Spirit in the Desert Retreat Center in Carefree, Arizona, invites applications and nominations for the Executive Director position. The Executive Director will amplify Spirit in the Desert’s mission as a Lutheran-rooted ministry that welcomes people of all backgrounds to a place of peace, renewal, healing, and spiritual growth.
Beauty of Hymns and Songs
I have thought a great deal about how singing together is something I missed so much during pandemic days, how I love singing with youth and summer staff around a campfire at camp, how during an ELCA Youth Gathering we often sang our way home from the mass gatherings in the dome, how singing Taize chants quietly with others gives me that peace that passes understanding. And sometimes, when I cannot find my voice, I simply listen and let others carry the song. Collective or communal singing is one of the best things we can do for our spiritual, emotional, and communal health, and it is something Christians, including Lutherans, have a lot of experience with.
ELCCA Upcoming Events and Resources
Play Ball and Connect
Eastern Washington Legistative Conference
Have you ever heard a whisper?
Congregation Constitution 101
The ELCA Office of the Secretary has released a recorded webinar and PowerPoint presentation to help congregation leaders better understand and update their constitutions. The hour-long session, “Congregation Constitution 101,” was designed especially for congregation councils and leaders across the ELCA and is now available for on-demand viewing.
Scholarship Funds for Tumaini Lutheran Secondary School
Our companion synod, the Ulanga Kilombero Diocese (UKD) of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania, has a Secondary and Bible school as one of their ministries: Tumaini Lutheran Secondary School. This is a boarding school for boys and girls as they get their first 4 years of secondary education. The school is well regarded and the NWIM Synod has shown great support for the school. As you talk to the leaders throughout the UKD, many have their roots at Tumaini. It is a school that is teaching the leaders for the diocese as pastors, doctors, teachers, evangelists, and business owners. Our support over the years has made a huge difference for the UKD and for the entire country.
Rainbows in the Desert
The prophet Isaiah sings to us on the 3rd Sunday of Advent, "The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad. Like crocus blossoms it will be abundant with joy...Say to those with fearful hearts, 'be strong, do not be afraid. Here is your God.'"
Thinking about Isaiah's vision, I want to share a story of another kind of flood. A flood of blessing. An abundance of community and care. It also came to a desert recently, and there are blooms of joy and gladness beginning to flourish.