Stephen Ministry - A Light In the Darkness

To play the audio, just click the play button above at left.  To download, click the "Light in the Darkness" title in yellow in the box above, which will take you to a site where you can down load it as an mp3 file.  If you see no image above or the audio will not play, click here for audio. 

This is an exciting week in the life of our congregation.  This Sunday, we will commission a new class of Stephen Ministers for service in our community.  We are lifting up Stephen Ministry - here in our community Stephen Ministers shine light in the darkness for people in need of care.

In today's podcast, Pastors Bob and Brett are joined by Melinda Simmons, a Muhlenberg member. Melinda shares as we discuss Stephen Ministry - a one-on-one caring ministry that shines light for people in the darkness of any transition, loss, or need... We thank Melinda for sharing her unique perspective of both receiving transformative care as she received care from a Stephen Minister a few years ago, and now, she is trained as a Stephen Minister herself who will be commissioned this Sunday!  It's powerful to hear her story and her witness to the transformative way in which God is at work through Stephen ministry - a caring, confidential, one-on-one relationship between a trained caregiver and a care receiver.
Listen to the podcast above, and then here's what you can do:

• Keep our Stephen Ministry caregivers, leaders, and care receivers in your prayers
• Keep in mind that Stephen Ministry is here - recommend it to a friend or family member who may be helped by Stephen ministry - or reach out for yourself.  It's not just for Muhlenberg members - this is a service (without charge) for our community!
• To get in touch with Stephen Ministry, contact either Pastor Bob or Pastor Brett or Stephen Leaders - Holly Haney or Krisztina Szekely.
• Stephen Ministers are trained to care for people in a variety of life situations, and to know their boundaries and refer to other sources of care when necessary.  Keep in mind that a Stephen Minister may be a great help for anyone who is going through any type of loss (divorce, grief, loss of a job) or transition (of life stage, work, other), as well as many other situations where a caring, listening presence might be helpful.
• Be open to listening for God's call - are you called to serve as a Stephen Minister or leader?
• Learn more:
• Click here to learn more about Stephen Ministry.
• Click here for a great PBS segment on Stephen Ministry.  From this interview:  "It took a while for people to say, instead of 'I need to speak to the pastor,' to also say, 'Or can I have a Stephen minister?' And that’s a cultural shift, but it did occur, and we’re grateful it did. That old Lutheran concept of the priesthood of all believers—Stephen Ministry helps you live that out." 

Light in the Darkness - Hunger - at home and around the world

To play the audio, just click the play button above at left.  To download, click the "Light in the Darkness" title in yellow in the box above, which will take you to a site where you can down load it as an mp3 file.  If you see no image above or the audio will not play, click here for audio.


When you think of hunger, what images come to mind?  Who comes to mind?
In this week's podcast, we hear from Barbra Humphrey, who shares the experience of their recent trip to Kinshasa, a city in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.  Listen in as she and Bob describe the experience and some images of the reality of hunger.

Food at Patchwork Pantry.

In worship this Sunday we'll be lifting up two efforts to fight hunger - locally, Patchwork Pantry, a food Click here to learn more about them or connect with them on Facebook.  Hunger is not just a "third world" issue but the story of neighbors right in our community.  Recent weeks at Patchwork Pantry have seen over 100 families coming to receive food - that's a lot!
pantry housed at Community Mennonite, which is where we bring our food collected on the first Sunday of each month. 
Globally, we'll be lifting up ELCA World Hunger.  Through churches, partners, and local relationships, ELCA World Hunger is seeking to address root causes of hunger and poverty and also provide food, education, and resources, here in the US as well as in 50 countries around the world.  We thank you for the generous ways you give and shine the light in the darkness through these organizations.  Last Sunday, we collected as a congregation about 600 pounds of food for Patchwork Pantry!  Through your gifts to world hunger, every dollar goes further to fight hunger for our brothers and sisters around the world.

Lutheran World Relief - A light in the darkness

To play the audio, just click the play button above at left.  To download, click the "Light in the Darkness" title in yellow in the box above, which will take you to a site where you can down load it as an mp3 file.  If you see no image above or the audio will not play, click here for audio.
When disaster strikes our brothers and sisters across the world, how can we respond?
When we seek to create sustainable development and relief from hunger and cycles of poverty, how can we unite to do this?


The answer is Lutheran World Relief.  LWR is the way we at Muhlenberg are connected with other Lutherans around the world in making God's promises of abundant life real.  This happens in tangible ways - in responding to disaster, in sustainable development, education, quilts, health kits, and other tangible support. 


Listen in to this week's podcast, featuring a very special guest, Kristin Vought, program associate for external relations at LWR.  She shares an overview of the ways LWR shines light and good news all over the world, and also a couple powerful personal stories of people's lives transformed!  We were so glad to have Kristin join us - she was glad to bring her greetings to Muhlenberg, and remembers you all fondly as home!


Thank you for the ways you, as Muhlenberg, joining with so many others, have responded in love.  An example is the recent response of Muhlenberg through LWR to Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines. 



Our local emphasis this week is a little-known way we are able to provide critical relief for members of our congregation - the pastors' discretionary fund.  Check out this week's Chimes newsletter for more!

People Helping People & the Malaria Project - A Light in the Darkness

To play the audio, just click the play button above at left.  To download, click the "Light in the Darkness" title in yellow in the box above, which will take you to a site where you can down load it as an mp3 file.  If you see no image above or the audio will not play, click here for audio.


Give a listen to this week's inspiring conversation, in which Jackie Wells, director of People Helping People, tells us about their ministry.  She introduces us to some of our neighbors, not by name but by their situations - folks who we may not think of - but are in need right in our community.


Did you know that People Helping People helps with everything from water bills to referrals for other types of support to little but such important things as IDs and eyeglasses?  Did you know that People Helping People has received about 200 people per month on average who are seeking help and listened to each one's story with care and compassion?  Did you know that PHP is entirely volunteer?  People Helping People does all this from a small office space right here at Muhlenberg's MAC, every Monday through Thursday, 9-11:30.  Click here to check out their website and learn more - including how to help!


The other ministry we're lifting up this week is the ELCA Malaria Project.  While it may seem at first that these have little in common, as the Malaria Project is working to eradicate malaria in Africa through education, community resourcing, and direct support through medicine, mosquito nets, and medical support.  But these two have something in common - a ministry that seeks to provide basic health needs - People Helping People provides help with prescriptions, clinic memberships, and transportation to doctors' visits.


Here at Muhlenberg, we've supported the Malaria Campaign through the work of the social ministry team - you remember campaigns and meals to raise money for mosquito nets!  Check out this brief video below, "60 Seconds" - Malaria is completely preventable and treatable - we can make a difference here!  See this amazing short video below about the difference ELCA Malaria Campaign is making on the ground.

Wellspring of Grace - Our vision for ministry at Muhlenberg!

To play the audio, just click the play button above at left.  To download, click the "Wellspring of Grace" title in yellow in the box above, which will take you to a site where you can down load it as an mp3 file.  If you see no image above or the audio will not play, click here for audio.

Today's podcast is live from the 2014 Council Retreat!  
Pastors Bob and Brett describe the vision - Muhlenberg as a Wellspring of God's Grace - how it came to be, where God is leading us as a congregation, and how this vision will shape ministry. 

We explain the four "marks" of that wellspring vision - Open, Authentic, Relational, and Serving. 
How is God calling you and us to live out our baptism by being open, authentic, relational, and serving?
Listen in, give us your feedback, and join us in mission in ministry in making this truly a wellspring of God's grace.

Light In the Darkness - Second Home

To play the audio, just click the play button above at left.  To download, click the "Light in the Darkness" title in yellow in the box above, which will take you to a site where you can down load it as an mp3 file.  If you see no image above or the audio will not play, click here for audio.

In this new podcast series for the season after Epiphany before Lent begins in early March, we're exploring the theme of Christ who is and reveals the light in the darkness.  Each week in worship at Muhlenberg we'll be lifting up one local and one global way we're as the body of Christ shining light in the darkness of the many challenges we face in our world - poverty, inequality, hunger, strife, illness, et cetera.  
Each week's podcast will feature a discussion with someone from or related to one of these organizations, and together we'll be honest about the darkness - the challenges we face - and proclaim the light - the ways in which through love and serving our neighbors, this darkness is overcome.

This week, we're lifting up Second Home, an outreach ministry of Muhlenberg, and talking to Second Home director, Patty Sensabaugh.  Push play above to listen!

Many families in our community struggle to make ends meet, working long shift hours that literally involve the darkness - leaving before the sun is up in the morning, and returning after dark in the evening. Second Home was formed in 2007 as an outreach ministry of Muhlenberg in response to the need for quality care that families could truly afford.  

Second Home is based in our own MAC building each morning and afternoon during the week! Since Second Home's beginning, families have seen improvement in grades and attendance, decreased truancy rates and enthusiasm is high! What a light for families in our community!  You can click here for the website, or here for their Facebook page for more information!


This week in worship, we'll also be lifting up a global way we're connected and serve, the Rwamagana Lutheran School.  The Rwanda School Project is a light in the darkness, a part of a future of hope being built in a country torn by so much disaster. 

In agreement with the Lutheran Church of Rwanda, the Rwanda School Project started a Junior-Senior High School in eastern Rwanda in 2010 with a curriculum that focuses on sustainability. 

Muhlenberg's own Robin Strickler, an ELCA missionary, is the founder of the school and currently serves there as head of staff.  If you explore their Facebook page, you might even see some other familiar faces of Muhlenbergers, like Jean!  
Read more about the school on their website or Facebook page and see and read the story of one of the students we support in the Gathering Area this Sunday!

Next week we'll be back to explore other ways we're shining light.  Where are you seeing light in the darkness of the challenges of life this week?

Advent 4 - Love All

To play the audio, just click the play button above at left.  To download, click the "Advent 4" title in yellow in the box above, which will take you to a site where you can down load it as an mp3 file.  If you see no image above or the audio will not play, click here for audio.

So - love all.  This last theme of the Advent conspiracy seems pretty simple on the surface, doesn't it?  But let's be honest.  It's probably the hardest to really live out.  Love itself is a big enough topic - but then when the invitation and challenge is to love all - we've got a tall order on our hands.

Who is the hardest person for you to love today?  Is it someone you know or not?

Is it harder for you to love when you don't feel loved?

The radical, groundbreaking nature of Christ is that in his ministry, teachings, and life, we know that all is truly the intent.  Jesus sought to love and reach out to those at the margins.  The coming of God in Jesus means John 3:16 but also John 3:17 - "for Christ did not come to condemn the world, but that the whole world (kosmos) might have eternal life."  As Christians, reflecting Christ's love, then, the invitation is not to let any barrier stop us - of social status, race, age, class, gender, conflict, disagreement, politics, past, but simply to love ALL.  The challenge is to live it out.
In Galatians 5 we read about the hope and waiting we live out in Advent, and the fact that in Christ no label or division can keep us, but only love:

⁵ For through the Spirit, by faith, we eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness.  ⁶ For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything; the only thing that counts is faith working through love.

At the end of today's podcast, we're giving you a brief preview of where we're headed.  This podcast/blog will go on hiatus for a couple weeks and pick up mid-January, for the Epiphany season.  Listen to today's podcast and stay tuned for what's ahead!