Title: Lutheran Men's Board Invests in Bibles
ELCA NEWS SERVICE

April 12, 2001

LUTHERAN MEN'S BOARD INVESTS IN BIBLES
01-088-FI

     CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The board of Lutheran Men in Mission (LMM) met
here March 16-18 and committed the men's organization of the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) to print $135,000 worth of Bibles
containing personal and small group study materials.  The "Serendipity
Bible" is a key component of LMM's new "Men's Ministry Tool Kit."
     "It is a big commitment, but through God's grace we will
accomplish it," said Charlie Schwartz, Fredericksburg, Texas, LMM
president.  At the same meeting the board approved a 2001 operating
budget of $219,300 for the men's ministry in ELCA congregations across
the United States and Caribbean.
     The Serendipity House Publishers, Littleton, Colo., and Zondervan
Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Mich., publish a special edition of the
Serendipity Bible for LMM called "Master Builders Bible for Men."
     The Bible project the board approved will eventually support
itself separate from the budget.  LMM representatives will hand-deliver
complimentary Bibles to 2,000 congregations developing men's ministries,
with information on how to purchase additional Bibles.  Revenue from
sales will eventually cover the costs of publishing.   "We know that God
is going to be with us, because there is a thirst in this country for
the Scripture," said Schwartz.  "We want to help quench that thirst."
     "This organization has continued to grow in God's grace, and we
continue to do the work that God would have us do," he said.
     The new edition of the Master Builders Bible for Men will include
a 16-page insert with details on how to develop a congregational men's
ministry.  Schwartz said the insert "will be tailored especially for the
work of Lutheran Men in Mission and the ways in which it can touch the
lives of men."
     The Master Builders Bible for Men is a principal element of LMM's
new "Men's Ministry Tool Kit."  A canvas "Master Builders" tool bag
includes the men's ministry action plan, the "Man-2-Man" audio tape, the
book "How to Build a Life-Changing Men's Ministry," two posters and a
three-session video course called "Building Blocks for Men's Ministry."
The tool kit is distributed by Augsburg Fortress, publishing house of
the ELCA, Minneapolis.
     LMM board members also received copies of "Tools for a New
Generation," a compact disc of music and interviews with young men about
relationships and the church.  The compact disc is designed to invite
men between 18 and 30 years old into the ELCA men's ministry.


For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or [log in to unmask]
http://listserv.elca.org/archives/elcanews.html