TOGETHER IN MISSION
How do we respond to God’s call to be his living word in this community?
This is a question that has been asked by Christians in our community from the very beginning of our witness to Christ in this place among God’s people. It is a question our congregation councils have asked representatives from Bethel, First, Holy Trinity, and Immanuel Lutheran churches to explore. To date, we have listened to God’s call to mission in Scripture, examined trends, reviewed our challenges and resources to meet these challenges, received information from our Synod’s Director of Evangelism and Mission, participated in a review of our building use by a consultant from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America’s Mission Investment Fund, and listened to comments from members of our congregations.
As I write this article, we have made presentations to all four congregation councils and are awaiting the report from the Mission Investment Fund consultant. Pastor Alan Anderson who will serve Bethel as part-time Intentional Interim Pastor and Pastor Bob Kasting who has been called to serve as pastor for Holy Trinity and Immanuel have also received this report and will serve as members of the Together in Mission team. Our next step will be to hear what members of our congregations are experiencing as we live out our mission, God’s mission, in this community.
This ongoing dialogue, sharing information and listening to each other, in and among our congregations is essential as we look toward the future of our witness to God’s call to tell the story of Jesus Christ and to love and care for our neighbor. I have great confidence in our ability, guided by the Holy Spirit, to see our setting for mission with enough clarity and hope that our future will reveal a vital and vibrant Lutheran community actively and broadly engaged in our community at many levels exercising the full range and variety of gifts God has given us.
I do not look at the world through “rose-colored glasses” and I don’t use them to look at our congregations or at myself. I was an Army chaplain for twenty-eight years and I am a realist. My hope and confidence in our congregations, in you, is not tempered by realism; it is real. I trust you to look and listen, to explore and evaluate, to reflect and respond, honestly and openly with respect and love for each other. That’s not unrealistic; I know you and I know what you are capable of with God’s help, and I know we have that!
I encourage you to participate fully in the dialogue as it unfolds in our congregations during the next few months. We will receive assistance from our Synod and the ELCA as we request it, but we will never be told what to do. We are responsible for the response we make to God’s call. We are called to choose the path we will follow as we listen for the voice of the Good Shepherd who guides us along the way.
Pastor Dan