“And He gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ” (Eph 4:11-12). Earlier this week, Rev. Dr. Gottfried Martens from Berlin, the pastor of the largest Persian Lutheran congregation in Europe (over 1,400 Iranians and Afghans), and many of his parishioners arrived in two buses, visiting our two SELK churches in Hamburg. In several weeks of planning, we pastors and laypeople divvied up our responsibilities: local pastor Rev. Bernhard Schütze of Zion Lutheran hosted a rich Divine Service, officiated by Finnish missionary Rev. Marko Turunen; beautiful music was provided by his wife Siiri on violin and an Iranian parishioner on the piano; a number of Persian parishioners cooked a delicious Persian lunch. Afternoon entertainment was on the schedule as well. My task was, among other things, to assist with Holy Communion and guide the group on a walking tour through Hamburg—shepherding what had been announced to us as a group of 100+ visitors. The prospect of leading such a crowd across intersections buzzing with e-scooters, bicycles, cars, and trucks had made me apprehensive. But, as it turned out, the Lord made my task very manageable because my two brother pastors—Rev. Bernhard Schütze and Rev. Andreas Rehr—helped me lead and shepherd our guests. The visit turned out to be a huge blessing—perhaps most importantly for our Persian friends from both cities who greatly enjoyed fellowshipping with one another, some even joyfully dancing on our walk. But this wonderful event was only possible because people blessed with a variety of skills had contributed. Isn’t that exactly what Christ envisioned for His Church, whether in Hamburg, Germany, or Hampton, Nebraska—that she would be led by a mix of pastors and laypeople whom He has equipped with so many amazing gifts? (Picture: visitors arriving at Zion Lutheran Church, Hamburg).
The Tiews in Germany 