Our Mission
St. John’s Lutheran Church of Highland is a Christ-centered, multi-generational community; welcoming and uniting diverse individuals; helping each to find their place; growing and strengthening one another’s faith; supporting each other in times of need; and energizing all for service, witness, and benevolence in our congregation, our community, the greater church, and the world at large.
Our Vision
We, the congregation of St. John’s, through the Holy Spirit, build ownership, inspire support and commitment, and create enthusiasm in our God-given purposes: worship, ministry, evangelism, discipleship and fellowship.
Our Purposes
- Worship – loving the Lord with all your heart
- Ministry – loving your neighbor as yourself
- Evangelism – going and making disciples
- Fellowship – baptizing them to belonging, not just to believing
- Discipleship – teaching them to obey
Our Biblical Foundation
The Great Commandment – You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind… You shall love your neighbor as yourself (Mt. 22:37-40)
The Great Commission – Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. (Mt. 28:19-20)
Our Goals
Our congregation intentionally strives to develop and expand our ministries:
- To work toward healing those broken by life circumstances.
- To provide direct services to those living on the margins of society.
- To advocate for social and institutional change so that society might better reflect the values of the kingdom of God.
Inclusion and Diversity
As Christ’s church, we value the richness of God’s creation and offer a radical welcome to all people, appreciating our common humanity and our differences. We are a church that does not view diversity as a barrier to unity. We recognize and will challenge dynamics of power and privilege that create barriers to participation and equity in this church and society – for women, people of color, minority ethnic groups, people with disabilities, people who are marginalized or living in poverty, and the LGBTQ community.