News, Stories, and More

from the

Florida-Bahamas Synod of the ELCA

January 25, 2022

When a Tornado Shows Up for Sunday Service

by Pastor Andreas Stien

Peace Lutheran Church

(Picture shows roofs and debris flying in the tornado)

What a Sunday January 16, 2022 turned out be. At 7:30am the warnings came over the cell phones: Tornado warning! And it was coming our way.

I looked out of the front door for the church and there it was: Roofs and other debris rotating in the air in a funnel cloud right over our parking lot moving toward the church. A couple of older members were still walking toward the door. They got in, but I barely got the door shut behind them! What a force!

One member did not make it into the building. As it was pouring rain, he dropped his wife off at the entrance, and then went to park the car. I thank God that God gave him wisdom not to try to make it to church, but to stay in the car. He was safe there. We were praying! Finally the tornado moved on!

 At 7:45am a young couple came: "They told us to leave our mobile home community! Can we shelter here?" A police car stopped by, "Can we use this building as an emergency shelter?" "Of course!" I said. Within 20 minutes, our fellowship hall was full of people, dogs and cats. It felt like Noah's ark. Several members living close by told me they lost their house. We couldn't make coffee as electricity was off, but we served water, cookies and other finger food.

We had a large event with a guest speaker planned for that Sunday! We had no electricity, and only the security lights worked. It was dark in the sanctuary. Of course, we still had the service! It is always the right time to worship! Don Piper, the author of "90 Minutes in Heaven" spoke at the service. God spoke through him powerfully! A bare-bones service: A hymn, prayer, message and a blessing! The Holy Spirit was present at Peace!

Don Piper told me afterwards that “this is the most hospitable church he has seen in many, many years”! I thank God for Peace! I am proud of our people! One person commented on social media, “1st time visit. We were impressed you still had the service. Very inviting Church. My friend and I really enjoyed.”

I thank God for our amazing synod! Bishop Suarez, Rev. Khader El-Yateem, Rev. Rob Rose and Dc. Connie Schmucker all reached out in various ways, offering help! It was much needed encouragement!

Nature is mighty! But God is almighty!

Tornado Relief Still Needed

Several tornadoes hit areas of southwest Florida a couple of weekends ago. Many in the congregations of St. Peter Lutheran Church in Fort Myers Beach and Peace Lutheran Church in Fort Myers lost their homes.

We continue to accept donations to help those who were in the tornado's path and lost everything. Click here to donate. 100% of the money given will be used in the tornado relief efforts.



Haiti

Haiti

Cuba

Your gifts at work in Haiti and Cuba

What a joy it is to partner with our Global Mission companions! The Florida-Bahamas Synod maintains relationships with Cuba, Guyana, Haiti, Suriname, and the United Theological Seminary in Jamaica. Recently we were able to provide funds to Cuba and Haiti, both of which used the grants to provide food relief to their communities.  

In Cuba, the provisions were offered as part of the annual Christmas celebrations at the Iglesia Evangelica Unida (IEU) The following pictures were taken at three congregations (1) Cristo Redentor; (2) Cuerpo de Cristo; and (3) Cristo Vive. The Lutheran Church in Haiti (ELH) continues to assist families recovering from the earthquake. Food has been distributed in conjunction with Sunday worship.  

Through these gifts, we walk with our brothers and sisters in other countries and offer the love of Christ in tangible form. God's work; our hands. Thanks be to God!

Pastor Katie

Rev. Kathryn Carroll

Chair, Global Missions Team



Another opportunity to tune in to the Anger Workshop for Rostered Ministers

In response to an increase in anger in our faith communities and the need to understand the origins of anger and ways to help rostered ministers and congregations deal more effectively with anger, Barbara Keller of the ELCA, developed a one-hour Zoom workshop.

The large response and demand has generated another workshop scheduled on February 10 from 10:00-11:00 a.m. Central time (11:00 Eastern). This workshop will focus the topics which generated questions and ideas in the previous workshop, and it will be recorded for those that are not available to participate. This Zoom meeting will be available for 500 registrants.

Register in advance here. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting. 

Pastors, jump-start your creativity with a Lenten Planning Workshop

What if you could tap into an abundance of resources to enhance your Lenten planning? How about infusing your church’s Lent experience with fresh perspectives and insightful gems of Biblical wisdom? The Lent Planning Workshop at Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary provides the means to do just that.

Dr. Brent Driggers, professor and associate dean of academic programs at LTSS, will present a thought-provoking approach to the 40 days leading to Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection. Spending time in conversation about each Gospel pericope, he will strike a balance between textual details and potential teaching trajectories for Lent. Offered online, this six-hour workshop on February 4 will provide you with practical tools to share Christ’s journey to the cross.

To register: https://calendar.lr.edu/event/lent-planning-workshop.

ELCA colleges and universities invite you to learn more

ELCA colleges and universities are dedicated to providing students with the best education possible, and we are kicking off 2022 with the College Readiness Webinar Series, free webinars to answer any questions families may have about applying to or preparing for college. The series is composed of five different webinars, each focusing on a topic that will move you forward in your college search. The webinars will be offered throughout February.

• Get the Most Out of a College Visit: February 8, 2022
• Admissions Directors’ Advice: February 10, 2022
• How to Pay for College: February 15, 2022
• Starting Your Search: February 17, 2022
• Overview of Your College Search (in Spanish): February 22, 2022

Registration is free! Attend as many webinars as you wish.

Register Today!

Learn more at imaginecolleges.org.

The mission of the Network of ELCA Colleges and Universities is to help students connect with a college that shares their values of academic excellence, experiential learning, campus involvement, service, and stewardship.



National Fund for Sacred Places is

accepting grant applications

The National Fund for Sacred Places is a grant-making program that provides capital grants ranging from $50,000 to $250,000 as well as wrap-around support services to congregations undertaking once-in-a-generation preservation projects. To learn more or to begin the two-step application process, please visit us at fundforsacredplaces.org.

Join us for an introductory webinar on January 26, 2022 at 12 PM EST to learn more about the program and whether your sacred place (or any of the sacred places in your community or judicatory) may qualify.

Event: Introduction to the National Fund for Sacred Places

Date: January 26, 2022

Time: 12 PM EST



Register here!

The National Fund for Sacred Places is a program of Partners for Sacred Places in collaboration with the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

New May Educational Grant for Ministers of Word and Sacrament

Established by a generous gift from Pastor Rusty and PJ May, the grant is available to rostered ministers of word and sacrament of the Florida-Bahamas Synod for continued education.

The grant amount will depend on dollars available and the number of applicants. To apply click here or visit the synod website. Deadline for the first round of grants is February 15, 2022.

Possible areas of study may include (but not limited to):

·       Festival Homiletics

·       On-line or in-person continued education courses at a seminary

·       Participating in community organizing training on faith-based social

justice ministries

·       Participating in trips to the Holy Land/Germany/St Paul sites

·       Accompanying a synod Global Mission Table trip

·       Attending workshops

Grants will be awarded by the decision of the grant’s committee meeting during the first quarter of 2022. Questions may be addressed to Rev. Ana L. Lugo, Gift Planner for the Synod, at ana.lugo@elca.org.



This year's Synod Assembly will be held June 3-5 at the Caribe Royale Resort in Orlando.

The Conference on Ministry for rostered ministers will be held October 17-19 at the Life Enrichment Center in Leesburg.

More information to follow.

Annual reports due soon...

• Congregation Reports (Parochial) 2021 - Deadline to file with the Office of the Secretary is March 1, 2022. If you file via paper copy, please mail it to the Synod Office by February 15.

• Rostered Minister Reports - To be submitted by all ministers including those under call, on leave from call, retired, or on disability. Download and save to your computer. Following completion, save, and attach to an e-mail to ileanas@fbsynod.org.

• Mission Support Covenants - You can file your covenant online or by returning the card to the Synod Office. This year, the Florida-Bahamas Synod will forward 46% of our mission support dollars to Churchwide.

Stewardship Symposium 2022:

The Gift of Stewardship as the Mission of the Church

JANUARY 28, 2022, 10:00 AM – 3:00 PM

The Rev. Dr. Dan Bell will be the keynote speaker at this year’s Region 9/LTSS Stewardship Symposium, an annual event providing stewardship education for the seminary community, clergy and lay leaders, and the general public.

In his presentation, “The Gift of Stewardship as the Mission of the Church,” Dr. Bell will explore stewardship as “not about giving to the church but about the church giving itself away,” and will consider why Christians do not give more, the pathos of contemporary stewardship, and challenges in leading the church in giving itself away.

Dr. Bell served as professor of theology and ethics at LTSS for 17 years. Residing now in Salt Lake City, Dr. Bell continues to teach online, undergraduate classes for LRU as an adjunct professor and is a popular guest speaker on the topics of war and peace, the moral life, stewardship, and the mission of the church today.

The event will take place in person and will be streamed online. Registration is required. Admission for the Online option for rostered ministers and laity is $10. Registration deadline is January 27. Click here to read more about this event and to register.



Webinar - Tuesday, February 8, 7:00 p.m. (EST)

Boldly Serving Our Afghan Neighbors: A Call for Congregational Accompaniment and Co-Sponsorship

Need is growing following the evacuation of thousands of Afghan refugees to the United States, and we hear the call to bear witness to God's love with Afghan newcomers who have lost their homes and must make new beginnings. Lutheran Disaster Response, the ELCA AMMPARO network, and ELCA Witness in Society will help congregations and individuals answer the call to engage in co-sponsorship, financial support, and advocacy meaningfully and effectively as we rise to show welcome in the days and years ahead.

Tuesday, February 8

7:00-8:00 p.m. (Eastern Time)

Registration: https://bit.ly/ELCAwebinarServingAfghanNeighbors



Alban Institute's Most-Read of 2021

Greeting our return when the old is gone and the new is here

As we resume in-person ways, churches are uniquely equipped to welcome people back.

By Nathan Kirkpatrick

Let’s re-envision “normal”

Along with the hard lessons of the pandemic, churches have learned things that can make them healthier for clergy and congregants.

By Alex Shea Will

Congregations should see their buildings as assets, not albatrosses

Talking about church buildings is fun for the bishop of the Diocese of Indianapolis – not just because she is trained in architecture and historic preservation, but also because it leads to questions like, “What is this congregation for?”

Interview with Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows

The next three most faithful steps

After an unprecedented year, looking ahead can feel overwhelming. The right questions and partners can help prioritize what comes next.

By David L. Odom

Living into joy, late in the pandemic

A walk by a stream prompts a writer and spiritual director to wonder: Could a fresh understanding of joy help restore us?

By Samuel Rahberg



Final Listening Event on February 8

SOCIAL STATEMENT

Church, State, and Civic Participation

Listening Events to Provide Input to The Task Force

How do Lutherans interact with our government? How much or how little should our congregations be involved in the political life our society? These questions were first grappled with at the 2019 Churchwide Assembly and resulted in the document, “Church in Society: A Lutheran Perspective.” This document as well as the companion are attached. We will use these as starting points to conduct “Listening Events” to provide input to the task force preparing the final draft of the Social Statement. Please join us at one or more of the Zoom enabled listening events in our Synod.

Florida-Bahamas Synod Listening Event

(Zoom meeting link)

February 8, 6:30 PM

Key Documents

1) The Church in Society: A Lutheran Perspective

2) Government & Civic Engagement in

the United States: Discipleship in a Democracy



Saturday, February 26, 2022

9:30 am - 3:30 pm

Christ Our Redeemer Lutheran Church, Temple Terrace, Florida

Featured Speakers 

Roland Martinson

Emeritus Dean, Luther Seminary

Elders Rising: The Era of Expanding Older Adulthood

Pat Baker

President of POAMN

Care Partners from the Receiving End

Join us for inspiring speakers, valuable breakout sessions & worship!

$35 per person (includes lunch)

$20 - Via Zoom (main presenations only)

For information and registration go to aloaserves.org/events/empowering-elders/

Empowering Elders is a joint conference of ALOA - Florida Region and POAMN (Presbyterian Older Adult Ministry Network)

diakonia News

With the New Year comes New Year’s Resolutions. Why not add diakonia to your list of resolutions? Check it out and try a class.

Are you feeling like God might be moving you towards a deeper understanding in your faith journey? Check out the diakonia program; you can jump in at any time. 

It’s very simple to try a diakonia class...and you can do everything from home. Just go to diakoniafl.org, click on the Student Home Page, scroll to the bottom and grab an application. If you have additional questions and to chat about the program, contact micheleahilton@aol.com. 



Continuing Education Opportunity for Rostered Ministers

If you missed the 2021 Racial Justice Boundaries and Inclusion Education offered by the synods of Region 9, here is another opportunity for you:

Dismantling Racism Trainings offered by the Absalom Jones Center for Racial Healing. 

• The trainings are online and free. 
• There are three upcoming opportunities: Saturday, January 29; Thursday, February 17; Saturday, February 26.
• To register, go to this link: https://www.centerforracialhealing.org/training.
• Upon completion of the training, the Center for Racial Healing will provide a certificate. Please send a copy of your certificate to the Synod Office by USPS or email, tinaf@fbsynod.org.
• We will put a copy in your file.

Job Opportunities

Looking for a Lead Organizer in Sarasota

Sarasota United for Responsibility and Equity (SURE) is looking for a Lead Organizer to help them in their pursuit of positive change in Sarasota. SURE gathers congregations for action in the community. For more information contact Ryan at ryan@12springsschurch.com.

Part-time Director Position Available 

LIV-UP (Lutheran Intentional Village of Upper Pinellas) seeks a director with leadership experience and a passion for helping seniors “age in place”. Our volunteers provide “helping hands” assistance as neighbors do to help others. Services typically include rides to appointments, shopping or errands, household chores, technology assistance, and more. This part-time position is currently budgeted for 8- 15 hours per week and can grow as this non-profit organization (Lutheran Intentional Village of Upper Pinellas) regains momentum following the COVID 19 slow-down. For more information or to submit a letter of interest: Margo Walbolt, Co-chair at 727-378-2186 or livupfl@gmail.com