September 2026

May the God of steadfastness and encouragement grant you to live in harmony with one another, in accordance with Christ Jesus, so that you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. – Romans 15:5-6

Grace and peace to you all! I pray this finds you well as we see the weather shift in what some of us – not saying who – feel is a more tolerable direction.

Last month our council came together and made some decisions about the direction of our congregation and its ministries. In their wisdom and discernment, they created new mission and vision statements, as well as chose three new goals for the coming 12 months.

A mission and vision statement is not two different and individual mantras, but rather two sides of a whole. A mission statement without a goal is just wandering about trying to do good; a vision statement with no guidelines is untethered to real action and sits as a hopeless dream.

Instead, your council crafted both together, using their knowledge of this congregation and its gifts, their hopes for what this congregation can become, and the wisdom of God’s vision for the world and how we might become partners of this joint creative work in our own community.

The mission of St. Luke Lutheran Church is to support and inspire our congregation and the greater community through our programs and services for the purpose of sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Our vision is of a diverse and dynamic community of faith that builds and strengthens spiritual relationships and serves our neighbor.

These statements are meant to guide our actions. The vision statement is what we hope to become; the mission statement is how we get there.

These guide our long-term actions. Everything we do with a look ahead at the future should be guided by these two statements. Do our programs support and inspire? Are our actions sharing the good news? Will they help create that diverse and dynamic community of faith that strengthens and serves?

As for the short term, we have annuals goals to guide us along that path. For Sep. 2026 – Aug. 2027, the council has chosen the following goals:

 – Increase congregational involvement in programs and services

 – Increase community visibility

 – Add three community events to the congregational calendar

What do these look like? I don’t know. Like the mission and vision statements, these are guidelines that we can use to measure our progress and ministry through the year. If we want to carry out our mission and work toward our vision, these are guidelines for the next 12 months that we believe will move us in the right direction.

This is where the work of the congregation comes in. We are all ministers of Christ, whether we are preaching from a pulpit or handing out bulletins. I look forward to working with you all in the joint ministry of St. Luke Lutheran Church.

Blessings,

PR