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LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 2023, Page 49

Scan: The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod

Transcription machine transcription, uncorrected

OFFICER, BOARD, AND COMMISSION REPORTS

time remains, we provide additional services beyond the walls of
International Center. The work is ever-increasing. I am daily humbled by and grateful for the servant-minded men and women of the
LCMS finance departments. They make it all a reality, and it is a joy
to lead them in this work.

Disaster Response Training

God has truly blessed our Synod and His people within with an
abundance of financial resources and infinitely more through the
gift of His Son, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. We strive to daily
spread the Good News as We Preach Christ Crucified. My fervent
prayer is that He continues to use us as wise, faithful stewards of
the gifts He provides through you, His people, so the Gospel message may flourish, and those in darkness would be called to the
Light of the Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ.

3. Church Planting, Renewal, and Support

Nathan M. Haak, Chief Financial Officer

Recognized Service Organizations
School Ministry
Youth Ministry
All Nations Ministry, including
Black and African Immigrant Ministries
Hispanic Ministry
Other Ethnic-Immigrant Ministries
Church Planting
Research and Analytics
Revitalization

Board for National Mission
According to the Handbook, the Board for National Mission
(BNM) is charged with “developing and determining policies for
the coordination of and in support of district ministries which support congregations and schools (Bylaw 1.2.1 [n]). These policies
shall embrace and apply the mission and ministry emphases adopted by the national convention” (Bylaw 3.8.2). In response to
this directive, the BNM has spent the past quadrennium continuing
to work on the policies which give direction to the Office of National Mission (ONM) as it seeks to carry out its responsibility “for
domestic ministries that especially serve congregations and schools
through the districts of the Synod” (Bylaw 3.8.2.3). The Board has
organized its policies under the seven mission priorities reaffirmed
by the Synod in convention, 2019 Res. 4-03A (Proceedings, 134).
Beyond developing and determining policies to guide the ONM
in carrying out its mission responsibilities, the Handbook further
charges the BNM to “have oversight of the implementation of policies adopted by the board and implemented by the Office of National Mission” (Bylaw 3.8.2.1). Therefore, as part of its oversight and
monitoring responsibility, at its regularly scheduled board meetings
the BNM receives reports from the various program directors and
solicits suggestions from the directors for policy improvements.
ONM programs are currently arranged under three primary ministry areas and include the following:
1. Human Care and Ministerial Support
Deaconess Ministry
Family Ministry
Grants
Health Ministry
Life Ministry
Specialized Pastoral Ministry
Stewardship
Worker Well-Being, including
Soldiers of the Cross
Veterans of the Cross
2. Congregations and Districts
Campus Ministry
Disaster Response

Rural and Small Town Mission
Urban and Inner City Mission
Witness and Outreach
The BNM also continues to set aside time at each scheduled
meeting for theological presentations that the board believes are
helpful in maintaining focus on the Church’s mission. Presentations
received over the past quadrennium were presented by various
LCMS leadership officers, seminary professors, and pastors over a
wide variety of relevant topics.
In 2013, the Synod convention authorized the BNM to “serve
as a calling agency for institutional and agency chaplains and other
non-foreign specialized ministers” (Bylaw 3.8.2). The BNM issued
two divine calls this past quadrennium to two specialized pastoral
ministers.
The BNM lost two valued members this past quadrennium. Mr.
Ernie Garbe resigned from his position on the board for personal
reasons. Also, Ms. Martha Milas went off the board, in compliance with Synod Bylaws, due to her relocation to a different region
within the Synod. Mr. Pat Kyler replaced Mr. Garbe, and the Rev.
Sawyer Meyers replaced Ms. Milas.
Working with the Board for International Mission (BIM), the
BNM established a joint mission board sub-committee in October
2020. This sub-committee was tasked with assisting both mission
boards with the fulfillment of 2019 Bylaws 3.8.2.2 and 3.8.3.2.
Also in the course of its work, it took up considerations pertaining to working relationships between the mission boards, the other
Synod boards, and the Synod officers and staff. Ultimately this resulted in a series of structured interviews with representatives from
all 35 districts and subsequent analysis, which formed the bulk of
the sub-committee’s efforts over the past 18 months. The aforementioned structured interviews were conducted by teams, assigned to
each of the various districts across the Synod, comprised of one
representative each from BNM and BIM. Not only did these teams
gather very helpful information concerning the work and ministry
of the districts across the Synod but the mission boards believe that
these meetings helped build better relationships between the district
offices and the Synod’s national office. The mission boards hope
for more such dialogue in the future and continued collegiality as
we work with the districts to “coordinate and support” each other
in our common goal to serve the saints in The Lutheran Church—
Missouri Synod.
2023 Convention Workbook