Grace Lutheran Church

Pastor’s November Newsletter Article

Dear Brothers and Sisters of Grace Lutheran Church,

I encourage you to keep in mind the mission statement that we used as a part of the 100^th Anniversary celebrations in 2007. Sharing God’s Grace: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow. The truth of this statement is not destroyed by a vacancy in the office of Pastor. Even though I will be leaving Grace Lutheran Church to become the pastor of St. Paul Lutheran Church, Hamburg, Michigan, continue to reach out to your family, friends, neighbors, and co-workers with the life giving message of salvation by faith in Jesus Christ.

November 9^th concludes our 2008 Stewardship focus: Maturing Stewards through Faith, Love, and Hope. Biblical stewardship is rooted in the gift of salvation that Jesus Christ gives to us through his life, death, and resurrection. A LCMS document on Biblical Stewardship defined stewardship:

Christian stewardship is the free and joyous activity of the child of God and God’s family, the church, in managing all of life and life’s resources for God’s purposes.

All of us have been given unique gifts by God. We are encouraged by Scripture to use our gifts within the community of faith to benefit the whole world. “Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms” (1 Peter 4:10).

Maybe you find it odd to have a stewardship emphasis right before I leave to go be the pastor of a congregation in Michigan. The reality is that the importance of healthy stewardship does not decline during a pastoral vacancy. It is true the cost of supporting a pastor does place a strain on the budget of Grace and that this strain will be relieved during the vacancy. Stewardship though is not about the church budget. Stewardship is about people using the gifts they have been given in service to God’s purposes. Stewardship will be very important during this upcoming vacancy. There will be a need for many people to evaluate the gifts they have and find opportunities to use these gifts in support of Grace’s mission – Sharing God’s Grace: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow.

I shared a letter with the congregation about our stewardship program and that I have accepted the call to be the pastor of St. Paul Lutheran Church in Hamburg, Michigan. This letter was distributed through the website, in the mailboxes at church, and mailed first class to people it was clear had not recently checked their mailbox at church. Please regularly check your mailbox at church because more information during the vacancy will be shared with the whole congregation through this method.

The mailboxes allow you also to see who has not picked up their mail recently. If in your neighborhood you saw a home with a large amount of mail and newspapers building up, I hope you would check on your neighbor. I suppose you could look at a full mailbox at church and get frustrated with the person who has not been to church for a while. You could look at that full mailbox and consider that you don’t know that person so it is not your concern. On the other hand you could seize the opportunity that awareness of absence brings and reach out to that brother or sister in Christ.

The apostle St. Paul wrote to the Philippians, “I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.” I have enjoyed the partnership in the gospel we have shared since my arrival in July of 2001. You have welcomed my family and me with arms of forgiveness. I will continually remember you in my prayers with joy.

My last Sunday at Grace Lutheran Church will be November 30, 2008. With mixed emotion we go forward, excited about the opportunities God has placed before us and remembering what God has accomplished through us in the past.