Dear Praying Friends of Free Lutheran Bible College and Seminary:

Seek the LORD while he may be found; call upon him while he is near; let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return to the LORD, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. — Isaiah 55:6-7 (ESV)

We just finished the 62nd AFLC Annual Conference on campus last week, and we had a great time. The theme verse was Isaiah 55:11 (“The Word of God shall not return void…”), but my favorite verses in chapter 55 of Isaiah are repeated above. Those were the last verses I ever heard as an unbeliever. The Word of God converted my soul one late June night 33 years ago. It’s a reminder of how Jesus Christ changes our story.

Before I get into a list of prayer requests (see the end of this letter) I want to talk about three stories (let me call them “narratives”) that we often hear but that aren’t really correct. Like most believable false narratives there is some truth to them, but I maintain that there is more bark than bite to all three of these, so I present them for your consideration.

False narrative 1: The AFLC is small, old, and dying. I see life in the AFLC. I also see weakness, warts, and problems, but that’s life. Last week over 500 adults came to Annual Conference— and we weren’t even electing a President. We had about 120 VBS kids on top of that, along with FIFTY children under three (side note, please consider helping with one or two shifts of childcare wherever Conference is held). Yes, some of our congregations are shrinking. Some are in rural areas. Others are a little heavy on gray hair. But none of this must be considered failure. Don’t give up stewarding the mission and resources of your congregation. Nurture souls who know Christ and equip them to reach souls who don’t. I see life in the AFLC, along with opportunities and challenges, which always seem to go together.

False narrative 2: Our country is becoming secularized. That term demands a definition, but it is popularly conceived of as the “rise of the nones,” that is, people having no religious affiliation. It is real, but overblown. A recent survey found that only 8% of respondents have no religious affiliation, no positive belief in God, and no theistically-based moral positions. I see people HUNGRY for the transcendent, permanent, and stable. They starve for truth, beauty, and goodness. Behind all of this, whether they realize it or not, is a hunger for Christ. I think the truth is that people who were not with us but said they were with us no longer say they are with us. There is little social advantage to claiming Christianity apart from being in Christ. In a way, this is refreshing.

False narrative 3: This is the most important election of our lifetime and if it goes the wrong way America is lost and Christianity is crushed. People have been talking like this in America for… a couple of centuries. Please don’t let talk like this divide us as Christians. You may have your preferences between candidates or find yourself holding your nose as you vote this November, or have strong convictions about this, that or the other issue (I sure do), but please keep your eyes on Jesus, the author and perfector of your faith.

Don’t lose the (true) narrative. And thank you, praying friends, for praying. God has called us to steward a mission far beyond us, and He alone can do it.  

In Christ’s Love,
Pastor Wade Mobley

PS— You are receiving this because you previously signed up for our intercessor letter prayer list or because I signed you up as a Corporation member or friend. If you would rather not receive these 10-12 times per year mailings, please reply by the same means you received this letter and we will take you off. Thanks for praying!

Praise God for:

• A great Annual Conference
• Staff who worked hard to make Conference great
• The largest enrollment we have had in years
• A solid group of seminarians
• A good start (4-5 already) on next year’s new seminary class
• Two new faculty members
• A good transition for Pastor Jerry and Rebecca Moan as they move to McIntosh, MN

Please Pray for:

• Students still on the fence for this fall
• A smooth transition for Pastors Jason Gudim and Jarrod Hylden
• Pastoral provision for Faith, Skrefsrud, and Immanuel as they seek shepherds
• Diligence from (and provision for) our staff, administration, and faculty
• Wisdom for our Board of Trustees and Corporation
• Wisdom for other leaders in the AFLC, including Pastor Micah Hjermstad
• A good start to our new trial partnership with “Beyond Limits, which serves students of various physical abilities on our campus
• A successful Annual Campaign (more to come on this) to fund FLBCS

Pastor Wade Mobley
President, Free Lutheran Bible College and Seminary