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NT-NL News: Week of Sept. 14, 2015

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This week we pray for:

Trinity in Clovis, NM (Pr. Bonita Knox)
Our Savior in Mesquite (Pr. John Schelter)
NT-NL Mission Endowment Fund

The 2015 NT-NL Prayer Partners can be found at ntnl.org/2015PrayerPartners or you can download the PDF here.

 

“God’s Work. Our Hands.” Sunday: THANK YOU!!

Yellow is one of my least favorite colors… except for one day a year! I loved seeing the sea of yellow in my congregation, and in my Facebook and Instagram feeds!

[Image description: a large group of members of Christ the Servant Lutheran Church in Allen smile and wave at the camera in their yellow "God's Work. Our Hands." Sunday t-shirts.]

Look at this awesome group of servants from Christ the Servant in Allen!

Want to see yourselves being awesome? Check out our #NTNLife album on Facebook (want to see your photos there? Post them to Instagram and tag them #ntnlife!) and check out the #ntnlife hashtag on Facebook (want to see more photos there? Tag your Facebook posts!)

Keep those photos coming! We know some of you did your #GWOH service day on a different day, before or after last Sunday. Post (and tag!) your photos, and share your stories with us! You can post to our Facebook page or email me at criss@ntnl.org.

2015 Table Talks: The Use of the Means of Grace

The Use of the Means of Grace, the Rev. Kevin Strickland and the Rev. Martin Seltz. NT-NL Table Talks

Tuesday, Sept. 29 • Streng Center

Have you ever wondered…

Who should be baptized?
Do I have to be baptized to take Communion?
Who should be admitted to the Table? And at what age?
And what’s the deal with giving out grapes and Goldfish?

Join us Tuesday, Sept. 29 from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Streng Center of the Christ Evangelical Lutheran Mission Center at Briarwood or online on our YouTube channel for a conversation about sacramental practice and ways to provide pastoral care that is theologically grounded.

Register here!

The cost to attend is $12 for those who pay now with a credit card, or you can pay $15 at the door (cash or check).

If you cannot attend in person, register to attend online (no fee). We will email you with a reminder the day before the event, with the links to watch the Table Talk live.

The Mission Endowment Fund [Image description: Two hands, palms up, fingers touching, cup a growing seedling with two small leaves. Across the top, the words "The Mission Endowment Fund" arch over the hands.]2016 Mission Endowment Fund Grants

The goal of the Mission Endowment Fund is to award grants for specific and identifiable projects or programs of NT-NL Mission Area missions and congregations. MEF is now accepting grant applications for 2016!

All applications must use the application form linked below. One copy of the completed application form, along with requested attachments, must be received by October 31.

Save the Date!

NT-NL presents... An Evening with the Presiding Bishop: What Does It Mean To Be The ELCA Today? [Image description: text is on a white background; "Nt-NL presents..." is at the top left corner of the image in black script font. "An Evening with the Presiding Bishop" is written in red sans serif font, centered on the white background, and "What does it mean to be the ELCA today?" is written in bold black sans serif font centered on the bottom half of the white background. On the right end of the image is a photo of Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton, a white woman with short dark hair, smiling. She is wearing a black clerical shirt and a grey blazer.]

 

Monday, Oct. 26 • 7:30 p.m.
Christ Evangelical Lutheran Mission Center at Briarwood

Briarwood Church visitsThe Program team at Briarwood will be going back out on the road promoting Briarwood and its retreats, as well as giving you a sneak peek at what summer might look like!

If you’d like them to come visit you on a Sunday, please e-mail Daniel Crofts, new Program Intern, at Daniel@briarwoodretreat.org.

Upbring Foster in Texas - Support the Safety Fund for Foster Children. North Texas Giving Day: September 17. Get up and give! NorthTexasGivingDay.org

Emergency Offering Opportunity

Mosaic Corsicana banner
In August, the Mosaic offices in Corsicana, TX were hit by lightning, taking out the phone system, all computer systems, and air conditioning units. They estimate they will need $25,000 in non-budgeted cash to cover the expense of replacing their office equipment.

Insurance will not cover the cost of the damaged equipment because they deemed the lightning hit to be an “Act of God.” Let’s show them what an “Act of God” actually looks like!

The NT-NL Mission Area already sent an initial $2,500; how close can we get to meeting the $25,000 need?

You can make a donation through your congregation or send your checks to the mission office (Christ Evangelical Lutheran Mission Center, 680 Copper Canyon Rd., Argyle, TX 76226), designated for “Mosaic in Corsicana.” Let’s help Mosaic replace their office equipment so they can continue serving people with intellectual disabilities and providing them with opportunities to live a full life.

Wellwishers offer warm clothing to Syrians after they arrived on a train from Budapest's Keleti station at the railway station of the airport in Frankfurt, Germany, early morning September 6, 2015. Photo: REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach, courtesy of Trust.org

Lutheran World Relief Aid to Refugees

As thousands of refugees and migrants from Northern Africa, Syria, Afghanistan, and Iraq are flowing into Europe, Lutheran World Relief is responding with material assistance and is supporting the relief effort of the ACT Alliance.

LWR is shipping Mission Quilts, Baby Care Kits, and Personal Care Kits to Serbia to distribute to refugees and migrants.

LWR is also supporting the ACT Alliance, a coalition of more than 140 churches and faith-based organizations that is providing humanitarian aid to refugees in Greece, Hungary, and Serbia. LWR’s initial support will aid ACT members who are providing hygiene items, winter coats and blankets, emergency shelter and psychosocial support in two temporary camps in Hungary.

We continue to remain in contact with the ACT Alliance to determine additional needs on the ground and how LWR can assist to meet these needs. We will continue to channel our support to the Syrian crisis through the ACT Alliance platform to ensure a well-coordinated response.

How to Help:

  • Donate By Phone: 800-597-5972
  • Donate By Mail: Lutheran World Relief, PO Box 17061, Baltimore, MD 21297-1061 or Christ Evangelical Lutheran Mission Center, 680 Copper Canyon Rd., Argyle, TX 76226 (please note “Crisis in Syria Fund” on your check)
  • Donate Online: http://lwr.org/syria

CROSS+GEN Worship Conference

Estes Park, Colorado
October 5-8

[Image description: photo of a large, colorful mural-like painting. The words SHARE, READ, TALK, PRAY, and BLESS are written prominently in the center of the artwork. On the left side of the mural is a cartoon drawing of an adult and a child, facing each other; on the right side of the mural are cartoons of adults and children standing together.]

Rich Melheim’s FAITH5 mural at the 2015 NT-NL Mission Assembly in Lewisville

Google “Kill Sunday School” and you get 23,000,000 results in 0.47 seconds.

Evidently, it’s a topic on people’s minds these days.

If you’re tired of recruiting Sunday School teachers for drop-off kids and ready to get in on the conversation and design of Cross+Gen Worship and Faith Formation for the post-television generation, the mountains are calling!

The Faith Inkubators Foundation is hosting its second annual conference on replacing Sunday School with Cross+Gen faith communities on Oct 5-8 at Estes Park’s YMCA of the Rockies.

90% of the Case Studies presented are from ELCA churches across the country who have pioneered methods, models and materials to bring “the wisdom of the elder and the wonder of the child into the same sacred space every week at church.”

Check out crossgenconference.com for information.

Upcoming Events in the NT-NL Mission Area and Beyond:

Do you have news or announcements to share? Please submit them to Criss Forshay (criss@ntnl.org) for consideration for our next NT-NL News. Don’t forget to include a picture or logo! p