When God listened, slaves were liberated. When Jesus listened, people were healed.

God’s people have this power of listening through the Holy Spirit. When All Saints’ people listened to each other, one-on-one, during the fall 2013 Listen Strong campaign, liberation and healing happened.

I’m part of the Listen Strong team again, because I believe liberation and healing will happen again. Your chance to become a listener in this campaign has passed. But you can still participate!

Come to worship on Sunday, June 24. Help commission an experienced and highly-trained nine-person Listen Strong “listening team” and send them out into the community.

Then, over the next six weeks of the campaign, pray for the team and for the community. Invest a little of yourself and your time listening to one person you normally wouldn’t.

Who will All Saints Listen Strong team listen to? Neighbors and people they want to know better. People in the autism and special needs community in the Quad Cities. Guests to All Saints’ food pantry. And more!

Listening campaigns like these strengthen relationships, grow leaders and the church, transform our neighborhoods, and ignite All Saints with passion for Jesus Christ. Without training and support through Quad Cities Interfaith, neither of these campaigns would have been possible.

All Saints’ Listen Strong campaigns are also the reason the Southeastern Iowa Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America will feature this congregation and its listeners in its fall 2014 synod video.

What will All Saints hear? Where will God lead us? Whatever and wherever it will be…liberation and healing will happen.

Thanks be to God.

Pastor Clark Olson-Smith