LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 2023, Page 2

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OFFICER, BOARD, AND COMMISSION REPORTS

International Church Partners
The LCMS continues to work globally through LCMS Church
Relations and the LCMS Office of International Mission. Our plate
is full. It’s impossible to respond to all the needs and requests
for church fellowship. See the Church Relations Report (Report
R1.1). Read especially the section on Ukraine.

World Leaders
We look forward to hosting many leaders from our international
partner churches at the convention. During the convention, the Synod will enter into and/or confirm church fellowship with several
church bodies. It will be a joyous occasion! We will also host our
friends from Finland who have stood against woke-ism and the attacks (prosecution!) of the Finnish government just for publishing
a tract confessing and advocating the biblical teaching on marriage.

Spanish Lutheran Hymnal
The new Spanish Hymnal is an amazing accomplishment of our
mission staff, partner churches, and the Lutheran Heritage Foundation. This hymnal is larger than our LSB and has more Luther hymns!
Work is underway for a mobile version available in a phone app.

Office of International Mission (OIM)
Though Covid caused some attrition and recruiting difficulties,
we’ve still got over 100 missionaries (about 50/50 lay/clergy), plus
20 alliance missionaries in the field. The Synod staff of 12 continues to care for some 300 missionaries and families. Our missionaries are funded nearly a year in advance, thanks to generous
contributions from individuals and the 1,700 congregations who
specifically fund a missionary. The support is amazing. The Livonian Project trains pastors for Europe and Eurasia. Concordia the
Reformer Seminary in the Dominican Republic continues to have a
huge impact on all of Central and South America. We are working
to launch a seminary in Chiayi, Taiwan. The LCMS helped rebuild
the seminary for our partner church, the India Evangelical Lutheran
Church, after a typhoon destroyed much of it. We support some 15
Lutheran seminaries in Africa in one way or another!

Office of National Mission (ONM)
By the time you read this, the Rev. Dan Galchutt will have just
begun as the new executive director of ONM. Galchutt previously
served as the mission executive for the Kansas District. The Church
Planting Initiative is moving forward. We’ve taken a hard look at
what makes for successful church planting. Large grants don’t do it;
a top-down approach does not yield long-term vitality. Successful
church plants usually come from local support, a mother/daughter
congregation relationship, and a local team of committed people.
Over 20,000 people in the Synod have been trained in “Every One
His Witness,” the Synod’s new outreach effort available through
CPH. Rural and Small Town Mission continues to provide useful
resources, as do our other ministry departments for many other areas of concern and interest.

Council of Presidents (COP)
Missouri District President Rev. R. Lee Hagan now serves as
chairman of the COP. During COP meetings, we pray together; we
counsel one another; we wrestle with the many challenges our congregations face. We study God’s Word and the Lutheran Confessions, and we support one another in the myriad tasks of tending to
the serious needs of our dear people, pastors, teachers, and workers.
Currently we are studying issues regarding the Office of the Holy
2023 Convention Workbook

Ministry and the spiritual priesthood of all believers, the Church’s
mission, and the current challenges of sexuality and culture.

District Visitations
In one way or another, I have visited every district of the Synod.
Since becoming president in 2010, I’ve been to over 100 district
conventions. Since 2013, my staff and I have been visiting with
each district’s president, board of directors, circuit visitors, and
others. Over the last triennium, despite Covid cancellations and reschedulings, we held district visitations—some in person and some
via Zoom—with 31 of 35 districts (with more scheduled before
the 2023 Synod convention!), 18 of which I was personally able
to do. These visits provide vital opportunities to clarify issues, ask
questions, inform others, be informed, and strengthen relationships.
These visits require lots of time and work, but each visit has borne
benefits aplenty.

Million Dollar Life Match
The network of volunteers working with LCMS Life Ministry
continues to grow. Due to the success of the first match, we are
making plans for a second Million Dollar Life Match for our congregations and agencies as they care for the unborn, newborn, and
mothers in need. In the wake of the horrid pro-abortion legislation
sweeping many states, we continue to put our money where our
mouth is and care for people—from before birth until death—in
need.

Youth Gathering
More than 18,000 youth and adults attended the LCMS Youth
Gathering in Houston. While other church bodies canceled their
youth conventions due to lingering Covid concerns and waning interest, our young people gathered in Houston for worship, Bible
study, prayer, and fun. The great event was a joy for thousands. We
are receptive to concerns received about the Youth Gathering and
are committed to making the 2025 event even stronger.

Child Protection Program
LCMS Schools Ministry has worked with MinistrySafe to assist
our congregations and ministries to ensure the safety of the children
in our care.

Set Apart to Serve (SAS)—Church Work Recruitment Initiative
SAS seeks to encourage synodwide conversations with young
people to encourage them to consider church work vocations. SAS
has gained traction in all 35 districts, with a pilot school or congregation from each district. Many of our parochial schools are booming in the wake of Covid and the craziness of “woke” culture taking
over so many of our public schools. We need LCMS teachers and
other church workers.

Finances
I am thankful to report that the Synod is in good financial
shape—in fact, the best in many decades. Our strong position
results from a combination of fiscal conservatism by the LCMS
BOD and our LCMS staff, generosity by God’s people, some outstanding investment returns, and a determined effort to eliminate
unproductive debt. Your voluntary giving to the LCMS was such
that our costs to receive and administer donations temporarily fell
to (around) 8 cents for every dollar given. While this cost ratio
fluctuates and is unlikely to be sustained over a long term, it is