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It seems like a small thing, but as Paul begins his letter to the Philippian church, he does something he's never done. He addresses the faithful AND their leaders. "To all the saints," he writes, "...together with the overseers and deacons." (Philippians 1.1) Why single out the leaders? Because as leaders, we don't always get to pick our environments. We lead where we are, not where we want to be.
From the day of his conversion, Paul was a man on the move. Traveling the ancient world. Preaching in synagogues and marketplaces. Staring down religious and secular rulers of the day. Pretty powerful stuff... Yet, as he writes this letter to the Philippians, he is none of those things. He is stuck under house arrest in Rome, awaiting trial.
He can't go anywhere to preach. There is a sameness to his days. You would think he'd be pacing like a caged animal, desperate to resume his ministry. And maybe Paul was a bit restless, but he adapted. He understood: his ministry was not interrupted. It needed to be adapted. Rather than focusing on what we can't do, leaders create opportunities.
So, yeah, Paul was stuck in a house - but he made friends among the guards outside his door, and shared the Gospel with them. No, he couldn't travel - but he could receive visitors and write letters. He couldn't be in the company of his friends - but he could pray for them. And he did.
Leaders are people who influence our environments and powerful leaders adapt to our environments to create opportunities for influence. "So, pay attention, leaders!" Paul seems to say. "Because leadership is full of surprises and you've got to know, whatever happens, God desires to use you in that place. It's why you're there."
-- Pastor Kathy Meyers
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 The dates for the fall weekends are:
Men's Weekend #53
October 10-13, 2013
Bethel Lutheran Church
St. Clair Shores, MI
Women's Weekend #53
October 17-20, 2013
Bethel Lutheran Church
St. Clair Shores, MI
Now is the time to invite someone to the fall weekend! However, remember to talk to God about people before you talk to people about God!We still have time...pray, pray, pray!!
A great way to spread information about GNVDC weekends is to have a temple talk at your church. We have community who is willing to come to your church and talk about "What is the Via de Cristo." If you are interesting in having a temple talk at your church please contact our Outreach Coordinators (PJ & Angie Colbeck) at:
or call 888-468-3295
We have posters available online or printed for you to post at your church with the upcoming weekend dates. If you want us to mail you one, please contact us by email at:
or call 888-468-3295
If you have been led to sponsor a participant, please click on the link below for an application:
Application deadlines are:
Men's Weekend - September 30, 2013
Women's Weekend - October 7, 2013
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Please take a moment to sign up for
Weekend #53 prayer banner.
Participants often refer to the unfurling of the prayer banner as a pivotal moment in their weekend experience. Be a part of this moment by signing up for as many time slots as you'd like.
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PRAYER REQUESTS for WEEKEND #53
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Please pray for our Fall Rectors and their families:
Karen Warsop, WNC #32
Pray for our fall weekend participants. Although our deadline is September 30th for the men's weekend and October 7th for the women's weekend, if the weekends fill before those dates, then applications are put on a waiting list. There is a max of 30 participants for each weekend.
Pray for the participants of Weekend #53:
Women -
Rosilyn (Roz) Brown
Patricia Peterson
Joyce Thompson
Men -
Gregory Maxwell Pray for the Team Members of Weekend #53: 
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Let's surround our community in prayer....
Prayers for the Family of George Seeger as they remember his life and mourn his passing.
Lula Hyder on the loss of her brother
Angie and PJ Colbeck on the loss of their nephew
Tina Gans on the loss of her grandmother
Scott Grundy on the loss of his job
Wyatt Sisler (son of Beth and Tim) for his vison concerns
Kim Baker for her grandson Danny's illness
Paul Baker for health issues, and family health issues
Dawn Marie Bryant's husband who has very recently suffered a heart attack and a stroke
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NEWS FROM THE LAY DIRECTOR
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It is hard to believe but summer is over! It came and went before I knew it. I can imagine there are others that are feeling the same way. And before you know it the fall weekends will be starting. From what I am hearing the teams are full and we are waiting to see who the Lord will send us for participants.
This summer several of us traveled to Florida for the National Lutheran Secretariat Annual Meeting. It was held in West Palm Beach, Florida and surprisingly the weather was decent - considering Florida in the summer!
Our Lay Delegates will be communicating some of the details over the next several months and might be suggesting that some of our community attend the annual meeting for 2014, which will be held in the Baltimore, Maryland area next July. That is a beautiful area of the country and close to our nation's capitol, lending itself to a vacation opportunity for to visit an abundance of historical sites that affected the forming of our great country.
As many of you may be aware, Good News! will be hosting the 2016 NLSM and participating at the one in Baltimore would be a great way for many of you to experience a meeting and see how you might like to help for 2016.
One of the other areas of community involvement will be attending a Rediscover and Recommit Workshop. The purpose is to help rekindle the spark that was ignited on your weekend and how it helped you on your fourth day journey. The Regional Outreach Team will be the presenters and we hope that we can invite our brothers and sisters in Christ from Lutheran Cursillo of Central Michigan to participate.
One of our accomplishments this year was to have several of our brothers step up and become members of the Kairos Prison Ministry in Ohio. Jim Nicolai and Tom McFadden have served in the past and I will be honored to serve with them this fall on Kairos ToCI Team #21. There are also several of our brothers and sisters that are serving in Michigan on KYREX teams. You are following Jesus' invitation through Mathew to visit those in prison. I would recommend this ministry for everyone to at least explore and see where you can make a difference.
We are trying to improve our communications efforts through email, Face Book and our web site. If you have any ideas or skills that would be helpful in our efforts, please let us know. We are always looking for new folks to join the Secretariat to make our movement stronger in His work.
It was a privilege and honor to represent Good News! at the National meeting this year and I look forward to many of you joining us in the future.
God loves you and so do I!
Phil Meuser
Lay Director
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SEPTEMBER 2013
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Sponsor a participant!
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If you have a participant for the upcoming weekend(s), here are some things to remember about your responsibilities as a sponsor:
For the weekend:
- Pray for your participant
- Take them to the weekend, attend send-off
- get palanca letters from spouse, family, friends, and write one yourself
- attend the serenade, encourage others to attend
- attend closure and transport them home
After the weekend:
- continue with prayers
- answer any questions they may have
- assist them in finding or forming a reunion group
- bring them to the first Ultreya after the weekend
It's not too late to become a sponsor!
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"For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them."
-Matthew 18:20
Please see our current list of reunion groups below:
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Website:
Email:
Toll Free Phone & Fax:888-468-3295 Snail Mail: PO Box 549 Sylvania, OH 43560
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| KROGER REWARDS | |
PLEASE REMEMBER TO RENEW YOUR KROGER CARD!
If you forgot to re-enroll in APRIL, please take a few minutes and click on the link below...
April is the month to re-enroll in the Kroger Community Rewards Program to continue earning funds for GN!VDC during 2013-2014! Our id# is 84232 or you can look it up under Good News Via de Cristo to enroll.It's easy to enroll or re-enroll in Kroger Community Rewards.Click on the link below:Kroger RewardsSelect your location,click on "Enroll" to register for the first time, or "Re-enroll" to re-register.All participants must have a valid online account at Kroger.com and must sign up online to participate. Organization members can no longer scan their group's bar code at the registers or service desk.PLEASE NOTE:
Even if you have recently enrolled in Kroger Community Rewards, you must re-enroll after April 1, 2013 to continue earning rewards during the year (May 2013 - May 2014).
Thank you for participating in the Kroger Community Rewards Program and
earning extra funds for
Good News!VdC!
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Sharing Your Experience
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We are looking for community to share their experience as a participant or as a team member for our newsletters. In 250-300 words, share your 4th Day with others and how God is working in your life. Please consider sharing your story with others. We would love to hear from you. Contact GNVDC Communications Chair Phone: (888) 468-3295 email: communications |
 Facebook Group
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If you
haven't joined already, Facebook is a great way to connect and share with
friends and family. We've
started a new group, and we'd love you to join. (You must ask for
permission to join, as only community members and other, pre-screened
individuals are allowed.)
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| Quick Links |
NOTE: you must have a facebook account and log-in for this link to work.
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Prayer Requests
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Please send prayer request for GNVdC community members to: prayerrequest@gnvdc.org NOTE: If you do not receive a reply within 48 hours, please call (888) 468-3295 These will be included in our monthly emails. Please keep prayer requests for GNVdC community and their immediate family.
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