In This Edition
Message from Bishop Gronberg
Synod Assembly Registration is Now Open
Briarwood Legacy Endowment Scholarships Are Open
2026 Fund for Leaders Scholarships Now Open
Drawing Water: Leadership Reflections from Pastor Nathan Swenson-Reinhold
Lenten Retreat at Calvary Lutheran Church, Richland Hills
Texas Impact Sunday at Messiah, Weatherford
Lutheran Summer Music Deadline Approaching
January Mission Support Memo
Stretched: A Study for Lent and the Entire Christian Life by The Rev. Christopher Richmann, Ph.D.
Texas Historical Commission Cemetery Preservation Resources
Seeking the Spirit Within
Upcoming Installations
Upcoming Events
Prayer Requests
Message from Bishop Gronberg
Dear Partners in Mission:
Last Sunday we heard Matthew’s version of the Beatitudes. Jesus’ words of blessing for those the world does not normally bless. A reminder that he lived in an age of Empire in an occupied Palestine. Jesus knew very well what imperial peace was, it was the Pax Romana, brought on by domination and submission. His words then were protest then as they are in our time. Living as we do in a nation torn by division and violence. Violence that hits close to home for many of us, but as always, some more than others.
For the last weeks I have observed with varying degrees of dismay and outright anger the situation created in Minneapolis by the outsized presence of ICE. A situation that is closer to home because of family and colleagues we live and work in the Twin Cities and across Minnesota experiencing this firsthand. U.S. Citizens murdered in the street, neighbors legally seeking asylum taken walking from the school bus. But regardless of who I know there, whatever city this would be happening in, Jesus’ words of blessing are a stark rebuke to this act of violence and force by our government.
Fifty six years ago this May four students at Kent State were murdered by National Guard troops as they protested US involvement in Vietnam. Instead of listening to the concerns of the students. the government chose to escalate the opportunity for violence by sending armed men onto campuses including at Kent State. In that time the murder of those students, young people exercising their rights to protest, created outrage and shock across the country.
The actions of ICE across Minnesota and in our own communities should bring similar outrage today. This is not blessed action but instead action intending to create fear and distrust. I encourage you to listen to the voices of neighbors, to call your senators and representatives and encourage them to stop this government overreach. To be God’s blessed people seeking peace and justice. Knowing the foolishness of God is the power of the life giving cross in which we find our hope and assurance.
Juntos en mision,
Bishop Gronberg
Synod Assembly Registration is Now Open
Synod Assembly will be Friday, April 24th and Saturday, April 25th at Advent, Arlington (3232 S Cooper St, Arlington, TX 76015).
You can find more information on Assembly here.
Registration for NT-NL’s Synod Assembly is now open. You can register here. Registration will close April 15, 2026 . There will be no on site registration and Assembly will be fully in-person. No refunds will be issued after April 1st. Changes to your voting members can be made up until registration closes on April 15th.
When electing lay voting members congregations are reminded to keep the following in mind:
- Congregations with up to 500 voting members can send 2 lay voting members (one male and one female)
- Congregations with 501-750 voting members can send up to 3 lay voting members (if sending 3 voting members there must be at least one member of each gender)
- Congregations with 751-1000 voting members can send up to 4 lay voting members (two male and two female)
- Congregations with 1001+ voting members can send up to 5 lay voting members (if sending 5 voting members there must be at least 2 members of each gender)\
All ordained and lay rostered ministers on the roster of this Synod, SAWLs who are serving under contract with a congregation of this Synod by the Bishop’s authorization, and ordained ministers of a church body with which the ELCA is in full communion who are serving as pastors under contract with a congregation, are eligible to be voting members and do not count against their congregation’s allotted voting member numbers or gender ratio.
If you have questions about voting member eligibility please contact Anna Thompson (anna@ntnl.org) for clarification.
The Briarwood Legacy Endowment will provide camp scholarships for NT-NL congregations sending young people to an ELCA affiliated camp. It will also provide support for congregation sponsored mission trips. The endowment will pay 50% of the cost of camp enrollment or 50% of mission trip cost (up to $350/participant). The endowment also will provide funds for congregations offering an onsite day camp run by Cross Trails or Luther Hill staff, up to 50% of the cost of the camp.
These funds are to provide camping/outdoor experiences for young people in the NT-NL Synod. The congregational data requested is to assist the synod council and congregations in understanding better the financial capacity of our congregations to support youth ministry.
Scholarship funds will be sent directly to churches in two batches. Requests made by March 15th will be mailed in mid-March and requests made by May 15th will be mailed in mid-May. No applications will be accepted after May 15th.
Payment will be made in the form of a check to your congregation from the synod office with Briarwood Legacy Endowment in the memo line. If you have any questions please reach out to Anna Thompson (anna@ntnl.org) or Bishop Gronberg (bpgronberg@ntnl.org).
2026 Fund for Leaders Scholarships Now Open
Every year, the Fund for Leaders awards approximately 30 full-tuition scholarships to future ELCA pastors and deacons who are planning to attend an ELCA seminary. In spring 2026, the Fund for Leaders will once again offer scholarships to ministry candidates pursuing seminary study.
The application window for full-tuition scholarships is open until Feb. 20, 2026.
Here are a few key facts about Fund for Leaders scholarships:
- Scholarships are no longer reserved for full-time students. Candidates who need to study part-time are welcome and encouraged to apply.
- Eligible applicants must be planning to enroll in seminary in fall 2026. Applicants must be in the process of seeking candidacy for rostered ministry in the ELCA. Fund for Leaders must receive a positive entrance decision from the applicant’s candidacy committee no later than Dec. 15, 2026.
- Current ELCA seminary students who have completed no more than one semester of coursework before the start of the 2026-2027 academic year are also welcome to apply. All applicants must be considered first-year students in fall 2026.
- Ministry candidates may begin the Fund for Leaders application process before they have been accepted to seminary. Candidates are encouraged to apply to seminary and a Fund for Leaders scholarship simultaneously. Applicants can then upload their seminary acceptance letter(s) before the application deadline.
- Recipients of Fund for Leaders scholarships may apply their full-tuition scholarship at any ELCA seminary that has offered them admission.
- Scholarships are awarded to students for the duration of their required seminary coursework, provided they remain in good standing with their seminary and in their candidacy process. They do not need to reapply each year.
If you know of promising and gifted people discerning a call to rostered ministry in the ELCA, please send them this information and encourage them to visit ELCA.org/FundForLeaders today to learn more.
Drawing Water: Leadership Reflections from Pastor Nathan Swenson-Reinhold
Drawing Water is a short monthly reflection for congregational leaders across the Northern Texas–Northern Louisiana Synod. These reflections attend to the lived realities of leadership—clarity, fatigue, conflict, discernment, and resilience. Like windmills on the plains that quietly draw life from below the surface, this series invites leaders to slow down, reflect, and remember that leadership was never meant to be carried alone.
February’s article is, You Don’t Have a Vision Problem. You Have a Clarity Problem. You can read the reflections in English and Spanish here.
Lenten Retreat at Calvary Lutheran Church, Richland Hills
You are invited to join Calvary, Richland Hills on Saturday, February 14th from 9a – 3p (7620 Baker Blvd., Richland Hills, TX 76118) for a day of rest, reverence, and recommitment to the renewing power of the season of Lent. Calvary is welcoming The Rev. Lucille “CeCee” Mills to lead their 2026 Lenten Retreat themed “Preparing for Wilderness: Go to the Ant, You Sluggard” on the wisdom of Proverbs 6:6-8. Pr. Mills serves as Secretary of the ELCA, as well as being a certified coach, a Ventures Stewardship facilitator, a Healthy Congregations facilitator and a Bowens Family Systems theory enthusiast. Your $25 registration fee covers the cost of attendance and lunch. Financial aid is available upon request. Register here or at godshearthumanhands.org.
Pr. Mills will also be the preacher at Calvary’s Transfiguration Festival on Sunday, February 15th. All are welcome at the 8:00, 9:30, and 11:00 a.m. services.
Texas Impact Sunday at Messiah, Weatherford
February 15th
Messiah Lutheran Church (907 Washington Dr., Weatherford, TX)
9:30 AM – Texas Impact Information Session
10:30 AM – Service & Celebration of Public Witness
On Sunday, February 15th, Messiah, Weatherford will host a special service to highlight and celebrate NT-NL’s partnership with Texas Impact, a statewide, interfaith organization working for justice in Texas legislation and policy.
Texas Impact leaders from across the state will be joining us to share more information about the work of Texas Impact, to worship with us as we celebrate the Church’s prophetic call, and to honor Pastor Franz Schemmel and Ann Hafften for their years of advocacy and commitment to the cause of justice in both church and society.
Texas Impact will lead an information session at 9:30 AM. At 10:30 AM there will have a festive service of thanksgiving for the ministry of public witness. The Rev. Phil Dieke, Texas Impact Board President, will preach. Bishop Erik Gronberg will preside. Rostered leaders are welcome to vest in any liturgical color of their choosing. The service will be followed by a reception.
This will be a great opportunity for people in our synod to meet Texas Impact leaders and learn more about their work representing you as an ELCA member in Texas. All are welcome to join us as we worship, give thanks, and recommit ourselves to loving our neighbors through faithful public engagement.
For more details, visit www.messiahmission.org/
Lutheran Summer Music Deadline Approaching
Youth musicians from across the country are headed to St. Olaf College this year for the 2026 Lutheran Summer Music Academy & Festival (LSM). Students in grades 8-12 will be immersed in a supportive community that nurtures their musical growth, and invites them to share their musical gifts in performance and in worship. The Standard Enrollment deadline is March 1, and spots are filling fast. Do you know young musicians who would thrive at LSM? Nominate them today at LSMacademy.org/nominate, or remind them to submit a free application by March 1 at LSMacademy.org/apply.
January Mission Support Memo
The January 2026 Mission Support memo connects us to Community Lutheran Church in Sussex County, Delaware where they are working to build-bridges for justice and love. Read about how they deeply care for their community through being a feeding hub, offering English classes and advocacy, caring for creation, and working toward dismantling racism, building equity, and empowering inclusion. Learn how to join our new ELCA Church Property Hub on Feb. 12th for Property Development 101 for Synods.
Stretched: A Study for Lent and the Entire Christian Life by The Rev. Christopher Richmann, Ph.D.
Pastor Richmann, St. John, Coryell City has published Stretched: A Study for Lent and the Entire Christian Life. It is an exploration and meditation on the theological themes of Lent. It is written to be particularly useful for adult Sunday school or small groups to read together for Lent.
The book can be purchased on Amazon here.
If your congregation is interested in meeting with Pastor Richmann for a discussion, presentation or a Q&A please reach out to him via email here.
Texas Historical Commission Cemetery Preservation Resources
The Texas Historical Commission works with local cemetery boards all the time and have a wealth of knowledge to help local cemetery stewards prioritize tasks (and costs) and de-mystify state and municipal expectations for cemeteries.
The Church Property Resource Hub will ask them to host a webinar in 2026. The best email for the team is cemeterypreservation@thc.
Seeking the Spirit Within
Seeking the Spirit Within (StSW) is a three-year formational certificate program designed for individuals called to walk alongside others on their spiritual journeys. In partnership with the Nebraska Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), this program helps cultivate deep spiritual awareness, compassionate listening, and the art of spiritual direction.
Spiritual direction is a prayerful practice of bearing witness to another’s relationship with the Divine, helping seekers notice God’s presence in their lives through attentive listening and reflective engagement.
Learn more about this program here.
Upcoming Installations
The Rev. Jerry Nordsiek will be installed as Pastor at Grace, Carrollton on Saturday, March 7 at 2:00pm
Upcoming Events
With the ever-changing guidelines and recommendations in our world right now, as we maintain physical distance in social solidarity, please keep in mind these events may be moved online, postponed, or cancelled:
- February 7: Synod Council Meeting, Zoom
- February 14: Public Witness Team Meeting
- February 19: NT-NL Youth Leader Lunch, Rejoice, Coppell
- February 24: First Call Pastors Check-in, Zoom
- February 27-March 2: NT-NL Youth Confirmation and High School Youth Weekend
- March 14: Parish Lay Ministry Academy, Spring 2026
- March 14: Public Witness Team Meeting
- March 19: NT-NL Youth Leader Lunch, Rejoice, Coppell
- March 24: First Call Pastors Check-In, Zoom
- March 28: Lutheran Foundation of the Southwest Board Meeting
For a complete list of upcoming events, you can access our Calendar of Events online.