After a few weeks of knocking on doors of the neighborhood he had just moved into with his family, Pastor Robert Bragstad and 143 others gathered at the first worship for what would become Prince of Peace Lutheran Church. That inaugural worship service, held in the cafeteria of Alexander Ramsey High School, took place 65 years ago yesterday, on March 31, 1957. In those days, the rapidly growing city of Roseville was considered a ripe place for mission and Pastor Bragstad must have made quite an impression with many of the families he met while knocking on those doors.
Not long after Associate Pastor John Klawiter announced he was accepting a new call to Faith Lutheran in Forest Lake, Senior Pastor Anita Beste also announced her plans to retire at the end of the coming summer. Having recently completed an interim assignment at another church in the area, I accepted the invitation to come and serve Prince of Peace as an Interim Pastor, offering my leadership during the transition to come. I began my ministry with Prince of Peace 6 years ago today, on April 1, 2016, and discovered that Roseville is still a place ripe for mission.
These two coinciding anniversaries mark important beginnings. They also highlight a significant truth about the work this congregation has been about throughout all its history. God has always been gathering us together to be the church in this place. As the community has grown up, the look may have changed, as the needs of our neighbors may have as well. But Prince of Peace has always been able to be a tangible way for God’s presence to be made known. This is what makes this community so ripe for mission.
When did you first call this area home? What was it that made you want to connect with Prince of Peace? How has God been transforming this community of faith in the time you’ve been a part of it? Where might God be expecting us to turn next? These are good questions to ponder for today, as we mark these important milestones and remember the call to be a part of God’s mission today, tomorrow, and in the days to come.
Happy Anniversary! May God’s peace find you this day. -Pastor Peter
Let us pray… God of mission, you have claimed us, gathered us together as your church and send us back out again to do your work in the world. Continue blessing us as we go about the tasks of building your church and loving the world, trusting that you are with us and that your love will sustain us in all we do. Amen.