meetings to provide important Information and Plan Array Updates. These meetings will be held at the Diocesan Center (1225 Texas St. Houston, TX 77002) on Thursday October 12, 2017 at 10 a.m. for rectors and parish administrator and on Thursday, October 26 at 10 am for all to attend. We will also conduct a simultaneous webinar for those unable to attend. Instructions for attending the webinar are located on the Diocesan Benefits webpage. Some important changes will take place for 2017, so it is imperative that someone from each church or institution attend a meeting or webinar. For more information, please contact Zee Turnbull at zturnbull@epicenter.org or Jessica O’Leary at joleary@epicenter.org.

Alyssa Stebbing, minister of Outreach and Youth Formation at Trinity, The Woodlands, has been appointed diocesan representative for Episcopal Migration Ministries and the refugee resettlement assistance ministry formerly led by the Rev. Linda Shelton. "We are grateful to Alyssa for accepting this appointment and we give thanks for the years of Deacon Linda’s dedication and service to this important ministry,” said the Ven. Russ Oechsel, archdeacon for the diocese. " Alyssa will, as Deacon Linda did, work with Deacon Sherry Williams, who remains responsible for the Refugee Ministry in the Austin area."

Episcopal Migration Ministries will offer a three-day training course in Denver, Oct. 10-12 2017, designed to equip Episcopalians to be advocates, allies and ambassadors for refugees and the ministry of refugee resettlement. Learn more here. 

Applications are now being accepted for high school students to participate in the General Convention Official Youth Presence (GCOYP) at the 79th  General Convention to be held Thursday, July 5 to Friday, July 13, 2018 at The Austin Convention Center, Austin. Applications and information are available  here.

The Rev. Angela M. Cortiñas will be installed as rector at St. Thomas, College Station, on Saturday, October 21 at 11 a.m. Clergy are invited to process: green stoles.

The Church needs leaders who are entrepreneurial, collaborative, adaptive, diverse and spiritually trustworthy. While we still need to identify those among us who are called to ordination, the Diocese of Texas encourages all Christians to seek their particular call. The discernment process in the Diocese is designed to give greater access to explore ministry in many forms through an initial Discovery Retreat for those who want to serve God in a new way. Participants learn a theological model for vocation that gives them a framework for their own discernment. They explore a variety of Christian vocations, have time for personal reflection and prayer and learn about the canonical processes for ordained ministry in the Diocese. Consider participating in the December Discovery Retreat to see where God is calling you to serve. Registration for the Discovery Retreats is on the Camp Allen website. For additional information, please contact the Rev. Victoria Mason or the Rev. Francene Young.