Dear Stewards of God’s Love, that are the Nebraska Synod- Thank You!

By Deacon Timothy Siburg

“But we must always give thanks to God for you, brothers and sisters beloved by the Lord,
because God chose you as the first fruits for salvation…” – 2 Thessalonians 2:13

Earlier this month Bishop Maas reflected about gratitude and how we thank God for all that God does. This week, I would like to share with you one of my great joys in life and ministry, and particularly in this call I serve as your Director for Stewardship. Pure and simple, saying thank you!

Thank you to each and every one of you for being the beautiful Child of God that you are. Thank you for being the growing disciple and follower of Jesus you are. And thank you for growing into and being the steward of God’s love that God created and entrusted you to be. I echo the Apostle Paul’s gratitude for the Thessalonians, for you. And I deeply believe you all are the first fruits of God’s work in the world, returning a portion of that which God first entrusted to you back to God, through which some of God’s love is shared and stewarded with your neighbors near and far.

This fall while out on the road as part of the Nebraska Synod Road Shows I have heard about how so many of you are following God’s call to care for those in your communities and steward all that God entrusts. These stories continue to excite me and inspire me.

I have heard about one congregation in DeWitt whose youth cook freezer meals of Tater Tot Casserole and stock a freezer full of them at church so that they can be shared with anyone in the community needing a meal after a busy day, a trip to the hospital, or any other challenges they might face. Those young stewards make sure the meals are shared and make it to who needs them, showing God’s love through them.

Elsewhere I have seen how another congregation in Chadron opens its doors to a neighboring college not only for worship and pastoral care, but to provide at least one home cooked dinner per month to any college student hoping for it. What a wonderful change of pace amid the certain monotony of meals in the dining hall that likely all start tasting the same, day after day.

An hour south in Alliance, I have heard about another congregation which has taken a leadership role in a daily community meal with other congregations and community groups. Together, the whole community and particularly this congregation and its stewards, provide a warm cooked meal for more than 50 people each day.

These are just three stories. Each one of you in your own congregation could point to countless more. These are also just three stories involving food. Something we understand, to share with those in need, to share in God’s abundant feast, and to celebrate around a table with friends and neighbors as we do this time of year with the holidays to come.

For these stories, and all the many stories you could tell of how you do ministry in your community, thank you!

What story or stories would you share with me and others across the synod about how you are doing some of God’s work in the world? What ways are you seeing God at work in, through, for, and around you?

When out in the congregations of this synod, it is my joy to remind you of these and so many more things that you do as part of God’s work in the world. Whether you know it or not, you change people’s lives around this state and all around the globe, each day. Whether it be through tangible ways and stories like these examples of sharing food and a warm meal, or through stepping up and supporting the work of the whole church together through your congregation’s participation in mission share, you are doing God’s work.

Through your mission share, the undesignated offering that your congregation shares with the Nebraska Synod and the larger Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, you help raise up new leaders for ministry including pastors, deacons, and parish ministry associates. Through it, you help share God’s deep love for youth and young adults through supporting Lutheran Campus Ministry and Nebraska Lutheran Outdoor Ministry. Through it, you help provide for new and renewing ministries across the Big Red State and help send missionaries around the globe. And through mission share, you not only see your neighbors near and far, but you step up accompanying and walking with them through supporting our church serving arm partners like Lutheran Family Services, Mosaic, and Lutheran Disaster Response.

In the coming month, your congregation will receive its 2020 Mission Share Intent Form with an invitation to consider not only renewing its commitment to this ministry, but to prayerfully consider growing by a percentage that might make sense for your congregation in its mission share support. I am grateful for your consideration of this and for all the many ways that you are faithfully serving and doing some of God’s work in your community.

There is so much that you do, and one blog post could never do this justice. But know this, I am grateful for you, and so are your siblings in Christ all around the state and the globe. On behalf of them, it is my great joy and privilege to again say a big THANK YOU to all of you.

Know that you are the salt of the earth, God in Christ’s hands and feet in the world, and the stewards of all that God entrusts answering God’s call to see your neighbors and to walk together with them. Thank you for answering the call, and for responding joyfully and gratefully for all that God has done and promises to do you for you.