New England Synod
NES News 
 
The Season of Pentecost  

August 24, 2011

In This Issue
Doing What Matters Devotions: Taking Action
Third Candidate to be Ordained Sept. 17
ELCA Churchwide Assembly Wrap-up
Deaconess Community Offers free course
Doing What Matters

Doing What Matters SymbolGod's Purpose for the New England Synod

 to go where love leads

 to serve where love calls 

 

'Doing What Matters' Devotions

Session 4: Taking Action 

 

Bible Passages

"Go and learn what this means, I desire mercy, not sacrifice. For I have come to call not the righteous but sinners."    Matthew 9:13

 

And he ordered him to tell no one. 'Go', he said, 'and show yourself to the priest, and, as Moses commanded, make an offering for your cleansing, for a testimony to them.'    Luke 5:14

 

And he answered them, 'Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have good news brought to them.'  Luke 7:22 

 

Guided Imagery

  • Spend some time by yourself.  Sit quietly, walk around the room, or go to a different part of the building.   
  • Reflect on what God is up to in these passages.    
  • Ask God for guidance. Listen to God speak to you.                                                                                                                    
  • Ask God this question - "What is it that you want me to do in the world today, God.  What is your purpose for me?"  
  • Write down what you hear God calling you to do.

Closing Prayer

Loving and gracious God, we see your mercy at work in this world. We long to be part of it.  Show us your purpose for each one of us.  We pray in the strong name of Jesus and by the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Around the Synod
Debora Stein to be ordained Sept. 17 in Connecticut  

A third New England Synod candidate will be ordained on Sept. 17, 2 p.m., at St. Paul Lutheran Church, Torrington, Conn., with Timothy Weisman and Lorraine Peterson.  Debora Stein, a member of Grace Lutheran Church, Plainville, Conn., has been called as pastor of St. Stephen Lutheran Church, Syracuse, N.Y.  She received her Master of Divinity degree in May 2011 from the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia. Deb is married to Ed Stein and has two grown children. A native of Fremont, Calif., in the San Francisco Bay Area, she worked in business management before entering seminary.

ELCA Churchwide Assembly
Summary of Churchwide Assembly Now On-line   

You are encouraged to read the Summary of Actions to learn about the work done on behalf of this church at the 2011 Churchwide Asembly of the ELCA Aug.15-19 in Orlando, Fla. Also, please share this bulletin insert with the members of your congregation this weekend. For more detailed reports, you'll find daily legislative updates posted at www.elca.org/assembly. Don't forget to check out the synod website for reflections by and photos of our 15 voting members, including photos of a birthday celebration for Bishop Payne.

Wilco
Synod Pastor Featured on ELCA Web Site 
The Rev. Steve Wilco, Immanual, Amherst, Mass is featured on the ELCA Website Home Page. Pastor Wilco carried the Processional Cross for the Wednesday Worship Service at the 2011 ELCA ChurchWide Assembly.
Learning Opportunities
Deaconess Community Offers Free Course on 'Diakonia' Deaconess Logo

Interested in "diakonia"?  The Deaconess Community of the ELCA is offering a free course, "Diacononia: Discernment, History and Formation," Jan.9-20, 2012, at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago. The course covers the history of diakonia through the centuries, its present expressions, and its future possibilities. It also allows students time to examine and discern their own call to ministry, as well as provide opportunity for individual and communal spiritual formation. It offers a full seminary credit in church history. For more information click here.


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