¹³Jesus said to her, ‘Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, ¹⁴but those who drink of the water that I will give them will never be thirsty. The water that I will give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life.’  John 4:13-14 

Dear Friends in Christ,

Our synod staff and synod council have been using the phrase Wellsprings of God’s Love to describe ministries across the beautiful and vast Northwest Intermountain Synod. In our two-page document about what we do together as a synod, you’ll read, “As the waters of our synod all flow into streams and creeks that run into the Snake and Columbia Rivers, our ministry sites make up a watershed proclaiming the life-giving gospel of Jesus Christ.” Using the phrase Wellsprings of God’s Love is meant to be descriptive, not prescriptive. In other words, we do not want to give you one more thing to do or be. The phrase comes out of who you already are, which our staff observes as we travel throughout the synod. Furthermore, a wellspring implies abundance, and we trust that such abundance is possible because of God’s love made known to us through Jesus Christ. Whether you are in a rural community or a more urban area, your ministry might feel isolated; you are not. The waters above ground and the aquifers below keep us connected as one synod, one church. Wellsprings are not isolated, and neither are our ministries!

Our scripture guide for Wellsprings of God’s Love comes from John chapter 4: Jesus’ encountering the woman at the well. Jesus uses the phrase “living water” for the Holy Spirit that meets people’s thirst for life in relationship with God. Ultimately, that is what ministries in our Northwest Intermountain Synod do, help people be in relationship with the loving God we worship. Whatever that looks like in your context, thank you! And thank you also for your gifts of Mission Support. Because of Mission Support from congregations like yours, our entire synod can collectively help people build and strengthen their relationships with God. 

When we gather online for our Synod Assembly, Saturday, May 3, we will use John 4:7-15 as our central text. Further along in the story, in verse 29, the woman says to the people in her city, “Come and see a man who told me everything I have ever done! He cannot be the Messiah, can he?” 

As you celebrate the ministries in your own congregation from the past year and look ahead to the new year, I encourage you individually and collectively to wonder and commit to who you will proclaim, “Come and see!” Who in your sphere of family and friends has no idea that a Wellspring of God’s Love even exists? Who needs a place of welcome? Who has no clue that God’s love is absolutely without a doubt for them? Who is parched from the daily grind of life? Telling someone about God’s love can be scary. Inviting someone to join you for worship or a potluck might be overwhelming. Consider how you have experienced your congregation, or one like it, as a Wellspring of God’s Love. That is your story, your truth. And then you can be bold to say, “Come and see!”

Peace,

Bishop Meggan Manlove