For as in one body we have many members and not all the members have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another. -Romans 12:4-5

There are about 400 people who are currently actively involved in ministry at Resurrection Lutheran Church. Many are official members, some are friends who regularly participate in Sunday School, Community Meals, or worship services. All of us know some of us, and we are connected together by geography and Jesus. Once or more per year, we have an official meeting to set budget and elect leaders or vote on decisions together, and throughout the year our elected leaders and staff and other volunteers do ministry together with the help and guidance of the Holy Spirit.

Our congregation is part of the Southeastern Iowa Synod. (Synod is a Greek word meaning “walk together.”) Together with about 130 other congregations from Boone to Burlington, we work together under the leadership of Bishop Amy Current. Once a year, we gather in Synod Assembly, which is very much like a larger, longer congregational meeting. As a synod, we can do things like support new congregations, partner with different churches to do more together, and raise up leaders to serve as pastors and deacons.

Our synod is one of 65 that make up the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. These synods run from Alaska to the Bahamas, from Maine to Hawaii. At the end of 2024, there were about 2.6 million members within the congregations that make up the ELCA. Together, those 2.6 million people send about 700 people to a Churchwide Assembly every three years, which is very much like an even longer and larger Synod Assembly. We address concerns that have been raised by congregations and synods, ranging from the high costs of healthcare for church workers to how the ELCA can stand up for and support our partners in Palestine. In fact, there are nearly 100 pages of resolution documents. We’ll elect a new Presiding Bishop as Bishop Eaton retires. We’ll hear reports from the Commission on a Renewed Lutheran Church and consider their recommendations for the future of the ELCA. 

While our focus, most of the time, is on our own local congregation, it’s good to be reminded that we are part of something bigger than ourselves. And though we might not always share the same concerns as every other congregation or synod, coming together helps us to see the ways we can work together for the sake of our whole denomination. Ministries like ELCA World Hunger and Lutheran Disaster Response would be impossible without the structure and support of the churchwide offices. Programs that help to resettle refugees or advocate for social services need a nationwide aspect to be effective; the ELCA churchwide offices do this. 

Perhaps most importantly, being connected to a bigger denomination gives us people to pray for– and people who pray for us. I ask that you would include the Churchwide Assembly participants in your prayers as we meet from July 28-August 2, for safe travels and God’s wisdom in our deliberations. Together, we are a church that shares the Good News of Jesus Christ with the whole world, and my hope is that God will continue to guide and uphold us to do just that for many years to come.