Love Your Neighbor As Yourself

From Bishop Gronberg: “One role of the office of Bishop is to speak and advocate on behalf of our social service organizations. When Texas Gov. Abbott announced a change to a 40-year program, I was concerned. In conversation with Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Services (LIRS), I learned more about this change and its impact on our work in Texas.

Editorial in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram

Take action. Call the Governor’s office. Sign the petition. Host a Refugee Sunday. LIRS has created a bulletin insert and petition for your use. Please incorporate these SOON into a worship service.

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Table Talk Updates

Our next Table Talk is tomorrow, Tuesday, October 4. We are happy to host Nathan Kirkpatrick, managing director of Alban at Duke Divinity School.

The topic for this Table Talk has been expanded: Congregational Leadership in Changing Times for Changing Churches.

Click here for more details (these have been updated) and to register.

If you are unable to make it in person and are interested in watching via livestream, you can access that via our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/DiscipleLifeMission. A suggested donation of $5 or more would be appreciated to help us cover costs. You can donate directly to Briarwood.

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FREE Webinar: October 18

Fair Labor Standards: New Overtime Rules

Register directly here: https://community.elca.org/FLSAwebinar (must register by Oct 14)

Hosts: Steve Knowles, Senior Attorney, Davis & Kuelthau; Thomas Cunniff, Associate General Counsel, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America

The U.S. Department of Labor has adopted new overtime regulations under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), which go into effect on December 1, 2016. Among other changes, these regulations increase the minimum salary for exempt employees from $23,000 to $47,476. Many congregations, synods, and other ministries of the church have questions about how this impacts their employees and ministries. Does it apply to churches? What about pastors? Youth workers? Sextons? How about schools? Or camps? Join us for a free webinar on how the new regulations will affect religious institutions, and get answers to your questions.

Featured Resource

October 28 – November 2

$650 per person

All inclusive (except airfare)

“Seeds of Transformation is an immersion trip program which seeks to build relationships between cultures in search of mutual transformation. ELCA Global Missions has been a key partner in promoting and participating in trips to central and southern Mexico.

We are a branch of Amextra (Mexican Association for Rural and Urban Transformation), a non-profit organization that has been working with marginalized communities for over 30 years. Amextra currently has projects in the states of Chiapas, Guerrero, and the State of Mexico (outskirts of Mexico City).”

For more information, sample itineraries, and to sign up,
email semillas@amextra.org

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Save the Date

Where in the world is?

Bishop Gronberg:

• Oct. 7 – Preaching at NT-NL SWO Convention
• Oct. 8 – Installation of the Rev. Paul Zwarich to Calvary, San Angelo
• Oct. 9 – Installation of SAWL Nicholaus Chove to Umoja, Fort Worth

Pr. Kris Totzke:

• Oct. 4 – NT-NL Table Talk
• Oct. 8 – Briarwood Fall Festival & Thrivent Cook-off
• Oct. 9-10 – 125th anniversary of Trinity, Pottsville; visits in the HOT Conference