Together, One: Advancing the Mission & Ministry of LCC

EDMONTON – At the 2022 LCC Synod Convention, David Friesen, LCC’s Director of Advancement, and Alan Zacharias, president of Zacharias Advancement Consulting, shared the results of the exciting planning process that Lutheran Church–Canada (LCC) has been engaged in over the past thirteen months. The full video of the presentation at convention is available through the convention playlist on our YouTube Channel, and the full Slide Deck for the presentation can be downloaded or viewed online as a PDF.

As you may have read in previous issues of The Canadian Lutheran and on CanadianLutheran.ca, the purpose of this planning process has been to create a shared vision for the future of our church body—to direct, strengthen, and sustain our overall mission and ministry today and tomorrow. The strategic framework that emerged from our work together established our mission, vision, values, and goals, through the input of many voices across our synod. This framework provides the foundation for future initiatives aligning our priorities, plans, and people. The next steps in this process will focus on developing specific initiatives under each goal statement. Please continue to pray for this process and its outcome and, if asked, please consider being a part of our ongoing work.

This process has provided exceptional feedback and direction on our challenges and our opportunities as a synod, leading to the development of a strategic framework to:

• Clarify our mission and priorities;
• Define measurable outcomes and accountability standards;
• Guide resource allocation and funding priorities;
• Enhance communications and transparency, and;
• Position LCC for mission expansion and congregational vitality.

The strategic framework and initiatives that emerged from this process are as follows:

Our Mission: Serve, strengthen, and equip congregations for bold, faithful, Christ-centred witness.

Our Vision: A unified, confessional body of believers fulfilling the Great Commission.

Our Values:

• • Truth. We value Scripture as the inerrant, written Word of God and the only rule and norm of faith and practice.
  • Grace. We value Grace as the free and undeserved gift of God through Christ Jesus which empowers believers to show forgiveness and mercy to others.
  • Unity. We value unity in doctrine, proclamation, and practice, as expressed in Scripture and the Lutheran Confessions.
  • Vocation. We value each person’s unique God-given gifts, talents, and abilities, enabling them to witness Christ’s redeeming love in all aspects and stations of life.
  • Sanctity of Life. We value life as a gift of God to be cherished, nurtured, and protected from conception to natural death.
  • Trust. We value telling one another the truth in love, doing what we say we will do, and stewarding all ministry resources to the glory of God.
  • Relationships. We value and respect one another as children of God, demonstrating love in all things because He first loved us.

Our Goal Statements:

• • Disciple-Making Culture: Serve, support, and equip congregations and partner ministries for mission and discipleship.
  • Mission Outreach: Pursue bold domestic and international outreach and ministry.
  • Equip Leaders: Recruit, educate, and support ecclesiastical, diaconal, and lay leaders for the church.
  • Organizational Effectiveness: Use and strengthen synodical structure, services, and processes to foster unity, transparency, and relationships.
  • Fiscal Resources and Responsibility: Gather, manage, and allocate financial resources to increase and optimize mission impact. 
  • Strategic Communications: Cultivate open, consistent communications to inform, engage, and encourage awareness and response throughout the synodical family.

A new webpage has been created on the Purpose & Priorities Planning Process, where you can find the following:

• LCC Strategic Framework & Initiatives that came out of the Purpose & Priorities Planning Process.
• Video link to the full presentation on this process at the LCC 2022 Synod Convention, and full slide deck (PDF).
• A summarized overview of the steps in the PPP Process with some updates on how each step has been completed.
• Contact information to obtain more information; ask questions; or add comments and input.

Get in touch

We ask that you continue to keep this process and our synod in your prayers. We recognize that by ourselves we can accomplish nothing, but in Christ “who makes all things new”, we are able to fulfill our mission. For further information or if you have questions, comments, or input, please contact David Friesen, LCC Director of Advancement.

David Friesen, Director of Advancement
 EMAIL  204-791-9949

David has been out and about getting to know the pastors, deacons, church workers, and laity across each of LCC’s three regions. He encourages you to invite him to speak to your congregation, or to plan to meet with him when he’s in your area!

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For more news from the 2022 LCC Synod Convention, visit: www.lutheranchurchcanada.ca/synod-convention-2022/

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