On Holy Saturday (the Eve of Easter) a small group of Immanuel’s members joined a small group of members of Mt. Calvary (at Mt. Calvary) in a worship service led jointly by Pastor Long and Pastor Stanford.  On Ascension Day, Thursday, May 20^th (mark it on your calendar), a small group from Mt. Calvary and a small group from Immanuel will join together for an 11:15 a.m. service (here at Immanuel) wherein Pastor Long will preach, and a 7:00 p.m. service (at Mt. Calvary) wherein Pastor Stanford will preach, for a Divine Service commemorating the Ascension of our Lord.

Last month Immanuel took up a food collection to help stock Mt. Calvary’s food pantry. Members from Mt. Calvary have recently donated books to P.L.H.S. for the library and Mt. Calvary has gone on record supporting Pastor Long’s relationship with the high school, which enabled him to become a teacher for P.L.H.S. Pastor Long and Sheri Long have become valuable members of the Lutheran high school community (not to mention of the Lutheran community in Peoria). Mt. Calvary has also started running television spots to add their voice to ours in calling Lutherans to active worship in authentically Lutheran congregations.

St. John’s Lutheran in Pekin, IL, has invited our youth to join in youth activities. Grace Lutheran in Canton has also extended an invitation along these lines. I have assisted Pastor Clayton in special services at Grace Lutheran in Canton. St. Paul’s Lutheran in Kewanee has extended invitations to me to participate in worship services and I have accepted those when possible. St. Paul’s Brimfield has also blessed Pastor Liese’s participation in Lutheran high school. Some of their members contributed and attended the high school’s winter bake sale. Some of Ascension Lutheran’s members have also helped the high school and at least one incoming student is from Ascension.

Now the reason I make mention of these things is to point out that something different - something good - is happening among a few of the congregations in the area. With the Peoria area some congregations of the LC-MS are beginning to work together for the common good of the kingdom of God and for the well being of the Lutheran Church. For too long LC-MS congregations in the Peoria/Tazewell area (indeed throughout the entire synod) have looked upon one another as competitors and indeed the theological differences now plaguing the synod have be the primary reason for this unhealthy relationship. While claiming to believe the same thing and while holding membership in the same synod, pastors and congregation have often worked against one another. They have often acted, sometimes ruthlessly, as competitors. This approach was and is unbiblical and has proven harmful to our churches and to the members.

For years Immanuel invited sister congregations and pastors to join us in various projects, programs, activities, and worship services. But these efforts often fell on hostile, unsympathetic, and apathetic ears. Theological differences between pastors, distrust and suspicion among the laity, concerns for a shrinking Lutheran population, and increasing demands for "Lutheran" money hindered improved relations.

But thanks be to God an increasing number of Lutheran pastors in the area want to see a more biblical - - dare I say a more Christian - - cooperation between our congregations.  Just as I was giving up hope for a stronger, kinder, and more cooperative Lutheran Church something strange happened - - a suggestion, then invitation, and now cooperation with Mt. Calvary.  Mt. Calvary is only the most recent to partner up with fellow confessing Lutherans.  Now it appears that after decades of a mind set of competition, congregations and Lutheran laymen in Peoria are actually walking and working together toward the same end.

Yes, I know. Some of the congregations have different traditions and look different. The pastors of Mt. Calvary and Immanuel are very different.  The pastors who are cooperating in the building of the Lutheran high school in supporting one another's ministry come from a wide range of experiences and are Pastors Long, Clayton, and Eckardt make use of Lutheranism’s ‘higher’ liturgical traditions. While we have improved the appearance and quality of the worship service, Immanuel’s service is still based on TLH. But about this there should be no question. Pastors Clayton, Long, Eckardt, and their respective congregations are just as committed to Lutheran doctrine and practice as we are.  Like Immanuel, they have been working to restore and strengthen commitment to the teaching and practice of God’s Word and a clear proclamation of the Gospel.

It has been a long time coming and there is still a great deal of work that needs to be done. Yet, this ‘newly’ found cooperation is a good thing that is growing out of our shared doctrine, which is taken from Holy Scripture and set forth in the Lutheran Confessions.