Plus One Initiative

You Will Be My Witnesses

Next year is a significant milestone as Lutherans and Christians across the globe celebrate the 500th Anniversary of the Reformation. While there will be many different ways we mark this anniversary here in Missouri, one of the key ways will be with a mission emphasis that focuses on Christ and the universality of the Gospel. We are calling this emphasis the “Plus One Initiative.” It is an effort across the Missouri District for all our congregations to reach out and engage their communities in one new way. We hope that this anniversary will become a motivation for nearly 300 congregations to seek to reach the lost with the Gospel as we bring the love of Christ to hurting people.

The district is training more than 30 facilitators and coaches to be able to work with congregations of all sizes and across the entire state. This will not be a “one-size-fits-all effort,” nor will congregations be told how they will reach out into their communities. Each congregation will identify for itself the means by which it seeks community engagement.

The facilitators and coaches will help congregations to better understand their communities, determine particular community needs, identify congregational assets, explore partnership possibilities and then determine the one way that the congregation will reach out to the community through works of mercy and bearing witness to Christ.

Mission Summit

Congregations will be invited to attend the Missouri District Mission Summit on June 3, 2017, at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis. The keynote speaker will be Rev. Greg Seltz, Lutheran Hour Speaker. The Mission Summit will provide training for church professionals and lay leaders to assist in community outreach. There will be presentations on a host of outreach topics for congregations of all sizes and in all types of communities. From tutoring to food and housing programs to health care and community engagement or ethnic outreach, the summit will include something for everyone.

Small mission grants also will be available to congregations beginning July 1, 2017, to help in the outreach efforts. A mailing will go out to each congregation in the coming months with an invitation to participate. Please keep this initiative in your prayers as we work to mobilize the 297 congregations of the Missouri District to bear witness to Christ in their communities in one new way. For more information, contact Dr. Stu Brassie in the district office.

LCMS Witness and Outreach Ministry has developed new witness training materials.  For more information, go to http://www.lcms.org/witness-outreach