Spring ‘Engage’: Connecting people to Christ’s church

Young adults, including students from University Lutheran Chapel in College Station, Texas, arrive for a winter retreat held in February at Camp Lone Star in La Grange, Texas. (LCMS/Erik M. Lunsford)

“The vast majority of people who get connected or reconnected at church do so because someone that they know invited them,” says the Rev. Brandon Metcalf of Zion Lutheran Church in Bethalto, Ill. Metcalf leads the Bridge Families program at his congregation, which encourages members to help connect the people around them to the church.

The Spring 2026 issue of Lutherans Engage the World gives a few examples of how God uses His people’s imperfect efforts, both big and small, to draw the lost and wandering into His church. The issue includes an article about a new Spanish-language podcast from LCMS missionaries in Puerto Rico that is drawing people to the island’s Lutheran churches.

There are also articles about efforts in Florida and Texas to help children and young people grow in the faith; a maternity home in Illinois that is caring for new mothers and their babies; LCMS missionary Rev. Dr. Christian Tiews, who works with Persian refugees in Germany; LCMS School Ministry’s School Leadership Development (SLED) Project, which has benefited a school in Missouri; and University Lutheran Chapel in College Station, Texas, which is helping students stay connected to God’s Word while they are in school.

“Be brave, bold and courageous” in reaching out, says the Rev. John Karle, University Lutheran Chapel’s director of campus mission, and know that “His Word will not return empty — this will not be wasted effort.”

The issue started arriving in mailboxes in late March. Read it online at engage.lcms.org. If you aren’t currently receiving the magazine but would like to, visit engage.lcms.org/subscribe to sign up for a free subscription. Both individual and bulk subscriptions (for congregations) are available.
Read Spring 2026 issue

Posted April 13, 2026