Ceili Community

10/13/2026

📢 ANNOUNCEMENT 📢

Church for 10/25 is canceled! We invite you to join us for Charge Conference instead. Message for details if you’re interested. New to the UMC? Same. Here’s a link to tell you more:

Every year United Methodist churches hold charge conferences where clergy and lay leaders come together to make key decisions that guide the mission and ministry of the church under the leadership of their distrct superintendent.

10/08/2026

No segregation at Ceili! Join us!

We often celebrate diversity in theory, yet our sanctuaries remain remarkably segregated when it comes to neurological and physical differences.

Churches wanting to start with disability ministry, but are unsure how to begin, we offer free consulting: https://abilityministry.com/consultation/

10/07/2026

Have you ever wanted something so badly that you couldn’t stand it any longer? You were so desperate that nothing could change your mind. But you also needed help to do it?

That’s this woman. The story goes that Jesus was passing through and was surrounded by a crowd. A woman who had been hemorrhaging blood for 12 years heard the commotion, heard it was Jesus, and knew her time was now.

Jewish law forced her into the outskirts of town due to her condition. No one was to have contact with her. She was destined to die alone and in pain.

One word motivated her so much to push through the crowd despite any fact that if she was unsuccessful in reaching Him, she would be stoned to death - “Tzitzit”.

God commanded ancient Israelites to tie fringes (tzitzit) to the corners of their four-cornered garments in Numbers 15:37–41 and Deuteronomy 22:12. Malachi 4:2 prophesied that the "Sun of Righteousness" would rise "with healing in his wings (kanaf)"—a phrase ancient Jewish tradition associated with the corners and tzitzit of the Messiah's garment.

She reached His garment and He felt healing surge through Him. She was healed.

No one ever talks about the crowd that must’ve witnessed this. Were their customs challenged? Did they rethink their unhealthy systems of faith? We will never know.

But I explore each of us to consider how we might push through “the crowd” of our own minds. Push through the doubt. Push through the pain. Brush up against the shoulders of the systems that oppress you. Shove against the isolation that pushes you to the edge. There is healing in His wings. Reach.

And for those who don’t have much to push through…consider how we might advocate for change. Change the way we approach church. Tear down the barriers that force the hurting deeper into their pain. Stand toe to toe with the systems that tell others they’re not worthy. Stare the oppressor in the face as you hold the hand of an untouchable. Be the person who steps aside to hold back the crowd to open the path to Jesus.

Dinner Church can be that. We can make a difference. We can welcome the outcast. We can feed the hungry. We can clothe the poor. We can welcome the stranger.

10/03/2026

Dang, Jesus just trying take a swim sometimes

10/03/2026

If Ceili’s origin story could be summed up in a meme…this is it.

Ceili was founded on the principle of inclusion. And it has sustained because inclusion is not just a concept to us - it’s our entire purpose.

Pastor Austin Matthiessen’s family found Ceili a few years ago while searching for an inclusive church because their son with Down Syndrome is an elopement risk. Their previous church wanted to age him up (which included moving buildings) and pair him with a teenager. Say what?! That’s not a teenager job, so they decided it was time to leave.

If that has been your story, you’ve come to the right place. Our Disability and Children’s Ministry Coordinator is Shevelle Matthiessen who has been a traditionally certified SpEd teacher for 8 years and our children’s worker is her SpEd teacher friend, Emily Campbell! It doesn’t get any better than that, folks!

Don’t leave The Church because you or your loved one is not included. Come to Ceili.

09/30/2026

Who will you invite to dinner church this week?

09/29/2026

Imagine this:
- Loud music and a flashy production replaced with a calm rhythm in the background
- Pews replaced with circle tables
- Sermons replaced by conversations
- Offering buckets replaced by a guilt-free, discrete donation box
- Large crowds replaced by intimate space where everyone fits in
- Well-intentioned volunteers replaced by licensed special education teachers for your children
- Shame-based alter calls replaced by intersession for each other
- Hungry souls and bellies replaced with food for both

That’s Ceili Community.
An inclusive, affirming space designed with you in mind. Whether you’re looking for inclusion and accessibility for your family member with different abilities or you’re on a journey to heal from your last church, please consider pulling up a chair for dinner. We are founded and planted by people with children with different abilities as well as religious trauma and pain - we see you, welcome you, and want to heal with you.

Every Sunday, 430-6pm.

09/28/2026

Let your testimony point beyond you.

Let your success glorify Him.

Let your answered prayer become someone else's reason to believe.

Because the greatest testimony isn't simply saying, "Look what I achieved."

It's saying,
"Look what God did."

If He opens the door, He deserves the praise.

If He makes the way, He deserves the credit.

If He fulfills the promise, He deserves the testimony.

And when it happens, tell everyone:
"It wasn't me. It was God."

09/27/2026

We had an absolute BLAST the Down Syndrome Association of Central Oklahoma festival and 5k today!