10 Upper Moutere
St Paul’s Lutheran Community Church Upper Moutere and St John’s Hope 2025
St Paul’s Lutheran Community Church (Upper Moutere) and St John’s (Hope) represent a diverse group of people.
St John’s in Hope are a small but faithful group of people. The services are held on the first and third Sunday of each month and follow a more traditional service format. Offering the same kind of contemporary service experience as the large non-denominational church across the road seems pointless, and the distinction in service style is part of what makes St John’s unique. While St John’s are a small group, they are joyful and inviting, welcoming all and sundry (pets included) wholeheartedly. They continually seek ways to interact and benefit the community around them and take great pride in their care of St John’s and all who enter her gates.
At St Paul’s Lutheran Community Church Upper Moutere we have the unique position of being the only local church within a 10-15 minute drive. As our name reflects, we are a church for the local community and over the last 30 years have strived to be a welcoming church home for Christians from different backgrounds, cultures, and faith expressions, so that we might also be the living expression of Jesus to the wider community that we all live in.
As a result, a lot of our planning and work over this Synodical term has been focused on how we can improve our profile in the community and ensure that not only are our people welcoming but that our buildings and grounds provide an inviting, functional space to space to be in. We have also been challenged to engage with the mission of the Church in different ways- not through prescribed programmes, but by inviting congregation members to look at their interests, skills and gifts and use those as point of connecting with people and communicating the goodness of God through the building of genuine relationships. While only in the early stages of this renewed mindset, we have seen a number of initiatives spring up; from a walking group, a women’s tramping weekend, beer and pretzel nights, and even a couple of congregational fishing competitions! These have all sprung up out of people’s interests and availability with the aim of building connections and relationships between congregational members and any other interested parties. These have been a real blessing!
In terms of improving our profile and accessibility we have taken on a number of projects; first was to look at our signage and physical points of communication. Thanks to some clever, creative work, we now have new signs and a logo that reflects us. We (with the help of a GGTB grant) have taken on two building related projects. Firstly, we installed a wheelchair access ramp and room for a new portico that will house an info/history wall. For too long, our church had been a difficult and off-putting space for people with mobility issues or who make use of walking supports or wheelchairs. We have also taken on the massive task of remodelling our kitchen facility, doubling its footprint with the aim of setting it up as a commercial kitchen. This will not only better serve our congregation but will be available for community groups and small business to hire and use. Again- we are looking at our resources and spaces and how we might use those to invite and connect with people outside our current church community. This work is nearing completion, and we are looking forward to a celebratory meal to officially open it! Another little initiative that has been quietly happening in the background has been the development of a little walkway to connect the main cemetery with some historic, outlying headstones about 100m away. A small, dedicated group have planted hundreds of native trees and plants to guide walkers and sightseers to this spot and will create a beautiful treelined walkway in the years to come.
For more than 20 years, we were in the fortunate position to have a Youth Worker serving both the church and our wider community, however at the end of 2022 our Youth Worker resigned and we have struggled to find a person to replace them. In mid 2024 we thought we had found our people- a young local couple, unfortunately at the eleventh hour they decided that the timing was not quite right for them. In that space however, we have had volunteers and contractors help facilitate youth activities and a discipleship/discussion group that the teens have simply come to call Jesus group. These young folk are starting to dig into their faith and ask some meaningful questions and also take ownership of their faith. Our aim is for everyone, including our youth, to feel that they have a place and something to contribute- that they are valued. It has been a blessing to see young people active in our church, helping with music, morning teas, audio/visual support and working bees- it has been a real blessing to not only see their participation and faith development, but to see them grow as a group. We have had the joy of baptising two of these teens in the last six months. In addition to this, our previous youth worker has reprised her role as Chaplain at the local primary school, continuing on the good work that has been done there and maintaining our relationship with them. We are still seeking the right person or people to take on this role but are still intentional about our ministry to youth and young people.
The last 6-10 months has seen a period of growth for our church with several individuals, couples and families coming to check us out and some are starting to attend semi-regularly and make this their church home. This has been very encouraging and seen somewhat of a revival in our Sunday School. In fact, average attendance at church has increased by around ten people each week over this time period and sometimes a lot more! We are not doing a lot of things differently- but we are being more thoughtful and intentional about what we do, from the language we use to the types of songs being sung during our corporate worship times, and we are doing this with a missional mindset. As a leadership team we are encouraging people to talk about what God is up to in their lives and to try different things to connect and share this life that Jesus offers all of us. As one person said, church is not just about who we were, or who we are now- it’s planning and moving towards who we believe God is calling us to be
In the coming synodical term, we are excited by the developing Mission Strategic Direction that is being discussed at this Synod and look forward to engaging with it fully. We would really like focus on the development of our people resources: encouraging, equipping and supporting people of all ages to use their God given talents, skills, gifts and resources to share Jesus with the people in their life and our community. We want to further consolidate on the good work that has been done with our young people and ensure they have avenues to explore, grow and share their faith. We will continue to pray and seek a new Youth Worker and as always we will seek out opportunities to serve and engage with the community around us.
I want to end this report with an acknowledgment of all the people who put their hands up and volunteer their time, talents, and resources for the good of our people, our church and our community. I especially thank those that are prepared to take on roles that feel challenging and scary. I believe it will be the church, empowered by the Holy Spirit and living out the love of God with all its’ various people and parts working together, that makes the risen Jesus visible.
Thank you.
Andy Marr
St Pauls Lutheran Community Church Upper Moutere and St John’s Hope
Financial Reports:
Upper Moutere: https://lca.box.com/shared/static/gmj13fkkpm71fv75874jnr0p9e5alzlq.xlsx
