Pastor Linda’s Annual Report 2011
Called together by God’s Love:
We Welcome Joyfully, Grow Faithfully, And Serve Gratefully – in Jesus’ name.
Some of the aspects of my call to Resurrection Lutheran Church are to work with Small Group Ministry, Youth and Family Ministry and Outreach to college students at St. Bens and St. Johns. While there is never an equal balance between them, I wanted to share some of the highlights from the past year.
Small groups ebb and flow as needs and desires arise and I am thankful for the meaningful groups that have been born because of you. Specifically, I think of the Meal Ministry Team that is coordinated by Andrea Metcalf. You all are a wonderful asset to the ministry of this congregation, providing meals to mothers of newborns and for those who are ill and/or recovering from surgery. Our quilters and knitters are always sooooo busy. The knitters provide blankets for every child baptized in this congregation, last year we had twenty baptisms. Our quilters donate quilts to many places including People’s Church in Bemidji and Anna Marie’s. We have two reading groups, a morning and an evening that anyone is welcome to join. The Busy Moms Group also meets for mutual conversation and support, while also making prayer books for every baptism, as well.
I am so thankful for our Youth and Family Team, they work long and diligently to provide activities for the youth and families in our congregation. They are, however, only as good as the commitment the rest of us make to support them, including parental involvement and mentoring by other members of the congregation. One of the areas we are enriching at Resurrection is our Milestone Ministry. We do well in marking many milestones including baptism, baptismal anniversary, giving Bibles, Holy Communion, Affirmation of Baptism and High School Graduation. We are looking to add more milestones and to enrich some of the milestones we already honor. We are especially thankful for the partnership with Thrivent to help us teach about using money wisely.
In addition, we have a wonderful group of students in Confirmation this year. Attendance is great, but even better is the students’ involvement in discussion and service projects. This past year we had one of our largest classes, sixteen your men and women, Affirm their Baptisms at a special afternoon service. It is a continuing pleasure to see them in worship and involved in our congregation.
The Outreach to College Students has grown these past years. I have gotten to know and be more involved with students on campus and in our congregation. I regularly attend meetings with St. Ben’s Campus Ministry as well as am a member of the Faith Communities Team. We plan and implement many activities for students, including a Bread and Blessing night on the first Tuesday of each month; we visit each of the three freshman female dorms. I also have a number of students who regularly join me for knitting by the fireplace at Gorecki Hall each week of the school year.
I am ever so thankful for the number of students who attend worship with us, and often bring their families here also. I often share meals with students on campus and invite them to coffee at the Local Blend, a favorite hang out space for the students. I am also involved in mentoring a group of young ladies in the Companions on a Journey program. My group is now seniors, and I have been with them for three years, I will greatly miss them when they graduate this year.
We also have students involved in our congregation, as Sunday or Wednesday school teachers, as confirmation guides, nursery attendant and as assisting ministers. Please take the time to thank them for their involvement and for their presence in our community.
Many and varied are the aspects of a pastor’s call, I am thankful to be called to Resurrection Lutheran Church, where I can minister in ways that I feel truly called to do and enjoy so much. Thank you for supporting all of these ministries, and my call as your pastor.
May God Bless you all.