Growing into Grace’s Future

A few months ago, I invited you all to reflect on our congregation’s ministries and have conversations with me about what brings you hope, what makes you anxious or keeps you awake at night, and what you would be excited to see happening a year from now at Grace. I had those conversations with different groups of leaders, staff and individuals over the summer.

-First, it was encouraging to hear many comments that affirmed the five goals of the strategic plan approved by the Congregation Council in 2025:

-Grow Spiritually, Programmatically and through our Stewardship, and Engagement with People Who interact with Grace

-Grow and Evolve Grace’s Internal Programs

-Grow in Service to the Community

-Develop a Strategic Plan to Evolve, Enhance & Grow Grace Preschool

-Develop and Implement a Mental and Behavioral Health Ministry at Grace

And it was helpful to hear what questions and hopes people are holding, especially a hunger for adult learning opportunities and a desire to more fully welcome guests into the faith community at Grace.

As I listened and shared the conversations I had with our other rostered leaders, staff and Congregation Council, we began to gain some clarity about what’s next.

I’m delighted to share that, with Congregation Council’s approval earlier in September, beginning January 1, 2027, Pastor Mark Fitzsimmons will remain on staff half-time as the Pastor of Discipleship. He has been instrumental to renewing our adult education offerings that have multiplied this fall, and he will continue in a full-time interim role through the end of this year. He’ll continue in the new year to preach and lead worship twice a month usually, but he’ll also have more time to enjoy his and Dana’s retirement. Before year-end we’ll celebrate Pr. Mark’s interim ministry at Grace as we look forward to his transition.

What this means is that we are not going to call a third full-time rostered leader at Grace at this time. Deacon Kimberly and I will be the rostered leaders under call to the congregation, and Pastor Mark, as a retired pastor, will be under contract at Grace. We will continue to have ONE worship on first Sundays and traditional (9AM) and praise worship (11:15 AM) on the other Sundays, with one Spanish-language worship (11:15) each month. And, we will continue to rely on our professional staff, congregation leaders, and YOU to help us all live out our congregation’s mission and ministry here at Grace and in our community.

At our August ministry fair, “Your Place at Grace”, many of you heard about the different ministries happening at Grace and began participating where you felt God calling you. Thank you for saying, “Yes!”

One of the recurring themes of the conversations over the summer was the work of welcome and belonging. Staff and ministry leaders are looking at ways to welcome members and guests well, share information more clearly and form relationships more easily. Maybe you’ve noticed a new cadre of greeters and additional ushers at Sunday morning worship. We’ve also updated the e-news and announcements to reflect the areas of discipleship, fellowship, stewardship, worship and administration that we have been lifting up since August. And in the next few weeks you’ll see changes to the welcome area inside the front doors as the desk is removed and the space is renewed. I am working with a small team from the congregation to continue this vital work of welcome.

The newest dimension of that work is being led by yet another team formed through a conversation between the Justice and Advocacy Ministry and our rostered leaders. Just last week, this team began piloting “Faith Alliance”, a new program from Global Refuge (formerly Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service). You may remember that, in June, Andrew Steele and Chelsea White of Global Refuge visited Grace. Faith Alliance is a new training program for communities of faith who seek to safely welcome and embrace immigrants and refugees. The program will culminate in a Covenant Retreat during which the team will identify action steps that Grace can take to further the work of welcome we are already doing.

Please pray for the many ways we are transforming lives through Christ at Grace as we move ahead into the future God has for us.

In Christ,

+Pastor Christina Auch