“Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Nathanael asked Philip in John 1:46. Philip was telling his friend about the man he just met, the one “whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus, son of Joseph from Nazareth.” Philip’s answer was “Come and see.”
Recently we traveled to Las Vegas, Nevada, for one of the listening sessions we’re holding throughout the U.S.
Just like Nathanael you might be tempted to ask, “Can anything good come out of Las Vegas?” And like Philip, I invite you to “come and see,” for the Good News came out of Nazareth, and good news is coming from an unlikely place like Vegas.
Community Lutheran Church is just a few miles from the famed Las Vegas strip. What’s the connection between this congregation in the desert and our seminary on the prairie? One word: Mission. Luther Seminary is all about educating missional leaders, and CLC is all about being a place for mission and mission development. What better training ground for our future church leaders than in the heart of “Sin City,” CLC members told me.
CLC is as good as its word. They serve as an internship site for our master of divinity students, and have embraced former intern Megan Torgerson and current intern Kevin Bergerson as one of their own. They also recognize and nurture members’ gifts for ministry. CLC member Marissa Calcaterra is now a master of arts student at Luther Seminary, concentrating in children, youth and family ministry.
Hear what Megan and Marissa have to say about CLC in these short video clips. Real Player is required to view these clips.
I’m thrilled to see how these young people have thrived in the desert, and am thankful to congregations like CLC that have intentionally become places of learning, discernment and missional outreach. Thanks be to God for their faithful work!
Richard Bliese,
President
Next month: Here’s what I’ve been hearing from you.