Industry UMC embraces
church transformation

Industry UMC is located where the sun rises on the Austin District. The congregation is the oldest
German Methodist church in Texas, founded in 1847.
Industry has attracted a mix of retired professional people from Houston along with ranchers whose families trace their roots back to the Stephen F. Austin colony.
Two events prompted our move toward being a church in transition. First, our Vacation Bible School attendance jumped from 56 in 2005 to 103 in 2006. We found from the registrations that a number of new families with children were in our area. Most were Hispanic. The second was a newspaper article that reported a jump in attendance at the local elementary school of 30 new students in September.
In the fall of 2006, the United Methodist Women started the Hand to Hand Circle, a group focused on homemaking skills, to be an outreach to the Hispanic families in the area. The group has been meeting monthly with eight church members and 15 Hispanic women. We have ordered the Spanish version of The Upper Room and have distributed Spanish Bibles to these families.
The transformation program led by the Rev. Don Nations has helped identify other ways to reach out. We began a series of bulk mailings to the area. The second mailing, outlining our Holy Week activities, resulted in 10 families visiting our church.
The church has a long way to go, but the energy that has resulted from these first steps has made our feet grow lighter as walk the path where the Holy Spirit is leading us.