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NT-NL News: Week of Sept. 7, 2015

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This week we pray for:

Good Shepherd in Irving (Pr. Bradley Carroll)
Oromo Mission in Dallas (Pr. Sileshi Borana)
“God’s Work. Our Hands.” Sunday

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

It’s (almost) here!

"God's Work. Our Hands." Sunday - September 13, 2015 [Image description: a yellow banner at the top reads "God's work. Our Hands" Sunday / September 13, 2015" in black text. The image is a collage of photos of NT-NL members from last year's ELCA Day of Service, working on service projects and wearing the bright yellow t-shirts.]

We want to see what you’re getting up to! Share your photos on social media and tag them #GWOH and #ntnlife.

Still looking for an idea? How about putting together For My Neighbor Care Packs or kicking off a Prayer Scarves & Hats ministry?

Click here to register your congregation’s #GWOH activities!

Download resources (including bulletin inserts, the 2015 Toolkit, worship resources, and more!) at elca.org/Resources/GWOH-Sunday.

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.

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

ELCA World Hunger Go and Do News – August 2015

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!