Mercy forever.

Physical, spiritual outreach continues to Sandy survivors

Nearly three months after Superstorm Sandy, eight elderly, single women struggling to resume their lives along the hard-hit New Jersey Shore were among those offered a helping hand with debris and tree removal by Shepherd’s Heart Ministry. “All the women had limited access to help, financial or otherwise,” said David Hildebrandt, Sandy relief coordinator for [...]

Deaconesses Grace Rao, Tiffany Manor talk on recent training events in Liberia, Africa

Deaconess Grace Rao, director of LCMS Deaconess Ministry, and Deaconess Tiffany Manor, staff with Lutheran Church Charities, talk about what a deaconesses is and what she does. The deaconesses also share about their recent trip to Liberia, Africa, providing training and teaching about opportunities for women to serve in the church as deaconesses. [Pictured above, [...]

God ‘works through dogs’ to comfort returning Sandy Hook students

Will Luther, Moses and Isaiah be at school, too? Callers didn’t necessarily ask about the K-9 Parish Comfort Dogs by their individual names, but that’s who they meant when they contacted Sandy Hook Elementary School as classes prepared to resume on Thursday, Jan. 3, for the first time since the horrific shootings in Newtown, Conn. [...]

Churches band together to meet needs after Sandy

According to Tracey Stillman, whose congregation, Village Lutheran Church in Lanoka Harbor, N.J., has been caught up in disaster-response efforts as a result of Superstorm Sandy, “it’s not about us.” That congregation has been providing hundreds of free meals; listening to — and reassuring — those who are hurting, especially children; serving as a sort [...]