ST LOUIS - Leaders from six Lutheran Church Missouri Synod (LCMS) congregations that have successfully planted daughter churches gathered with national mission leaders to share their expertise from Sept. 5-7.

The represented congregations were from the Carmel Lutheran Church, Carmel, Ind.; Ascension, Wichita, Kan.; Christ Assembly, Staten Island, N.Y.; San Pablo, Aurora, Ill.; El Redentor, Rockford, Ill.; and Rivercliff, Atlanta.

Geral Kieschnick, the LCMS president personally thanked each of the representatives, as they shared their joys and struggles in planting new churches.

This three day gathering served to "to listen to those who have done it and to honor those who have done it," said participant Dr. Ken Behnken, director of the Center for U.S. Missions, Irvine, Calif.

Benken noted the Synod mission leaders' plan to shift the church-planting responsibility from districts to congregations.

"If half of Synod's congregations would consider having one child,' or one daughter church,' that would be 3,000 new congregations," Behnken said. "If every district continues to plant one to four [congregations], we have less than 120."

Forty-six other congregations also will be recognized for their church planting efforts, and will receive a certificate of appreciation from the Synod and the North America Services unit of LCMS World Mission.

By Pauline J.
pjang@chtoday.com