Lutheran Engagement and Advocacy in Nevada wants to remind others to know their rights. In recent weeks, Operation Metro Surge has used children as bait during ICE operations. During the 83rd Legislative Session, SB 420 was passed, which allows a parent to nominate a trusted adult as a future guardian using a motorized form. This helps children if a parent is suddenly unavailable.
This week, many of us are carrying heavy hearts. The horrific murder of Alex reminds us how fragile life is—and how dangerous it becomes when people forget how to see the image of God in one another.
Epiphany is the season of Christ being made known. Not only in light and glory, but in how we see our neighbors. Every life bears God’s image. Every body is sacred. Every person is beloved beyond measure.
As people of faith, we are called to resist dehumanization wherever it shows up. To refuse the temptation to look away or grow numb. To live out the call of Jesus—to love one another as he has loved us. To do justice. To love mercy. To walk humbly with our God.
We are not asked to save the world.
We are asked to follow.
This week, may we lean into compassion over fear, dignity over violence, and faithful presence over silence. Grace is already there—steady beneath our feet.
Presiding Bishop Yehiel Curry and ELCA synod bishops from Minnesota share a joint pastoral message condemning recent immigration activity.
They acknowledge the uncertainty many are feeling, in Minnesota and throughout God’s kingdom, while reminding us that even in lament, we hold fast to Christ’s promises and the assurance that we are not alone.
We will not grow weary.
Join LEAN and be part of a faith-based movement grounded in the call of Matthew 25: to feed the hungry, welcome the stranger, clothe the naked, and seek justice alongside our neighbors.
This is holy work. It is public work. It is work we are called to do—not alone, but together.
Rooted in faith and shaped by love of neighbor, LEAN brings people and congregations across Nevada together to turn belief into action, hope into advocacy, and compassion into change.
We are called to do this work.
So let us do it—together.
Congress may vote very soon on critical housing funding – urge your lawmakers to act now.
Congressional negotiators have released a bipartisan spending bill for Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development (T-HUD) programs ahead of a Jan. 30 shutdown deadline. This comes as hundreds of messages were sent by Lutheran ministers and congregants to lawmakers late last year calling for sustainable housing investments and funding.
The bill, which is expected to have a vote in the House of Representatives the week of Jan. 20, would increase the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) total budget by $7.3 billion and is expected to renew most programs addressing housing insecurity. It includes boosts to areas like senior housing, homeless assistance, affordable housing initiatives and more.
As homelessness rises and accessible housing grows more scarce, reliable increases to housing are a welcome development from Congress – though passage is not guaranteed. Lawmakers should hear why housing is a critical need for congregations and ministries working to end homelessness, and what initiatives will help the most vulnerable in our community. “Christians who have shelter are called to care, called to walk with homeless people in their struggle for a more fulfilling life and for adequate, affordable, and sustainable housing,” notes the ELCA social message “Homelessness: A Renewal of Commitment.” Please share your local experience, stories and values.
Contact your representatives today with a customizable message and urge them to pass an adequate T-HUD spending bill as soon as possible, separating the bill from controversial measures that are unlikely to pass.
Lutheran Engagement and Advocacy in Nevada 