To the Saints of Iowa District East:
“Grace to you and peace from God our Father
and the Lord Jesus Christ.”
Focusing on Christ’s Mission
Christ has given His Church a two fold mission, to feed the faithful and find the lost. After His resurrection Jesus told Peter, “Feed my sheep, feed my lambs.” Jesus gives the so-called “Great Commission” in several different forms: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” Matt. 28:19, “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” Acts 1:8. “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem” Luke 26:46-47.
Of course, feeding the sheep in the pen is much easier than finding and rescuing the lost! It is important that we regularly re-evaluate how well we are doing in carrying out the mission our Savior has entrusted to us. Rev. Rothchild and I have developed a process we call “Focusing on Christ’s Mission” to help pastors and congregations evaluate their efforts to carry out the mission. If your congregation is interested in hearing about the process, call the District office and ask for either Rev. Rothchild or me.
Fan Into Flame
As I pointed out in a letter addressed to the congregations of Iowa District East, 2009 is the year IDE is scheduled to participate in Synod’s capital campaign called “Fan Into Flame.” Fifteen percent of the funds raised in the local congregation will come back to the congregation, fifteen percent will come back to the District and the rest will go to national and international mission work. In addition, it is our goal and prayer that through this campaign we will raise enough funds to complete the Palanga Lithuania Project. All gifts that are designated for the Palanga Project will go to the Palanga Project.
The Palanga Lithuania Project
I asked Rev. Petkunas to break the total project down into small projects so that individuals, organizations or congregations can adopt a project, or several projects. The projects range from $28,799 for finishing the walls in the church nave to $107 for a fire alarm! Let’s get this thing finished so Christ’s mission can move forward in Palanga.
