Mission Statement
Our Mission Statement: Celebrating and sharing the life-changing love of Jesus in our homes, church, communities and world.
• Celebrating – As people forgiven in Jesus and living in the sure and certain hope of eternal life, we have much to celebrate. We celebrate God’s amazing goodness to us as we gather for worship, dig into God’s Word together in Bible Study, as we care for and support one another, and as we reach out in love to others.
• Sharing – The Good News of God’s amazing love for us in Jesus is not meant to be kept to ourselves. Good Shepherd by the Lake Lutheran Church is committed to connecting people to Jesus.
• This sharing begins in our homes, with our own families. We believe that the home is the primary place where faith is nurtured. We support and encourage our parents and families as they come together to learn, grow in and reflect the love of Jesus in their life together.
• Sharing the life-changing love of Jesus continues in our church. God loves us just the way we are, but by His grace doesn’t leave us that way. We all desire to grow and mature in our faith. That means sharing our faith with one another. It means being vulnerable with one another, talking about the challenges we are facing. It means caring for one another through the hard and difficult times in life and rejoicing with one another in the good. It means worshiping and studying God’s word together, learning with and from each other.
• As we grow in our love for God, this love is expressed in our love for others. We do not keep the love of God to ourselves, but go out into our communities to share that love in both word and deed. We do this together when we as a congregation join hands in and effort to serve the needs of our community. We do it with generous gifts given to organizations serving the community. And we share God’s love in our community when we see Jesus in others and take the time to listen and respond be it at work, at school, or with the neighbor next door.
• There are many around the world who have not heard the love of Jesus and many who are suffering and hurting. Again, as we grow in our love for God, we let that love flow through us as we support the work of missionaries and caring ministries throughout the world. You will can learn more about those we support in the outreach section of our website.
Vision Statement
“Everyone a maturing disciple. Everyone a witness.”
“Ev
eryone a maturing disciple.” The Apostle Peter wrote: “But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen” (2 Peter 3:18). The Bible pictures growing in faith and love for Christ with the image of an infant growing into mature adulthood. God’s desire for us as followers of Christ is for us to become more and more like Him—to think like Jesus, to talk like Jesus, and to live as Jesus lived. All believers are a work in progress. As the Holy Spirit works in our hearts and lives as we read, study, and take to heart the Word of God, we grow and mature in our faith. The vision for Good Shepherd by the Lake is that every member would be growing and maturing in their faith and walk with the Lord.
“Everyone a witness.” The Bible instructs us: “But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect” (1 Peter 3:15). We have good news, life-changing news to share. God’s love for us in Jesus is not meant to be kept to ourselves but shared with others. As we all readily share good news about what’s happening in our lives with others, so we can and need to tell others who Jesus is, what He has done for us in His life, death, and resurrection, and how He desires a close and intimate relationship with us. The vision for Good Shepherd by the Lake is that every member would be growing in their skills and commitment to sharing with others the reason for the hope they have in Jesus.
