About Us

Welcome to Couts! This congregation has a long history of connections and relationships with God, with one another, and with our community, and we are honored to be a mission station within Parker County.

If I had to pick a word to describe this community of faith, it would be "authentic." As we say regularly, we don't all have this whole faith and living thing completely figured out, we are far from perfect, but we continue to show up, commit to our faith, and to love God, Jesus, and our neighbors. And through that, we have see God do mighty things within and through us.

While you can read all about us here on the website or watch our worship online (and we hope you do), I hope you will come worship with us on a Sunday morning or join us for dinner and Bible study on a Wednesday evening to see if this congregation feels like a place you can be encouraged in your faith, grow, and serve. We can't wait to meet you!

Grace and Peace,

Pastor Holly

Worship is one of the primary ways we connect both with God and with one another. While the triune God (Father/Creator, Son/Redeemer, and Holy Spirit/Sustainer) is central to the worship experience, we also recognize that can mean different things for different people and different people connect more fully with different parts of the worship service. That is why we have a blended service - a blend of traditional hymns and more modern praise music, a little more casual feel as well as some traditional liturgy (Lord's prayer, affirmation of faith), and bigger times of worship partnered with times of silence and contemplation.

We currently have one worship service at 10:30 AM.

Dress is come as you are - whatever you feel most comfortable in.

Holy Communion is served once a month, usually the first Sunday. In the United Methodist tradition, we have an open table, meaning ALL are welcome to receive communion. We use grape juice instead of wine and we have a gluten free option. If you have mobility issues, just let an usher know you would like to be served in your seat.

If you have any questions about worship at Couts, please don't hesitate to contact the pastor!

After the church moved a few times, a local banker and cattleman, J.R. Couts, advanced this church greatly by paying off the buidling that had been erected on Elm Street where Galbreaith-Pickard Funeral Home is currently located. Funding the building where his wife attended church greatly helped grow the presence of the Methodist church in this region. The gift he gave was in memory of his wife, Martha Couts. In turn, the church's trustees changed the church's name from Elm Street Methodist Episcopal Church South to Couts Memorial Methodist Episcopal Church, South.

1977 - Phase 1 of a 3 Phase Plan began with the building of the Couts Family Life Center (Gym)

After a great deal of planning led by the Church Council, the Church embarked on Phase One of the plan, which was building the Family Life Center. Through the years there have been many programs and events in the life of the church. One of the largest programs was Jr. League Basketball. Couts partnered with several churches in the community to provide a basketball league that focused on learning basketball skills and learning about Jesus. Jr. League Basketball lasted from 1979 until 2023.

During the global pandemic of 2020, ministry had to dramatically pivot to keep this congregation connected. In spite of signficant health challenges, through the generous gift of a donor, this church began broadcasting it's weekly worship services and events using the social media platform, Facebook Live. As we look to what we believe to be a fruitful future, we are seeking ways to lead people to Jesus Christ by meeting new people in new places even in spaces that are not physcially in the church building.

2023 - Couts Welcomes New Folks As Other Churches Disaffiliate.

Sadly, following the 2019 General Conference of the United Methodist Church, some churches decided that they could no longer be a part of the denomination mostly due to the UMC's emerging full inclusion of those in the LGBTQ+ community. After town hall meetings and much discussion, Couts UMC decided that we were committed to the United Methodist Church and would remain so. While, sadly, this meant that some people felt they needed to say good-bye to Couts, others from churches in the area that disaffiliated found a new home here. While we may not always agree on every issue, we are committed to welcoming and loving all and remaining in relationship with one another even through difficult conversations.

Karen McElwee

Carley Bevel