At home in any land

By -
2017 Travelers (L to R) Matt, Bobbie, Kirsten, Pastor Rick, Andrew, Christina, Isabella, Lydia

Last week in worship, the travelers were commissioned.

Pastor Duane: During the month of July, eight people will represent Shepherd of the Valley as we work shoulder to shoulder with our brothers and sisters in the Tungamalenga, Makifu, and Usolanga parishes.

Pastor Randy: These travelers are not going for vacation time, but they will grow in Christ’s love, serve in Christ’s name, see Jesus in others, and experience God’s presence and power. Mission trip participants, listen to a reading from First Peter that gives you a task and purpose for your journey:  “Love each other deeply... and share with each other without complaining. Each of you has received a gift to use to serve others… Anyone who speaks should speak words from God. Anyone who serves should serve with the strength God gives so that in everything God will be praised.”  (I Peter 4:8-11, New Century Version)

Pastor Duane: Travelers, will you accept the task to love, serve, and speak in Jesus’ name with the strength that God provides? If so answer: I will and I ask God to help me.

Will you be the hands and feet of Jesus Christ, serving while you work and while you play, on this trip and in your daily life? If so answer: I will and I ask God to help me.

Will you graciously accept the gifts that our brothers and sisters bring and tell stories of God’s mighty actions when you return? If so answer: I will and I ask God to help me.

May Almighty God, who has given you the will to do these things, give you the strength and compassion to perform them. Amen.

(To the congregation) And I ask you, as members of this community of faith: Will you support and pray for these servants of Christ, listen to their stories, and celebrate what God is doing through our Tanzania partnership? If so answer: We will.

I invite the congregation to extend a hand in blessing as we pray.

Almighty God, by the power of the Spirit you have knit these your servants into the one body of your Son, Jesus Christ. Look with favor upon them in their commitment to serve in Christ’s name.
Grant these travelers the strength to carry your blessing from this place to the next, and may they be at home in any land, for all the earth is yours. Strengthen us all in our Christian vocation of witness to the world and of service to others; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Idodi Secondary School

By -
Image
July 10, 2017 On Monday we headed out to Tungamalenga and Makifu parishes, ready to be offline for the next eight days.  Our first stop was at Idodi Secondary School.  Idodi is the first village we come to in the parish, and we have about 75 students attending the secondary school. Headmaster Christopher Mwasomola welcomed us to his office for an introduction and update. He said that Idodi is known as a community school -- the infrastructure is built by the community (in this case, heavily supported by a group known as Friends of Ruaha) and teachers are provided by the government.  Fun fact: the Friends of Ruaha at one point received a donation from Roy Disney, whose name is included on the dedication plaque for the school's library. The school was registered in 1999 and has 889 students, 437 girls and 452 boys. There are 41 teachers. The government supports salaries, books, lab equipment, desks, and other basic supplies. There are 11 non teaching staff, wi...
Read more

Safari 2013: the journey of a lifetime

By -
Image
Safari in Swahili means journey. We'd like you to consider taking the journey of a lifetime with other Shepherd of the Valley members next summer.  For two weeks in August, you could be ambassadors from our congregation living among and getting to know our partners from Tungamalenga Parish. What's a journey like this look like? We'll fly from Minneapolis to Amsterdam, then Amsterdam to Dar es Salaam with a short stopover at Kilimanjaro (alas, it will be dark and we don't get off the plane at Kili). That's about 24 hours from start to finish, with a four hour layover in Amsterdam. Arriving at the Landmark Hotel just before midnight, we get a good night's sleep in Dar before the eight to ten hour cross country bus ride to Iringa. notice the US and Tanzanian flags on the dashboard of the bus?   Highlights of that cross country ride include driving about 100 kilimeters of the way through Mikumi National Park -- and if we're lucky, we'l...
Read more

Karibuni sana

By -
Image
Pastor Naftal & Anjelina Ng'amillo In just a couple short weeks, we will be hosting guests from Tanzania. Pastor Naftal and Anjelina Ng'amillo from Tungamalenga Parish, along with Dr Mufwimi and Dora Saga from the Ilula Lutheran Hospital, will arrive in Minnesota October 21 for a stay of just over two weeks. What better way to welcome them than to learn a few words in their language? Karibu sana or, if you are addressing more than one person, Karibuni sana , means "we warmly welcome you." It's pronounced like this: KAH ree boo SAH nah or KAH ree boo nee SAH nah. Jambo means "hello." Another greeting is Habari, which is more like "how are you," to which a Tanzanian might respond Nzuri [good], Salama [peace], or Njema [fine, well, good] and then they might add, Habari yako [and how are you?]. When Tanzanians are in a gathering, like at church or at a meeting, and they rise to speak to the assembly, they almost always start by say...
Read more