History

It all began with a vision for a church that would reach the folks “way out west of town.” 

Yes, in 1945 Houston, Lamar High School and the newly established River Oaks neighborhood marked the city’s western edge. In the summer of that year, a small group of Methodists from the area met at the home of Exa and Loyal Nelms, just a few blocks from the Westheimer site upon which St. Luke’s resides today. “St. Luke’s was born that evening,” Ms. Nelms would often recall. Other meetings followed, enthusiasm grew, and on Sunday, November 11, 1945, the first service of St. Luke’s United Methodist Church was held in the auditorium of Lamar High School.  

The founders of St. Luke’s dreamed of a church that would be extraordinary in its impact for Christ, built in a way that would leave a legacy for generations to come. Through the years of growth and change, both within our church walls and the broader community and world, St. Luke’s has remained steadfast to its founders’ vision of Christ-led service and community.

In the same way that the spire atop our sanctuary serves as a visual beacon to all people searching for a home in Christ, it is the hope of St. Luke’s United Methodist Church that our congregation’s “spires” of faith, kindness, and generosity will continue to be visible in our community and throughout our world.

“What legacy will we leave for those who come after us? I only hope we can be as open to God’s leading as those who sat in that living room [more than] 75 years ago.” — Dr. Tom Pace