Bonfire
Anticipation for the coming year
I hope the pursuit of summer Sabbath was fulfilling for you in God’s surprising way! On Tuesday, August 17 a renewed Bonfire Council came back together with great anticipation for the coming year. The Council is comprised of House of Hope Lutheran Church, First Lutheran Church of Crystal, and St. James Lutheran Church pastors, council leaders, and participants of the January 2010 Mission Transformation Workshops.
Yes, we pastors are pumped for Bonfire! We look forward to the second year of the Bonfire Collaboration to building upon the great benefits of our coming together in ministry. Some of these comings together include the joint Pentecost, Thanksgiving Eve, and Good Friday worship services; joint confirmation and youth opportunities; joint Bonfire booth at the New Hope Market; and a shared vision for the parish nurse ministry which kicks off this fall.
We also look forward to establishing a Bonfire vision and mission statement, offering clear goals, and communicating a greater clarity of commitment and purpose.
The Bonfire Collaboration will also research the establishment of a registered non-profit 501(c)3 status. This will give the Bonfire Collaboration more avenues for grant writing and gathering of new resources for the new mission.
I wholeheartedly believe that this collaboration is about the renewal of our vision for God’s calling in this mission field.
At St. James, we fondly remember mission developer Pastor Palmer Wold who knocked on thousands of doors. In these coming months let the story of the renewal of our mission in Jesus Christ be told with particular focus upon the people of First, St. James, and House of Hope Lutheran churches. Let’s unite in purpose as we welcome our neighbors in a new and changing community!
Please know that the Bonfire Collaboration is not a merger of making three churches into one. Nor are there any plans for a merger. We find that mergers do not build the capacity of Christ’s mission.
The Bonfire Collaboration is all about building mission capacity together while maintaining our individual church entities.
Will you join this exciting and growing flame in our midst?
Pastor David C. Lechelt
Links
Bonfire Ministries introduce the Parish Nurse Ministry
Bonfire Ministry:
A collaboration of partnering ELCA churches
Worship
Sunday: 8:00 a.m. and 9:30 a.m.
Sunday School
Held during the 9:30 a.m. worship service.
Kid’s Church
The first Sunday of each month
(no Sunday school).
Children stay with their parents
through the children’s message.
First Lutheran Church of Crystal
7708 - 62nd Avenue North
Brooklyn Park, MN 55428
(763) 537-4576 (phone)
(763) 537-0372 (fax)
