Growing Vital Churches
Commission for Mission
One Church. One Purpose. Many Ministries.
The LCAQD Commission for Mission exists to support, equip, encourage and connect our communities of grace as together we participate in God’s mission.
Mission does not begin with us.
God is already at work in our congregations, schools, agencies, neighbourhoods and communities. Our calling is to listen, discern where God may be opening doors, and faithfully join in what God is doing.
The LCAQD Strategic Charter gives us a shared framework for this journey. It helps us ask:
Which door is God opening before us, and what faithful step are we being called to take together?
We work alongside congregations, parishes, schools, agencies, leaders and other Communities of Grace to:
- discern local mission opportunities
- strengthen healthy and life-giving communities
- equip people to live and share their faith
- develop missional leaders
- encourage collaboration and partnership
- connect people with resources, learning and funding
- support experimentation, renewal and new initiatives.
Our approach is relational and collaborative. We want to listen first, learn together and help Communities of Grace discover faithful responses appropriate to their own context.
Contact
Assistant Bishop, Commission for Mission
David Schmidt
david.schmidt@qld.lca.org.au
07 3511 4018
For more information, links and services, head to our contact page.
Resources for Mission
The Five Open Doors
The Strategic Charter invites the LCAQD to explore Five Open Doors.
They are not separate programs or another list of things every congregation must do. Rather, they provide a shared language for recognising where God may be inviting us to grow.
At the heart of the Church is Christ.
Spiritual renewal begins by returning again and again to the gifts God has given us: his Word, Baptism, Holy Communion, prayer, worship and life together.
Through these gifts, the Holy Spirit forms us in faith, renews us in grace and sends us into everyday life as followers of Jesus.
The Open Door to Spiritual Renewal invites our Communities of Grace to pay attention to the spiritual life that sustains everything else we do. It asks how people are being nurtured in faith, growing as disciples, and learning to recognise God’s presence and activity among us.
Renewal is both personal and shared. It may happen through worship, Scripture and prayer, through small groups and conversations, through relationships across generations, or simply by creating space to listen to God and to one another.
It also invites us to notice where faith may have become tired, routine or disconnected from everyday life. Spiritual renewal is not about abandoning what has sustained us in the past. It is about allowing the gospel to speak afresh into the present and trusting God to continue renewing his Church.
As we grow more deeply in Christ, we become better able to recognise where God may be leading us and how we might faithfully respond.
Some helpful questions might be:
- Where are we seeing signs of spiritual life and renewal?
- How are people being helped to grow in faith and discipleship?
- What helps us remain grounded in Christ?
- Where might people be feeling spiritually tired or disconnected?
- What opportunities could we create for prayer, Scripture, conversation and faith formation?
- What might God be renewing in us for the sake of others?
Spiritual renewal is the foundation from which our worship, witness, leadership, collaboration and engagement with the world flow.
Resources
- Worship resources – resources for worship planning, personal study, reflection and prayer.
- Marks of a Healthy Church Reflection booklet – a resource for reflecting together on congregational health and mission.
God sends his Church into the world he loves.
Mission happens through ordinary Christians living their faith in everyday relationships, workplaces, neighbourhoods and communities.
Sometimes that means speaking about Jesus. Sometimes it means listening, serving, advocating, caring or simply being faithfully present.
The question is not only:
“How can we get people to come to church?”
It is also:
“Where is God already at work in our community, and how might we join in?”
Resources for sharing faith and engaging our communities
- Bring Jesus: Making Sense of Mission, by Dr Steen Olsen
- Reviving Evangelism
- Alpha Australia
- Gospel Fluency Workshops
- Offering Pastoral Care to those seeking Voluntary Assisted Dying by Rev Dr Russell Briese, Director, Chaplaincy and Ministry Development for Lutheran Services. You can contact Rev Russell with any questions: russell.briese@lutheranservices.org.au
We also encourage communities of grace to build relationships with community organisations, schools, service providers and others already contributing to the well-being of their neighbourhoods.
Mission does not always mean beginning something new. Sometimes the most faithful step is discovering who we can serve alongside.
We are not isolated congregations or ministries.
We belong to Christ and therefore to one another.
The Strategic Charter invites us to think of the LCAQD as One Church with One Purpose expressed through Many Ministries.
Every Community of Grace has its own context, history and gifts. At the same time, we can learn from one another, encourage one another and share what God has entrusted to us.
Understanding our communities
Good mission begins with listening.
Resources such as the National Church Life Survey can help congregations better understand:
- who we are
- the health of our community
- our strengths
- the challenges before us
- our connection with the wider community
- opportunities for future mission and ministry.
Research and data are not an end in themselves. They help us listen more carefully and ask better questions about where God may be leading us.
Reflecting on videos by Rev Dr Bob Newton, Pastor David Schmidt invites us to consider how we understand ourselves as church, and the impact of this in the current century: Why 'It' No Longer Works
Here are some rolling questions for boards and councils.
How is your church looking? Here are some vital signs of healthy, sick and dying churches: Autopsy of Deceased Church Summary
Questions worth asking in your congregation:
- What are we noticing?
- What is changing around us?
- What might God be showing us?
- Where do we see signs of life and hope?
- Who are we struggling to reach or hear?
- What might we need to learn, release or begin?
- What faithful next step could we take?
We believe we are better together.
Collaboration may happen between neighbouring congregations, across a region, between a congregation and school, with Lutheran Services or Lutheran Youth of Queensland, or with another Christian or community organisation.
Healthy collaboration is built on relationships, trust, clarity and a willingness to listen.
It asks:
What could become possible if we stopped assuming we had to do everything alone?
The Commission for Mission can assist communities of grace to explore conversations about:
- shared mission opportunities
- regional ministry
- partnerships between congregations
- church and school relationships
- community partnerships
- shared staffing or resources
- joint projects
- new expressions of ministry.
Disaster and Drought Response
Collaboration becomes especially important when communities experience drought, fire, flood or other disasters.
The Commission for Mission works with congregations, agencies and community partners to connect people, identify needs and encourage practical responses.
Ways you might help include:
- praying for affected communities
- alerting us to people who may need assistance
- partnering with affected congregations
- offering practical help
- supporting disaster-relief appeals
- sharing appropriate skills, accommodation or other resources.
For more directed giving, Queensland Lutheran Giving's vision is to enable and to foster Christians and the wider community to make a difference for many, by providing legal and financial structures to facilitate benevolent endeavours.
We do not know exactly what the Church in Queensland will look like in the years ahead.
But we trust the God who goes before us.
The Open Door to the Future encourages communities of grace to be curious, courageous and willing to learn.
This may involve renewing an existing ministry, trying something small, developing new leaders, exploring new forms of Christian community or discovering new ways to engage with a changing neighbourhood.
Not every experiment will succeed.
That is okay.
Faithful innovation involves prayer, discernment, learning and sometimes discovering through experience what does—and does not—serve God's mission.
Developing missional leaders
The future of the Church will require leaders who can:
- listen and discern
- form and encourage others
- share responsibility
- recognise gifts
- develop new leaders
- work collaboratively
- engage confidently with their communities
- create space for others to participate.
Leadership is therefore not simply about maintaining what already exists. It is about helping God's people discover and use the gifts God has given them.
Resources
- Recommended reading for leaders
- Creating a Culture of Keychain Leadership in your Church, Fuller Youth institute
- Growing Church Young booklet by LCAQD Commission for Mission, is based on concepts from Kara Powell, Jake Mulder, & Brad Giffin's, "Growing Young" ver. 1. For more information you can visit the Growing Young Website here.
- Church Planting
Three Mission Priorities
Across the Five Open Doors, the Strategic Charter draws attention to three important areas of mission and ministry.
Communities of Grace
We seek communities grounded in God's grace, where people are gathered around Word and Sacrament and formed in the life of Christ.
Incarnational Witness
We seek communities whose faith spills over into everyday life—where Christ's love becomes visible and his good news can be heard through our relationships, words and actions.
Missional Leadership
We seek leaders who equip others, share ministry, develop gifts and help God's people participate confidently in God's mission.
These are not simply tasks for pastors or church councils.
They describe a shared life in which every baptised person has gifts and a place in God's mission.
Starting a Mission Conversation
You do not need to have a completed strategic plan before contacting us.
Sometimes the conversation begins with something as simple as:
“We think something is changing.”
“We have noticed an opportunity.”
“We are struggling and aren't sure what comes next.”
“There is something happening in our community that we would like to explore.”
“We have an idea, but we don't know how to begin.”
“Could we do something together with another congregation or organisation?”
The Commission for Mission can help you listen, ask questions, explore possibilities and connect with people or resources that may assist.
Financial Support for Mission
Sometimes a faithful idea needs some financial help to get started.
The LCAQD has several avenues through which communities of grace may be able to receive support for mission initiatives.
Funding should not drive mission. Rather, funding can help release ideas that emerge from prayer, discernment and genuine engagement with our communities.
Have you identified a practical mission opportunity but need some assistance to get it under-way?
Perhaps a grant can help you!
You may be eligible for an LLL Australia Mission Outreach Grant of up to $25,000 to kick start your local mission project. Applications may be submitted between February and April each year, with the successful congregation/s announced at our annual LCAQD Synod.
- LCAQD Mission Outreach Grant Information
- 2026 Mission Outreach Grant Application form
- Mission Outreach Grant Guidelines
You can view the LLL promotional video here.
For more information about these grants, follow the links above, then get in touch with Pastor David Schmidt: david.schmidt@qld.lca.org.au
07 3511 4018
The Mission Development Fund exists to help mission continue and grow across the Queensland District.
It provides an opportunity both to give and to support new mission possibilities.
A congregation may wish to contribute because it has resources that could bless the wider Church.
Another Community of Grace may have recognised a significant opportunity for mission but need help turning that possibility into reality.
The principle behind the fund is simple:
God gives gifts to the whole Church for the sake of His mission.
As One Church. One Purpose. Many Ministries, we want the resources entrusted to one generation of the Church to help make mission possible for generations still to come.
If you are considering:
- supporting mission through a financial gift
- leaving a missional legacy following a congregational closure
- contributing proceeds from property or other assets
- developing a new mission initiative
- seeking support for a collaborative project
please contact the Commission for Mission for a conversation.
Would you like to know more? Read the documentation:
230628 Mission Development Fund Rules FINAL.docx
Mission Development Fund Grants booklet.docx
Mission Development Fund Application Form
Then have a conversation with Pastor David Schmidt: david.schmidt@qld.lca.org.au
07 3511 4018
The Milguy Lutheran congregation closed in 2018. In dispersing its assets, the congregation elected to earmark $10,000 to help rural (and/or remote) congregations who are no longer able to call a pastor to be supported by visiting pastors according to their needs.
Read more about the 'Milguy Fund' here:
Queensland Lutheran Giving connects people who want to support ministry and community well-being with projects making a practical difference across Queensland.
Tax-deductible giving opportunities are available through several funds, including those that qualify as necessitous circumstances.
Congregations and agencies may also be able to establish eligible projects within these funds.
To donate by Electronic Funds Transfer:
Credit card payment is our preferred donation method. We are also able to receive donations by EFT, but we need to ensure that we collect the necessary details from our donors. To donate by EFT, please contact us and we will guide you through our EFT payment process: district@qld.lca.org.au Phone: 07 3511 4000
Or donate by credit card using this link:
Talk with us
Mission begins with listening—and often the best starting point is simply a conversation.
Whether your community of grace is flourishing, struggling, exploring something new, considering collaboration or simply wondering what God might be calling you to next, we would be glad to talk with you.
Together we can ask:
What is God already doing here?
Which door might God be opening?
And what faithful step might we take together?
Contact the Commission for Mission:
Pastor David Schmidt
Director, Commission for Mission
david.schmidt@qld.lca.org.au
07 3511 4018
One Church. One Purpose. Many Ministries.
Have a question?
The District Office is here to assist.
