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Thrivent Builds opened the door for us to participate.

Although his congregation had never worked on a Habitat for Humanity project before, Pastor Dan Johnson believes that Thrivent Builds provided an easy connection. "Thrivent Builds opened the door for us to participate as a congregation."

Lewanlee Dedication

  

Pastor Dan Johnson
Pastor Dan Johnson knows that growing a church in his area of the United States can be a struggle. That's because 80% of the population around Hilsdale, Michigan is "unchurched," meaning that they do not go to church, or have never been to church. Many people live in substandard houses or low-income apartments. In some cases, the wage-earner has recently lost his blue collar job and the family is in real financial trouble.

That's why he was on the lookout for opportunities to minister to these people and bring more of them into the church when the Thrivent Builds project for Julie Jarrell came up. "It was a happy coincidence," he says. Although his congregation had never worked on a Habitat for Humanity project before, he believes that Thrivent Builds provided an easy connection. "Thrivent Builds opened the door for us to participate as a congregation."

Bringing the congregation together in this way was important to Pastor Johnson, and to his desire to share the Gospel. "Outreach and evangelism isn't simply in word, but in deed," he says. "At St. Paul's, we use the term 'ministries of mercy' rather than social outreach. This program helps those congregants who are looking for a place to offer their services."

Why is this so important? According to Pastor Johnson, "When people look for a congregation to join, many are looking for a meaningful purpose in life. The church that offers that will be like a magnet."

He recommends the Thrivent Builds experience to other Lutheran congregations. "For a struggling church, this would be a great way of getting perspective back. It would also be critical for a growing church; it would help them exercise their muscle and stay strong." In addition, he feels it helps people outside of the church to see it as being active in the community.

He has already seen the changes in his own congregation as a result of the build. "It opened the potential for them to look at meeting like this on a regular basis and to do this kind of work for others. Thrivent Builds offers a meaningful way to serve that is not internally focused. Congregations need practice at this sort of thing. And Thrivent Financial can help."