August 2012: 

Greetings to you in the Name of our Lord, Jesus Christ!

Project: Pastoral Education, Sierra Leone is an ongoing volunteer labor of love of the Concordia Institute for Christian Studies providing modest pastoral education services in Sierra Leone since 2007. We now have six volunteer Lutheran pastors on our instructional staff.

Our Mission: to equip the pastoral leadership of the Lutheran churches in Sierra Leone and Liberia by offering intensive courses of study and printed theological resources which in turn enhance the training of the general pastorate in each church body.

Our Vision: to raise pastoral competencies in the service of the Gospel for both outreach and the spiritual nurture of the baptized membership. Our participating West African pastors pass the resources and advanced learning we provide to their colleagues in their respective regions and pastoral educational programs. Each year following our classes, these leaders have held workshops to teach their fellow pastors our subjects, using also the materials we have supplied. These sessions have been held in conjunction with regional and national church gatherings. They are providing a tremendous, cost-effective, extension of our labors into their rank and file pastorate and educational programs.

We have received an official invitation from Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church of Sierra Leone for another pastoral education program, scheduled for January 14-25, 2013. We will teach about 20 pastors from the leadership and pastoral education staff of the Lutheran churches in Sierra Leone at the Javouhey House Catholic Retreat Center in Freetown, Sierra Leone.      Again, due to their poverty, our plan is to pay the expenses for the men’s transportation, housing, and meals at the Center for the duration of the sessions. Three instructors will be teaching there:  Rev. Ralph Patrick of Peace with Christ Lutheran Church, Ft. Collins, CO; Rev. W. Perry Copus of Grace Lutheran Church, Lexington, MO; and Rev. Dr. Steven A. Hein of the Concordia Institute for Christian Studies.

     We have also received an invitation to expand our advanced pastoral education services into Liberia. Upon receiving an official invitation from the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Liberia, we will be opening an additional teaching site and program in Monrovia, Liberia during September 2013. The teaching staff of Rev. Shawn Kumm of Zion Lutheran Church, Laramie, WY; Rev. Richard Neugebauer of Faith Lutheran Church of Gering, NE; headed up by Rev. Mark Maas of King of Glory Lutheran Church of Cheyenne, WY.

     Rev. Amos Bolay, President of the ELC in Liberia had the following to say about our work:

"As a graduate of the Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, I see this program like taking the seminary to Africa. Dr. Hein is doing a great job! . . . Indeed, Rev. Dr. Steven Hein and his team are great blessings to our pastors, evangelists and Churches both in Sierra Leone and Liberia. As President of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Liberia, I have seen my men returned with great improvement in rightly presenting the Word as they preached a clear distinction of the Law and Gospel. We only hope and pray that this program will continue and even come to Liberia next year, 2013."

    We believe that the cost of this next project in Sierra Leone and Liberia will be about $50,000.  Will you pray that the Lord might bless our efforts and provide for these funds?  As you may know, Sierra Leone is the most destitute country in the world according to the United Nations.  Our fellow Lutheran pastors and parishes in Sierra Leone and Liberia so need our help and support to nurture and spread of the precious Gospel. I know that times are tough right now, but whatever you might be able to provide by way of a financial gift to help us would be such a great blessing.  If you are so led, you can use the convenient PayPal button provided here. Or if you prefer, you can download the informational brochure with mail-in form and send your tax-deductible gift by mail.

God’s richest blessings to you,

Rev. Dr. Steven A. Hein
Assoc. Pastor, Shepherd of the Springs Lutheran Church

Paypal is offered as another convenient way to do so.  Please put "Pastoral Education" in the note area.  At the same time, we encourage our members to bring their offerings to the Lord's Divine Service as a response to the blessings of the Gospel that they have received..