The mission statement of the Goodridge Area Lutheran Parish is a verse from the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus says, “Let your light shine before others that they may
see your good works and glorify your Father in Heaven,” (Mt. 5:18). This is a verse that is held dear as a part of our celebration of Holy Baptism when we present the newly Baptized with a candle. This symbolizes the light of Christ within them. We echo these words at Confirmation and when we honor our high School graduates. The words are a call to live in such a way that others will give praise to God as they observe our work in the world.
A mission statement is a public witness which tells the world what is important to us, our values, and communicates our reasons for doing the things that we do. It ought to also drive our direction and the purpose for our work. Brene’ Brown author of Dare to Lead writes, “Living into our values means that we do more than profess our values, we practice them. We walk our talk—we are clear about what we believe and hold important, and we take care that our intentions, words, thoughts, and behaviors align with those beliefs.”*
Our mission statement has the value of shining the light of Christ. How did our Lord let his light shine? The list below are some ways I see our Lord working in the Gospels:
Service
Care
Love
Forgiveness
Compassion
Kindness
Generosity
Humility
Dignity
Fairness
Freedom
Faith
Nurture
Patience
Openness
Truth
Trust
Honesty
Wisdom
Peace
Equality
Can you think of more? Jot them down here: __________________
How are we doing shining our lights? Are we doing so with the love of Christ? Are we loving our neighbors with kindness and patience bending toward equity? What score would you give yourself on a scale of 1 to 10? Are we living our values through the decisions we make not just in our homes and in the world but in our churches?
Read the quote from Brene’ Brown again: “Living into our values means that we do more than profess our values, we practice them. We walk our talk—we are clear about what we believe and hold important, and we take care that our intentions, words, thoughts, and behaviors align with those beliefs.”
Are we doing this when we make decisions? When I say this, I mean when we make every decision_from the way we greet people for worship to how we serve coffee and care for one another. Are we walking our talk? Are our attitudes and intentions in line with the attitude of Christ? Or are we doing something else? Are we dimming other’s wicks or encouraging their light to shine?
We shine our lights so that others may see our good works and give glory to God. This is our purpose. We are called to walk our talk because in doing so we hope others might be called to follow and serve Jesus too. We want them to see what a mighty God we serve! Is this happening in our churches? Are our neighbors seeing Christ in us and praising God for it inside and outside of our buildings.
I asked our council leaders a few months ago to ponder this question: Why do the congregations of Bethany, Ekelund, and Faith exist? I ask you too? What is the purpose of our little parish? We say it is to let our lights shine that others may give glory to God. I hope this is the reason! We can have a ton of fun and blessing being light in the world! Are you excited to see what is possible when we walk our talk? How is God calling us to tune our hearts to grace and possibility in this corner of creation?
Peace, Pastor Kristin
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