LAMPLIGHTER Faithfully Carrying Us Through Change

by Pastor Joel Leyrer

2022 was a year of change for St. John’s, and it looks to be the same for 2023. Nevertheless, we take comfort in the certainty of God’s promise to be with us and bless us. As is our annual practice, we celebrated these blessings on our annual Mission and Ministry Sunday. Highlights from our “State of the Parish” presentation follow; the entire presentation can be viewed at sjtosa.org/StateoftheParish.

Both the Executive Board and Board of Elders focused on pastoral staffing in 2022. We said farewell to Pastor Kyle Bitter in April and welcomed Pastor Joel Schwartz in December. This emphasis will continue in 2023 as both of these boards evaluate pastoral ministry and define pastoral responsibilities in view of my retirement this June.

The Board of Education also dealt with staffing in 2022 due to Renee Pastorek and Dave Leyrer accepting calls to Fox Valley and Kettle Moraine Lutheran High Schools, respectively. In addition to seeking to fill our school staffing needs in 2023, the Board of Education will also implement the Wisconsin and Milwaukee Parental Choice programs at St. John’s.

Fellowship was a theme for the Board of Discipleship in 2022 with increased participation in Growth Groups and our inaugural congregational golf outing. 2023 marks the 7th year for “By Scripture Alone,” the St. John’s daily

Bible reading program—a program going in a new direction this year through the use of the devotional book To Live with Christ by Bo Giertz.

A sermon podcast (sjtosa.org/SermonPodcast) and a Christmas advertising campaign helped the Board of Outreach reach beyond the walls of St. John’s in 2022. The Board of Outreach looks to continue fostering this outward-focused mindset in 2023 as they encourage members to see evangelism as a personal and urgent mission from our Savior.

In 2022, the Board of Stewardship provided assistance for St. John’s members to develop or review their estate plans. In 2023 the Board of Stewardship will once again offer this assistance as a service to the congregation, together with education and encouragement for members to use their God-given gifts in ministry efforts at St. John’s.

There were no major projects for our Properties Coordinator in 2022, but numerous facility repairs, maintenance projects, and upgrades still kept him busy. Deferred maintenance projects will be a focus in 2023 as a part of our campus expansion project.

New initiatives implemented by our Communications Coordinator in 2022 included redesigned worship service folders and News & Notes and an expansion of the St. John’s social media presence to Instagram

Partners in Outreach

by Pastor Joel Schwartz

Recently, I had the privilege of attending the Lutheran Leadership Conference in Chicago, IL, with eight other St. John’s leaders. One quote from a keynote speaker stuck with me. He said, “The first 10 years of your ministry will be about you. The next 10 years will be about the people you serve. The last 25 years will be to God’s glory. The faster you get to the latter—serving to God’s glory—the more you will enjoy ministry.” continued from front page .

I wonder if this isn’t true for every Christian on their journey through life. The sooner we see our lives as lives lived to the glory of God, the more we will enjoy our Christian journey through life. Not everyone is a called public minister, but all are priests, ministers in God’s kingdom. The apostle Peter reminds us, “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light” (1 Peter 2:9). Each Christian has a different calling, but all Christians are called to offer up prayers and praises together with their works of love toward their neighbor. In doing so, we declare God’s praises and live to his glory.

(instagram.com/SJTosa). In partnership with Cornerstone Stewardship Ministry, communication with our members during the Declaring His Praises capital campaign will be a significant undertaking in 2023.

Related to this, Declaring His Praises campaign chair Mark Naumann gave an update on this stewardship initiative. A campaign goal of $2.5M (or more) over three years may seem ambitious, but we are confident it is attainable as we as a family of believers come together united in the understanding that the proposed expansion will glorify God and further our ability to do Gospel ministry. Upcoming aspects of the campaign include leadership workshops at the end of February, small group presentations in the middle of March, and a six-week worship emphasis from February 26 through April 2. Please keep this campaign in your prayers as it continues to unfold, and watch for much more information coming soon.

“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows” (James 1:17). We thank God for the gifts he has richly poured out on St. John’s and move forward into this next year trusting he will faithfully carry us through these changes as he has always done in the past.

Memorials

In fact, the only good gifts we can give are gifts we have received from God. We listen to the gospel. We receive the gifts God gives in the Sacrament. This is the fuel God uses to strengthen our faith and our love for others. Then, outreach spills over from what happens in worship on Sunday morning into our daily lives. God uses what happens at the altar, from the pulpit, in Bible study, and changes hearts and lives all week long.

As the hymn writer says, “We all are called to service, to witness in God’s name. Our ministries are different; our purpose is the same . . . ” ( Christian Worship ’93 566, stanza 2).

Outreach is nothing more than the church in motion living out our daily callings in love. I hope and pray you will partner in our Savior’s mission by going out from worship each week to declare God’s praises.

In Memory of John and Angie Lynn Ailey

From Bruce & Kary Ailey (Jr. Choir)

In Memory of Jeffrey Euler (brother of Jeanne Lehninger)

From Cal & Lynn Kozlowski (building fund)

In Memory of Charles Wrucke

From Jesus & Susan Mariscal and Patricia Wrucke (building fund)