New mission counselor called
Filed Under: BHM, BME, Home Missions, mission counselor
WELS Board for Home Missions called Rev. Peter Kruschel—currently administrator for WELS Board for Ministerial Education—on May 30 to be the mission counselor for the Pacific Northwest and Southwestern regions of the United States. Currently three mission counselors work with missionaries, mission groups, and self-supporting congregations across the country to help them share God's Word with as many people as possible.
This call for a fourth mission counselor—a position that has been vacant for almost four years due to funding issues—is part of Home Missions' efforts to expand the mission counselor program and was supported by resolutions from last year's synod convention.
"The counselors are an integral part of providing proactive assistance to district mission boards, missionaries, and congregations," says Rev. Harold Hagedorn, administrator for Home Missions. Hagedorn hopes that when all four positions are filled, "more people and congregations will aggressively seek their neighbors in Christ while equipping the saints for works of service."
Kruschel is now considering the call. "I am humbled that the Spirit would lead representatives of Home Missions to grant me the opportunity and privilege to consider serving the church in another ministry setting," he says.
Kruschel previously served parishes in Milwaukee, Wis., and Orlando, Fla. He also served as associate administrator for WELS Home Missions for 12 years. "I've seen the mission counselors carry out their tasks from the viewpoint of a home missionary and an administrator; yet I know that the program and expectations for the mission counselors have changed considerably in the last eight years," he says. "I am eager to study those changes and see how they apply to today's mission fields."
In addition to speaking with district mission boards in the region assigned, Kruschel says he's going to gather insight and advice from those he currently serves with in Ministerial Education. "And throughout the process I'll wrestle with the Holy Spirit—the perfect Counselor—in prayer," he says.
