Mark Glaeser & Donna Hanna led the music ministry of Christ Lutheran Church in Charlotte, North Carolina when their pastor asked them to write a hymn for an upcoming capital campaign. Like the practice of many campaigns, a theme was taken from a relevant piece of scripture. The campaign at Christ Lutheran that year would rely on the New Testament letter to the Colossians.
“As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, continue to walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.” -Colossians 2:6-7
Recounting the genesis of the hymn he co-wrote, Glaeser shared the following with Paul Westermeyer, the author of the “Hymnal Companion to Evangelical Lutheran Worship”…
“The phrase that kept coming back to our minds over and over again was, ‘Build us up, Lord.’ We were inspired by the image in Colossians that if our roots were indeed planted in Christ, we would live lives of discipleship. We also realized that (as a congregation) to be true to the goal of our campaign, we were sowing seeds for the kingdom, that indeed we might never see the fruit. What mattered was that we begin the act of sowing.”
I too was struck by the words of the Colossians text, as they echo Prince of Peace’s current mission statement, “We are claimed, gathered, and sent to build the Church and love the World.” God’s work in and through us is inherently intended to grow and grow. And God provides us with everything we’ll need to make such an expansion possible.
It was an obvious choice to use “Build Us Up, Lord” as the theme for this year’s annual giving campaign which we’ll launch on Sunday. Glaeser and Hanna’s hymn of the same name (ELW 670) will serve as a wonderful framing device to keep our thoughts centered on what God has been up to with Prince of Peace for over 65 years. Our charter members could not have imagined all the specific ways for how this church continues to be a blessing to one another and to our community. Similarly, those of us here now, make on-going investments of our time, talent, and resources, not knowing what fruit they might yield well into the future.
I look forward to singing together with you in the coming weeks, as we prayerfully consider how God is at work among us to build the church and love the world.
May God’s peace come to you today. – Pastor Peter
Let us pray… God of generosity, you have filled the world with so many good things. You now invite us to use what you have given so that all creation might thrive. Rooted in your story, help us to follow in faith what was started long ago. With full hearts, we plant seeds of hope and spread the story of your unstoppable love. Amen. -2024 Annual Giving Campaign: “Prayer for Discernment”