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Events Calendar has been updated with all of Dr. Lambs travels in the coming months. Check it out to see if he will be in your area soon! Planning an event? The LFL speakers bureau has a number of qualified life-affirming speakers ready to come to your area! |
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FORUM: If you have a local event you would like added to the calendar, email jrichard@lutheransforlife.org for instructions. |
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Conference 2012 Recap:ITASCA, ILLINOIS – Equipping the Saints For Life was the theme as over 200 Lutherans gathered August 3-4 near Chicago, from across the United States, for the 2012 Lutherans For Life National Conference. In her welcoming address to conference attendees, President Diane Schroeder said, “Whether we save a million lives or only one, we know that what we do serves the Giver of Life and what we do makes a difference! … [W]hat Lutherans For Life is equipped with, that matters the most, is being equipped with the Word of God. For we know God’s Word is the most powerful weapon we have to meet the challenge of our time and save lives … Let’s go forward with joy and anticipation, eagerly embracing the opportunities God will give us to make a difference.” Rev. Ken Klaus, speaker emeritus of The Lutheran Hour, said in his Friday night keynote address, “God stands solid and steadfast against anyone who would deprive the innocent of their rights—including the right to life … You have come here this weekend to say, ‘Lord, count me in as one of Your faithful servants. Use me to take a stand for life; use me to speak for those who are silent; use me to educate those who are misinformed; use me to bring comfort and direction to those who are confused and frightened; lend my strength to those who are weak. Dear Lord, use me so Satan may be forced to confess, ‘I almost succeeded in destroying a life, but I didn’t.’ You have come here to take a stand and in doing so you have been joined with 20 centuries of Christians who have, in their time, proclaimed the transforming power of the Redeemer … this is our time, our moment to tell those around us, those who are coming after us: the Risen Savior values you, your unborn, your voiceless and your elderly; He has died for you, your friends, and your enemies and He has risen so all sinful humanity might have the forgiveness and salvation He freely offers. Today we come together in convention to be recommitted to speaking on behalf of those who cannot speak for themselves. That is the purpose to which the Redeemer has called us.” In her Saturday plenary address, Carol Tobias, president of the National Right to Life Committee, thanked the attendees for spending time learning ways to help “people we will never see … you have heard the call of the helpless.” She highlighted Deuteronomy 31 in her call to be courageous in taking a stand For Life. “We need to be training the ‘Joshuas’ … the battle is going to be fierce.” Mrs. Tobias reminded the conference that “abortion is the least regulated invasive procedure in the country … an irreversible procedure … 55,000,000 babies have lost their lives in this holocaust.” In closing, she referenced Galatians 6:9 (“And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up”) by asking for prayer for both those in the pro-life movement and for those who promote and provide abortion. Rev. Dr. James I. Lamb, LFL executive director, in his opening worship sermon, focused on Ephesians 6:10-20. “When you read through this text, it is easy to think that it’s all about us. We need to be strong, we need to put on God’s armor, we need to take a stand against the devil, we need to pray, we need to boldly proclaim the Gospel. If we do all this then we will win the victory. We can quickly fall into that kind of thinking when it comes to this For Life battle we are in. If we just elect the right people, if we just pass the right laws, if we just get the right judge, if we just get the right constitutional amendments then we will win the victory For Life … It’s not about us. It’s all about God. It’s all about God equipping us with His strength … You know what that means? We have no excuses to offer for not being engaged in this spiritual wrestling match for truth and for life … . You can’t pull a Moses and say, ‘I can’t speak so awful good.’ You can’t pull a Gideon and say, ‘I am the least in my family.’ You can’t pull an Elijah and say, ‘Everyone is against me.’ You can’t pull a Saul and say ‘Goliath is too big.’ You can’t pull a Paul and say, ‘But I used to be such a rotten sinner.’ We have no excuse, because it’s not about us and our power. It’s all about God and His power, the strength of His might. It’s all about God and His power at work in us. It’s all about God and His power being perfected in our weakness … It’s all about Jesus. It’s all about God. He equips you with His armor. And this armor, as precious as it is, does not come to us with fanfare and flourish, but in rather simple and ordinary ways—some ink on page, water in a font, wine in a chalice and cardboard-tasting wafers on a little plate.” Dr. Lamb also shared that we are in a spiritual battle with Satan who is attacking, through various means, God’s truth, our faith, God’s plan for marriage, God’s plan for purity, God’s plan for human sexuality, God’s gift of life and the value He gives to life. “You don’t have to travel to some foreign battlefield. Satan attacks you, your congregation, your fellow Christians right where you are, right there by your section of the wall. Daily, as we wrestle and struggle and battle against these attacks we each need to be equipped with God’s strength and with God’s armor.” “And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ” (Ephesians 4:11-12 ESV). |
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Resources: This year the conference had a special emphasis on Equipping the Saints for life. Renewal For Life focuses on just that. Reverend Merkey from Churches For Life presented to RFL pastors and Life Advocates offering encouragement and resources to be a Gospel-driven Life Team. We had pastors, Life Team Leaders, state presidents, Lutheran church body presidents participate in the Friday afternoon training. You can view a number of the speakers on the RFL site. Click on the What Is Renewal For Life at the top of the Main Page/Life Team Training list on Left/ Online Workshops. Here is a list of what is available for free download: “All Is Well”, Reverend Ken Klaus with the Lutheran Hour “It’s All About God”, Dr. James Lamb: “Encouraging the Shepherds” Dr. Lamb brought encouragement to pastors during the Friday pastor’s luncheon. “Answering the Call of the Helpless”, Carol Tobias is president of National Right to Life. “Equipping with Renewal For Life”, Reverend Doug Merkey president of Churches For Life.
If you would like a copy of ALL the conference workshops, you can purchase a copy by clicking HERE for the order form. LFL has produced two new videos with Bible studies included: Handiwork of God: The value of human life comes from what God has done and continues to do! Life is His handiwork! He creates life with His hands. He redeemed life with His hands. He desires to call and hold each life in His hands. Understanding these answers gives us a positive, Trinitarian foundation for dealing with the life issues. Rflonline.org/creation/audio and visual/handiwork of God Both Leader and student guides can be downloaded on the RFL site. The Other End of Life,” with Rev. Dr. James I. Lamb, takes a look at end-of-life issues. Project Ideas for Life Teams: The Renewal For Life site has a number of project ideas for your Life Team. Click here to learn more. If your LifeTeam has a project idea you would like to share, please visit the FORUM – and join the Life Advocate group to connect and share with other LFL Life Teams! |
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Life Team Training through Churches For Life: If your congregation is interested in participating in in-depth, Gospel-centered training, both for Life Advocates, and Life Teams, please contact jrichard@lutheransforlife.org for more information, or visit the Renewal For Life site at What is Renewal For Life/Life Team Training/Churches for Life. |
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Links: Word of Hope – LFL’s post-abortion ministry, which offers confidential, post-abortion referral, counseling, and reconciliation. Links to “Life Quotes” and “Life Thoughts” can also be found on the Renewal For Life home page. |
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Past issues of the Paraclete can be found on the RFL site in the Life Advocate Training section. |
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RFL Team: Jerilyn Richard Kim Nessa |
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September 29, 2012
