Tending the Fire is a series of three-day training sessions aimed at helping clergy develop and maintain better systems within their congregations and personal lives in order to "lead change that lasts."

The training focuses on helping clergy:

• Understand anxiety's effects on churches and individuals
• Be a healthy, non-anxious leader
• Manage complicated emotional relationships
• Avoid overwork and "underwork"
• Recognize and handle sabotage
• Discover the "next right steps for their churches and themselves.

The training is broken up into three sessions, each lasting three days: Opening Intensive, Deepening Retreat, and Sending Retreat. Two sets of training dates have been scheduled for the New England area, hosted by the United Methodist Church and United Church of Christ.

The first series of retreats, hosted by the New England Conference of the United Methodist Church, begins Sept. 29, and will be held at Rolling Ridge Retreat Center in North Andover, Mass.:

• Opening Intensive: Sept. 29 - Oct. 1, 2015
• Deepening Retreat: Nov. 10-12, 2015
• Sending Retreat: Jan. 5-7, 2016

The registration deadline is Aug. 25, with a $100 discount for those who register by Aug. 1. Cost is $1,200 for a single room, $1,100 for a double room. For info including a registration form, click here to download the flyer.

The second series of retreats, hosted by the Massachusetts Conference of the United Church of Christ,  begins Oct. 27 and will be held at three different sites:

• Opening Intensive: Oct. 27-29, 2015; Irons Homestead, Glocester, R.I.
• Deepening Retreat: Jan. 19-21, 2016; Edwards House, Framingham, Mass.
• Sending Retreat: March 15-17, 2016; Location TBA

The registration deadline is Oct. 13. Cost is $800. For info including a registration form, click here to download the flyer.

ELCJHL Bishop Younan coming to Connecticut

July 24, 7 p.m.

St. John's Lutheran Church

844 Newfield Ave.

Stamford, Conn.

Bishop Munib Younan of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land is coming to speak in New England, and you are invited!

At 7 p.m. on Friday, July 24, Bishop Younan will speak at a public forum to be held at St. John's Lutheran Church (844 Newfield Ave., Stamford, Conn.). To attend, please call the church at(203) 322-0066 to RSVP. 

Earlier that day, Bishop Younan will gather with clergy from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Emanuel Lutheran Church (60 Church Street, Manchester, Conn.). Clergy who would like to attend should contact Rev. Duane Peterson.

The Rt. Rev. Dr. Munib A. Younan was consecrated as bishop - the third Palestinian to hold the office - on January 5, 1998, at the Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Redeemer in Jerusalem in the presence of religious and political leaders from many nations. He was educated in Palestine and Finland and has been active in numerous faith organizations since his ordination in 1976, such as the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC), The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) and the Fellowship of the Middle East Evangelical Churches (FMEEC). The bishop was the first to translate the Augsburg Confession into Arabic. He is an active member of various ecumenical and interfaith dialogue initiatives in Jerusalem that he helped found.

In July 2010, he was elected president of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF), a global communion of Christian churches with 145 member churches in 79 countries representing more than 70 million Christians. He is a recent past president of FMEEC and provides leadership for the ecumenical Patriarchs and Heads of Local Christian Churches in Jerusalem group as well as for the Council of Religious Institutions in the Holy Land (CRIHL), comprised of leaders of Jerusalem's Jewish, Muslim and Christian communities.

• Other Riders are welcome
• Follow along on Facebook at facebook.com/threeguysride
• Follow along on Twitter at #bikeforbread or @bishophazelwood or @captaindumas1
• Consider making a donation to the World Hunger Appeal on this page.

The global water crisis doesn't always make headlines. But the truth is that it claims more lives each year than war. Globally, 1.8 billion people - that's about one out of every four people in our world - drink from contaminated water sources. Unsafe water leads to illnesses that claim the lives of 840,000 people each year, almost half of whom are children under the age of 5.

Your gift helps local communities provide water for drinking and cooking, growing crops, and improving sanitation and hygiene, as well as providing for ongoing health education, training and maintenance for long-term sustainable access to water in the community.

Jim, Steve and Rick will start their engines soon, so get on your bikes and ride!

St. Paul Lutheran Church (Arlington, Mass.) formed a bond with 40 Sudanese refugees 14 years ago when they came to the Greater Boston congregation. Since then, the church has been heavily involved with several development projects to help people in South Sudan with the difficult but necessary tasks of generating food and clean water, as well as schools and medical clinics.

The congregation's Social Ministry Committee recently made a $1,000 contribution to ameliorate the food shortage in South Sudan, but more help is needed. So the church is turning to the region for help raising funds.

Donations may be sent to:

Village Help for South Sudan, Inc.
34 Madison Ave. #1
Cambridge, MA 02140

For more information, you can also visit the program's website,villagehelpforsouthsudan.org.

The New England Synod School of Lay Ministry will host "The Church We are Becoming" with Pr. Ruben Duran, ELCA Program Director, New Congregations, on Saturday, Nov. 7, 2015, at Gloria Dei in Providence, R.I. This is a bilingual event, and all are welcome. Stay tuned for more information.

Family Promise of Greater Concord

Family Promise of Greater Concord (FPGC) is looking for a passionate, energetic and caring leader to become its Executive Director (ED). Family Promise is a faith-based organization committed to ending homelessness for families with children, one family at a time. The Executive Director will work closely with faith-based congregations throughout Greater Concord, a dedicated and active board of directors, as well as local business and community leaders. Successful candidates must be confident asking anybody for anything that will support the mission of FPGC. You must have outstanding sales ability and superior written and verbal communication skills. Strong candidates will have previous experience managing and maintaining financial activities, raising money, developing programs, managing grants, and providing leadership to support staff, committees, volunteers and board members. You must also be adept with basic office technology and software. The ideal candidate will possess: 

Faith Lutheran Church, East Hartford, CT

Faith Lutheran Church is seeking a part-time Parish Musician. The congregation celebrates one worship service each Sunday from June through Labor Day at 9:30 a.m., and during the rest of the year there are two services: a contemporary service at 8:30 a.m., with music led by its Praise Ensemble, and a traditional service at 10:30 a.m. with music by the Faith Choir. Responsibilities include coordination and direction of the Praise Ensemble and Faith Choir, and familiarity with and ability to play the organ and piano. The Parish Musician works closely with the Pastor and the Worship & Music Committee to plan the services, liturgy and hymns.

Interested candidates should forward a resume & cover letter to Pat Sack (Worship & Music Chair) at Faith Lutheran Church, 1120 Silver Lane, East Hartford, CT 06118. Telephone 860-569-2037, email faithehct@aol.com. The position begins officially on July 1, 2015, but the starting date can be flexible.