Rev. Miguel Gomez-Acosta Annual Report: 2023

Rev. Miguel Gomez-Acosta, Director for Evangelical Mission and Bishop’s Associate for Congregational Vitality

What a year this has been! The Holy Spirit has been active and new things are happening in the Grand Canyon Synod. This year was full of new ministries and initiatives, as well as a new role for me.

2022-23 saw the start of three new Synod Authorized Worshipping Communities doing outreach in four distinct populations. Last year we started the Mission and Ministry Initiative, which seeks to strengthen and grow a cohort of 6 congregations. And at start of this year my role transitioned out of Stewardship to Congregational Care, as we have a new Director for Generosity (Pr. Dan Potaznick) and have a significant number of congregations needing additional support. Oh, how a single year can bring so much change!

New Starts

Last year I reported that the Cactus Conference had a visioning session where they identifiedministry priorities on which that they wanted to collaborate Their first priority was young adult ministry to take advantage of multiple college campuses on the west side of Phoenix. They received a grant from churchwide and for six months they explored the potential for this ministryby interviewing young adults, community leaders, and other young adult ministries. I am happy to report that the exploration was a success and now the West Valley Lutheran Young Adult Ministry is a full Synod Authorized Worshipping Community. Their outreach will be to college students at ASU West, Ottawa University, Grand Canyon University, as well as any young adult that desires to be a part of a young adult community. They will focus on social gatherings, service to others, and in due time worship.

The WVLYAM was not the only exploration since our last assembly. After having conversations with our ecumenical partners, the Arizona Diocese of the Episcopal Church and the Southwest Conference of the United Church of Christ, we determined that we wanted to explore the potential of a Spanish speaking ministry in Nogales, AZ. Pr. Veronica Alvarez (Assoc. Pr. Of Faith/La Fe in Phoenix) spent time in Nogales, meeting with community leaders, other churches,non-profit agencies, and more to ascertain the need for this ministry. At the end of her 3-monthexploration it was determined that the proposed site for this ministry was not ideal and though there is a need for a progressive expression of our faith in Nogales, it would take a significant amount of time to develop a congregation. Therefore, the development of this ministry is on hold until we can find the right site and the right mission developer that can be called full time and reside in Nogales.

At the start of this year the 15-year journey of the Armenian Evangelical Church of Las Vegas to join the ELCA finally came to an end when they were approved as a Synod Authorized Worshipping Community. This is the first and only ministry for the Armenian community in the whole ELCA. Currently we are interviewing two Armenian speaking pastoral candidates who live in Europe. We hope to call one of these candidates this summer so that, after obtaining their R1 visa, they can start their call by this fall. What makes this ministry even more unique is that the proposal for the new ministry also stipulates that the mission developer will also work on starting a new ministry for the Arabic speaking community in the Las Vegas.

Mission and Ministry

After the Holy Closure and sale of Celebration Lutheran Church in Peoria at the end of 2021, the synod council appointed a task force to determine the best stewardship of Celebration’s legacy. The Mission and Ministry Task Force began its work in February 2022 to vision how best to use these funds. After months of discussion the task force determined that there was an opportunity to support ministries in marginalized communities by raising their pastors’ time and strengthening their leadership skills, as well as funding a new position for the Office of the Bishop that could focus on generosity efforts in the synod. An advisory team appointed by the synod council includes the Chair and synod council representative Heather Burgett, Pr. Miguel Gomez-Acosta, Pr. Lowell Nelson, Pr. Don Lorfing, and Pr. Charles Newman. Pr. Daniel Potzanick was initially also part of the team until he started working for the Grand Canyon Synod as Director for Generosity.

The Mission and Ministry Advisory Team identified five ministries (Trinity, Vida Nueva, San Juan Bautista, Emmanuel Sudanese, and Faith/La Fe), developed a covenant, and invited them to partner with the synod for three years by attending two educational events a year and monthly check-ins with the Director for Evangelical Mission. At the start of this fiscal year grants were distributed and our partnership has started. The first cohort training was held on April 22, 2023,and covered Clarifying Roles and Building Relationships. Initial reactions were positive sincethe practical topics of church polity, constitution, and best practices when working with congregational councils and mission partners were not covered by their seminary education. Two new ministries were added later to this Mission and Ministry cohort, West Valley Lutheran Young Adult Ministry, and the Armenian Evangelical Church, to ensure that they receive practical and solid training as they are starting their ministries.

Conclusion

I am excited about all these new opportunities that we have taken part in this last year. This last year has been a breath of fresh air, bringing renewed vigor for my ministry. I also recognize that I have been in this role for seven years in July. As such it is time to take a break. I am happy to report that my first ever sabbatical has been approved and I will be on sabbatical from June 15-September 15. I am looking forward to a time of rest and education to renew my ministry so that I can be a blessing to the Grand Canyon Synod.

Since I have now transitioned out of Stewardship, I want to take the time to thank the Stewardship team (Janis Richert, Linda Staats, and Duane Gilson) for working with me these last 5 years. Your faithfulness and passion for stewardship inspires me. I am sure you will continue to do amazing things, now accompanied by Pr. Dan Potaznick. And I also want to thank the New and Renewing Team (Pr. Sarah Stadler, Pr. Charles Newman, Pr. Jason Adams, Pr. Adam Barnhart, and Pr. Tony Scheer). Thank you for dreaming and working together to make this last year an amazing year of mission.

And finally, I want to thank you, the saints of the Grand Canyon Synod, for your prayers and generosity. Your gifts to Growing Generosity appeal and your regular mission support for ourwork together made this last year possible. Of course I also want to thank the former members of Celebration whose legacy continues through Mission and Ministry. We look forward to another amazing year.

Respectfully submitted,

Rev. Miguel F. Gomez-Acosta

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