– Debra Porowski 

One of the greatest lessons I learned at a Gathering happened in Detroit, in a small quiet hallway in the Cobo Center. On Friday night while we were walking back from Ford Field back to our buses, I fell and twisted my ankle. By the time I got to the hotel,  my ankle was swollen and bruising. We had our Practice Justice Day the following day.  I knew there was no way I could walk onto a site with them that would require me to be on my feet and working. Maybe we would be assigned something easy that I could do sitting down? Then it hit me. If we got to do something in where I could physically take part, it wasn’t what I knew my kids were looking forward to doing.   

We got our assignment the next morning and sure enough, the kids were going out to the streets of Detroit to fix up and paint houses. There would be power tools, loose boards, and lots of manual labor; nothing I could do on one foot. I hugged each kid goodbye and sent them with my adult leaders out to participate in an experience that would stay with them forever. After a visit to the first aid station and all fixed up with an ace bandage and lots of ice, I found a bench in a quiet hallway in the Cobo Center. As I was sitting there, another adult leader from another church (probably from another state) came up to me and asked me what I was doing. I explained that my youth were off having this amazing day and I was sitting there. The adult leader asked if she could pray with me. It was the most beautiful thing anyone could have done for me in that moment.

I sat and cried while she prayed for my youth—for their safety and for blessings on the work they were doing. She also prayed for me, for healing, for strength for my ankle, and for my broken heart.  

I learned a huge lesson that day. As adults we accompany the youth to the Gathering and we are ultimately there to support them in their faith journey.  My youth experienced God in the houses they fixed and painted, and I experienced God in the hallway.  

In 2018, I am happy to be serving as a Synod Gathering Coordinator to help other adults to find the balance between the responsibilities and the rewards of the Gathering.

If you approach your role with faith and a little flexibility, you too will find the Gathering as a highlight on your own faith journey—in very unexpected places.

– Evelyn Soto

Why should the youth of your congregation attend the 2018 Multicultural Youth Leadership Event (MYLE) in Houston?  Why come to this pre-Gathering event?

Here are some wonderful reasons why your youth of color should register.

• Growing in leadership. MYLE is an amazing opportunity for youth of color (Latino, African, African-American, Asian, American Indian and Native American, multi or bi-racial youth) to gain confidence and grow as leaders.  They will have an opportunity to see others who resemble and sound like them in key leadership roles—leading music, worship, preaching, teaching, mentoring, and so much more. MYLE exposes and encourages youth to enhance their leadership potential at the event, at the Gathering, and most especially when they return home.
  
• Building relationships, community, and networking. This event focuses on youth getting to know others at the event through many experiences, including worship, workshops, sharing meals, and fellowship events.  At every MYLE, youth are invited to come and share their culture with others through song, dance, dress, and conversation.  All cultures are shared, respected and appreciated.
  
• Growing in faith and being a witness to Jesus’ love in a just world. All MYLE participants are involved in worship and learning experiences that impact their faith, broaden their understanding of what it means to be a youth of color in our world/context, and grow in their capacity, understand and fluency for the gift of diversity in the Lutheran church and in the world.

My daughter, Amanda, attended two MYLEs and Gatherings (2011 and 2013). In 2015, she volunteered as part of the Stage Crew for the Gathering. Earlier this year, she graduated with a degree in English and minor in Theater. I know that she has been impacted by these events and experiences, and they helped shape who she has become—a powerful young woman who is vocally passionate about justice and equity in the world.  I am grateful for having the opportunity to witness this.

Come to MYLE and see God at work, now and beyond.

– Rev. Brenda K. Smith

I went to my first Youth Gathering in 2009 not knowing what to expect. When I got there, I was in awe!  I have trouble making arrangements for ten colleagues to come and work with me on a project at the Churchwide Office;  how then do you gather thousands upon thousands of youth and adult leaders together for days on end?

I don’t know how it is done, but I do know that after my first experience, I continue to tell people, “You MUST to go to a Youth Gathering!”

Why go to a Gathering?  There were many things that impressed me:

• The amount of preparation youth receive in discipleship before they come.
• The array of learning opportunities that are offered.
• The sensitivity to diversity offered by MYLE and The tAble.
• Seeing adult leaders taking time from their hectic schedules to mentor youth.
• Seeing the positive effect the participants can have on a city just by walking in the streets with their different colored t-shirts.
• The bonding that happens within the groups that come together.
• The fact that the Conference of Bishops comes and interacts to show to the world that YOUTH MATTER!
• The opportunity for youth to hear from others on how Christ is making a difference in their lives.
• The faithfulness and dedication youth demonstrate as they accompany someone in need.

One of the best reasons to go to the Gathering is to attend the evening worship service.  I saw thousands of youth and adults of all ages, races, ethnicities, shapes, sizes, and abilities gathered to praise God by singing and dancing and hugging their neighbor… and I thought, “I am experiencing the Kingdom of God.”

Rev. Brenda K. Smith is the Program Director for Faith Practices and Book of Faith.

– Chandler Carriker

Staff from Lutheran World Relief (LWR) are used to going to faraway places to do their work of international relief and development. Right now, I’m packing my bags to head down to Jinotega, Nicaragua. In the summer of 2015, three of my teammates and I packed up our bags and joined so many of you in Detroit. I hadn’t been to a Gathering since 1994 when I was I was in high school. Back then, I was standing in a parking lot in Atlanta, sorting donations in a burning hot trailer. This time, though, I was bringing with me an opportunity to serve.

We brought with us LWR’s Game of Lasting Promise, which gave participants a chance to jump into the work of fighting poverty around the world. Around 275 congregational groups played our game and saw how Lutherans work together to combat poverty and hunger in places like the Philippines and Tanzania. After teams played, they had an opportunity to share their prayers for our staff and partners around the world on our prayer wall. I had the honor to come back home and share those prayers with our staff.

Only seconds after I sent the email with pictures of these prayers, my inbox was flooded with responses from Peru, Kenya, and Nepal.

“These kind of details give us a motivation for continuing our work with much energy,” said Gladys. “So inspiring and touching,” said Kenneth. And, “Thank you for sharing these prayers for our work, for the special LWR service around the world,” said Pedro. “These testimonies are very important for us.”

I went to Detroit thinking we were bringing you the opportunity to serve and learn, but instead I was sent home with a message and witness which inspired my friends all around the world. As you prepare to go to Houston in 2018, be ready to serve, be ready to learn, and be ready for your witness to Christ to echo around the world.

Chandler Carriker is an ELCA Deacon and the Associate Director of Outreach & Engagement for LWR.

– Judith Roberts

“We are all caught in an inescapable network of mutuality… tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly” – words made famous by the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

As a person of faith, this quote reminds me of the oneness of God, “We are One in the Spirit and we are one in the Lord.” As I think about the current divisions in this country along religious beliefs, the legacy of inequities based on racial and socioeconomic status, the violence attributed to gender, discrimination experienced because of sexual orientation, the abuse of the environment, the rejection of the stranger, the separation of the family, and the construction of walls that divide us from our neighbor—it is hard to consider the unity of humanity. Yet, as people of faith, that is exactly what we are called to do. The words of Dr King couldn’t ring truer, sink or swim, we are all in this together. Remembering my baptism in Christ reminds me that I am called into a world that has been turned upside down. For me, there is an unyielding hope: first in the cross, and secondly, that I am one among many that are claimed, called, and sent.

In 2015, I joined with other passionate, insightful, caring, and courageous youth and their leaders at the Gathering in Detroit. The ELCA Racial Justice program hosted an interactive learning exhibit based on the ELCA Social Statement, “Freed in Christ: Race, Ethnicity & Culture.”

The words of the ELCA baptismal covenant and a water-filled basin represented a baptismal font. The font served as a reminder that it is through our baptism, we are filled with the Spirit to strive for justice.  The exhibit engaged participants to understand racism and the intersection of other forms of oppression through the lens of history and stories.

The work of racial justice is not just analyzing and understanding systems of inequity, but also ongoing working proactively and against it.

Some participants came with questions about working for racial justice; others shared personal stories of their experiences of discrimination. Some just came for conversation and connection. By the end of the Gathering, we collected over 3,000 handwritten pledges called “God’s Work, Our Hands for Justice.”

I left inspired by the commitments made at the Gathering.  Although the ELCA does not reflect the racial diversity of the broader country, my hope is in the vision being created by youth and the leaders that work with them. They are eager to learn, willing to use all of their privileges as a platform for transforming this world in continuing the journey of their baptism by showing up for justice.

I look forward to joining members of this church in Houston, TX for the 2018 Youth Gathering.

– Ed Kay

I never fully appreciated the size and scope of the ELCA Youth Gathering until I sat on the floor of the bare New Orleans Convention Center, counting out thin pieces of cardboard that would be used for what was to be the first Synod Day in a Gathering cycle in 2012. In 2015, it was thousands of “Jesus is Good News!” tattoos and prayer journals.

And in 2018, there will be loads of new supplies that will be sorted and delivered to the ballrooms and meeting spaces around Houston as our Synods gather for their day together. But what really makes the Synod Day an integral part of the Gathering experience is not the truckloads of supplies or the work of planning teams near and far.

The power of the Synod Day is the creation of a unique community of Christ, gathering around Word and Meal, honest sharing and beautiful music, and deep conversation with holy moments.

Unlike many other aspects of the Gathering, the Synod Day is when you’re with the people you’re closest with, geographically at least. Your bishop is with you. The musicians are talent from your own churches and youth groups. The testimonies are from young people from your own cities and towns. This is a community that forms with people from your own neighborhoods, even though you may be hundreds or thousands of miles from where you call home. But, in a way, it too is a kind of home as well.

The Synod Day is more than the couple of hours you’ll spend together in a Houston hotel ballroom—it is the beginning of new friendships and the renewal of long-standing ones. It is the community who will bring the story of Jesus back from Houston into your own communities and neighborhoods.

– Ally McDonough

The Youth Gathering was a wonderful, faith-filled experience that left me with more memories and friends than I will ever get in a lifetime. In the summer of 2015, I went to the Gathering in Detroit. Before the trip, I heard many rumors of churches not going to Detroit because of the stigma surrounding the city. Honestly, I was a little apprehensive as well. As soon as my group got to Detroit, however, all of my preconceived notions were gone. Detroit was beautiful inside and out. Through many hardships, the city is still living and thriving one day at a time.

My favorite part of the Gathering and reason I am writing this article is because of one little girl who impacted me more than any speaker did at the Gathering. Her name is Hope. Pictured with me (I am in the pink bandana), Hope was the shining light on an otherwise wet and dreary day.

She was a local kid who lived in the neighborhood where we were working. Every day for three days, Hope came out and helped create the beautiful mosaics on the back of the dug outs. Hope came over to my group’s dugout and asked if she could help. A system was soon put in place where I would put the mortar on the back of the tile and Hope would choose the final resting place of the tile on the dugout. For over four hours, it was a beautiful symphony of working together to beautify a city so surrounded by negativity and media-bashing. Hope was living out the true meaning of her name in creating beauty in her city and community.

My day with Hope taught me that even with all the negativity, a helping hand and a serving spirit will unite us all.

– Don Romsa

As someone involved in Lutheran Campus Ministry, I was asked, “Why a Youth Gathering?”  My answer?

I’ve seen firsthand that the Gathering builds community, deepens faith, inspires service, and even transforms lives.

During my thirty years of working with college and university students in Lutheran Campus Ministry, I have listened to many of those students talk about their personal experiences at a Gathering.  These young adults have often said that the Gathering was a turning point in their life and also in their faith. It was an experience in which Jesus became real and relevant for them, and they were touched by God’s invitation to “change the world.”

I have listened as young adults shared memories and moments of their time at a Gathering – memories and moments like these:

As I sat in the large gatherings with other youth, I felt surrounded by people who had important hopes and dreams – just like me.

I was challenged to think in new ways about how my faith and life are connected.

We didn’t just talk about the need to love others – we went into surrounding neighborhoods and acted on that love.

I was deeply moved by the words and thoughts of the speakers who shared their real-life faith stories.

I was treated as if I was really part of the church – not at some future time, but NOW.

I realized the Lutheran faith community is much larger than I could ever have imagined – it extends all around the world.

I had a chance to talk about things that really matter in my life, and how those things are shaped by my faith.

I felt the presence of a gracious and loving God in my life – it was a transforming event for me.

Almost 45 years ago, I accompanied a group of youth to the 1973 Youth Gathering in Houston.  Not only was their faith deepened and their lives transformed, but mine was, too.  May the 2018 Youth Gathering in Houston be the same kind of gift to all who come!

Pastor Don Romsa is the ELCA Program Director for Campus Ministry.

– Zoe Clark

Hi, I’m Zoe and I’m 19 years old. I had the opportunity to go to two Gatherings and I am so excited to share a little bit about how the Gathering changed young adult life.

In New Orleans, I was one of the youngest participants in my group. I did not know what would await me, but I knew that it would be great. In New Orleans, the Gathering showed me that I was part of a community much larger than myself. It ignited my desire to do service and step up in leadership. When I returned home, I knew that the next time I went to a Gathering, I wanted it to be a different experience.

In Detroit, I was one of the oldest participants. I had a little bit more knowledge going into the event. Because of that, I felt that it was important make the Gathering an inspirational experience for others since I had already had the experience for myself. I reached out to leaders in my community. I was lucky enough to assist in leading Synod Day, where I found myself in a role that made the Gathering so different from the one I attended before.

For Houston, my third Gathering, I am helping to write the Pre-Gathering curriculum. I plan to volunteer at the Gathering as well. I always find my way back to this event, each time in a different role. My involvement with the Gathering is coming full circle, exactly as I had hoped after experiencing New Orleans.

When I first heard, “Why the Gathering?” my answer immediately was, “Why not?” That’s not really an answer, considering that it gives zero insight.

The Gathering sparked something inside me I did not know I had; it made me feel part of something bigger than I knew existed. The Gathering enabled me to grow in my faith, leadership, and service, along with providing me with the ways to do so.

The Gathering theme for Houston, “This Changes Everything,” has never been more accurate in my life and the lives of so many who have gone, served, and experienced. It’s time to see what the Gathering will ignite in you.

– Michael Stadie

When I have been at the ELCA Youth Gatherings, I like to look into the eyes of the participants. They usually tell me about their connection to Lutheran Disaster Response. I see excitement in their eyes, from people telling me how they have gone to places impacted by a disaster, to helping families rebuild their homes and their lives, to watching participants hammer walls for the local Habitat for Humanity, to those who have just come back from their service project. They have been able to serve their neighbor, make a difference, and put “God’s Work Our Hands” into practice.

Service projects are a key component to the Gathering. The service component of the Gathering not only helps to change the community where it is held, but it also changes the lives of the participants for the good as it helps them experience the joy that comes from service to others.

I believe that it is by practicing to serve the neighbor that a deeper desire to serve is developed and strengthened.

It is clear that the impact of the Gathering stays with the youth and sponsors for the rest of their lives in many ways, not least of which is the desire to serve their neighbors no matter where they may be.

Pastor Michael Stadie is the Program Director for Lutheran Disaster Response.