Tag Archive for: Southeastern Wisconsin

God’s kingdom grows one soul at a time

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Sometimes missions happen organically. Even though I have only been in the mission field a couple months, God is still growing his kingdom as his faithful people care for one another and reach out to the lost and straying. A couple stories from West Lafayette, Ind., illustrate the words of Jesus: “All by itself the soil produces grain—first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head” (Mark 4:28).

West Lafayette is home to Purdue University, and while the WELS campus ministry presence there has been small recently, the students who participate are active. Students are faithfully inviting their friends to worship and on-campus Bible class. For weeks and months, they have been reaching out, but sometimes it takes many tries before anyone joins us. Yet God is using these Christians and their everyday witness to bring people into his church.

In one instance, a student invited a young man (“Jin”) to Bible study. Jin was looking for a Christian community, and he saw at work an on-campus Bible study. He came to worship that Sunday. It just so happened that my wife, a very talented cook, invited everyone in worship that Sunday to come to our house for a house-warming party. Not only did this young man join us for lunch, but he even helped cook one of the dishes. During lunch, he was able to visit the members of the church and talk to me about the WELS stance on the Bible. We thank God for these opportunities provided by faithful Christians inviting their friends to join them!

On another occasion, a car was parked in the church parking lot. I stopped over to see if everything was all right and introduce myself. I came to learn the gentleman sitting there (Kyle) was waiting to go to work; he often stops by our parking lot to sit and think. He had trauma in his church growing up, coupled with more recent struggles. Kyle wants to get back in the church and hear the Word of God. After following up, we set up a time to meet. Kyle started a Bible instruction class, and we look forward to our time together in God’s Word.

Slowly, one by one, the kingdom of God grows, through the faithful outreach of God’s people and God putting people in our paths. But this kingdom grows all by itself as the Holy Spirit works through his Means of Grace. It’s just like our Lord says, “[The kingdom of God] is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of seeds on earth. Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants” (Mark 4:30). God is providing shelter for his people as his Word works in and through his people.

Written by Rev. Andrew Ewings, home missionary at Lamb of God Lutheran Church in West Lafayette, Ind.




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More than we ask or imagine

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“Pastor, we would like to meet with you to baptize our daughter.” That was the message that was left on our church answering machine 22 years ago. I was the first pastor of a brand-new mission church called Faith Lutheran Church in Radcliff, Ky., next to Ft. Knox army base.

Jared was the dad who left that message. He and his wife Cady brought their daughter, Madison, to church to be baptized. I took Jared and Cady through adult instruction classes. Jared had grown up Lutheran in another synod. Cady never really went to church growing up. In her words, I was her first real pastor.

Being in the military, Jared and Cady and their three daughters have moved 15 times around the United States in the past 22 years. Wherever they have moved, they have found the closest Wisconsin Synod church. There were times a church wasn’t close, and they had to drive an hour one way for worship. When they were stationed at West Point, where Jared was teaching as a Colonel, they invited cadets to their home where they set up a makeshift altar and worship space in their living room. They used materials provided by WELS Military Services for worship.

In May, I attended my first graduation service at Martin Luther College – our college for training for the public ministry. 22 years after I poured water over her head and spoke God’s Word into her ears and heart, I watched Madison walk the stage to receive her teaching degree.

Who could have imagined that all this could result from an answering machine message? A family that became a blessing to our mission church – and numerous other mission churches – a family committed to God’s Word, and another servant of the Lord trained at Martin Luther College. God will do immeasurably more than we ask or imagine.

The Lord of the Church has blessed me with the experience of a home missionary so that I am now serving as a District Mission Board chairman. Now I am working with the people, pastors, and churches of our southeastern Wisconsin district to start new mission congregations and support those that have already been started.

As people, pastors, and churches, let us continue to pray for our established churches, our fledgling churches, and those new churches we wish to start. Together we pray and trust that God will use our combined gifts to bring that family to church. That child to the baptismal font. To leave that message on the church answering machine. Then years and decades later, we will see that God has done and will continue to do immeasurably more than we ask or imagine.

“Now to him, who is able, according to the power that is at work within us, to do immeasurably more than we can ask or imagine, to him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever! Amen.” (Ephesians 3:20, 21).

Written by Rev. Michael Zarling, Southeastern Wisconsin District Mission Board Chairman.

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