t h e P r e s i d e n t ’ s T h o u g h t s . . .

Brothers and Sisters in Christ, fall is here and as I travel across the country for my job I am blessed to see the beautiful change in colors throughout the landscape.

When landing in a new city, I often stretch to peek outside the window to get a glimpse of what stage the fall colors are in.

In some cities, peak season has come and gone and in other cities the colors are just be-ginning to show. Sometimes I wish peak sea-son would stick around longer than just a week or two.

Traveling to Massachusetts frequently, which is where I am now, allows me to see the fall colors as a true gift from God—especially on a sunny day.

I’ve been told that the beautiful maple tree out-side my client’s office in Boston has been there for over 100 years. This tree is amazing! It stands majestic year round and in the fall the leaves burst with red, orange and yellow leaves that will just take your breath away.

I find my faith is often like the fall season. Sometimes I feel as if I am at my peak and other times I feel as my faith is like a brown leaf just barely hanging on to the branch before it falls to the ground. Change is inevitable and there are times when we feel extremely con-nected to God and other times we wonder if He’s even listening.

One thing we know for sure. God hasn’t moved, we have. In my case, I know I start to feel disconnected from God when I put my needs before those of things God expects of me. I get busy with work, family and things to do around the house that I forget to take time to pray and allow God to speak to me.

A few weeks ago, our new Pastor at Lord of Life Lutheran Church in Clifton, VA, Pastor Nathan Swenson-Reinhold, was talking about prayer. He shared that in most cases we pray in a way that asks God to help us in specific areas of our

life. He challenged us to stop and simply ask God, “What can I do to serve your people?” In other words, we’re asking God to provide us direction in where and how to serve His people.

I have tried to include this in my daily devotions and I have found that God places opportunities and people on my heart that I had not thought about.

We are all called to serve in one way or anoth-er. We just need to open our hearts and minds to the Holy Spirit. We need to listen to what He is calling for us to do.

When I pray in this fashion, I find myself stay-ing more connected to God. Instead of just giving thanks and asking for help in one way or another, ask God to provide guidance as to what He expects of you. You may be surprised at what you find out.

A couple weekends ago my wife, Sherry, and I spent time supporting one of our churches missions called Gracing Spaces. In this pro-gram our church provides all of the furniture, beds, kitchen items, lamps, pictures, toys, etc.… to families who are moving out of a home-less shelter into their own home.

On Saturday afternoon a four-year-old boy grabbed my leg to say; “THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU for bringing me a teddy bear.” This experience was like looking at that old maple tree in front of my client’s office. It was a warmth of thanksgiving to God for providing me the gift of His beauty and grace through tree and a teddy bear.

This Thanksgiving, take time to ask God, “How can I help?” Then be sure to listen to His re-sponse! God loves you and so do I.

Your brother in Christ,

Steve Gielda, President

National Lutheran Secretariat

Fall 2015 Volume 33, Issue 4

Official Publication of the National Lutheran Secretariat, VdC

Connecting National & Local Secretariats

I n s i d e t h i s

i s s u e :

NLS Leadership

Team 2

Our Journey to 2016 3

Pleasant Pauses... 3

How Patient Are You? 4

The Colorful “Show” 4

Documents Belonging In Your Red Book

5

Link Up 5

J u l y 2 1 - 2 4 , 2 0 1 6

NLS Executive Committee

Steve Gielda, President E-mail: sgielda@verizon.net

(c)703-927-4443

Ms. Carol McGill, Secretary Email: mcgill.carol@comcast.net

(h) 303-772-6434 (c) 303-443-0431

Steve Barnett, Vice President of Administration (c) 610-301-9900

E-mail: sgb121266@aol.com

Wendy Showalter, Vice President of Outreach

(h)763-494-9709 (c) 763-229-3185 E-mail: wendysshowalter@gmail.com

Brenda Accola, Treasurer E-mail: baccola@cfl.rr.com

(c) 321-544-3128

Pr. Doug Givan, Spiritual Director E-mail: dgivan@stvincent.org

(c) 317-698-8472

NLS Appointed Positions

Paul Schmidlin, Executive Director Email-execdirector.nls@gmail.com (c) 651-249-7897 (h) 419-356-6363

Diane Purcell, Financial Advisor E-mail: dspurcell@msn.com

(h) 651-459-7249

Carol Reedstrom, Newsletter Editor Email-caroljoy5352@gmail.com

(h) 507-278-3024

Paul Sabatier-Smith, Palanca Coordinator (h) 863-603-9044

E-mail: PaulSS@calledtoaction.com

John Bradford, Distribution Center E-mail: joab@xmission.com

(c) 801-834-8261

Karen Bennefeld, Archivist/Historian E-mail: karen.bennefeld@gmail.com

(c) 559-285-8152

Rick Hanzlik, Web Page Coordinator E-mail: rickh@specialty-art.com

(c) 801-631-4518

Tracy Schmidlin, 2016 Host Committee Co-Chairperson

E-mail: tracy@actsystemsltd.com

Conexiones-on-the-web E-Mail Notification Request Form

E-Mail Notification—execdirector.nls@gmail.com

Please notify me through E-Mail when the latest edition of the Conexiones

has been posted on the NLS Web Page.

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Address:_______________________________________________________

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The CONEXIONES is the official publication of the National Lutheran Secretariat (NLS), a national association of the Via de Cristo, Way of Christ, movement representing over 100,000 people throughout 44 participating affiliates across the United States. Via de Cristo (VdC) is the Lutheran expression of the Cursillo® renewal movement developed within the Roman Catholic

Church in the late 1940’s. The Lutheran VdC movement began in Florida and Iowa in 1972.

The CONEXIONES is published to inform NLS’s affiliated secretariats and members,

Lutheran Bishops, and District Presidents about events and activities of NLS.

Subscriptions to the CONEXIONES are free to affiliated secretariats. If you know of an affiliated secretariat not receiving this publication, please call a member of the board at the numbers listed on this page. Subscriptions to the public are $6.00 annually and can be pur-

chased by calling NLS Treasurer, Brenda Accola, at 321-544-2128.

If you’d like to submit content to the CONEXIONES (news, articles, requests, infor-mation, and address additions/changes...even inspirational bits) send them to the CONEXIONES

Editor at the email address on the left.

Newsletter Deadlines: January 15th, April 15th, August 15th, and November 15th.

Page 2

Our Journey to 2016 #2 The theme

Please join Good News! Via de Cristo, Via de Cristo of Ohio and others from Region 5 next July in Sylvania, Ohio for the Annual Gathering of the National Lutheran Secretariat.

Ephesians 2:10-14 and especially Ephesians 2:13 will be the scripture emphasis during this weekend. The theme: “Reaching the Far Away” comes to us from this scripture and from our history.

Our history tells us of a man of God who prayed for a solution to bringing others closer to Christ, while at the same time bringing people closer to each other. His name? Eduardo Bonin.

July 21-24, 2016

Eduardo is considered to be the founder of Catholic CursilloR. He believed that if we could just reach the far away we could spread the Gospel one person at a time. And so, the Holy Spirit gave Eduardo a “charism” or gift – the dynamics of the weekend, a method to share and a teaching on how to reach those who are far away. We learn that the “far away” can be across the country or the person standing next to you.

We believe that this gift is as valuable today as it was when Eduardo received it and began to teach it.

Mary Doll, part of the Good News community, has written a song for the upcoming weekend and we are excited to share that with you.

We want to feature another song with the theme for 2016 and it has to do with how we stay connected. How we continue to be encouraged; how we “Thrive” – with Joy unspeakable, Faith unsinkable, Love unstoppable – anything is possible. You may want to take time to listen to the Casting Crowns song “Thrive”, as it brings a powerful message to us to carry on! Ultreya!

In case you haven’t heard, the Annual Gathering for 2016 will be held at Lourdes University in Sylvania, Ohio. This is a beau ti-ful, small university within a Catholic, Franciscan Community.

We would be glad to pick you up at Detroit Metro Airport, Toledo Express Airport, Amtrak's Toledo Union Station at Martin Luther King Jr. Plaza in Toledo, Ohio, if you do not want to drive.

Please stay tuned for more information. And if you missed the first news article, please look for it on the NLS website. Questions? Contact us

God Loves You and So Do We! Tracy Schmidlin, Co-chair for 2016 TZVdC@aol.com

P a g e 3 V o l u m e 3 3 , I s s u e 4

A Few Cool & Fun Facts from www.livin3.com

You breathe on average about 5 million times a year.

Months that begin on a Sunday always have a Friday the 13th in them.

A Ten Gallon Hat will only hold 3/4 of a Gallon.

The elephant is the only mammal that can't jump.

11% of the World is left handed.

Coca-Cola would be green if the food colorant wasn't added.

One fourth of the bones in your body are in your feet.

You are born with 300 bones, by the time you are an adult you will have 206.

It takes more calories to eat a piece of celery than the celery has in it.

111,111,111 x 111,111,111 = 12,345,678,987,654,321.

It is against the law to burp, or sneeze inside a church in Nebraska.

Scientists have tracked butterflies travelling over 3,000 miles.

"Almost" is the longest word in the English language with all the letters in alphabetical order.

~ Unknown ~

V o l u m e 3 3 , I s s u e 4 P a g e 4

H o w G o o d A r e Y o u A t W a i t i n g ?

I don’t know about you – but I am not very good at WAITING.

Right now, I am waiting for people from my church to complete

their responsibilities on two large projects … waiting for test

results from a doctor… waiting for girlfriends to agree on our

next outing … waiting for estimates from a carpenter… waiting

for some information to help me better serve as your new Vice

President of Outreach.

My sweet dad used to say that, “When all the little angels were

standing in line to receive their virtues before being born, Wendy

got out of the Patience Line because it was too long.” So now

you know one unattractive little truth about me.

I think this whole idea of waiting goes against what we are natu-

rally and culturally taught. For example, when our natural inclina-

tion is to step on the gas, God is often telling us to hit the

brakes. I wonder if waiting is often difficult because I/we equate

it with inactivity. But waiting, which can also be translated as

hoping, means to wait with expectation - to look forward to. The

implication here is that we are waiting and watching with expec-

tation towards what God is going to do in our lives.

During these periods of waiting, God is often refueling and refin-

ing us for what He has in store. Everything around you needs to

be refueled after use. Your car needs gas, your body needs

sleep and your cell phone needs to be recharged. So, why can’t

this be the case with our spiritual life as well? What may seem

from our perspective like inactivity is often purposeful prepara-

tion from God. Let’s be encouraged that by waiting we will end

up even stronger after the Lord renews us. I pray that, together,

we can wait patiently for His time in all things to come.

Blessed to serve you and our living Lord.

~ Wendy Showalter

The colorful "show" of beautiful trees is ending, so says the weather man. Here in central Indiana we will be getting wind and rain the next couple days and the leaves will come down. It makes me sad because I have loved the "show" and have enjoyed the bright colors of the trees, bushes and even some shrubs. Sometimes it just takes my breath away, they are so beautiful.

Yesterday I went walking around the wooded campus of Wabash College and took lots of pictures. When the sun shines through a tree or behind it the richest colors of gold and yellow can be seen. But, alas, the time changes this coming weekend and we are headed into the month of November....as I write this it's 60 days to Christmas!

But the colorful "show" has been wonderful. I have often thought that there is great spiritual insight with those colors!

* is the color of growth, as God grows us in faith, hope and love

* to me stands for the passion of our hearts to love God and one another ....following our hearts to God's call within!

* for the fire that burns within us, to discovering that "one thing" God would have us do in the world....perhaps we are doing it already

* (doesn't show up on the screen well) for the light of Christ within us shining out

Enjoy what is left of the colors of God's rainbow outside! If you are feeling more gray and dark today, may these colors and the "color" of God's love be with you to encourage you for today. Just for today, know you are enough, you are loved, and you are okay! DECOLORES'

Pr. Doug NLS SD

T h e C o l o r f u l “ S h o w ”

N L S P o i n t s o f I n t e r e s t @

w w w . v i a d e c r i s t o . o r g

Copies of Past Conexiones Newsletters

History of this Glorious Via de Cristo Movement

Links to Via de Cristo Secretariats Across the Country

NLS Messages from The President & Spiritual Director

NLS (National Lutheran Secretariat) vs. VdC (Via de Cristo)

Official NLS /Via de Cristo Information, Materials & Who’s Who

Palanca: Your Secretariat's Contacts & Upcoming Weekend Dates

Videos from Past Key Note Speaker’s, Forums & Worship Services

Written, Historical & Other Resources to Share with Your VdC Secretariat

Articles of Incorporation

State Document declaring corporation

EIN Document

Constitution

By-Laws

501(c)(3) Application

501 (c)(3) Letter from IRS

Annual Corporate State Registration

Tax Return 990’s as filed (or print out of 990-N)

State Annual Charities Report if required

Any government correspondence

All corporation minutes in perpetuity

Annual list of Board Members

Any contracts entered into by the corporation

Documents of assets purchased if capitalized

Retention Policy

Conflict of interest policy

Approved policies of the corporation

Any documents also deemed important

~ Unknown ~

M o r e F i n a n c i a l A d v i c e F o r Y o u r A t t e n t i o n

In the August issue of the Conexiones, I provided you with some mileage, tax and copyright information. I also said I would get

back to you regarding what needs to go into your Secretariat's RED BOOK. Please know that if you need additional information,

feel free to send me an e-mail at dspurcell@msn.com. Thank you, Diane Purcell

As promised, here is the list of items that need to be kept within a Secretariat's RED BOOK.

Page 5

Nature’s best... Thanks be to God!

RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED

Carol J. Reedstrom 19396 552nd Avenue Mankato MN 56001

DATED MATERIAL, PLEASE EXPEDITE

Our Mission Statement: By grace, with the Holy Spirit, we challenge

leaders to discover and achieve their personal calling, assisting them

to influence their environments with the Gospel.