Monday, August 30, 2010

Missionary Moment: Nathan and Sharonette Bowman (Japan)

This is an edited version of a missionary letter sent by the Rev. Nathan and Sharonette Bowman,  ELCA missionaries who have served in Japan for 25 years.
–Sue.

Some times, things do not go as planned. Some thing breaks, makes a funny sound, or otherwise indicates its displeasure at running or operating. Some times every thing appears normal, until some accumulation of dust in a corner appears. Then we are challenged with the chore of

 fixing it.

Part of the ongoing learning process of being a missionary is the challenge of trying to fix things. Maintaining machines, appliances, house and property are all part of the “given” that most of us live with.  Three major appliances in our household are in currently need of repair. We will fix them ourselves, with a little help from the Internet.

 Every other year, our parsonage faces major repair for damage caused by typhoons and heavy rains. This year, the crisis crept up on us quietly.  This year, with the onset of the rainy season, we have an infestation of termites; at least three nests are in the walls of our house. The silent destroyers were attacking the critical structural focal points of the house, at least on one corner and on the south side, damaging first and second floors and joining beams. We will need to wait out rainy season for the work to begin. Asbestos insulation in the walls and floors (installed 60 years ago) serve as a compounding factor. Needless to say, we will not be fixing this problem ourselves.

 Even though Boku dekiru—“I (the male form of I) can do it”—was likely my first spoken sentence, there are certain things we just cannot fix on our own: broken relationships, words that have caused offense, insensitivity, an arrogant and prideful spirit….  Even in our greatest strength we need Jesus.  There simply is nothing that outdoes the love and faithful compassion of Jesus Christ for us. It is in Jesus that we are forgiven, healed, cleansed, restored, filled, and (you can hear it coming) 

FIXED.

 To God be the Glory!
—The Rev. Nathan and Sharonette Bowman

Friday, August 27, 2010

Thanks, First and Roseville Lutheran

Members of First Lutheran Church, Freeport, Ill., were honored at a special banquet during the 2010 ELCA Summer Missionary Conference in Kenosha, Wis., for their $400,000 gift to support ELCA global missionaries and ministries. Vicki Johnson, left, and Harriett Gustason, center, members of First, attended the Summer Missionary Conference banquet along with Cynthia Halverson, executive director, ELCA Development Services.

First Lutheran (Freeport, Ill.) and  Roseville Lutheran (Roseville, Minn.) were recognized at the 2010 Summer Missionary Conference for their contributions to ELCA Missionary Sponsorship. 

Below, find an excerpt of a related ELCA News Service story (see August 27, 2010). 

Note:  The $830,000 is the total donated over 12 years. –Sue

Two ELCA Congregations Give $830,000 to Support Global Ministries
10-231-MRC

 CHICAGO (ELCA) — Two congregations of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) have given a combined total of more than $830,000 to support global ministries for one reason — to join hands with Lutherans around the world to “teach, preach, heal, build, grow, give and receive.”
     First Lutheran Church in Freeport, Ill., has given more than $400,000 and Roseville Lutheran Church in Roseville, Minn., has given more than $430,000 to support Lutheran missionaries and ministries overseas.
     “Giving is a big part of what we do as Christians,” said David Tetzlaff, a member of Roseville since 1995.
     “What has made me happy over the years is that our congregation tithes and that we have always been supportive of mission and outreach. Our congregation gives 50 percent to support local ministries and 50 percent for international ministries,” said Tetzlaff.
     But Roseville’s support is more than financial, said Tetzlaff. “We invite missionaries to visit our congregation and share with us about their work, how things are going and how we can help. This helps our congregation put a face to the name of whom we are supporting. Missionaries also tell us how our support helps produce change in the areas where they work.”
     Members of Roseville have supported ELCA missionaries in Cameroon, Peru and Palestine. They have also supported Lutheran schools in the Middle East, medical ministries in Tanzania, and the ELCA Young Adults in Global Mission program.
     “Engaging in global mission is foundation of who we are as a congregation,” said the Rev. David W. Hanson, pastor of Roseville.
     Members of First Lutheran Church have set up an endowment fund to support global ministries.
     “A former member of the congregation bequeathed over $1 million to fund projects other than the congregation’s day-to-day operating expenses,” said Steve Ursin, a member of First.
     A significant percentage of the endowment “allows our ministry to reach around the world,” said the Rev. Keith D. Johnson, pastor of First.
     Members of First have supported ELCA missionaries in Germany, Russia and Tanzania. They have also supported La Frontera Ministries in Mexico, Augusta Victoria Hospital in Palestine, the Contact and Resource Center in Beirut and other ministries. The congregation supports the ELCA World Hunger Appeal, ELCA domestic and international disaster response, and The Lutheran World Federation, based in Geneva.
     First Lutheran Church and Roseville Lutheran Church were honored at a banquet during the 2010 ELCA Summer Missionary Conference at Carthage College, Kenosha, Wis. Also honored were missionaries who have completed service. Carthage is one of 26 colleges and universities of the ELCA.
     “The generous support of congregations helps ELCA missionaries join hands with neighbors and companion churches around the world to teach, preach, heal, build, grow, give and receive,” said the Rev. Twila Schock, director for Global Mission Support, ELCA Global Mission.

Monday, August 23, 2010

Bagarap and beauty (Nancy Anderson, PNG)

 Thank you, Creator God, for the gift and beauty of this new day.  Help me trust.  Help me focus on what is important.  Bless the work I do this day in this place.

Soon after arriving in Papua New Guinea, I learned a great new word in Pidgin: bagarap!  The exclamation is used to describe an unexpected and unpredictable situation or the expected and predictable demise of the well-planned day: “Em bagarap!”

Bagarap! is a useful word to know as I learn how to accomplish things in Papua New Guinea.  For example, I recently inherited responsibility as Pool Car Coordinator to manage the care and utilization of the church partnership’s shared cars.  Each Monday morning, with hope more than confidence, I say to myself and to Jonah, our young driver, “It’s a new day!  It’s a new week!” And then, well, bagarap happens.

“Thank you for the change; where’s the receipt?”
“Thank you for the receipt; where’s the change?”
“Please remember to lock the padlocks at night.”
“What happened to the Nissan’s taillight?”
“The insurance and registration on the Nissan has lapsed?”

One morning, as I sat anticipating the bagarap of the day ahead, my husband said “look at what I saw this morning when I opened the kitchen curtains!”  He pointed to the vine crawling up our back staircase and there, in resplendent beauty were gorgeous lavender azaleas.  In my distraction I had missed the beauty right under my nose.  My gasp was a prayer of gratitude. 

ELCA missionary Nancy Anderson serves in Papua New Guinea with her husband, the Rev. Rod Nordby.

Friday, August 20, 2010

Two per box

ELCA Missionary Sponsorship offering envelopes: ITEM000997; 1 pkg = 50 envelopes.

Christ Hamilton United Lutheran Church of Stroudsburg, Penn., has a handy way of ensuring that missionaries are remembered by its members.   Two ELCA Missionary Sponsorship pew envelopes are inserted into every member’s offering envelope box.

Use these Missionary Sponsorship envelopes to receive a special offering, include in a mailing about missionary sponsorship or to “seed” member offering boxes as Christ Hamilton United does. Request as many of the ELCA Missionary Sponsorship as you can use:  call 800-328-4648 and ask for ITEM000997 (1 pkg = 50 envelopes). 

Visit www.elca.org/handyresources to find other helps.

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Happy Good Neighbor Day!

Sunday, September 26, I just read, is “Good Neighbor Day,” at least according to Better Homes & Gardens magazine (September 2010, p. 16).  I am intrigued by the possibilities. 

It would be great if on (or around) September 26, 2010,

• missionaries took a picture of one of their neighbors/neighbor families, and
• missionary sponsors took a picture outside their church or home.

If this idea intrigues you,too, here are the details:

1.  E-mail *one* picture taken on (or around) September 26, 2010, to globalmissionsupport@elca.org along with the name of the person who took the photo (photo credit) and a caption.

2.  The picture:  High or fine resolution JPegs are best. Do not send a photo unless you have permission to share it.  Ask first, then send.  Please don’t add a “time stamp” to the photo.  If you don’t know what “fine resolution” means or know how to turn off the time stamp on your digital camera, don’t worry, send it anyway. 

3.  The caption:  Identify the people, the place, and the connection to Missionary Sponsorship.  For example, “St. Luke’s Lutheran in Park Ridge, Ill., sponsors the Stubbs family and Dr. Kristopher and Rebecca Hartwig, ELCA missionaries who serve in Tanzania. Shown here, members of the Global Links committee.”  Another example, “Bratislava, Slovakia:  Zuzanna lives on the first floor of my apartment building (I live 80 steps up). Zuzanna knows just enough English and I know just enough Slovak to greet each other warmly. I’m an ELCA volunteer missionary, teaching at the Lyceum (Lutheran high school)–Your name.”

4.  The photo credit identifies the full name and (city, state or country) of the photographer, e.g., Photo by Miriam Moses (Stoughton, Wis.).

5.  Fine print: By sending a photo you are giving ELCA Missionary Sponsorship permission to use it.  Thank you!

6.  Questions?  E-mail Sue Edison-Swift, associate director for Global Mission Support, at globalmissionsupport@elca.org.

Sunday, August 15, 2010

LOL

Dear Pastor Rod and Nancy,

My name is Joan Herbon and I am the pastor at Lord of Life Lutheran Church in Portage, Michigan.  Portage is on the south border of Kalamazoo on the south west side of the state.  I’m writing this to introduce you just briefly to Lord of Life  (LOL stands for more than  just laugh out loud—Lots Of Love, Love Our Lord, and, one of my favorites, Lutherans On the Loose!)  We’re a relatively young congregation (celebrating 45 years as a congregation), but the average age of our members is over 60.  We’re young at heart. LOL!

This is the first time we’ve ever sponsored “real live missionaries in wild and far away places!”  We’re excited to be partners with all of the churches in the NorthWest Lower Michigan Synod and in the ELCA who are privileged to help sponsor your Call to ministry in Papua New  Guinea.  I’m so thankful that God has called you to serve and called Lord of Life to join in your service!

Our sponsorship of you is not part of our congregational budget, but belongs to a small group off shoot of our evangelism/outreach committee.  There are 12 of us in this group who each put in $10 a month.  What else can we do to help you?  the group is excited to send you a care package; What would you like in a care package?  We don’t want to send you 100 packages of gum if you hate gum.  How can we serve you?Shalom!
Your sister in Christ,
Joan

Greetings Pr. Joan,

How delightful to receive your note and the graciousness of your response to journey with us as we experience life and ministry in Papua New Guinea.  Yes, we are “live missionaries” and we do live “far away.” Just how “wild” it is remains to be seen, but it is definitely different.  I say it is “different” yet we find delight each day in the everyday encounters that are truly universal: the giggles of young children, the beauty of God’s creation which here in PNG is LUSH, the sorrows that come with losses and the joys that come with small accomplishments. 

Thank you to your little group of 10 who have decided to walk with us.  I think you will be changed, if only by opening your eyes to the larger Church.

Let me introduce us.  I am Nancy Anderson and my husband, Rod Nordby, has the “official call” to PNG.  Rod is originally from North Dakota and he is a second career pastor.  His first career was business and accounting.  “Life” led him to respond to the call to Word and Sacrament and he graduated from Wartburg Seminary in 1996.  After 14 years in two congregations in Wisconsin and a one-year interim, we decided to explore Global Mission work.  Rod is here as the Asst. Internal Auditor, so he is back in his first career.  He is finding, however, that it is very beneficial for him to also be a pastor.

Pastors are very highly regarded in PNG and it seems to open doors in good ways.  The needs of PNG are great, not the least of which is for administrative and financial support.  I will write more in the future about ELC-PNG and our larger missionary community.

I grew up on a dairy farm in Wisconsin.  After a stint in the Peace Corps and 2.5 years in a medical mission (both in Brazil), I pursued a career in hospital administration.  I worked in health care for 25 years before leaving the corporate world and pursuing a degree in Religious Studies and Spiritual Guidance certification.  I don’t have a job description but I have managed to find a lot of things to do…….and I must say that keeping house in the tropics is work, too.

We have two sons.  Peter just turned 27 and is a grad student at UNC in Raleigh in International Studies.  Mark is 25 and is just completing a degree in video/media production and lives in Madison, Wis. We are blessed that they are so supportive of us.

Check out our blog: www.ponderingsfrompng.blogspot.com.  It is very hard to post from our dial-up internet, especially pictures, but I get some done periodically. 

Thank you for your offer for a Care Package.  Let us ponder that a bit.  Frankly, the postal service is very, very challenging.  We have told our families not to bother sending us stuff.  We DO like personal contact, however, and email is still the best medium.  We would love it if, when your group gathers, that you put together lists of questions and we can exchange information.  We would love to hear more about Lord of Life, too.  So…..we ask only for your prayers, your will to stay connected, and hearts that are open to the surprises that God has in store for all of us.

Blessings,
Nancy Anderson and Pr. Rod Nordby

P.S. from Sue:  Covenant sponsors like Lord of Life commit to support a missionary prayerfully, financially and with encouraging communication.  Learn more at www.elca.org/missionarysponsorship.  Visit www.elca.org/operationthanksgiving to learn how to participate in Operation Thanks-Giving 2010 and send “random acts of appreciation” to ELCA Missionaries.

Thursday, August 12, 2010

Meet the Europe and Middle East Team

ELCA Global Mission Europe and Middle East staff team

The Global Mission Middle East and Europe staff team met in July, 2010, to strategize about their work together.  Pastor Julie Rowe provided these introductions:

The Rev. Robert Smith (first row center), the EME Desk Director, has a lot of ground to cover as his job takes him from the United Kingdom in the northwest to Vlaidavostok in the northeast and as far south as Palestine and Cairo. Egypt.  Some main areas of focus for the EME desk are to bring justice and reconciliation for refugees and displaced people, such as St Andrews Refugee Services in Cairo, which works with Sudanese refugees, or those dealing with Roma (gypsy) populations, which are subject to great discrimination in Europe. 

The Rev. Peter Johnson* (upper row left) administers the Cairo program as well as serves as the pastor of St. Andrew’s International Congregation.

Pastor Arden Haug * (upper row center) is the Regional Representative in Europe and serves as the pastor of the International Congregation in Bratislava, where he also supervises the almost 20 ELCA missionaries, whose salaries are paid by the European governments, that serve as English teachers in Slovakia and Poland.  The focus of the desk is toward building capacity for companions in Russia, the Baltics and Central and Eastern Europe while still maintaining support of international congregations in Western Europe as well. 

Carol LaHurd  (upper row right) is the Coordinator of the Peace Not Walls Campaign that carries out the ELCA’s Middle East strategy to advocate for a just, lasting peace in Palestine and Israel.

The Rev. Julie Rowe ( first row left), a former missionary in Jerusalem for four years, works with Companion Synods and Working Groups relating to Europe and the Middle East, the Peace Not Walls Campaign and other website work. 

Marlene DeWulf (first row right) holds down the administrative fort for the whole team.

The Rev. Peter and Michele Johnson and the Rev.  Arden and Jana Haug are among our 225+ ELCA missionaries serving in 50 countries.  Learn how you and your congregation can provide prayer, financial and encouraging support for ELCA missionaries like the Johnsons and Haugs at www.elca.org/missionarysponsorship.

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

A prayerful commitment

The prayer reminder card prepared for the Strickerts' commissioning service.

Gloria Strickert shared this prayer reminder card that St. Paul  Lutheran, their home congregation in Waverly, Iowa, prepared.  The prayer reminder card will be distributed on Sunday, August 15, as the Rev. Fred and Gloria Strickert are commissioned to serve as ELCA Missionaries in Jerusalem.

This card illustrates the three-fold commitment of ELCA covenant sponsors to support a missionary prayerfully, financially and with encouraging communication.  Gloria and Fred are two fine examples of our 225+ ELCA missionaries serving alongside global neighbors in 50 countries.  ELCA Missionary Sponsorship helps make these “make a world of difference” ministries possible.  Learn more at www.elca.org/missionarysponsorship.

Saturday, August 7, 2010

Blessing

Pastor Sam and Cindy Wolff are ELCA Missionaries in Kenya.  Pastor Sam serves as pastor of the Nairobi International Congregation and works with the Dagoretti Swahili Church. Pastor Sam and Cindy help develop an AIDS outreach program and work with the Kenya Evangelical Lutheran Synod in furthering the ministry and outreach of the Dagoretti church.  

Get a feel for the place where the Wolffs minister by reading “Dagoretti,” Pastor Sam’s powerful Hand in Hand Blog Digest post (May 10, 2010). 

I used this photo of Pastor Sam to illustrate the ministry of “blessing,” in For the Sake of the World, a narrated slide presentation about how the ministries of ELCA missionaries and ELCA World Hunger are funded.  I e-mailed Cindy and asked her to tell me more about what is happening in the photo.  She writes: 

This photo was taken in our congregation.  We are worshiping in a tent at this time because of a land dispute.  We hope to complete our church building as soon as the matter is cleared up.  Our children are very faithful and look forward to the children’s service each Sunday.  They will not return to their special “children’s bench” until blessed.  Each are given a coloring sheet relevant to the Gospel lesson.  They remain in the service until after the sermon and then go to their Sunday school classes.

Gifts for ELCA Missionary Sponsorship make it possible for Pastor Sam and Cindy Wolff and some 225 other ELCA Missionaries working “hand in hand” with companions in 50 countries teaching, preaching, healing, peacemaking, building and growing.  ELCA missionary covenant sponsors promise to prayerfully and financially support a missionary.  E-mail globalmissionsupport@elca.org to be matched with a missionary in need of sponsorship.  –Sue Edison-Swift is associate director for ELCA Global Mission Support.

Monday, July 26, 2010

Fall 2010 Hand in Hand newsletter online and in print

Find the issue and its related bulletin inserts online at www.elca.org/handinhand. E-mail globalmissionsupport@elca.org to request distribution copies.

The Fall 2010 issue of the Hand in Hand newsletter is here!  Visit www.elca.org/handinhand to find the issue and the related bulletin inserts, just right to reproduce in newsletters and bulletins.  To request a single copy for yourself or multiple copies to distribute, send your address to globalmissionsupport@elca.org.  

Side A 

Jesus said, “Let the little children come unto me,” is a reflection by ELCA missionary Mary Kuck (Jamaica).  Bulletin insert available

Meet Richard Young: ELCA Missionary, Pastor, Physician (Guyana). Bulletin insert available

Side B

“I need to polish the swan!”  Pastor Twila Shock’s column takes us to Suriname, introduces us to Helloues Aveloo’s congregation revitalization contribution, and invites us to “do one thing” that will make a world of difference:  become an ELCA missionary covenant sponsor.  Bulletin insert available

Learn how to participate in Operation Thanks-Giving (OT-G2) and offer your own “random acts of thanks-giving.”  Two bulletin inserts are available, including a “handy”  thanks-giving card pattern.  Visit www.elca.org/operationthanksgiving to find OT-G2 stories, pictures, and how-to information.