It is an honor to take part in the life of this community, and to be among those who shepherd this church is a deep joy. As I reflect back over the year, I’m grateful for some key signs of life within our fellowship. 2023 marked 20 years of God’s faithfulness at All Souls.  We began the year with a celebration and continued to welcome new members through membership and baptism while also deepening our roots in scripture, community, practice, and hope.  In Lance, Mary, and Kayne, we also welcomed new members to our staff team, each of whom has been a delight.

Throughout the year we’ve heard beautiful stories from individuals who have chosen to lean into our community marks of grace, rest, engagement, contribution, and reconciliation. To access those stories and hear a few of the ways God is at work in and through this community, click on the mission measures below.  The report is full of numbers and graphs, but beyond those, there are a few things in particular we want to celebrate. Our community groups have grown in participation, but also in-depth and care for one another. 130 people now gather in 14 Community Groups scattered throughout the Metro area. These groups dug into our church-wide formation experiences centered upon the practices of Simplicity and Fasting. Together with our Emotionally Healthy Spirituality courses and our continuing Men’s and Women’s ministries, these are signs of our resilient commitment to apprenticing under Jesus. We also saw the formation of a new ministry that seeks to create a space for belonging to those navigating the various transitions of young adulthood.

Similarly, our discipleship ministry with youth and children is thriving. Thanks to the dedication of our leaders, we’ve seen growth in depth and breadth among our students, particularly among our Middle Schoolers. Building on a thriving small group ministry, we also reestablished a Sunday evening youth group to anchor our ministry with emerging generations in the future. Looking ahead, we are eager to launch new ways to support parents in practicing the way of Jesus with their children. 

Finally, it has been a year of growth in our internal service, with over half of our congregation regularly serving in some capacity.  We've also increased our efforts in serving our neighbors through justice and mercy initiatives and have deepened our commitment to formation in the way of Jesus for the flourishing of our community.

In all these things, we are grateful for God’s faithfulness and your continued passion for the ministry and mission of All Souls. Each number describes a fellow brother or sister in Christ and the work of the Holy Spirit in that person’s life. I hope that reading it will bring you joy and embolden you to expect great things from the year ahead.

On behalf the elders and staff at All Souls,