Year of Jubilee celebration underway
From the office of President Mark Schroeder
During the months of November and December, congregations throughout the synod are participating in the Year of Jubilee celebration and offering. This effort, you'll remember, is the result of a resolution passed overwhelmingly at the last synod convention. The intent was that congregations and individuals would unite in an effort to eliminate or significantly reduce the synod's debt—resulting largely from capital expenses. The underlying motive was not simply to "get the synod out of debt." Rather, the offering was to be an opportunity for all of us to respond to God's grace with our gifts, and through the reduction of the debt to make additional resources available for expanding our mission efforts and maintaining our ministerial schools.
This effort was not something proposed by synodical leadership; rather, it came from the convention delegates themselves. The idea was to give every congregation the opportunity to share in this effort in its own way and in keeping with its own time schedule. For that reason, the plans were kept simple and congregations were given several different options for carrying out the offering. Some congregations immediately chose a congregational goal and made a commitment. Others chose to have the amount of the offering determined by the amount of the gifts received. Some congregations chose a one-Sunday emphasis; others carried out the Jubilee theme over four or more weeks.
To keep costs to a minimum, the printed resources for the Year of Jubilee celebration were developed "in house" rather than by outside professionals. Congregations were provided with those materials and were invited to carry out the effort in whatever way that worked best for them.
The Jubilee DVD that was made available was developed by the synod's Communication Services with the help of the same production company that produces WELS Connection. The intent of the video was not to provide detailed financial information, explanations of the size and nature of the debt, or an outright appeal for gifts. Rather, the video shows the very personal story of one man and how the Holy Spirit, through the gospel ministry supported by our synod, brought him to know his Savior and changed his life. The message of the video is that our task of spreading the gospel is centered on people—people who need to know their Savior and whose life may also be changed by the gospel as we carry out our mission as a synod.
As the Jubilee offering continues, please ask God to use the gifts we bring for the good of his kingdom and for the spreading of his gospel to more and more people. And as you offer those prayers of request, remember to include prayers of thanks to God for the greatest blessing of all, the blessing of new life in his Son Jesus Christ.
Serving in Christ,
Mark Schroeder
Filed Under: Christian Giving, donation, Finance, gift, jubilee, Year of Jubilee
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Compiled by WELS Communication Services
MLC working to keep student costs down
Martin Luther College (MLC), New Ulm, Minn., announced its intent Nov. 17 to limit increases in overall student fees for the 2009-10 school year to three percent. In previous years, tuition increases at MLC were at five percent or higher; so this increase, according to Steven Thiesfeldt, vice president for administration, would actually help keep student costs down.
"It is obviously our ultimate goal to keep costs as low as we can for students," says Thiesfeldt. As a result, he says, the MLC Governing Board even considered implementing a tuition freeze. "We had a proposal to increase the five percent that we've been maintaining the last four years. But that was tempered to some degree by the desire to freeze tuition. After looking at that closely our board decided that we would try a reduction, and three percent was the number we settled on."
This decision was driven by MLC's strategic plan to keep tuition increases at or below five percent. It also resonates with the recommendations from the Ad Hoc Commission, established by the 2007 synod convention to analyze the synod's problems and potential.
"The Ad Hoc Commission talked to a lot of people at the grassroots level throughout the synod, and I'm sure that they were hearing the same message that we were hearing: concern about increasing student costs and the debt that graduates are carrying forward into the ministry," says Thiesfeldt. "We're trying to do everything we can to keep tuition costs down."
Although this is good news for students, Thiesfeldt says that with the current economy those figures are not set in stone. He says a downturn in the stock market has affected the value of MLC's reserve funds, which the college has relied on more heavily in recent years. It is also not yet known what impact the synod's recent financial news will have on subsidy for MLC. Finalized budget information won't be available until February.
"The Lord has always been good to us, and he's pulled us through some pretty bleak times in the past," says Thiesfeldt. "And we're confident that he'll do that again as we move to the future."
Filed Under: Ad Hoc Commission, Ministerial Education, MLC
Important CMO notice for pastors and treasurers
With the end of 2008 approaching, WELS Chief Financial Officer Todd Poppe is asking that all congregations continue to mail Congregation Mission Offering (CMO) deposits and processing coupons to WELS' bank lockbox, which provides effective and efficient deposit processing for the synod. Gifts received by the bank lockbox up to and including Jan. 9, 2009, will be credited as 2008 CMO if accompanied by a 2008 coupon. Each congregation should have received coupons, envelopes, and instructions from the Ministry of Christian Giving.
Please contact Jan Lampe at 414-256-3215 or jan.lampe@sab.wels.net with any questions.
WELS in the news
The CW, a local TV station in Madison, Wis., recently ran a story on Lakeside Lutheran High School in Lake Mills. Both the principal and students were interviewed about the school. Please note: WELS does not endorse any of the advertising or other links provided on this TV station's Web site.
For the past six months, William Cornelius, pastor at Shepherd of the Mesa, Battlement Mesa, Colo.—a new mission congregation of about 20 souls—has been getting out into the community to meet new people and share the news of Jesus. The Nov. 20 issue of The Citizen Telegram highlighted Cornelius’ most recent outreach activity: a city basketball league for elementary school boys in Battlement Mesa.
Clarification
In the Nov. 17 article, "Forum to share ministry blessings," Rev. Bruce Becker, administrator of the Board for Parish Services was quoted in regard to a recent congregational leadership forum. One question he said participants would be asked to examine was: "What factors, beyond the power of the gospel, do you believe are contributing to God's blessings of numerical growth in your congregation?"
Becker wishes to clarify that quote, saying, "Obviously, we believe and confess that only the Holy Spirit can bring about growth in the holy Christian church; only he is responsible for people being called out of the darkness of sin and unbelief into the light of the gospel."
Becker, however, draws a distinction between conversion into the holy Christian church and numerical growth in a congregation. "Individual Christians join our congregations for many reasons," he says. "Congregations may experience numerical growth because of good, solid biblical worship and preaching; because it is a warm and friendly congregation; because the congregation has a Lutheran school for their kids; or for a host of other reasons." The goal of the forum, says Becker, was to identify factors common to congregations blessed with numerical growth that have led to their ever-increasing audience for the gospel.
Spotlight on Streams: Christmas music
Listen to WELS musicians online through Streams Internet Radio. Click on the seasonal channel to hear a variety of Christmas music, or tune in to one of the other channels: choral, contemporary, instrumental, mix, or traditional.
