God in All Things - Without Borders

March 24, 2023

On Sunday, March 19, 2023, Bishop Jamison Hardy was the guest preacher at both worship services and led Bible study at Christ the King, Grosse Pointe Woods, MI. A luncheon was provided, and a meeting followed with Rev. Randy Boelter and members of church leadership.

Pictured: Bishop Jamison Hardy and Rev. Randy Boelter

Call Received

The Rev. Stewart D. Crown has received a Divine Call to serve as Sole Pastor of Peace of the Desert, Palm Desert, CA.

Call Received and Accepted

The Rev. Michael N. Frese has received and accepted a Divine Call to serve as Deputy Director of Church Relations, Lutheran Church--Missouri Synod, St. Louis, MO. 

Registration for the Professional Church Workers Conference closes tomorrow. The theme of this year’s conference is God In All Things – Without Borders. Speakers at the conference will include Rev. Dr. David Scaer, Professor at CTSFW; Rev. Richard Snow, Nebraska District President; and Rev. John Wille, South Wisconsin District President. We are excited about the opportunity to gather to worship, learn, and fellowship in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Find more information and a link to register on our website.

On Thursday, March 16th through Sunday, March 19^th, Robert Crain, Nathaniel Hardy, and Wyatt McRitchie attended the YouthLead leadership training event in St. Louis, MO, and provided a summary of their experience at the event.

There were many different lessons and activities during the event that helped us grow in our faith. The four main disciplines that were emphasized were Confession and Absolution, Reading Scripture, Prayer, and the Divine Service. Since there are three of us, we are going to talk about three of the four lessons: Confession and Absolution, Reading the Scripture, and Prayer.

Confession and Absolution – We dove deeper into what confession and absolution is and why it is so important to us as Christians. All three of us learned different things during this lesson, and different approaches to open our view as Christians and help us grow in our faith. We made connections to all things, and we talked more about reading and prayer.

Reading Scripture – We learned different ways to try and understand scripture in a deeper way. Each one of us found it was helpful to understand the genre, historical setting, and audience of the book. When reading a passage, it is important to understand when it was written and who the audience was and to read verses in context. We would read around the main verse, so that we could gain a better connection to the verse itself. In the end, an important part of the lesson was being willing to put the time into reading scripture.

Prayer – We learned about four different types of prayer: Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, and Supplication (ACTS). These were super helpful to know, especially when praying in a group setting. We also discussed just how powerful prayer really is, giving us instant and direct contact with our Lord. We practiced praying out loud, learning how to stay focused and not let our brains wander.

In conclusion, we each learned new and important ways to grow our faith. We made many new friends, had meaningful conversations, and learned how to construct a devotion as well as lead one. We are thankful for this opportunity that the English District presented us and hope that others will have this opportunity in the future. 

Pictured L to R: Wyatt McRitchie, Rob Crain, chaperone Terry Leu, and Nathaniel Hardy

The purpose of the English District Endowment Fund is to provide God's people with a unique opportunity to participate in a perpetual fund. This fund shall assist congregations and rostered workers alike. One aspect of the Endowment Fund currently being offered to Rostered Church Workers is a grant for financial assistance with their student loans. Those rostered workers who are currently serving (called workers) in ministry in their first through eighth year in an English District LCMS congregation or school are eligible to apply for this education indebtedness grant. 

For a Church Worker (Student Loan) Debt Reduction Grant we ask that you complete an Application for Church Worker Transitional Assistance. These forms are available on our District website.

If you have any questions, please contact Rev. J. Derek Mathers at 1-800-755-9335 ext. 311. Deadline for applications is April 30, 2023.

Here's a short video that highlights the value of re:Vitality resources for congregations in decline, going strong, or just looking for ways to be more active in God's Mission.

Take a minute (and 16 seconds) to watch this video and then share it with your pastor, church council, elders, or anyone else in your congregation who might be interested. Don't forget, re:Vitality resources are available to LCMS congregations at no cost!

Click here for a longer video that provides a more in-depth overview of re:Vitality resources.

For more information contact Pastor Derek Mathers, English District Mission Executive, at dmathers@englishdistrict.org.

Martin Luther Chapel at Michigan State University is hosting a Campus Ministry Summit where you can join other campus ministry professionals for two days of sharing, encouragement, and conversation around the task of making disciples on college campuses.

Speakers include:

• Trevor Sutton - Technology and Campus Ministry
• Brad Urlaub - Church Planting Lessons for Campus Ministry
• James Wetzstein - "Inspiring Comfort" - Peer Ministry training
• Craig Oldenburg - NLOMA/College Students at Summer Camp
• Dan Winter - Outreach with International Students

Representatives from LCMS Youth Ministry/LCMS-U, National Lutheran Outdoors Ministry Association, and Lutheran Campus Mission Association will be in attendance.

There is no registration fee for this event. Both Friday dinner and Saturday breakfast will be provided. Transportation and housing are not included.

Click here to register.

One week remains to submit your congregation’s end-of-year statistics and update your lay leaders at lc.lcms.org. Up-to-date statistical information is critical for determining proper voting representation at conventions. Emails for lay leaders will be increasingly important as channels for critical convention communications.

If you do not have your congregation’s login information, contact rosters.stats@lcms.org, or the LCMS Church Information Center at 888-843-5267.

About 70 women and men attended the LWML Arizona Zone Spring Retreat on Saturday, March 18 at the Lutheran Church of the Risen Savior in Green Valley, AZ. Rev. Todd Arnold led the devotion on “How Do I Love My Neighbor.” There was a presentation by Orphan Grain Train, Phoenix Chapter and items were collected to support their work. The women helped load everything onto the truck they brought with them. An additional $1,750 was raised to help ship the items. 



The Bible's promise is true: If we ask anything according to his will, he hears us - 1 John 5:14.

Prayers of healing for Wendy DeSanto who suffered a stroke.

Prayers for Glenn, son of Patricia, a member at First, El Cajon, CA. He has been waiting for two years for the right liver donation. Please pray that a liver will soon be available for him and pray for patience for Glenn and family as they wait for God’s answer.  

District daily prayers for April are located on our website.

Your prayer concerns are important to the English District. If you have a prayer request you would like shared in this newsletter, email the District office.

Ascension, North Olmsted, OH

Ascension Lutheran Church members joined Pastor Josh and Mary Ulm at several nursing homes to bring joy, the love of Jesus, and the gift of music on St. Patrick's Day in conjunction with The Helpers of Joy, Ascension's nursing home outreach.

Several members of Ascension reached out at Lutheran High West's "Mini Youth Gathering" with information about ministries at their church and a bubble photo-op.

Trinity, Ocala, FL

Trinity Lutheran Church enjoyed celebrating St. Patrick’s Day with a fellowship potluck dinner after worship on March 19^th. 

Immanuel, Alexandria, VA

Sunday, March 19 was first communion for twelve young members at Immanuel Lutheran Church.

Immanuel, Alexandria, VA

Last week, Immanuel Lutheran School was honored to host a team from the Consortium for Classical Lutheran Education. They are thrilled to announce that the CCLE Board has accepted the team’s recommendation to both renew their accreditation and name ILS a 2023 Exemplary CCLE School! They are grateful for this recognition and for the opportunity to serve all of the wonderful ILS students and families.

Holy Cross, Cleveland, OH

Students at Holy Cross Lutheran Preschool made process prints of what a windy March day felt like to them. They did a great job!

Fairlawn, Fairlawn, OH

The 4B class at Fairlawn Lutheran School made a rainbow with items they found in their classroom.

ENGLISH DISTRICT LCMS

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info@englishdistrict.org

www.englishdistrict.org

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