Lord of All Lutheran Church celebrates a new beginning

Time Contributor

 

Lord of All Lutheran Church in Strathmore was packed for its service on Sunday morning as members, family and friends gathered to celebrate a new beginning in their ministry.

After a year of prayer, Bible studies, devotions and numerous meetings, the congregation voted in June of 2012, and decided to become a part of the North American Lutheran Church (NALC) headquartered in Hilliard, Ohio. The process began a year previous in July 2011 and was guided by Pastor Dawn Nelson and the congregational council. The direction and decision was prompted by a number of factors for the local congregation. 

Pastor Dawn Nelson said, “as we watched the direction the ELCIC (Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada) was taking, the congregation felt drawn to seek out a church body that was more closely aligned with their understanding of tradition, ministry, and faith.  After much consideration, the NALC appeared to be a closer match and home for us.”

The North American Lutheran Church has embraced four core values, which shape their common life: Christ Centered, Mission Driven, Traditionally Grounded and Congregationally Focused. Pastor Nelson incorporated the four values in her homily on Sunday morning focusing on being “connected to the source [God]” if ministry was going to grow, flourish and succeed. 

When asked what changed for Lord of All in leaving the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada and joining the NALC 

Nelson replied, “As we view it, by taking this step, we don’t anticipate a great deal of change in who we are.  It was a change made to allow us to remain who we have always been and to hold to the values and understanding of what God calls his people to be.” 

It was clearly a decision of the congregation after study and serious consideration of all the factors and what would best suit their needs to be a church in mission in their community.

The celebration ended with a gathering of the congregation for a group picture to commemorate their first service as a member of the NALC and coffee and cake was served as Council Chair Doug Thurn thanked all those involved in helping the move become a reality.

For more information about the NALC go to thenalc.org. Lord of All Lutheran Church holds their Sunday worship services at 10:30 a.m. and all are welcome.