A compendium of announcements from the synod office

Heaps of thanks and praise!
Our thanks to the members of Gloria Dei, St. Paul, and to Kathy Grant, church administrator for that congregation. As part of her summer sabbatical, Kathy offered to give three weeks of her time to the Saint Paul Area Synod! We sent her out to 15 congregations, as far north as Trinity, North Branch, and as far south as Christiania, Lakeville, where she provided day-long and partial-day consultations about church administration and finance to staff and council members. Many congregations desperately seek counsel on administrative matters, but lack the resources to do so. We’re grateful that Kathy so enthusiastically shared her expertise and experience and for the generous gift of her time!

Scheduling a meeting?
Synod committees and work groups often meet in the conference room at the synod office. We like having groups meet in our office, but it’s important that you make sure you reserve the space so that we are able to accommodate your meeting. Please contact Cyndi Berg at cyndi.berg@spas-elca.org to make a reservation.

Pastoral care matters
Everyone who serves on a staff in a congregation can tell stories about not having known when a member has been ill, experienced a death, or suffered a personal crisis. Often the reason is because nobody has informed the church office or the pastors. The same thing happens in the synod office. Please remember to call or email the synod office when matters requiring pastoral care arise. We’d rather hear from lots of people than not hear at all!

Book of Faith ramps up
The Book of Faith initiative invites the whole church to become more fluent in the first language of faith, the language of Scripture, in order that we might live into our calling as a people renewed, enlivened, empowered and sent by the Word. If you attended this year’s synod assembly, you were introduced to the Book of Faith through Dwelling in the Word moments as well as through Bible study with Rolf Jacobson, associate professor of Old Testament at Luther Seminary.

The Rev. Sara Vanderpan, associate pastor, Resurrection, Woodbury, is the Book of Faith advocate for the Saint Paul Area Synod. In the months ahead, Sara will be working with us all to embed this initiative into the life of our congregations.

CWA ‘09 is coming!
The 2009 ELCA Churchwide Assembly will be held Aug. 17-23 at the Minneapolis Convention Center. Both metro synods will be a part of the local arrangements committee, which will help coordinate the efforts of nearly 1,000 volunteers. Roberta Olson, a member of St. James, Burnsville, who serves on the synod council, will serve as co-chair of the local arrangements committee. (Barbara Brown is the co-chair from the Minneapolis Area Synod.) You’ll hear more from Roberta as the details for planning unfold. In the meantime, if you’re eager to be among the first to volunteer, email Beth Helgen at beth.helgen@spas-elca.org.

One year after the flood, needs are urgent

As several communities approach the one-year anniversary of the August 19 flood in southeast Minnesota that destroyed homes and businesses, a few dozen families are still living in FEMA trailers and many other families are in transition, living elsewhere, until they can return home. But work is unfinished on their properties and volunteer labor has been in short supply.

Cindy Johnson, director of Disaster Services for Lutheran Social Service, reported that while 300 homes have already been rehabilitated in southeastern Minnesota, there is a long way to go. “We are hoping to inspire a groundswell of support for the final push to help families return safely to their homes,” Johnson said.

Several hundred skilled volunteers are needed to frame rooms, build walls, sand wood, and nail and tape sheetrock on existing homes as well as new home construction. “Our goal is to be there until the last case is closed, but we need lots of muscle and volunteer labor to get the job done,” Johnson said.

Lutheran Social Service will be on site with case managers in Rushford and Winona until August 28. After that, LSS services will continue until late fall but be managed out of the organization’s St. Paul office. To volunteer, call 612.922.0776.

Global Health Ministries: Mission in a Changing World

Global Health Ministries’ annual fall conference will be held this year at Incarnation Lutheran, Shoreview, on Saturday, Oct. 11, 2008. Registration begins at 8:15 a.m.

The conference theme, “Mission in a Changing World,” will be explored through a keynote address, followed by four topical workshops. The keynote speaker, Dr. Mark Jacobson, is an internationally respected medical missionary serving Selian Lutheran Hospital in Arusha, Tanzania. Over his 20 years of service as director of Selian, Jacobson has seen and adapted to many changes and has been the agent of important changes himself.

The cost is $17 for individuals and $50 for families if registered in advance and received by Oct. 1, or $18 and $55 at the door. Lunch is included.

For information and registration, contact GHM at ghmoffice@cs.com or call 763.586.9590. Register online at www.ghm.org and click on Conference Registration.

Engaging Congregations: StrengthsFinder Pilot

By LaDonna Olson

Leadership teams from the Saint Paul Area Synod have been involved in an initiative focused on strengthening congregations. Together the Equipping Leaders and Inviting teams have embraced the concept of growing an engaged congregation. This initiative is based on Albert L Winseman’s book Growing an Engaged Church. Winseman believes the greatest immediate impact on churches today is helping members discover what they do best.

This past year a pilot program was begun with 12 congregations in the synod using the StrenthsFinder assessment to help members discover their strengths. By purchasing the book Living Your Strengths, individual members took an online assessment to discover their top five strengths.

Congregations then implemented this process within their congregation in a variety of ways. The goal was for individuals to use this tool to discover how their strengths are an asset to faith, work, and family life.

The parable of the talents in Matthew 25 provides an excellent explanation for strengths-based living. As individuals become aware of their strengths, they are better equipped to work with others, accept their unique capabilities, and live an engaged life within their churches and communities.

Elizabeth O’Connor, author of Journey Inward, Journey Outward writes, “We ask to know the will of God without guessing that His will is written into our very beings. We perceive that will when we discern our gifts.”

The pilot process continues. In the meantime, three outcomes have been developed. The first is a CD resource to help leaders introduce the book, Living Your Strengths, to congregations.

The second is a quantity discount on books from the Luther Seminary bookstore. The Living Your Strengths book can by ordered in quantities of 10 for the discounted price of $16.25! Each book has a unique code for doing the online assessment.

Third, there will be continued discussion and coaching around these strengths on the first Thursday of each month beginning Oct. 2, from 12:30-1:30pm., in the Olson Campus Center at Luther Seminary. You are encouraged to bring or purchase lunch for the session.

Questions or comments can be directed to Kristen Brechler at Kristen_brechler@hotmail.com or to Linda VanEaton at ljvaneaton@comcast.net.

LaDonna Olson serves on the Equipping Leaders team and is a member of Fish Lake, Harris.

Strengthening our partnership with the Lutheran church in Guatemala

By the Rev. Chris Becker and Janet Metcalfe

When the Rev. Amanda Olson de Castillo, a missionary and member of the pastoral team for the Iglesia Luterana Agustina de Guatemala (ILAG), heard the news, she burst into tears, said Judy Thompson, parish nurse at Amazing Grace, Inver Grove Heights. Thompson, who has visited Guatemala twice, was thrilled to deliver the good news to Olson de Castillo.

Amazing Grace presented a check for $20,000 to ILAG in July. The funds were made possible by the sale of property when Royal Redeemer, Mendota Heights, and Peace, Inver Grove Heights consolidated last year to form Amazing Grace Lutheran Church.

The gift will be used to complete the second floor of the ILAG seminary and guest house, which was dedicated earlier this year. The second floor addition will contain classrooms and a chapel. “It’s almost impossible to convey what this addition will mean to the people of ILAG,” said Olson de Castillo. “Being able to meet together in a safe and convenient location is a tremendous advance in the work of the church.”

Guest House supports training
The seminary and guest house is currently used to teach Lutheran leaders from all over Guatemala and to house visitors from North America who come to walk with their brothers and sisters in Christ. More than 100 people from the Saint Paul Area Synod have traveled to Guatemala to teach, learn, and work. “Visitors come to hear the stories of the marginalized poor who have lost so much in the civil war which ended in 1996,” said Olson de Castillo. “Before the building was built, bringing these visitors together with their hosts was logistically very difficult.”

Additional financial support needed
While ILAG has received generous gifts such as this from other congregations and individuals, some $25,000 is still needed to complete the work on the classrooms and chapel on the second floor of the seminary. It is critical to complete the work before the rainy season. Leaders from communities throughout Guatemala come to the seminary to receiving training in the Bible, Sacraments, Lutheran doctrine, and methods for teaching Sunday school that will enable them to become deacons and ordained ministers.

In addition, the Saint Paul Area Synod has pledged to raise $23,000 annually (along with the Southeastern Synod, also a partner with ILAG) to support Olson de Castillo’s role on the pastoral team. Her work as delegation coordinator and translator has been invaluable to supporting the synod’s growing relationship.

How to make a gift
Your support of the construction of the seminary and the work of Amanda Olson de Castillo strengthens the worked of ILAG by ensuring the growth of indigenous leaders and sustaining the partnership. You may designate the gift to either effort and give an undesignated gift. For more information, contact Janet Metcalfe, chair of the Guatemala companion synod task force, at jkmetcalfe@yahoo.com.

Chris Becker is senior pastor of Amazing Grace, Inver Grove Heights. Janet Metcalfe is chair of the Guatemala task force and a member of Augustana, West St. Paul.