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Pull up a chair!

By Rick Godby / August 19, 2019
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Pull up a chair! “The kingdom of God is a bunch of outcasts and oddballs gathered at a table,” Rachel Held Evans wrote, “not because they are rich or worthy or good, but because they are hungry, and because there’s always room for more.” Held Evans, a 37-year-old best-selling Christian author, tragically died this spring […]

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“God’s calling me to something more”

By Rick Godby / July 15, 2019
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“God’s calling me to something more” Brad Alexander has spent the last thirteen years working as a purchasing agent for a company that installs windows, exterior doors, mirrors, and bath accessories for new construction homes. On most Sunday mornings, you can find Brad at Redeemer, Gastonia, where he’s the congregation council president, an adult Sunday […]

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The good things God is doing

By Rick Godby / June 17, 2019
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The good things God is doing Planning an assembly is challenging. What ministry areas need to be highlighted? What do we hope congregations will learn that can be energizing for their own ministries? The recent 2019 NC Synod Assembly was no different. While the assembly theme, Vital Congregations, was lifted up in a variety of […]

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Business hats or prayer shawls

By Rick Godby / May 20, 2019
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Photo: Emily Edwards Business hats or prayer shawls On a Sunday morning last June, shortly after graduating from seminary, Cassie McIntosh Overcash drove from Columbia to Charlotte to preach at a neutral site for the call committee from Grace, Thomasville. She shared, “I stopped for coffee and a chocolate pastry and ate the pastry hastily […]

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Take the next step

By Rick Godby / April 15, 2019
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Take the next step In a quiet coffee shop in Charlotte a group of women gather regularly to play what they refer to as “retirement bridge”; basically bridge for retired people. In between hands, during deals, and at break time, their conversations tend to revolve around books being read by their book clubs, upcoming lectures […]

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“I wouldn’t be who I am…”

By Rick Godby / March 18, 2019
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“I wouldn’t be who, or where, I am today without LYO” The NC Synod’s Lutheran Youth Organization (LYO) has always been committed to equipping leaders for the sake of sharing the Gospel.

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“We didn’t focus on debt…”

By Rick Godby / February 18, 2019
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“We didn’t focus on debt or budgets or guilt” Imagine being called as an associate pastor to a thriving, suburban congregation with a thousand members, an average worship attendance of 300; a congregation with a passion for serving the community and plenty of staff and resources. Then, imagine being called as a solo pastor to […]

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The gifts of all God’s people

By Rick Godby / January 21, 2019
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The gifts of all God’s people It’s been more than 50 years since Martin Luther King, Jr. led the Montgomery Bus Boycott and delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech at the March on Washington. Yet, it doesn’t take long to figure out that we still have lots of work to do. Any scroll through […]

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Collards, chard, and hope

By Catherine Fink / December 18, 2018
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Collards, chard, and hope When Kristy and Don Milholin’s children were in elementary school they noticed several children experiencing food insecurity. Kristy and Don felt called to help make a difference in those children’s lives, and so in August 2009, they started the Out of the Garden Project in their home around the kitchen table. […]

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Serving after the storm

By Catherine Fink / November 19, 2018
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Serving after the storm Hurricane Florence hit the coast of North Carolina on September 14; Hurricane Michael arrived in NC on October 11. Congregations across the synod looked for meaningful ways to serve. The youth at Christ the King, Cary, shared love with St. Paul’s, Wilmington, by making bracelets and writing notes of prayers for […]

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