This morning, I was a first time guest at Trinity Presbyterian Church in Oklahoma City.
My wife and I attended the 10:55 a.m. service of worship.
While we have no real links to the congregation, I have considerable ties to the congregation’s denomination – Presbyterian Church (USA) – and, some time ago I connected with the congregation’s pastor, Rev. Richard Mize. Mize, like myself, is an ordained United Church of Christ minister. (For those not familiar with Mainline Protestant agreements, the UCC and PCUSA are in full communion with one another – a relationship that allows clergy to serve across the denominations).
And, in recent weeks, I’ve alternated my Sundays between these two denominations. Last Sunday I worshipped at my home congregation: Cathedral of Hope United Church of Christ in Dallas. Two weeks ago I preached at St. Mark Presbyterian Church in Dallas at 9:45 a.m. followed by Eastminster Presbyterian Church in Dallas at 11:30 a.m. (for more on that experience check out Preaching Love).
The church is easy to locate and features a parking lot just steps from the sanctuary door (which proved a nice perk on a rainy day). We arrived about 15 minutes before the start of the service along with a few parishioners and the minister. Once inside the sanctuary building we passed through a small narthex before choosing our seats in a centrally located pew.
In the time before worship began we were handed a bulletin and welcomed by a number of folks. And, we experienced an unexpected lesson on patience since the service started a few minutes later than scheduled due to the pianist getting stuck in traffic.
Trinity has an interesting history. According to their website, the congregation has a “rich legacy, especially in the area of race relations and in the work for racial justice.” This includes the congregation’s origin story. The current Trinity campus was built in 1949 for Creston Hills Presbyterian Church. In 1960, Creston Hills merged with the all-black Bethany Presbyterian to “become the first formally integrated church in Oklahoma.”
Mize’s message was based on Acts 1:1-11 and was titled “Jesus is Lord of All: More Powerful Than Antiochus IV Epiphanes and Syria, Bigger Than Caesar and Rome, Greater Than Trump and America.” It was theologically thoughtful, resoundingly relevant, and surprisingly succinct (especially given the lengthy title).
The order of service was familiar to us, but also simple to follow for any newcomers without a Presbyterian background. The only unexpected balancing act was alternating between two hymnals for congregational singing (hymn numbers and locations were, however, clearly labeled in the bulletin and also announced aloud).
After the service concluded, Mize invited folks to linger for a time of sharing prayers and praises. During this experience, we were also invited to introduce ourselves. When this session ended with prayer, everyone rose and mingled. And, we received warm words of welcome from nearly everyone present/
Trinity is the ninth congregation I’ve worshipped with in 2024. For more of my experiences in a variety of churches, check out
- My Visit to Westminster Presbyterian Church (March 2024)
- My Visit to Mayflower Congregational UCC (January 2024)
- Happy New Year! Celebrating Visits to 12 Churches (December 2023)
- My Experiences with 14 UCC Congregations (June 2023)
- Reopening for In Person Worship: 5 Congregations (April 2021)
- Visiting 50+ Churches in Dallas – Fort Worth (February 2019)
- My Visit to Family Church (December 2014)
- My Visit to Next Level Church (October 2012)
- My Visit to Naples Church of Christ (October 2010)