“Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in
the days of Herod the king, behold wise men from the east came to
Jerusalem, saying, ‘Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For
we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” (Matthew
2:1-2)
In the Gospel of Matthew the visitors to the Christ
Child are wise men from the east, who come some time after the
shepherds had returned to the fields following their visit. Matthew
begins and ends his Gospel by teaching us that Jesus’ coming as Savior
into our world was for all people whether Jew or Gentile. Wise men from
the east open the story and the words of Jesus to “Go therefore and
make disciples of all nations . . . ” concludes the Gospel.
The Season of Epiphany in the church calendar comes
between our celebration of Christmas and the observance of Lent. It is
during this time of the year that we learn that this Jesus is no
ordinary child. He is the Son of God who comes into our world to teach
us about God and to demonstrate the love of God for all to see. He is
Baptized by John the
Baptist
Performs miracles of
healing and love
He calls others to
follow him as disciples
He faces rejection – a
preview of what is to come
As we travel through these next few weeks I pray that
the love of this Christ will empower you in your spiritual walk with
him.
Larry Stoterau
President, The Pacific Southwest District
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Are
you missing out on important news and information happening in the
Pacific Southwest District? Subscribe to the PSD
enews to receive the weekly District
newsletter. By subscribing to the PSD enews, you will also
automatically receive any Special Bulletins, apprising you of breaking
news or disaster information. You can also subscribe to the PSD Job Site,
our bi-weekly publication which lists positions available throughout
the District.
Wish
to learn more about the Synod's mission and ministry programs as
they relate to your congregation? Subscribe to LCMS e-News to receive
publications and devotions sent to your computer via e-mail.
Training
for Intentional
Interim Ministry (IIM) is open to all church workers to
gain insights, skills, resources and practical information for their
congregational ministry. This course is a basic requirement for
those seeking to serve in Intentional Interim Ministry in the PSD or
CNH districts.
The course involves five workshops and includes reading assignments,
field work and case studies. The cost is $345 to cover books,
materials, the 200 page basic notebook, and lunches.
Southern California training sessions will
meet at the district office from 9:00 AM to 4:30 PM. AZ training
sessions have been cancelled for 2010 due to low enrollment. Many
who have taken the course but do not intend to pursue IIM have found
the training very beneficial for their ministries.
SERIES
IRVINE, CA DATES
SESSION
1
Tues.
October 20, 2009
SESSION
2
Tues.
November 17, 2009
SESSION
3
Tues.
February 2, 2010
SESSION
4
Tues.
March 2, 2010
SESSION
5
Tues.
April 20, 2010
Please register with Barbara Farley at the district office at (949)
854-3232, ext. 201 or email barbara.farley@psd-lcms.org. For
more information contact Mike Brewer at (909) 917-1259 or mike@mkbrewer.com.
FOR
THOSE WHO ARE PREVIOUSLY TRAINED – Again, you are invited to audit the
classes on a space available basis. Costs are: Meal and any new books
that have been added.
ALSO
FOR IIM’s – The annual IIM Retreat at Three Rivers is scheduled for Jan
25 – 27, 2010. Please mark your calendars now.
Ablaze!
is the mission initiative to
share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with
100 million people worldwide by the year 2017 in response to the great
love God shows to us. Fan into Flame is the invitation
for congregations and individuals to help fund Ablaze! projects
that spread the Gospel message of Jesus Christ in their
communities, the Pacific Southwest District, throughout North
America , and around the world. Click on the documents and forms
listed here:
Ablaze Covenant Congregation - Church Planting Brochure {click here} - Enrollment Form {click here}
Nearly
50 Ablaze! Ambassadors are
ready to share as guest speakers about the worldwide initiative to
share the Gospel with 100 million non-Christians by 2017. All Ablaze! Ambassadors are passionate about
outreach and many are former district and national Synod leaders
(district presidents, LWML presidents, and LCMS and Lutheran Hour
Ministries executives).
As
spokespersons for Ablaze!, each agrees to give
presentations about the effort in congregations, schools, and other
venues to encourage their fellow Lutherans to share their faith with
family, friends, co-workers—even strangers.
Consider inviting an Ablaze! Ambassador to come
encourage your congregation, school, or group in their personal
outreach and faith-sharing. (Hosting groups are asked to cover the
transportation, housing, and/or other expenses related to the
Ambassador’s attendance at their event.) Please take advantage of this
wonderful resource. If you have any questions, or would like to
view an updated list of Ablaze! Ambassadors, please call 1-800-433-3954
or visit: http://www.lcms.org/pages/internal.asp?NavID=14569
•
DISASTER RESPONSE The Pacific
Southwest District provides financial donations to our churches,
schools, and parishioners who have been affected by disaster
(hurricanes, floods, fires, earthquakes, etc). If you would like
to help in this effort, please send your donation, made payable to the
Pacific Southwest District—LCMS, earmarked for Disaster Relief, and we
will include it with the funds that we send. We are aware that
many people have been impacted by our current economic state, but we
invite you to make a donation in any amount that you are comfortable
with to help those who have lost so much. If you would prefer to
donate funds directly to LCMS World Relief and Human Care, you may do
so on-line by clicking here: http://catalog.lcms.org/GiveNow/Gift_Catalog.asp,
or mail donations to LCMS World Relief and Human Care, P.O. Box 68661,
St. Louis , MO63166-6861,
or call the credit-card gift line at (888) 930-4438. If you would
like to volunteer in the cleanup efforts following a disaster or
devastating incident, please contact the office of the district in
which you would like to serve. Contact information for LCMS
districts is available online at www.lcmsdistricts.org.
Please follow the link to the Gulf Coast Synod web site,
www.gulfcoastsynod.org,
for sermons and sermon ideas, prayer ideas, full worship services from
previous tragedies, resources for speaking with children after a
tragedy, an intergenerational activity and much more. We will be
updating that site regularly. If they are not already there, please be
patient we are working on them and will get them there as soon as
possible.
•
Lutheran
HAMS If you are an amateur radio
ham and have an active station, we could use your help. The Pacific
Southwest District is very active in disaster response training and
preparedness. Part of the program through I-LERT (Inter-Lutheran
Emergency Response Team) is to establish a communication network that
will be able to coordinate activities between the shelter churches in
the event of a disaster. The network would also include a station to
communicate through a network to stations outside the disaster
area. The concept is to have a 2 meter local network with a 40
meter station for DX out of the area. If you would be interested in
participating in the network, please contact Jerry Reichman (K7AUN) at
the Pacific Southwest District office in Irvine,
CA at 949-854-3232, ext.
210 or e-mail jerry.reichman@psd-lcms.org.
•
It’s a New Day! It's surprising that after all these
years, people still mention The Southern California Lutheran Program,
our District's radio program for 60 years. Pastor Richard Schumm was
the director for the final 25 years of its radio time.
Unfortunately, after so many decades, Station KAIM (1390) Long
Beach, was sold in 2002. Other stations
were cost prohibitive and by 2004 it went off the air. The Monday
after the last radio broadcast, a new PSW District internetprogram
began. It was named "It's A New Day."
Pastor Schumm's 3-minute audio devotions are on
24 hours a day, 365 days a year. It's nice that one can listen to
the program at any time during a 24 hour period. It changes at
midnight every night. It's easy to hear the devotion.
If you want the program on your desktop, type in
the following address:
www.psd-lcms.org/audio/default.asp, go to the File command,
select Send, then ShortcuttoDesktop. If
your congregation has a website, and you would like to access the
program from there, they can simply add a link on their site to the
above address.
Point of Truth Did you
know that Point of
Truth offers full-length videos on demand (VOD) of services,
complete with music and sermons? Access their gallery of videos
on the LCMS web site: http://www.lcms.org/pages/internal.asp?NavID=11264
•
HealthNotes are monthly articles
addressing a variety of current health topics, that may be linked to
your website, included in your congregational newsletters, posted, or
copied for distribution. As always, I welcome topics of interest
to you and your communities/congregations!
Each
month, a variety of health topics or health concerns are recognized
through annual health observance dates. Health observances are days,
weeks, or months devoted to promoting particular health information, or
to honor healthcare professionals
Every
two seconds, someone in the United States needs blood…that’s a lot of
blood! We all know that blood is needed for emergencies, but some
people need regular blood transfusions to live… For the nearly 5
million people who receive blood transfusions each year, our donations
can make the difference between life and death. Yet, only 5% of
the eligible population donates blood in any given year… Let’s change
that! Click
here for the January issue of HealthNotes.
PLEASE
SHARE WITH YOUR CONGREGATION/COMMUNITY: A BONE HEALTH STUDY OF ORANGE COUNTY is being
conducted by a professor of biological sciences at Chapman University,
Orange (I believe the only requirements are resident status – any race
or ethnicity, both males and females – of Orange County, and at least
17 years of age; the only disqualifier I know of is currently being on
treatment (e.g., Fosamax, Boniva, etc.) to improve bone density…).
Please consider participation in this study… it’s free, and even if it
weren’t, the price of the DEXA bone scan and lab tests are worth our
contribution to a better understanding of healthy bones!!
The Extra Mile Ministries K9 Crisis
Response Ministry
Faith
Lutheran Church in Whittier, CA is now the home of the Extra Mile
Ministries K9 Crisis Response Ministry. This ministry is a vital link
in the ministry of national response to crisis/disaster.
These
specially trained comfort dogs work with experienced handlers and team
members in stressful situations which are often chaotic and
unpredictable. The team helps victims, emergency personal, and family
members cope emotionally and spiritually. In doing so the team is able
to help renew faith and restore hope. The team brings Christ-like
compassion and mercy utilizing the dogs as instruments, creating a
healing bridge connecting those in crisis and the crisis team. As those
who face traumatic situations begin to pet and touch the K9, the power
of God opens the door of opportunity to help and serve. Knowing the
physical power of touch and its effectiveness, a much deeper healing
can take place that is beyond description. The team provides a ministry
of presence and offers Christ crisis tools of mercy and grace.
Support of this ministry, through prayer and financial contributions,
is always welcome. Donations can be mailed to:
The Extra Mile Ministries
c/o PSW District
2206 Luz Way
Oceanside, California 92056
Thank you for your continued support! We hope you will “friend” us on
our Facebook
page ("K9 Comfort").
Our purpose is to facilitate the people movement to Christ now
taking place on the Navajo reservation. We do that by writing
curriculum for making disciples, equipping the saints, and training
people for ministry. On our website you can see the programs and the
work being done to train Navajo ministers to bring Jesus into the
hearts of the un-churched among the Navajo Nation. We train by doing. http://stevesbooks.homestead.com/index.html
•
You Can
Receive a Free Copy of Feed My Sheep by Donating $25 to the Feed My
Sheep Book Fund This book is
not only a valuable resource on the history of the District with an
emphasis on the Hispanic ministries but is also an excellent handbook
on how to do Hispanic ministries. To secure your free copy, contact
Karene Cargill at (949) 854-3232, ext. 200 in the District Office or
Mike Doyle, District Archivist, at (909) 985-5948 or email mikedoyle@adelphia.net.
•
Inter-Lutheran Emergency Response Team
(I-LERT) The Inter-Lutheran Emergency
Response Team encourages and
educates the Lutheran community - congregations, schools and agencies
in Southern California – of the importance of preparing for and being
ready to respond to disasters and emergencies. We seek to identify
church locations as community havens and disaster response sites.
I-LERT is connected to Lutheran Disaster Response through Lutheran
Social Services of the Southwest. Click
here for more information.
