Who We Are
People focused
We value connection.
Grace filled
We cherish this gift from God in Jesus.
Welcome all
We welcome all people.
Connected across the mitten
From St. Joe to Alpena.
Synod Shoutout
- How Much Snow?!
After a week of true Northern Michigan winter, where communities saw several inches of snow accumulation, fierce winds, and drifts reaching multiple feet high, one story coming out of our synod was nothing short of inspiring!
North/West Lower Michigan Synod at a Glance
25,000+
Baptized members
100
Congregations and Ministry Sites
181
Rostered leaders
7
Conferences
Wandering and Wondering with Bishop Julie Schneider-Thomas
- Wild Church
This is a photo of Lake Huron taken from the St. Paul Lutheran’s picnic grounds, Alpena. It’s about as Pure Michigan as it gets! Although summer does not begin until June 21, that has not stopped us from switching into summer mode. Gardens are planted, boats are now in the lake, pools are filled, and plans are being made to take some time to recreate outside. A sunny, 75-degree Michigan day is our reward for shoveling wet snow back in February!
- Persistence
The friendship began with the kids bringing me dead cicadas. I’m not sure why they thought I would be interested and I hoped they weren’t killing the bugs for my benefit. My mind quickly went to work figuring out how I was going to re-direct my two new-found Honduran friends. Our synod team was at a national park in Honduras holding a first aid training for the local health workers in our companion synod. I had stepped outside because I was not on the agenda for some time, and I had work to do to get ready for synod assembly.
- Change Bucket
At home, we have a “change bucket” that we have thrown change into for many years. In fact, when we started our change bucket, people were still using change quite commonly! We were also much younger and fresh out of school; so, it was not uncommon to dig into the change bucket to pay for a fast-food meal or an overdue library book. Sorting through our bucket felt a bit like time travel, as I discovered several Chuck E. Cheese tokens from when our daughter was young. There were a few German marks from a trip we took in 1999, just before the Euro was introduced. There were some Canadian coins and even a “coin” from a Mardi Gras parade. I’m wondering what others found in their change jars.