Our world isn’t just changing - it CHANGED!

While Jesus, the Word, the Sacraments, and the hope of His Gospel are the same yesterday, today, and forever, the challenges we face to ENGAGE with our broken world call us to new ways of thinking and serving.

The 2021 Pacific Southwest District Pastors’ Conference will address this critical moment in Christian history with presentations by home-grown PSD practitioners who will lead us in generative thinking, study, and discussion.

Significant time has been built into the conference to gift us with opportunities to reconnect, recreate, and refocus with one another for the exciting ministry season ahead.

Fall Pastors’ Conference will be taking place October 4-6 at the Embassy Suites by Hilton Phoenix/Scottsdale in Arizona. Check-in will be available on Sunday, October 3 from 4 - 8 pm for those arriving early.

Deadline to receive the preferred hotel rate is TODAY, September 16! If you experience issues receiving the incorrect rate, please contact Kelly DeJongh at 949-854-3232 ext. 200 or at kelly.dejongh@psd-lcms.org.

Exhibitors: click here to be redirected to the Exhibitor Registration page.

The 2021 PSD Continuing Education Conference will be on Sunday, October 3 at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Scottsdale, AZ. This ½ day conference will begin with lunch and fellowship at 12:30pm and will end about 5 pm. Our guest speaker will be Rev. Jon Bjorgaard speaking on the topic Keys to Having a Successful Mission and Ministry in a Post-COVID World.  

You may have received phishing emails recently from a Gmail address claiming to be from President Gibson or other PSD staff member. If so, please report it as phishing to your email provider and delete it.

Note that all official district email addresses end in @psd-lcms.org.

The Grantparent Mission Project is beginning its 19th year of providing tuition assistance to students in urban PSD Lutheran schools. This past school year, 58 students were sponsored through the support of sponsors and donors. 

Anyone or any ministry can sponsor a child or give a one-time donation of any amount, and it will go directly toward a student’s tuition! You can sponsor an elementary student for $600 a year, sponsor a high school student for $1,200 a year, or make a donation of any amount. The students write letters back and forth with their sponsors, and sponsors receive photos of their students.

·       Emmaus Lutheran School, Alhambra, CA

·       Prince of Peace Lutheran School, Anaheim, CA

·       Zion Lutheran School, Anaheim, CA

·       Victory Christian Academy, Chula Vista, CA

·       Pacific Lutheran Jr./Sr. High School, Gardena, CA 

·       St. John’s Lutheran School, Hemet, CA

·       Redeemer Lutheran School, Las Vegas, NV

·       Christ the Cornerstone Lutheran Academy, San Diego, CA

We would love to provide you with more information about Grantparent! Please contact anna.preus@psd-lcms.org for more information.

Join Greg Finke, founder of Dwelling 1:14, on Thursday, September 30 at 11:00 am MST, as he discusses how Jesus-followers like you an connect with other Jesus-followers in your neighborhoods, workplaces and schools for the sake of discipling and living out the mission of Jesus day by day. Dwelling 1:14 comes alongside pastors and leaders to help them intentionally disciple their people to join Jesus on His mission in the places they already live, work and go to school. Every Sunday, your congregation gathers around Jesus in worship and is then sent out to join Jesus as He pursues His Father's mission in the community. Joining Jesus on His mission is what is meant by missional living. Webinar link sent with RSVP!

One of the resources that the LCMS School Ministry Office creates every year is a monthly “School Ministry Mailing” that is available to all LCMS schools, congregations and ministries. It contains eleven articles focused on various education, parenting and ministry topics and is completely free to download each month! The first issue of the 2021-2022 school year (September 2021) was just released, and it is available on the LuthEd.org website. There are great articles in this mailing to share with parents, teachers, staff, boards, etc.! Be sure to check it out and bookmark the page to check monthly!

Do you, or someone you know, ever feel inadequate when you try to lead a Bible study or teach a Sunday School class? MTC007 Teaching the Faith might be just the class for you. After Jesus ascended how did “the church” come to be? What did it see as its purpose? How has it changed over the centuries? Learn this and more in MTC009 starting Tuesday, October 5!

Find out more about each one and/or register at: Schedule for Online Classes. For more information visit missiontrainingcenter.com.

Stephen Ministries St. Louis is now training caring ministry leaders through a live, interactive online training experience called the Bridge Leader’s Training Course (BLTC). This event fully trains Stephen Leaders—the pastors, church staff, and lay leaders who begin and lead Stephen Ministry in their congregation.

The BLTC draws on newly redesigned and updated Stephen Ministry resources to equip participants with the skills and know-how to lead all aspects of their congregation’s Stephen Ministry. This includes training a team of congregation members as lay caregivers (called Stephen Ministers), matching them with hurting people in the congregation and community, and offering ongoing guidance and support to Stephen Ministers as they provide one-to-one, Christ-centered care to people experiencing a wide range of life difficulties.

The Bridge Leader’s Training Course is delivered via Zoom to cohorts of twenty people, led by two members of Stephen Ministries’ teaching faculty. Each session uses a variety of teaching methods—presentation, small- and whole-group discussions, skill practice, video, and more. The course consists of ten sessions held twice weekly for five weeks or once weekly for ten weeks. To learn more about Stephen Ministry, visit stephenministries.org or call (314) 428-2600. Additional information about the Bridge Leader’s Training Course is available at stephenministries.org/bridge.

Register now for the 77th Annual Southern California District Lutheran Laymen's League Conference Bringing Christ to the Nations on Saturday, October 9 at Concordia University Irvine.

Our speakers will include:

This event is FREE. Lunch is provided. A free will offering will be accepted.

Have you ever noticed how God is always full of surprises? God’s big surprises is what the Pacific Southwest District’s (PSD) Campus Mission Coalition (CMC) site at Arizona State University (ASU), led by Sharon Owens, is experiencing. Sharon reports, "God has been so busy working behind the scenes this fall semester that we continue to be surprised, excited, and thankful. With His help, our year is already off to a great start!" Read Full Article

It’s been fifty years since the publication of The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom, whose family risked their lives to hide Jews during the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands. They were arrested, separated and forced into the death camps of World War II. Only Corrie survived and later on she would tell her story in more than 60 countries and would be honored by Israel for her family’s heroic sacrifice on behalf of more than 800 Jews saved by their efforts.

Concordia University Irvine is hosting its third service day, CONCORDIAserves, on Tuesday, September 28. Last year (during COVID) some of our students made phone calls to shut-ins from local churches. Encouragement was shared – prayers were said – stories were told! This was a HUGE blessing for both our students and the shut-ins. If your church would like to participate this year, please contact Sofia Saldana at 949 214-3191 or via email at sofia.saldana@cui.edu.

We are a group of single adults age 25 – 55 (with or without children) who have never been married or who were previously married and are now divorced or widowed. We are a ministry of St. John’s Lutheran Church, Orange, CA but everyone is welcome and encouraged to attend. Check out our website.

Join us on a different adventure each month as we explore Southern California's beauty. Be prepared to sweat! Wear comfortable hiking shoes and bring plenty of water. Each moderate hike will take approximately 2 hours to complete. Learn More

Do you love to read? Are you looking for clean fiction books beyond the typical Christian romance novels? If so, come join Chapter One every other month to discuss Christian novels that range from satirical comedies, to historical fiction, heartwarming Christmas classics, thrillers and a few other genres in between. Learn More

Envelopes with your church's Congregational ID number were sent by the Gathering Office in late July. Unfortunately, it appears quite a few were lost in transit. If you have not received yours yet, please contact Laura Bredehoft at lbredehoft@stpaulspb.com.

Registration worksheets and forms (including participant worksheet, adult leader worksheet, congregational worksheet, LCEF account form, and special needs form) are all available of the Gathering website at lcmsgatherings.com.

Young Adult Volunteers (age 19-25) serve on the thematic floor, at stadium events, sessions and servant events, and give support to traffic and safety. To apply, visit the Gathering website.

Looking for stewardship resources for your church? Check out the LCMS website under Stewardship Ministry. You will find newsletter articles, bulletin blurbs, Bible studies, Stewardship A to Z, and many more resources. On the PSD website, we have 3-week stewardship modules for our congregations free of charge. If you have questions regarding stewardship resources, contact Rev. Gale Cynova at gcynova@gmail.com.

The Lutheran Laymen's League Grand Canyon District of Arizona is looking for individuals interested in being Ambassadors in their congregation. For more information, go to lhm.org/ambassador or contact Rev. Gale Cynova at gcynova@gmail.com.