Starting April 1, ELCA Health Plan members may notice a refreshed experience on the Quantum Health Care Coordinators website and app — including an enhanced provider search designed to make finding high-quality care easier. Contact a Care Coordinator forhelp navigating care, resolving claims and billing issues, and confirming your provider or clinic are in-network.
Read MoreTying up receipts and loose ends? ELCA Health Plan members have until April 30 to submit 2025 claims for reimbursement from your health and/or dependent care flexible spending accounts (FSA). Submit 2025 claims to Further (and 2026 claims to HealthEquity). Not sure what qualifies as an eligible health care expense? This guide can help.
Read MoreClergy and ministry leaders are invited to a timely online gathering on Tuesday, April 14 (11:00 AM–12:30 PM) hosted by BJC and Christians Against Christian Nationalism. This Clergy Quarterly Touchpoint will focus on urgent issues at the intersection of immigration and religious freedom, offering conversation, leadership insight, and a call to action.
Designed to equip pastors for faithful leadership in a critical moment, the gathering will explore responses to immigration enforcement, support for mixed-status families, and ways to lead with clarity and courage. Register now and share with fellow leaders.
Read MoreThis week we celebrate the ordination anniversaries of:
Rev. Lowell Nelson, who celebrates 15 years on April 10.
Rev. Charles Newman, King of Glory, Tempe, who celebrates 21 years on April 15.
Registration is now open for Leadership Lab 2026, a week-long youth and leadership formation experience taking place June 22–27 at Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois. Participants explore leadership for church and community through hands-on learning, worship, and shared faith experiences grounded in the promise of Joel 2:28: “your young shall see visions.”
The registration cost is $420 per person, with lodging, meals, and a T-shirt included. Discounts are available for returning participants, first-time congregations, and groups bringing multiple students. Registration increases by $50 after April 15, so congregations are encouraged to register early.
Read MoreThe Grand Canyon Synod has begun introducing a question at the 2026 Spring Gatherings: whether to enter a process to become a Reconciling in Christ (RIC) Synod. This is not a vote, but the beginning of a listening and discernment process that could lead to a year of education and conversation ahead of a potential 2027 Assembly vote.
All are invited to share questions, concerns, and hopes to help shape this process. Learn more and participate at gcsynod.org/ric.
Read MoreRev. Dr. Karoline Lewis will lead Belonging: Five Keys to Unlocking Your Potential as a Disciple on Saturday, April 11 (1:00–4:00 PM) at Living Water Lutheran Church in Scottsdale. Centered on Jesus’ encounter with the Samaritan woman (John 4), this free event invites participants to explore discipleship “from wonder to witness.” Registration is required by April 6 at lwlcaz.org/nevcevent/. Reception to follow. Watch a welcoming video from Karoline Lewis here.
Read MoreCampformation 2026 will take place June 29–July 3 at Camp Pinerock in Prescott, Arizona, welcoming youth entering grades 6–10 for a week of faith formation, outdoor adventure, and community. Congregations from across our synod gather each summer for this long-standing Lutheran outdoor ministry tradition.
With more than 60 years of history, Campformation combines worship, small-group faith exploration, and activities like zip lining, hiking, swimming, and ropes courses. Learn more and register at lutherancampformation.com.
Read MoreThe final 2026 Spring Gathering will be held Saturday, April 11 at 10:00 a.m. at Good Samaritan Lutheran Church in Las Vegas. All are invited—rostered ministers, lay leaders, and members—from across the synod. No registration is required.
Centered on the theme Rooted in God’s Story, this gathering offers a chance to reconnect, reflect, and be renewed in our shared calling. If you haven’t yet participated this season, this is your opportunity to join the synod in person.
Read MoreLutheran Social Services of the Southwest invites congregations to deepen their impact through simple, actionable opportunities: becoming a Connector, supporting essential needs through an Amazon Wishlist, or organizing a Thrivent Action Team with up to $250 in funding. These efforts directly support refugees, families, and older adults across Arizona.
Grounded in the call to serve our neighbors, these opportunities offer meaningful ways for congregations to live out their faith—strengthening communities and extending care where it is needed most.
Read MoreIn this Easter reflection, Dr. Jennifer Pietz, Assistant Professor of New Testament at Luther Seminary, draws on 1 Corinthians 15.
Read MoreThe 2026 Faith & Form International Awards recognize 12 projects worldwide for excellence in religious architecture, restoration, and sacred design. From the honored restoration of the Mesa Arizona Temple to innovative new and renewed worship spaces across the globe, these projects highlight how sacred environments continue to support faith, community, and formation.
Submissions for the 2027 awards open August 3–October 9, 2026. These award-winning spaces offer inspiration for congregations seeking to steward their buildings as living places of worship, rooted in tradition and shaped for the future.
Read MoreFocusing only on the causes and a cure for autism too often takes the focus away from the needs of autistic people today. Autism Acceptance Month encourages each of us to assess how we think and act about autistic people.
The post Accept the Person in Front of You Instead of Thinking They Need a Cure appeared first on Mosaic.
Read MoreThis week’s LAMA newsletter invites us into Holy Week with a call to rest, pray, and renew our commitment to advocacy. Upcoming opportunities include hunger advocacy calls, environmental collaboration, poll chaplain training, and a national conversation on faith and democracy.
Explore new stories, action alerts, and events happening across the synod and beyond. Read the full newsletter and share it with your networks to stay engaged in this vital work.
Read MoreArizona Faith Network’s latest newsletter highlights upcoming interfaith opportunities, including dialogue events, advocacy training, a Phoenix-based Prophetic Witness gathering, and community health initiatives. From faith and democracy conversations to heat relief volunteer opportunities, there are many ways to engage.
Read MoreNext week, the Office of the Bishop staff will be engaged in candidacy work, preaching and leading worship, supporting conference gatherings and ministry conversations, and preparing for synod assembly and upcoming events. Alongside this, the team will continue core operations including communications, financial reporting and audit support, governance participation, and strategic planning for congregations and synod leadership.
Read MoreThis week we celebrate the ordination anniversary of Rev. Adele Resmer, Ascension, Scottsdale, who celebrates 39 years on April 5.
Read MoreThe Grand Canyon Synod is now accepting workshop proposals for the 2026 Synod Assembly. Workshops are one-hour sessions designed to equip rostered ministers and lay leaders with practical tools, theological insights, and ministry resources aligned with this year’s theme, “Rooted in God’s Story.”
Proposals must be submitted by Monday, April 6, 2026, with presenters notified by mid-April. Submit your workshop title, description, audience, presenter information, and technology needs through the synod’s online proposal form.
Read MoreFaith Lutheran Church in Phoenix invites all to the Great Vigil of Easter on Saturday, April 4 at 7 p.m. Beginning with a new fire and the lighting of the Paschal candle, the service moves through scripture, song, and sacrament, culminating in the first Eucharist of Easter, the affirmation of baptism, and the welcome of new members.
Held at 801 E Camelback Rd, this powerful and ancient liturgy proclaims the resurrection story in full, inviting all into the hope and promise of new life in Christ.
Read MoreThe Grace and Grand Canyon Synod Scholarship Fund is now in its fourth year, having awarded $16,000 to students across the synod since its launch in 2023. Open to ELCA members pursuing higher education or certification programs, the fund supports both academic goals and faith formation, with recipients highlighting its impact on belonging, purpose, and community connection.
Applications are open to eligible students, and contributions can be made through the Arizona Community Foundation. To learn more, apply, or support the fund, visit azfoundation.org or contact Grace Lutheran Church directly.
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