LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 2016, Page 93

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OFFICER, BOARD, AND COMMISSION REPORTS
Christian disciples in the CNH District, eager to plant the Gospel
among those outside His church. Thus we’ve focused on four strategic mission initiatives in the last triennium.
The first emphasis was the development of a Missions Agency
that ensures a deliberate focus directed toward inspiring, networking,
equipping, and releasing the baptized in the mission of Christ. The
Missions Agency enables us to (1) promote mission awareness, vision,
education, and advancement through personal congregational visits; (2) host annual mission conferences (the second conference held
in the midst of our 70th district convention); (3) publish Missional
Leadership (an e-magazine), “In Mission” (a regular mission newsletter), and a twice-monthly prayer newsletter; (4) support missionaries
involved in multiple church plants; (5) provide congregation mission
mini-grants to assist congregations in reaching their community with
creative evangelistic plans; (6) sponsor Hands-On Mission Events
around the district; and (7) develop a mission prayer network.
The second emphasis is forming strategic alliances with our brothers and sisters in the Pacific Southwest and Northwest Districts along
with mission-minded agencies within the Synod to focus on (1) missionary training of our professional church workers (especially our
new graduates); (2) the equipping of the baptized as “laborers for
the harvest”; and (3) the revitalization of congregations and schools
to engage in speaking and living the Gospel in their local and global
communities. In concert with Synod’s national revitalization program, Transforming Churches Network (TCN), we have invested
district resources for the last nine years on congregational revitalization with a goal of developing locally based mission outreach.
The CNH District’s version, “Transforming for Mission,” combines
team consultations, continuing education, and coaching for congregations, pastors, and leaders to become more mission-minded and work
to establish additional mission outposts. Key elements of revitalization include a refocused vision, streamlined governance, outreach
strategies, engaged laity, leadership development, and coaching.
Congregations find this process helpful during times of transition
and/or times of ministry plateaus. The net result is that a great number
of CNH District congregations have come to understand and embrace
the missional reality of their communities.
Building on our revitalization efforts, we’ve recently partnered
with Pastoral Leadership Institute (PLI) and LINC Houston to focus
on multiplying missional disciples, and the Center for U.S. Missions
for church planting. “Dwelling 114” leads learning communities in
three different regions around the CNH District, aimed at equipping
our people to join Jesus in His mission every day. The CNH District
deeply appreciates the ministry of the Missionary Training Center
at Concordia University, Portland, for training mission-minded lay
deacons and the ministry of both seminaries—Concordia Seminary
and Concordia Theological Seminary—in preparing faithful pastors
and deaconesses and in developing innovative approaches such as the
Specific Ministry Pastor (SMP) program to assist us in caring for the
found and reaching out to the lost.
Our third emphasis is deploying lay leadership, commissioned
workers, and pastors to plant new faith communities that multiply
disciples. While we see an overall decline in congregational membership among Anglo populations, missionary work across cultural and
linguistic lines continues to grow. We have been blessed to experience the planting of the following churches and satellite churches this
triennium: (1) Addis Kidan (New Covenant), an East African congregation serving in two locations in San Francisco; (2) Faith Lutheran,
a Chinese congregation in South San Francisco; (3) St. John’s Valley
of Faith, first and second generation Latino, in Arvin, California, a
satellite of St. John’s in Bakersfield. In addition, seven new mission
ministries and faith communities have been launched: (1) He-Nani-Pu
Aloha in Waianae, Hawaii (Hawaiian indigenous work in partnership

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with Lutheran Indian Ministries); (2) 1.5 Generation Millennial
Mosaic Church Plant at Good Shepherd, Hayward, California; (3)
an Oromo language group, also at Good Shepherd; (4) Joy of Harvest
Hmong mission work at Greenhaven Lutheran in Sacramento; (5)
Ethiopian ministry at Our Faith Davis also sponsored by Town and
Country, Sacramento; (6) LINC Bay Area in partnership with LINC
Houston and the support of Prince of Peace, Fremont, California;
and (7) St. Matthew Lutheran mission on the island of Kauai. Again
we give thanks for the combined theological education contributions
of our district pastors along with the cooperation of the larger Synod
through the Ethnic Immigrant Institute of Theology (EIIT) and the
Center for Hispanic Studies at Concordia Seminary, the Cross-cultural
Ministry Center at Concordia University, Irvine, and our pastoral colloquy process.
The fourth emphasis (which undergirds the other three) is encouraging and providing resources to the baptized of the CNH District
to devote themselves to daily intercessory prayer (corporate and personal) for the nations, the church, and the coming of Christ’s kingdom
in the lives of all people.
Supporting Our Smaller Churches
The CNH District is primarily made up of smaller congregations.
Based on the 2011 Synodical Statistical report, 41 percent have 100
communicants or less; 39 percent have 75 communicants or less; and
25 percent have 50 communicants or less. The CNH District in its convention directed the District President to “provide staff and material
resources in support of rural ministry,” (resolution 3-05, 2012 District
Convention). Responding to this action, the CNH Board of Directors
developed the outcome, “The CNH District will provide support and
resources to rural/urban small ministries to help build ministry capacity for Christ’s mission.”
The questions being asked by our rural and urban small churches
are these: “How does a congregation of 35, 50, or even 100 in membership find a way to continue vital ministry of Word and Sacrament?”
“What skills do small church leaders—both laity and pastoral—need
to remain effective in their community?” “How can small membership congregations rediscover a sense of their own mission so they can
remain passionate about being what Christ calls them to be?” And for
some, they have begun to think about what their legacy for the future
Gospel ministry in the CNH District might be.
Common to almost all of these congregations are the following:
all have a love for their Lord; all are engaged in some way in service
to their community (although many don’t see these activities as direct
ministry); most all have some concern regarding finances and many
rely on endowment funds or other third-source income to manage
their budgets; many have concerns over deferred maintenance with
their property; and many are unable now or in the future to support a
full-time pastor. Too often the temptation for smaller congregations
is to grieve the loss of their past or hope to regain what once was. The
congregations found to be most healthy in their ministry are those
who do not hope to regain or retain the past, but have looked at the
current needs of their communities and have launched ministries to
address those needs, using the gifts and talents of their current membership. They have adapted their ministry and resources to reach out
to their community.
The greatest challenge in providing resources to our smaller congregations in the future is providing or training local leadership for
ministry, including Word and Sacrament. We need to continue to be
open to different options, including dual parish calls, worker priests,
the use of licensed lay deacons, and retired pastors. For some, it may
be time to consider concluding ministry and plan a God-pleasing
legacy to provide Gospel proclamation through new church plants.
2016 Convention Workbook