STEWARD'S CORNER
Being Good Neighbors
After looking IN the past few months, we move onto looking OUT. Let us start close to home with our relation-ship with our neighbors. Jesus tells us to be like the Sa-maritan and treat all like we would like to be treated—to be a good neighbor. But do you know who is your neigh-bor? They are the people we come across every day. They include those whose live in your neighborhood, people at work, and people in the checkout at the grocery store.
Which good neighbor are you: Martha, Mary, or the visiting Jesus? There is no perfect way to be a good neighbor. Are you neighbor who does for others like Martha? Are you a neighbor who sits, listens, and gives time like Mary? Do you offer love, grace, and truth like Jesus? Or do you see yourself in each of these roles at different times in your relationships?
To be a good neighbor, we need to know our neighbors. We need to reach out and be with others. Say hello to someone, ask questions about them, listen to them, invite them to join you for coffee or lunch or a game of your choice. A neighbor is being there, either as a doer, a giver, or a source of encouragement.
I invite you to learn more about your neighbors and to continue to be a good neighbor.
“It’s a beautiful day in this neighborhood. A beautiful day for a neighbor. Would you be mine? Could you be mine?” - Fred Rogers
Peace and Love,
Kathy Evans
Congregational Life Chair
THE PRESIDENT'S OUTBOX
Last spring at this time we had lost Pastor Jerri, and were facing a long vacancy, knowing that the pool of available pastors was shallow. We immediately organized our Call Committee, which embarked on the task of discernment within the congregation. Late in the year, they held a series of workshops with Gethsemane’s members and proceeded to develop our Ministry Site Profile, or MSP, which laid out who we are as a congregation, what our vision is for mission, and what we see as our leadership needs.
At its last meeting, the church council approved the final draft of the MSP. Perhaps the most telling portion is the description of our mission, as we ourselves see it. Quoting, Gethsemane’s top three mission priorities are to:
- Demonstrate through grace, our faith in God and the love He has shared to us by becoming a safe sanctuary that is welcoming and accepting of everyone.
- Be a positive, active, relevant force in our community and the world.
- Offer a safe sanctuary where we have increased opportunities to experience spiritual growth, where we can be ourselves, have different ideas, be challenged and experience life.
As the MSP states, these top three mission priorities, if accomplished, hold the most promise for the continued development of our ministry.
Also over the past year, of course, the Holy Spirit has been at work, especially in Kathy Gosnell’s heart, as she was moved to become our Synod Authorized Minister last year. In light of this, the MSP will now be put “on the shelf”, awaiting some future time when we renew our search for an ordained minister.
Carol Stuckert chaired the Call Committee, which consisted of Kathy Gosnell (replaced by Bob Clark), Bill Benjamin, Bob Jacobsen, Bruce Klockars and Holly Sherwood. We owe a tremendous thanks to all of these volunteers for their service and to our Lord for His guidance. Copies of the MSP are available through the church office.
Blessings,
David Leverenz, Council President
