“Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all the day long” (Psalm 25:5).
We desire to follow God’s plans for us. We desire to see His will be done among us, but how do we go about discerning God’s will? How do we know where God is leading? Many desire that the process would be as easy as hearing the voice of the Lord or receiving a clear sign/message from God. We would even settle for God sending us an email everyone once in a while letting us know that we are on the right track. The problem is that seeking God’s will is not magical, mysterious, or even miraculous. God has given us both His Word and His wisdom. He has given us our physical/creational gifts of “body and soul, eyes, ears, and all [our] members, [our] reason and all [our] senses” (Small Catechism, The Creed, 1st Article) and He has given us our spiritual gifts in Christ Jesus as “the Holy Spirit has called [us] by the Gospel, enlightened [us] with His gifts, and kept [us] in the true faith” (Small Catechism, The Creed, 3rd Article). As the Apostle Paul reminded the Christians in Corinth, “…in every way you were enriched in [Jesus] in all speech and all knowledge … so that you are not lacking in any gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 1:5, 7).
God has plans for us individually and collectively. God has gifted us individually and collectively. God has called us to be about following His will as we joyously respond to the goodness and grace that is ours in Christ Jesus our Lord. And for that very reason, the people of Calvary continue to seek God’s will for us. We do it looking to His Holy Scriptures that provide us both His truth and His grace for our daily lives and also by using our 1st article gifts of human wisdom, leadership, collaboration, and reflection, as well as His 3rd article gifts of prayer, reflection, and the mutual conversation and consolation of Christian brothers and sisters.
There are two exciting opportunities taking place at Calvary, as we seek God’s will among us. First, a call committee has been formed to seek God’s will in filling our role of Associate Pastor of Pastoral Care and Adult Education. Members include Phil Hendershott (chair), Ann Arnold, Gene Jend, Rhonda Hansen, Ben Langhammer, Kirsten Springer, and Wendy Wilson. Ex Officio members are Pastor Kurt Ebert, Pastor Sam Troemel, Bill Laut (Exec. Dir.), and Eric Eisberg (Spiritual Care Dir.). We have scheduled our first meeting with our Indiana district representatives, who will provide guidance to our Call Committee as it accomplishes its work. We ask for your prayers for the work of the Call Committee, that the Holy Spirit may guide this process. Please continue to stay informed and connected to this process as we seek God’s will for our congregation.
Second, our Strategic Planning Process that started at the end of 2022 has reached a new stage in the process. After a continued process of reflection, discussion, and engagement of many leaders and volunteers among our congregation, we have reached 3 clearly established goals that we will be working toward during this ministry year. They are meant to help unite us in a common direction. They will allow us to improve the ministry here at Calvary, while also situating us to reach out to our neighborhood and community. More information about the specific goals and the process that we went through to arrive at them can be found at clcs.org/strategicplanning. Again, we ask for your prayers, your support, and your engagement. If you would like to know how you can get involved in making these goals a reality, please talk to any of our staff or volunteer leadership. You can find our names and faces at clcs.org/staff/ or on the pictures in the narthex outside the Conference Room.
We pray for God’s wisdom and guidance as we continue to discern His will and follow His word. May His kingdom come into our hearts and world, and may His will be done in our lives, our community, and our world.
God’s Peace, Pastor Kurt Ebert
