The Clarion November 2016 Volume XX Issue 3 Retreat at Camp Cilca On Friday and Saturday, October 7 and 8 th, the Central Illinois District had the great opportunity to gather at the retreat center at Camp Cilca for two days of fellowship and worship. Did you know that a grape seed will not grow grapes? We learned about growing grapes for wine. We are grafted into Christ in Baptism just like grapes must be grafted into the root stalk to grow into a vine and be managed into a vineyard. 63 attendees listened to Cindy Steinbeck from Paso Robles, California, tell about how running a vineyard has brought new meaning to the John 15:5 verse. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing. Cindy brought this verse alive by showing us pictures of the vineyard and showing us actual vines and grapes from the vineyard. She has combined her past experiences as a director of Christian Education and her new experiences as a worker in her family s business to write an eleven-lesson small-group Bible study, entitled The Vine Speaks. She autographed books during the informal breaks of the program. The group enjoyed the beautiful fall evening roasting wieners and making smores around a campfire. The group enjoyed the devotions led by senior counselor, Pastor Peters, and much fellowship was enjoyed by the women from across the Central Illinois District. Right: Cindy Steinbeck, guest speaker and author of The Vine Speaks and Sheila Lutz, district president, pose during the Friday night session at the retreat. Left: Cindy explains the parts of her grape vine that she brought on her flight from California. 1
Fellowship at the Retreat 2
President Sheila s Post Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me bless His Holy Name. Psalm 103 God s Design of Blessings Through the years, LWML has had many themes to promote our spiritual growth. Two have remained close to my heart: Blessed to Be a Blessing and Live by God s Design. During this next month and during this next year, we will remember how we have been blessed: people and things which have blessed us this year, as well as people and events which have blessed us during the past 75 years and during the past 500 years. As we ponder, the questions come: How do you how do I share those rich blessings with others? Whom do we bless? Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me bless His holy Name. (Ps. 103) God is most worthy of our praise! Blessing family and friends with gifts is fun. It makes my heart smile. God has a design on my life and on yours. We are so blessed by our ability to multiply the gifts in our mite boxes so that we, as a nation of women, can bless others. But, the next question we each can ask ourselves is: In my daily activities, do I hide my light under a bushel? When a volunteer is need, do I duck my head and say, Here I am, Lord; send someone else? When opportunity is given to participate in a mission activity whether at home, across the nation, or across the ocean, do I forget to pray and ask, Lord, what is your design for me? Do I stay or go? When opportunities arise to join others to celebrate or learn or fellowship, what is my response? Thanksgiving with family and friends, the 75 th Anniversary of LWML, and the 500 th anniversary of Luther s nailing of the 95 theses are coming. What will I do? In traveling around the district to see many of you this fall, I heard many wonderful things are happening in Central Illinois. Women in our district are reaching out to bless others. Bless you for your willingness to serve! May blessings abound to those who could learn from our retreat leader, Cindy, as she led us through the vineyard and showed us, in practical terms, how we are the branches and the fruit of God s design. She blessed us with God s powerful message on the experiences of her life. Retreats are wonderful times of renewal of spirit and strength just the things we need when reaching out. It s great to remember and celebrate the past, but it s also wonderful to look forward to prepare our hearts for the future and use the blessings that come from God s design. As we look beyond November to the season of the birth of the Almighty, Awesome, Blessed Baby Jesus, may we all rejoice in this Gift and bless others with the news of the Savior as we send cards and messages, celebrate, and proclaim how richly and powerfully God has blessed us all. Philippians 1:3-6 I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. Blessings, Sheila Lutz 3
Giving Tuesday Last year, LWML participated for the first time in Giving Tuesday. The Tuesday after Thanksgiving that is set aside to raise awareness for non-profit and take the focus off the commercialism of Black Friday and Cyber Monday and instead celebrates giving back. In 2016, the LWML members donated $7,140 in one day. This offering was given to the 2015-2017 LWML Mission Goal. This year is especially exciting because an anonymous donor has provided $10,000 in matching funds for this day of giving! This year, Giving Tuesday falls on November 29, 2016. As we celebrate Giving Tuesday as Lutheran Women in Mission, we remember all things are given to us by God, and give with cheerful hearts, with thankfulness and praise to God! There is a Giving Tuesday flier if you want to promote this in your societies. It is available on the LWML Website. It can be printed in color or in grayscale. There are also Giving Tuesday Save the Date bookmarks. These are also on the website and can be printed on cardstock for your members. There are four bookmarks to a sheet. Everyone His Witness Workshop March 11, 2017 Bethel Lutheran Church Morton, Illinois The Everyone His Witness workshop is designed to equip individual believers to be more effective witnesses of Jesus in their everyday lives. It draws on God s Word and the Lutheran Confessions to build a solid foundation for bearing witness of Jesus and provides practical resources for sharing the simple Gospel in today s complex world. Rev. Mark Wood, Director of Witness & Outreach Ministry/Revitalization Office of National Mission--LCMS presents this brand-new workshop. Learn how to LASSIE: Listen, Ask, Seek, Share, Invite, Encourage! SAVE THE DATE! 4 Recycling The CID LWML has been recycling for mites for several years. We are now collecting ink jet cartridges and used cell phones. Previously, we collected laser cartridges, but some of the recycling centers have stopped taking them or have become more selective. Since April 1, 2013, recycling has added $6,361.56 to the Mite account. 75% ($4,771.17) has gone to the mission grants voted for at the district convention. 25% ($1,590.39) has gone to the national mission grants voted on at the national conventions. Every little mite helps spread the Gospel of Christ and helps many people in the world. Contact your zone president about getting these to Nancy Stremming or e- mail her at nstrem2009@gmail.com.
Quilt Making The ladies from Zion Lutheran Church, in Lincoln, Illinois, made over 60 quilts. These quilts will be shipped out soon for Lutheran World Relief. The ladies who worked on this mission project were Donna Sauer, chairman; Shirley Dittus, Helen Maaks, Deanna Jacobs, Patty Klemm, Steffanie Opperman, Lana Goldhammer, Shirley Aukamp, Bev Tally, Wilma Miller, and Joan Heidbreder. Last year there were 9000 quilts that were sent to Nepal to those affected in the terrible earthquake. 2017 National Convention Watch for the special LWML 2017 Convention insert in the winter issue of Lutheran Woman's Quarterly for registration forms, details on speakers, activities, and events. Early discounted registration opens February 1, 2017. Make your plans now for a Diamond Dazzling celebration in Albuquerque, New Mexico, June 22-25, 2017! Congratulations The Young Women s Representatives for the 2017 National Convention are Kimberly Noe of Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church in Galesburg and Stephanie Meats of St. John s Lutheran Church in New Berlin. Please pray for them as they make their plans to attend! Convention Goal Statement: Empowered by the Holy Spirit, through Word and Sacrament, I will proclaim Jesus Christ above all. Convention Objectives -- Each convention attendee will be: Encouraged through worship and Bible study. Equipped to share His message of salvation. Engaged in celebrating God s faithfulness while serving the Lord with gladness. 5
LWML Convention Albuquerque, NM Peoria Charter Bus Schedule(s) Plan A (Hotels en route) June19 th -27 th 2017 Day #1 - Monday, June 19th: Bus #1 departs Champaign, Altamont & Effingham. Bus #2 departs from Peoria, Springfield & possibly Litchfield; our first overnight stop in Joplin, Missouri at the Best Western Oasis. Lunch & Dinner are on your own. Day #2 - Tuesday, June 20th: Continental Breakfast* served at the hotel; our next overnight stay at the Drury Inn & Suites in Amarillo, Texas. Lunch & Dinner are on your own. Day #3 Wednesday, June 21 st : Arrive in Albuquerque; check into convention hotel; Dinner nearby or driver can take to restaurant of choice; (Group reserves & pays for the Driver's room while in Albuquerque at the host hotel) Day #4 - Thursday, June 22 nd through Saturday, June 24th: Depart for your Convention Activities. Driver will transport us back to the hotel after the evening activities. Day #7 - Sunday, June 25th: Depart for your Convention Activities. Get your luggage to the coach before departing for the Convention. We will not be going back to the hotel prior to departing for home. Noon: Journey towards home immediately following convention; overnight stop: Drury Inn & Suites in Amarillo, Texas. Lunch & Dinner are on your own en route. Day #8 - Monday, June 26th: Continental Breakfast* at hotel.; overnight at Joplin, Missouri, Best Western Oasis. Lunch & Dinner will be on your own. Day #9 - Tuesday, June 27th: Continental Breakfast*at the hotel. Drop off points will be the same as pickup points from the previous weeks 4:00 PM Approximate return time to your various drop off locations. Cost Per Person: Single: $835.00 Double: $650.00 Triple: $590.00 Quad: $565.00 Tour Includes: Deluxe Motor Coach Transportation, Professional Driver, Best Western Oasis in Joplin, MO and Drury Inn & Suites in Amarillo, TX Plan B (Driving Straight Through) June 20 th -26 th, 2017 (Day #1 - Tuesday, June 20th: 1:00 PM Same pick-ups as plan A. Driver switch outs made every 600 miles (as per law.) Day #2 - Wednesday, June 21st: 5:00 PM Arrive in Albuquerque same evening plan as plan A 6
Thursday through Saturday: Same as plan A Day #6 - Sunday, June 25th: Morning same as plan A; depart for home from convention center. Drivers are switched every 600 miles Day #7 - Monday, June 26th: 4:00 PM Approximate return time 1 st drop off locations. Cost Per Person: $460.00 Tour Includes: Deluxe Motorcoach Transportation, Professional Driver Other Information If you start out with 2 buses and then consolidate to 1 coach at St. Louis, you'll need to add $100 per person to the above prices. If you feel the Driver has done a good job, it is appropriate to tip him/her. *************************************************************************************** Bus Interest Survey This is not a final commitment to riding a charter bus. Please fill this out if you feel you would be interested in traveling to Albuquerque by bus. You will be contacted later for your commitment. Surveys Deadline: November 15 th New this year: The district charter bus hotels are located outside of the downtown area of Albuquerque. LWML has negotiated special lower rates for charter bus passengers only. There will be a special drop off/pick up area at the convention center for charter buses. As a thanks for using your charter bus as daily shuttles, your district will be given preferred and early housing registration for those riding the charter buses. We will reserve our charter bus housing block. Our district charter bus housing person, Cheryl Garlisch, will receive the form that needs to be completed and the instructions to follow to enter the housing for the charter bus passengers. It is highly recommended that each passenger register for the convention before January 30 to receive the Early Discounted Convention Registration fee of $175 each. The convention registration form will be found in the winter Lutheran Woman s Quarterly or on the LWML website www.lwml.org/conventions. You must follow the standard hotel guidelines for room blocks: four maximum number to a room (fire regulations), each name provided, and a credit card deposit of one person in each room. Final Bus Registration Deadline December 1 st Return the bottom portion to Cheryl Garlisch, 14639 Hyde Dr., San Jose, Il 62682 or cherylgarlisch@yahoo.com Name Phone Address Email Cell Phone I prefer plan A I prefer Plan B # of Roommates (1, 2, or 3) enroute I would be willing to travel to Peoria, Springfield, or Litchfield if only 1 bus is needed to avoid the extra $100 cost Yes No # of Roommates at Convention (1, 2, or 3) I m willing to place my credit cart # on file at the convention hotel Comments: 7
Matthew 5:16 Even though you may not consider yourself a leader, we as Christians are leaders everywhere we go by our actions in everyday life! Think about how we show up at stores when they are out of what we came for or, how about the return desk where they will only give us store credit instead of our money back and what about those sporting events? We ve all seen otherwise sane people turn into their complete opposite cheering (if you want to call it that) for their favorite team! This scripture verse from Matthew 5:16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in Heaven is one of my favorites, especially as a parent, since we are the biggest role model for our children! As leaders, though, you never know who is watching! Many people only know of us, and we don t want them to catch us being so un-christ like to say to themselves, why do I want to go to church and be one of those hypocrites! It has not been revealed to them that we are all sinners in need of repentance! So, as the busy holiday season approaches where we are doing a lot of shopping and attend many more social functions, let s put this verse on a sticky note and place it on our door before leaving for the day and put it to memory! Let it serve as our mantra going forward this day to always be a light to a dark world! God s blessings to you! Michele Clevenger Leader Development Chairman Planning Ahead 2019 National LWML Convention The 38th Biennial Lutheran Women's Missionary League Convention will be held Thursday, June 20-Sunday, June 23, 2019, at the Mobile Convention Center in Mobile, Alabama. This is a change of location and date to what was previously announced for the 2019 LWML Convention. LWML President Patti Ross stated, "We were unable to contract with Birmingham convention officials for a convention that our women could afford. We are disappointed since we looked forward to going to Birmingham, but we are pleased Mobile has stepped forward to work with us." In further news, the LWML Louisiana-Mississippi District has signed on as a third hosting district, joining LWML Gulf States, and LWML Florida-Georgia as the districts hosting the convention in Mobile. President Ross said, "We look forward to the planning of another great convention with the selection of new mission grants, new officers, and inspiration from mission speakers. We encourage everyone to mark their calendars to reserve this date in 2019 and we'll see you in Mobile!" 8
$$$$$ Scholarship for Albuquerque $$$$$ Does your group or church have minority women who would like to attend the convention in Albuquerque? Through a generous gift, 2 women will each be given $1000 in scholarship to attend the convention. We need applicants for this scholarship by November 30 th. The scholarship was given by Hans and Marcia Moll in memory of their daughter, Heidi, who passed away in 2013. Heidi actively worked with refugees and minorities. Please send their names and contact information to President Sheila at sheilalwml@gmail.com. 75 th Anniversary of LWML.........Celebrate! Here s a way to help LWML celebrate her 75 th! Have your society treasurer use the envelope found in the center of the Fall Quarterly to send $75 to the LWML Endowment in honor of the75th Anniversary of LWML! Want to Take the Train To Albuquerque??? Galesburg Illinois to Albuquerque takes about 24 hours (plus delay time.) 1 way coach is $105 (Saver) or $131 (value). Sleeping rooms are $361. These are 1 way prices. Dining cars can be reserved (reservations are automatic for sleepers) Senior (over 62) fares are $105/$111/$241 St. Louis to Albuquerque only lists Value $145 and Sleeper $346 Seniors: $123/$324 Travel time is about 24 hours Jan Bundy, Vice-President Gospel Outreach and Mission Grants presents a check for $25,000 for student aid to church workers to Pastor Miller, President of the Central Illinois District. This is the first grant payment completed for this year. All grant applications for next year are due by December 31 st. The grant application form can be found on the www. lwmlcid.org website. Let s make this next year the 70 th year a great mite-giving year! CID Mission Grants 9
Mission Goal for 2015 2017 Biennium: $2,000,000 Amount Received (all sources): $1,359,059.11 Amount Needed: $640,940.89 Mites and donations may be made through individual Mite Box offerings to societies, zones, districts, PayPal accounts, the LWML website s online donation process, setting up recurring electronic donations through Joyful Response, by calling the LWML office 1.800.252.5965, or mailing your contribution to: LWML, 3558 S. Jefferson Ave., St. Louis, MO, 63118. Our mission grant recipients need your continued prayers, love, and support to meet their ministry goals. In Memory of: Florence M. Harms Florence Harms, one of our past district presidents, went to her heavenly home on Thursday, October 6 th. She was formerly of Holmen, Arcadia, and Rock Island, Illinois. During her lifetime, Florence worked as an office assistant, parish worker, and Lutheran elementary school teacher. She was survived by one son and one daughter and several grandchildren. Florence was always thankful to God for the years of life that He gave to her and the talents He developed for her to use during her service to others. Central Illinois District is indeed thankful for all the years of service she gave to the LWML. Bloomington Zone Rally The Bloomington Zone had a great turnout for their 71 st Annual Fall Rally at Good Shepherd Lutheran in Bloomington. The rally, co-hosted by Good Shepherd in Bloomington and Our Redeemer Lutheran in Bloomington, had over 50 LWML ladies and pastors in attendance. Rev. Mark Miller, CID-LCMS District President, also attended. Everyone enjoyed hearing Pastor Strom, our zone counselor, share about forming mission teams and his recent mission trips to Haiti and Kenya. Gifts from the Heart were donated to the Home Sweet Home Ministries. 10
Champaign Zone News St. Johns Lutheran Church in Champaign celebrated with Pastor Jeff Caithamer his 10 th year anniversary of being in the ministry on Sunday, August 14, between the worship services. He has served 7 of the 10 years at St. Johns. He was ordained at Life of the Valley Lutheran Church in Valley Center, California, where he served for 3 years. He is the CID Champaign Zone LWML Pastoral Counselor. He is pictured with his wife, Katie and their three children, Maggie, Josh, and Lydia. On the right, Jan Bundy, CID 2 nd Vice President, is assisting him with cutting the cake. Historian Betty Central Illinois District History The LWML Central Illinois District will be celebrating 75 years in 2020-2021. I will be posting short fun history facts in each Clarion. Check them out. I hope you enjoy reading them! The first one comes from the 1981 Convention Manual with the author unknown: YOU CAN T BE EVERYWHERE BUT YOU CAN COME CLOSE A woman was asked where she had been and what she had been doing over the past week and weekend, she answered: On Monday, I ministered to Mexicans in southwest Texas. On Tuesday, I was in Brazil preaching the Gospel. On Wednesday, I operated on a man in Africa. On Thursday, I traveled to Japan to teach i9n a mission school. On Friday, I helped establish a church in California. On Saturday, I taught classes in our seminaries. On Sunday, I distributed Bibles in Korea. A friend, thinking her a bit tetched ask her to explain you see, by dropping monies into my mite box every day, and putting my offerings into the mission part of my envelope, I have been able to go to all these places. THIS WOMAN WAS GOING INTO THE WORLD EVEN AS JESUS WOULD HAVE HER GO! WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN OVER THE PAST WEEK AND WEEKEND? 11