submitted by Doris Osgood

Prior to their departure the ladies groups at Faith and Messiah helped to pre-assemble craft kits, instruction sheets and music sheets. This week-long craft for 200 children required over 2,000 kits to complete a nativity scene. This was a keepsake for each child to take home at the end of the week.

©2011 Lutheran Women’s Missionary League–Canada

www.lutheranwomen.ca

The Crew: Pat Hanneman, Lois Stasiuk, Barb Stasiuk, Jackie Radke, Judy Williams, and Brenda Seipert.

I am blessed to be working with such a wonderful group of ladies who are eager to help and show God at work through them. Since we started up just last year we have accomplished so much.

Our first fundraiser was a “time and talent” dinner and silent auction. With the proceeds, we were able to help numerous local organizations like our local food bank. Recently we hosted a meal at the Mustard Seed. It is a local organization that thrives solely on donations and grants. It provides meals, supplies, resources, Bibles, ministry and much more to the needy of Edmonton’s inner city. God has always brought

Paddle faster!!! Jackie Radke, Pat Hanneman and Anita Hanneman have a little fun.

me back there to serve so I suggested at a meeting that perhaps we might host a meal. I was really moved by how all the LWMLC ladies got on board to make it happen. With the help of the Lord and these ladies, we were able to provide 300 servings of chili, salad and a bun. I am looking forward to our next fundraiser in the summer to see what other great things we can accomplish in Jesus’ name.

For those small churches thinking about starting an LWMLC branch, stop thinking and just do it. The Lord will use you to accomplish things you never expected to do.

by Anita Hanneman

©2011 LWML-Canada

www.lutheranwomen.ca

Marion Hollinger, VP Communication

Prayer for Monday, December 5

Heavenly Father as we begin the Advent Season be with us. Help us to focus on the coming birth of Jesus. Please help us to share the Christmas message with those we work with, our families and neighbours gracefully and in confidence with our words and actions. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Devotion – December 2011 – print

When the LWMLC society was started at our church, I was worried about the effectiveness of the organization at our church level. With so few of us volunteering our time to participate in this group, I thought it would be more of a monthly social gathering for us women, with not much coming out of it. I quickly learned how wrong I was. I am blessed to be working with such a wonderful group of ladies who are eager to help and show God’s work through them.
Since we began, just last year, we have accomplished so much. Our first fundraiser was a “time and talent” dinner and silent auction. With the proceeds we were able to help out numerous local organizations like our local food bank.
Recently we hosted a meal at the Mustard Seed. It is a local organization that thrives solely on donations and grants. It provides meals, supplies, resources, Bibles, ministry and much more to the needy of Edmonton’s inner city. God has always brought me, personally, be back to serve there and so I mentioned at a meeting that maybe we could host a meal. I was really moved by how all the LWMLC ladies got on board to make it happen. With the help of the Lord and these ladies, we were able to provide 300 servings of chili, salad and a bun.
I am looking forward to our next fundraiser in the summer to see what other great things we can accomplish in Jesus’ name.
For those small churches thinking about starting an LWMLC society, stop thinking and just do it. The Lord will use you to accomplish things you never expected to do.
Anita Hanneman
Bethany Lutheran Church LWMLC member

Sundaes in the fellowship hall

Sundaes and decision-making…how can they fit together? The South Alberta Zone of LWMLC found a way.

Twenty-seven ladies gathered on Friday evening, September 23 and began a fall workshop and seminar with Divine Service with Holy Communion led by Rev. Jim Lindemann, zone pastoral counsellor, and Rev. David Bode, pastor of the host congregation, Foothills Lutheran Church, Calgary. Worship was followed by a business meeting and a social evening featuring ice cream sundaes.

Bright and early Saturday morning they gathered again, this time for a seminar on decision-making, “Good Lord, What Do I Do? God’s direction, your decisions.” Sessions were presented by four societies: Foothills, Calgary; St. Paul, Medicine Hat; Grace, Calgary; and Faith, Cardston. Topics covered were: 1) Good Lord, what am I facing?, 2) Good Lord, where do I turn?, 3) Good Lord, now what?, 4) Good Lord, who do I help?

The ladies found the seminar a rewarding and inspiring day filled with lively conversations and meaningful insights. If this seminar is being hosted in your area they would encourage you to participate.

from a report by Marilyn Harrison

©2011 LWML–Canada

Visit us at www.lutheranwomen.ca

Devotion for October 2011

This Little Light of Mine was written by Harry Dixon Loes (1892-1965) in about 1920. Harry Loes studied at the Moody Bible Institute and the American Conservatory of Music.
Verse 1:
This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine;
This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine;
This little light of mine,  I’m gonna let it shine,
Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine.
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.
This passage is from Jesus’ Sermon of the Mount where He tells us we are the light in this world. We witness when we do good works for the people of this world to see. Luther expressed it this way, “Shining is the real job of believing or teaching, by which we also help others to believe.”
Verse 2:
Hide it under a bushel? No! I’m gonna let it shine
Hide it under a bushel? No! I’m gonna let it shine
Hide it under a bushel? No! I’m gonna let it shine
Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine.
Luke 11:33 – No one after lighting a lamp puts it in a cellar or under a basket, but on a stand, so that those who enter may see the light.
Matthew 5:14-15 – You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house.
Some sources refer to the basket as a bushel. The best use of a light is for it to be high, allowing for the light to illumine a larger area. The Lutheran Study Bible says, “Just as there is no hiding the light of a city on a hill, the light of a true disciple cannot be hidden.”
Verse 3:
Don’t let Satan blow it out, I’m gonna let it shine
Don’t let Satan blow it out, I’m gonna let it shine
Don’t let Satan blow it out, I’m gonna let it shine
Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine.
1 Peter 5:8-9a – Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith.
We should rely on God’s Word so we can fend off Satan. So hang on tight to the light of God’s word.

We Pray
Dear Heavenly Father.  May each of us here let the light of Jesus shine through our lives. Help each of us to remember that we should carry the light of Christ to those with whom we come in contact, throughout our daily life. We give you thanks for this day and all the blessings You have bestowed on us. Grant us a peaceful night’s rest, that we may awaken refreshed to continue in the tasks we have been brought together to accomplish, all to Your glory. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Shine Activity
Hang onto the Light of the world and let His light shine through you to those around you.

by Gloria Meyer

Prepared by the Christian Growth Committee
© 2011 LWML–Canada

Part of the group working on this special project.

ACTIVITY AND ENTHUSIASM for mission projects always hums in our LWMLC/Mary Martha society at Christ Lutheran Church, St. Catharines, Ontario, and over the years the group has excelled in offering diverse mission opportunities.
Recently some members of our group found extra time on Monday mornings for our sisters in Haiti. We were aware that the next Haiti Lutheran Mission Society (HLMS) container shipment was being sent in May 2011 and there was room for more goods. After some discussion at our regular LWMLC meeting of what we might be able to do, particularly for women, here is what we came up with…a ‘Pad Party’! We decided to make sanitary napkins that could be washed and re-used.
We anticipate this project will help with the following…

•    Young girls will not have to miss school one week every month, something which systematically causes educational disadvantages for women and girls.
•    Women who work will not be confined to home one week a month.
•    The health clinic can have a supply for post-partum moms or for other gynecological reasons.
Erna McBride (LWMLC member and also a board member of the HLMS), put out the word that we needed flannelette, cotton batting (this is also used in quilting) and hospital-grade plastic barrier fabric. She also organized our workdays and made us lunch each time we met.
We searched for an existing pattern but, after some trial and error, Gloria Meyer (our quilting expert) came up with a design that is serviceable, has very little waste after cutting and should wear well in spite of repeated use.
We are making these ‘unmentionables’ from cotton flannel with absorbent fill and a moisture barrier built into the centre.  The top layers are quilted, the barrier is attached to the bottom layer, and they have WINGS, making the pad attachable to undies by Velcro. And it folds up into a neat little package to tuck into a pocket or bag.
Two pads were packed into a small Ziploc bag with one new pair of underwear. We added a size label to the bag in French and in English. So far, after five meetings of 4-5 hours each, we have completed 150 bags (300 pads).
And we have a larger idea in mind. We hope the women in Haiti (and/or in our other missions like  Nicaragua or Mozambique) might find they can make and sell these items themselves. It has great potential as a cottage industry.
We know there are other women across Canada who might be interested in making these pads for Haiti, but, for now, we will wait until the contents of the shipping container are received and the women have an opportunity to try out what we have sent. Our part in Canada may be helping to supply or provide the money to purchase the needed materials.
Here at home we are used to disposable feminine products, but even in North America, some women are finding that re-usable = less landfill = planet-friendly!

by Julie Whittard

© LWML-Canada 2011

Linda Horton, president of Grace LWMLC, Calary, and Jacque Hagen, also a member of Grace LWMLC and historian for the South Alberta Zone, sew torn strips together in preparation for rolling.

Making bandages from donated sheets for medical missions at Lutheran Hospitals in the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Malappuram Welfare Centre in Kerala, India, and many Bible translators in New Guinea and Africa, was the main event at the South Alberta Zone LWMLC spring rally last April. Home Hardware trucks transported the result to Canadian Lutheran World Relief (CLWR) in Winnipeg without cost.
The rest of the day’s program included Bible study, Divine Service with Holy Communion and guest speaker Jina Jorgensen. Jina’s topic was “Using Your Gifts.” An ingathering for Neighbourhood Link collected “Gifts for Gals”…gift bags for low-income moms.

Marilyn Harrison, Public Relations, SA Zone

www.abc-lwml.ca

© LWML–Canada

Visit us at www.lutheranwomen.ca

Dr. Mary Hilgendorf

Esther Moments: Women’s Ways of Leading is the topic to be presented by keynote speaker, Dr. Mary Hilgendorf at the seminar “Chosen Servants Shine Like Stars.” Have you registered yet? There are only a few spaces left. Star of the North Retreat Centre in St. Albert, Alberta, just outside Edmonton has room for 72. We hope you will be one of them.

Dr. Hilgendorf is Professor of Education and Ambassador to the Women’s Leadership Institute at Concordia University Wisconsin. A frequent speaker at women’s conferences and educational seminars, she is very enthusiastic about providing educational opportunities for women to grow in their unique gifts of leadership. Mary believes we can make a difference as we encourage and equip women for Christian leadership in service to Christ in the church and the world.

LWML–Canada is privileged to prepare this seminar and to host any woman of Lutheran Church–Canada who desires to attend…until space runs out. Register quickly so you don’t miss out.

The seminar will begin with registration at 3:00 p.m. and dinner at 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, October 27 and end after an 8:45 a.m. worship service on Sunday, October 30. Only $195 is required to cover the cost of accommodation, meals, materials and presenters. For more details contact Judy Grande at 306-205-4497 or president@lutheranwomen.ca. To register contact Linda Horton at treasurer@lutheranwomen.ca.

©2010 LWML–Canada

Visit us at www.lutheranwomen.ca