IDENTIFY YOUR GIFTS

Reveal your path to leadership through Journi, a new ELCA resource

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) is pleased to introduce Journi, a web-based tool designed to help people discern their call to leadership in the ELCA.

“Journi encourages all of us to seek out and inspire gifted people in our congregations and communities to consider a call to ministry of the gospel,” said the Rev. Elizabeth A. Eaton, ELCA presiding bishop.

Journi.faith is an online tool that connects people with programs and ministries from across the ELCA. By creating a free account with Journi, a person can take the ELCA Spiritual Gifts Personality Quiz, which will identify their top five spiritual gifts, and receive content recommendations based on those gifts.

“Journi is for anyone who wants to explore how they might follow Christ in love and service,” said the Rev. Philip Hirsch, executive for ELCA Christian Community and Leadership. “For those who feel they are called to make the world a better place but don’t know exactly what they want to do, Journi will help them find a next step.”

“Journi is for everyone, not just those who want to become pastors or deacons in the church,” Hirsch said. “God calls everyone to love and serve.”

Learn more about Journi. Read about Journi in Living Lutheran and visit them on Facebook.

TODAY IS "DAY 18"

Watch a daily RMS Advent word video

During each day of Advent, you are invited to reflect on a word of the day for Advent and watch a video reflection from across the Rocky Mountain Synod. Visit the calendar each day of Advent at this easy-to-remember website link: rmselca.org/advent

Direct link to the Advent calendar: calendar.myadvent.net/?id=1ovs7z050uzdswtk66btilvxb120thuh

MARSHALL FIRE ONE YEAR LATER

A Service of Remembrance, Reflection, and Resilience

Friday, December 30 at 11:00 am

Bishop Jim Gonia, along with Pastor Stephanie Lord, Christ the Servant, Louisville, and Pastor Pam Challis, Trinity, Boulder, invite you to gather in community as we commemorate the first anniversary of the Marshall Fire. The service takes place at Christ the Servant Lutheran, 506 Via Appia Way, Louisville, CO. This service will also be live streamed here.

GRATITUDE

Messiah Mountain Retreat Center says "thank you" for your campaign support

The successful Phase One of our RMS "Next Faithful Step" Campaign provided funding for the renovation and transformation of the Messiah Mountain Lodge. For that, we are grateful!

Last summer Messiah Mountain hosted several week of Service Learning Camps (SLC), providing youth with a summer experience of learning and service. Jen Engquist, Messiah Mountain caretaker, coordinated the service partnerships, which included Metro Caring, Samaritan House, Project Cure, A Precious Child, The Food Bank of the Rockies, Brothers Redevelopment, Break Bread, and Wholly Kicks.

“Jen is amazing!" said an SLC chaperone last summer. "The service learning she setup was such a hit with my group, they have asked to go again, and we haven’t even left yet! Best youth trip ever!”

The SLC weeks at Denver are among the first to fill up thanks to Jen's leadership––and because of the beautiful Messiah Mountain setting. (Most other SLC weeks are hosted in church basements.) Next summer, six SLC weeks are scheduled at Messiah Mountain!

While the Lodge renovation is complete, next up is the Cabin renovation, with exciting plans for renewal! It's not too late to give to the campaign!

MESSIAH MOUNTAIN

Workshop series invites reflection and art exploration

Three Saturdays: February 4, 11, 18

9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. with lunch provided

$175 Cost: sessions, supplies, and lunch

Location: Messiah Mountain Retreat Center, 5200 Parmalee Gulch Road, Indian Hills, CO, a short drive into the foothills west of Denver, just 8 minutes from C-470 and Highway 285. 

Artist journals combine writing and various media (drawing, water color, pastel, collage, etc.) with the purpose of exploring ideas and making a written and visual record of experience. In this workshop series, we will mine elements of our own life story and experiences using various media and written reflections, all brought together and bound in a journal format. No artistic experience required, but a willingness to reflect, write, and engage with art media is essential. Expect some work outside class sessions each week.

Workshop Host: Ken Phillips is our host and co-traveler in this workshop. (Ken was our Park City Theological Conference artist!)

Registration is online, as well as additional information about the workshop and our workshop host. January 25 registration deadine. Contact Kent Mueller with questions.

FINANCES

RMS office is evaluating fraud prevention strategies

Because of issues with mail delivery and checks lost in the mail, Jon Johnson, RMS Finance Manager, is looking into secure, anti-fraud options.

This may include "two-factor" authentication of checks that have been written, as well as options for authorizing electronic funds transfers. He will provide resources and training to RMS congregations once we have the best pathway identified.

We are requesting that treasurers and financial staff be sure to reconcile the statement emailed or sent each month (from Jon Johnson, our financial manager) with your records to confirm that the RMS has received payments that you have sent.

Until new systems are in place, we are recommend sending checks in a regular envelope, NOT a window envelope, so that the check is not visible from the outside of the envelope. Please contact Jon with questions.

ASSEMBLY 2023

Pre-Assembly 2023 Preparation: El Paso, TX and Southern NM

As we prepare for the coming of Christ this Advent, we also prepare our hearts for the “Cruzando Fronteras” Synod Assembly 2023 in El Paso, TX.

It is in this spirit that we invite you to learn, advocate, and reflect using the “Preparing Welcome: An Advent Devotional for Immigrant Justice” created by the Interfaith Immigration Coalition.

This week’s theme is “Waiting for Water in the Wilderness,” focusing on the scripture “Say to those whose hearts are frightened: Be strong, fear not! Here is your God (who) comes with vindication…” Isaiah 35:4-5. Read this week’s entire devotional here.

In November 2020, Colorado voters approved Proposition 118, which established the new Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI) program. Beginning on January 1, 2023, employers will begin deducting 0.45 percent of an employee’s pay and matching that with an employer-paid contribution of 0.45 percent. The employer will remit the full 0.9 percent premium to the Colorado FAMLI program to provide funding for the benefits that will be available beginning in 2024.  

Churches and non-profits are all required to participate in this program, so it is important that you take steps to work with your payroll service provider or the person responsible for preparing your congregation’s payroll, to set up your account with Colorado FAMLI and then begin withholding the employee contributions from any payrolls issued after 12-31-22. 

Colorado FAMLI has confirmed that for the purposes of this program, rostered ministers are not exempt from this program and will be required to contribute to the FAMLI fund. For more information, please visit the Colorado FAMLI website – https://famli.colorado.gov . There is an abundance of information on their website that will answer a lot of your questions.  For specific questions, you can reach them by phone at 866-263-2654. 

Effective in January 2024, Colorado workers will be eligible to receive up to 12 weeks of FAMLI leave benefits to provide financial assistance for various situations requiring an extended time away from work for family or medical situations. This program will be funded by contributions made by employers and their employees .

RMS sends gift to Florida-Bahamas Synod for Hurricane Ian recovery

The Rocky Mountain Synod Disaster Response Team has authorized a gift of $5,000 to the Florida-Bahamas Synod in order to support its disaster recovery work in the wake of Hurricane Ian, which made landfall in Florida on September 28.

Bishop Jim Gonia said, "Our Synod is no stranger to natural disasters, which we know too well in the wake of the devastating Marshall Fire in Boulder County, Colorado, last December, as well as the major fires in New Mexico earlier this year. Disaster recovery is a long-term process, not just of rebuilding, but of walking alongside those who are forever changed by the personal experience of a disaster. This gift is a shining example of how we strive to be Church, Better Together."

The RMS Disaster Response Team voted to send the gift at its October meeting. The gift will support the Florida-Bahamas Synod's recovery efforts for individuals, families, and congregations, including those worshiping in the five ELCA church buildings which were heavily damaged in the hurricane.

Your gifts to the Florida-Bahamas Synod for disaster recovery may be made at fbsynod.com/disaster.

CONNECT WITH OTHERS

Join the RMS Faith Formation Network!

FAITH FORMATION

Western States Youth Gathering '23

July 6-9, 2023

Early Bird registration is $385/person. Prices increase January 4, 2023.

The Western States Youth Gathering (WSYG) and Western States Multicultural Youth Leadership Event (WYLE) is coming to California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks, CA from July 4-9, 2023 and is open to high school aged youth in Regions 1-4. The Western States Multicultural Youth Leadership Pre-Event (WYLE) will be held July 4-6, 2023. WSYG and WYLE will gather around the theme, “Revive, Reunite, Rejoice”, grounded in Acts 2:1 “When the day [of WSYG] came, they were all together in one place.”

Early-Bird registration is OPEN! Learn more and register your group for the lowest possible prices at wsyg.com/registration! And may we share a friendly reminder that registration prices will increase January 4, 2023. Get ahead of the busy season and secure your youth group's early-bird registration by registering today.

RMS WOMEN'S ORGANIZATION

Views from the Rockies

December 2022

Download Views from the Rockies, which contains a note from President Anna Thompson; reflections about its first hybrid convention that was held at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Greeley CO, on September 30; a report from the Women of the ELCA churchwide organization; a reminder for Bold Women’s Day March 5, 2023; an appeal for Katie's Fund; and more!

VETERANS MINISTRY

Join us in wishing our veterans a Merry Christmas!

Did you know that each part of the Rocky Mountain Synod has at least one Veterans Home? The Vision Statement of one of these homes is “Working together to provide the highest quality of care and the best quality of life for veterans and their families.”

For Christmas 2022 let's “shower” each of these Veterans homes with Christmas cards!? Click the links below to get the address(es) for our Synod’s Veterans homes.

Imagine the joy a card from you might bring to a lonely Veterans’ heart this Christmas! Questions? Contact Vicky Daub at director@veteranservantcorps.org.

Thank you. Merry Christmas to you and yours!

• Colorado Veterans Community Living Centers
• Veterans Home of Wyoming
• Utah Veterans Homes
• New Mexico State Veterans' Home
• El Paso - Ambrosio Guillen Texas State Veterans Home

Ryan Barnhouse continues YAGM Service in Canterbury

In his most recent newsletter, Ryan Barnhouse, serving as a Young Adult in Global Mission (YAGM) in Canterbury, England writes:

"I’ve decided that Friendliness likes to follow me around; or rather, they are one step ahead of me, waiting in a growing friendship or a reunion hug months in the making. Reflecting on the past two months, I feel beyond blessed that our main character decided to spend so much time with me! Partly because their foe, Homesickness, decided to come lurking.

"Coming into this year of international service, we were informed of the reality of homesickness, especially around the holidays. Here in Canterbury, our villain attempted to cover me in its shroud of loneliness and cast a Lack of Motivation spell on me. Honestly, they got me a bit. But, like most Hero vs Villain stories, when the villain is on the verge of accomplishing their evil plan, the Hero returns, and all is well. Friendliness saved my day through a perfectly timed retreat with fellow YAGMs, a couple phone calls back home to loved ones, and the countless spontaneous moments of laughter with my work family – to name a few. While writing and sharing these tales, I am reminded of why I am here: to be and connect with my global neighbors."

To ask questions, subscribe to further newsletters/blogs, or support Ryan's journey through donation, please email him at ryan.barnhouse@outlook.com.

Applications Open for 2023/24 Young Adult in Global Mission (YAGM) Program

The ELCA Young Adults in Global Mission program invites ELCA young adults ages 21-29 into a transformative, year-long journey in international service. As they offer themselves in service, ELCA young adults are shaped by the witness of our global neighbors. They share in the journeys of companion churches and organizations in one of nine countries around the world.

A year of service through the Young Adults in Global Mission program invites young adults to become the hands and feet of Jesus in the world, providing critical support to ministries and projects in communities of need. It also invites volunteers into a journey of self-reflection, providing space to consider their sense of identity, God’s work in the world, and their place within it all.

Young adults serve in the spirit of accompaniment, walking alongside global companions in a manner that practices mutuality, interdependence and solidarity. Areas of service include, but are not limited to, health and development, congregational ministry, human rights, education, homelessness, addiction recovery, women’s issues and children and youth. All site placements provide opportunities for young adults to confront issues of wealth and poverty, racial privilege, economic disparity and globalization, all through the lens of faith.

To learn how you can support Young Adults in Global Mission, visit their sponsorship page here.

Learn about the program details and apply at ELCA.org/YAGM by Feb. 1, 2023. Priority will be given to those who apply before January 15. For more information contact YAGM at 1-800-638-3522, ext. 2861 or by email to Mae Helen Jackson, Young Adult Outreach and Placement Manager at maehelen.jackson@elca.org.

GRAND JUNCTION & ONLINE

Classes on Grief and Living with Meaning begin in January

The in-person course Pathways Through Grief will meet on Wednesdays, 9:30-11:00 am at Shepherd of the Valley, Grand Junction, (Room TBD), January 4, 11, 18 and 21. The online course will occur on the same dates 6:30-8:00 pm on Zoom.

A new course, Living With Meaning & Purpose in Life, will meet in person at Shepherd of the Valley, Grand Junction, Friday mornings from 9:30-11:00 am on January 6, 13, 20 and February 3.

The online course will be on Monday evenings January 9 16, 23 & 30.

REGISTRATION CLOSES ON DECEMBER 15!

For more information, contact Deacon Gail Britt and register by email to Brittgail2545@gmail.com.

CENTRAL & SOUTH DENVER

Candlelight vigils commemorate Sandy Hook shootings

December 14

As we prepare for the coming of Christ, two candlelight vigils on Wednesday, December 14, between 4 and 5:30 p.m. will commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Sandy Hook, Newtown, CT, shootings and all victims of gun violence.

• Messiah Community Church, ELCA (1750 Colorado Blvd.)
• First Plymouth Congregational Church (SW corner of Colorado Blvd and Hampden)

Participants should bring a light source, any sign related to the topic, and dress warmly.

AUGUSTANA, DENVER, CO

New Years' Eve Concert with Organist Andrew Peters

Saturday, December 31, 7:00 p.m.

You will be astonished at the amazing sounds coming out of the pipe organ! Ring in 2023 with a New Years' Eve concert featuring organ music and a silent film! Organist Andrew Peters will improvise on Augustana Lutheran's incredible pipe organ as you watch the 1923 Harold Lloyd silent film, Bumping into Broadway on a giant screen.

The evening also includes great works for the organ including Chapman’s Fanfare and Procession, Vivaldi’s Concerto No. 2 in a minor, Pamela Decker’s Tangos for Organ, and the all-time favorite, Handel’s Fireworks Music.

Join us for this exciting New Years' Concert! Tickets are flex-pay (pay what you choose) and available by clicking the button, below!

Connecting ministries addressing homelessness with members of Congress

On December 21, the Homeless Remembrance Blanket Project will display approximately 1,000 handmade blankets from every state in the country on the Capitol lawn. It is a partnership among housing/homelessness-related organizations, several specific ELCA synods, and ELCA Witness in Society. One goal of this event is to create or strengthen relationships between ministries addressing homelessness and members of Congress.

If you have a specific ministry addressing homelessness, please let us know. The ELCA Witness in Society (WIS) will then provide language for a letter of invitation from your ministry to your member of Congress, inviting them to a site visit at your ministry. In January, WIS will hand deliver the letters of invitation to Congress along with a quilt square from the blanket event, as well as information on homelessness and housing resources and a cover letter with a legislative ask.

Reach out to Peter Severson and/or Kurt Rager with questions or to participate! This invitation is for people in all five states of the RMS.

AURORA, CO

Rejoicing Spirits Denver is back!

Sunday, December 18

4:00pm-6:00pm

*date has been corrected

Lord of the Hills Lutheran

21755 E Smoky Hill Rd. Aurora, CO 80015



Come, join us for dinner and Christmas Worship!

We will be creating Christmas cards to give to friends and family, singing, laughing and loving God together. Rejoicing Spirits is an inclusive worship space for people with cognitive and intellectual disabilities, their care givers, families and anyone who seeks an open, joyful and creative worship experience.

We will gather at LOTH on the third Sunday of each month in 2023. Look for more information to come!

If you would like more information regarding the Rejoicing Spirits experience or volunteering, please visit our webpage, or contact Rev. Brigette Weier at weierbrigetter@gmail.com or attend an orientation on December 1 via Zoom at 7:00pm. We will hold another orientation on January 8, at 7:00pm.

Zoom for Dec 1 is: us04web.zoom.us/j/73033441072?pwd=WmB9WSXxOTxnDC9dqwse5lWegX4gw3.1

Meeting ID: 730 3344 1072 Passcode: x7rqmn

Colorado Christian Short Film Festival

Submit your film today!

Glory of God Lutheran Church presents the Colorado Christian Short Film Festival. CCSFF is focused on spotlighting the best Faith-based short films from around the world. Submissions are open to all Christian Filmmakers with a short film that is 30 minutes or less. More info at filmfreeway.com/CCSFF.

The festival dates are November 10 & 11, 2023 at Glory of God Lutheran Church.

2200 W. 38th Avenue, Wheat Ridge, CO 80033. Submissions are open through September 15, 2023!

Contact Michael at 720-312-6502 or email Tech@gloryofgodchurch.net for more information.

GREATER METRO DENVER

Well of Hope needs storage space for their furnishings

Well of Hope, ELCA, in Castle Rock, CO has lost the lease on the building where they have worshiped for the past 5 years. Despite an extensive search, they have not yet been able to locate new worship space. At the end of December, Well of Hope will need to place the majority of their property in storage, while they worship temporarily in a neighboring church.

Well of Hope is in need of a place to store 75 chairs, an altar, piano, large wall cross and other smaller miscellaneous items. If you have an unused classroom, basement or other storage area in your building that Well of Hope could use while they continue to search for a new place to call home, please contact congregation president Tom Reed at tomcareed@msn.com. Thank you.

RMS CREATION CARE TEAM

An Advent Message

O Come, Emmanuel

An essential part of my Advent discipline is the liturgy of a church community, and especially the hymns of this season. My spirit shifts gears when I sing, in a haunting minor key, the words of an ancient antiphon:

O come, O come, Emmanuel, and ransom captive Israel

That mourns in lonely exile here, until the child of God appear.

The hymn reminds me that Advent is a time to acknowledge our captivity to our own distorted desires and values, to habits and customs, and to powerful economic and political systems. It is a time for us to admit that we are trapped, exiled, and in bondage. We're not where we want to be, and we're not who we want to be. We can't free ourselves, because we have created our own prisons. We need personal and cultural transformation, and the stories of faith offer us the counter-cultural values and visions which can turn us around.

In these days before Christmas, may we have the faith and the courage to admit our sin and our bondage. May we open ourselves to the pain of fractured communities and the shattered creation. And, in hope, may we be filled with longing for the coming of God into our midst. As we enter faithfully into Advent, may we be so touched by the world's brokenness that we will genuinely celebrate the birth of the One who will transform us.

Shalom!

(Peter Sawtell, Executive Director Eco-Justice Ministries, Excerpted from original article distributed 12/6/19 - ©2019, complete article here)

"Bordered in large part by the Mississippi, Wabash, and Ohio Rivers, the Central/Southern Illinois Synod covers approximately two-thirds of the state of Illinois. Our 117 congregations bear the good news, hope, and peace of Jesus Christ in small cities, small towns, and rural areas, surrounded by farmland, forests, rolling hills, rivers, and wetlands.

In recent years, the synod has expanded its adult faith formation classes to be available by Zoom video conferencing and the New and Renewing Congregations Committee has sponsored a synod-wide mission trip to one of our synod congregations. Within the bounds of the C/SIS, there are more than 20 colleges and universities and 37 state parks, as well as the Shawnee National Forest, the Abraham Lincoln Home National Historic Site, and other wildlife and recreational areas. Every congregation of C/SIS is no more than three hours away from Chicago, St. Louis, and/or Indianapolis, allowing for a wide range of sports, arts, educational, and recreational activities."

The Rev. Dr. S. John Roth serves as Bishop of the Central/Southern Illinois Synod and was elected in June 2011.

Visit csis-elca.org and on Facebook.

Click here for a map of our 65 ELCA synods and 9 regions.