A Message from Dan Gilbert, president of the Northern Illinois District, Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod:

New churches and new Christians have many things in common. Probably the most significant thing they share is the fact that both of them are completely formed and brought into existence by God, the Holy Spirit, through his Word and Sacraments, specifically through the Good News that Jesus is the Savior of the world and the Lord of the nations. God does it all. Yet he chooses to involve us in the process, using us as the delivery persons of his Word.

So, since we are involved in God's mission by his good choice, what do we do?

As we work together as individual Lutheran congregations and 220-some LCMS congregations in the northern one-third of Illinois, we have prayerfully determined to use the resources entrusted to us by God to work for new mission starts and new believers.

This website is one of many resources the district provides to help you share the Good News of salvation in Jesus Christ. My invitation to you is to find out more about new starts, and then browse through all the materials at your disposal on this website as well as our People Ablaze! website, which tells in even more detail what is happening in congregational mission outreach.

God will save whom he will save, and we have the incredible privilege of being used by him. Because of his love for us, we always want to respond with "Here am I, Lord; send me!" And then we get to be part of it as he makes New Starts...New Believers.