Jeremy Berg, pastor of MainStreet Covenant Church in Mound, MN, shared this reflection on Jan. 8 at the MainStreet Commissioning Service at Excelsior Covenant Church in Excelsior, MN 

The 2012 Northwest Conference Annual Meeting, which will feature the theme "Mission Friends: Love Mercy, Do Justice," will take place April 20-21 at Alexandria Covenant Church in Alexandria, MN.  

Dr. Soong-Chan Rah will be the keynote speaker for both the NWC Annual Meeting, and the Ministerial Association Annual Meeting, which takes place April 19-20 at the same location. Rah is Milton B. Engebretson Associate Professor of Church Growth and Evangelism at North Park Theological Seminary in Chicago, IL, and the author of "The Next Evangelicalism: Freeing the Church from Western Cultural Captivity."

Ordination to Word and Sacrament:
Erik Carlson, Dawson Covenant Church, Dawson, MN
Pamela Carlson, Mahtowa Covenant Church, Mahtowa, MN
Jill Craig, Prairie Hills Covenant Church, Sioux Falls, SD
Todd Kardell, Redeemer Covenant Church, Brooklyn Park, MN
Mike McCain, Salem Covenant Church, Pennock, MN
Greg Satterberg, Lund Mission Covenant Church, Stockholm, WI
Chris Studenski, Emmanuel Covenant Church, Shoreview, MN
Dan Wheeler, Fairmont Evangelical Covenant Church, Fairmont, MN

Commissioning:

Kari Jacott, Linwood Covenant Church, Wyoming, MN  

From Covenant Trust Company

While some people might be able to afford retirement simply through Social Security and their employer's retirement plan, most people will need additional money to live comfortably after retirement. With an Individual Retirement Arrangement - more commonly known as an IRA - you can have a stable, third source of income that can help you reach your retirement goals.

IRAs are savings accounts funded by an individual specifically to supplement his or her retirement. With Traditional IRAs, contributions to these accounts are made before taxes and grow tax deferred. With Roth IRAs, contributions are made after taxes and grow tax free. Covenant Trust Company manages both Traditional IRAs and ROTH IRAs, and there is no minimum amount required to open the account. So, whether you have a healthy start on your retirement savings or haven't started at all, CTC can help; we understand that every person has different needs and plans for retirement, so we tailor our IRA investments to each of our client's individual situations and goals.

If one of your goals is charitable gift giving, IRAs can be a great asset. In previous years, an IRA provision allowed people required to withdraw money from their Traditional IRA to transfer all or part of that money directly to a qualified charity. By doing this, Traditional IRA owners avoided paying income taxes on the portion of the withdrawal that was donated. Unfortunately, this provision has not been renewed for 2012. However, you can still make tax-free donations to your favorite charities by naming them as a beneficiary of your IRA. So just because your career has come to a close, your support for The Northwest Conference, and its ministries doesn't have to come to an end as well.

At Covenant Trust Company, we know some people can be uncertain and apprehensive about their retirement. We want to change that; we want to bring certainty and a peace of mind to our clients when they think about their future. So, if you are unsure of your future, or if you're simply looking for a trustworthy financial partner to manage your IRAs, contact Kevin Lawson, CFP®, our local Financial Service Representative, at 1-877-222-3960 or kelawson@covenanttrust.com, and let us help you reach your retirement goals.

©1/2012, Covenant Trust Company. All Rights Reserved.

In an opinion issued last week, a federal appeals court reversed a decision that allowed ministers to use their housing allowances on more than one home.

A three-judge panel from the U.S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeals issued the seven-page decision, which overturns a 2010 ruling made by the U.S. Tax Court favoring Phil and Lynn Driscoll. In the late 1990s, the Driscolls attempted to apply the ministerial housing allowance to both a home and a lake home located in Tennessee.

Communications Corner