Transition Team: An MSP Sneak Peek

Submitted by Christopher Jacobson

After much prayer and nearly nine months of meetings and reflection, the Faith Transition Team has finished our Ministry Site Profile (MSP). We used results of our survey, input from an adult forum, and numerous phone calls to members to guide this document. Pastor Jan Olav Flaaten read it and gave us valuable advice for improving it. The MSP has been unanimously approved by the church council, but the Grand Canyon Synod still needs to approve it. Once approved, the Synod will use our MSP to find the best candidates for a pastoral team for Faith.  That’s when our call committee can do its work on interviewing and hiring our new pastor. Pastor Doris Nolan from the Grand Canyon Synod office has been our coach during this process. Thank you to all of you who helped us in our work – your voice has made a difference!  Below is a summary of the Profile.

          This is the “summary description” that was included in our MSP: 

          Faith Lutheran Church strives to live out Christ’s message of love. We have English and Spanish language services with traditional liturgy and high-quality music. We are a Reconciling in Christ (RIC) congregation with diverse membership including LGBTQIA+ people. We have a passion for social justice. We seek a wise pastor who will help us follow the Spirit, enjoys being with people, brings joy, is a good preacher and will help us grow our church. 

          First, we described the neighborhoods around our church, as well as the kinds of people who are our members.  We filled out several surveys.  As we described our recent history, we discussed both our challenges, our gifts and some of Faith’s great accomplishments.  We explained all of our wonderful programs, as well as the ways that we work in partnership with other churches and organizations.  Using all of your input, we selected priority goals for our church when we get our new pastor. 

          This is the statement of purpose that was included in our MSP: 

              We strive to be a place of where Word and Sacrament are central to sustaining us on our journey. Faith Lutheran Church has offered liturgical services with contemporary gospel-centric messages of love and full inclusion. As we continue to listen to the Holy Spirit, our mission is to follow the Spirit in seeking truth and reaching out in love. Being faithful to God‘s call, we come together to make a difference in our communities -- local, national, and global.  Faith has had great outreach programs. As we listen to the Spirit, we are not afraid of change in the way we reach out in love to a changing community. 

          Our mission is to continue to be a place that is welcoming to all. We are living out God‘s call as we are one family of faith; many faces but one body of Christ. Our “reconciling in Christ” statement helps us to be open to all people. One of Faith’s strengths has been our ability to reach out to different groups of people, such as the LGBTQIA+ community, while still attracting people of all walks of life. We’ve had a successful Latino ministry, and we seek to make it grow again. Our diversity affirms our being a family of God, welcoming all people regardless of differences. 

We strive to continue to offer quality worship, education, advocacy and hospitality proclaiming God’s love with a sense of joy and being family.