Dear fellow Lutherans of SWD,
Grace and peace from the Lord of the Church, whose body given and whose blood shed on the cross merits forgiveness and life for sinners!
As you may be aware, for the past year SWD has been in an active search to find a pastor to serve as Executive Assistant to the President for Missions, more commonly known as the "mission exec".
The call committee has consisted of: Mr. Myron Buss (chair), Mr. Bryan Seider, two SWD board members: Mr. Al Beyer and Rev. Daryl Bergelin, along with two at large pastors; Revs. Lance O'Donnell and Eric Skovgaard. We thank them for their diligent work in moving this process forward!
The good news is that their work is now officially finished. This past week we received a letter from Rev. Jonah Burakowski which stated:
It is with the understanding that our heavenly Father has guided my decision that I accept the Divine Call to serve as the Executive Assistant to the President for Mission of the South Wisconsin District...
Please know that I am humbled, grateful, and excited at the opportunity the Lord has given me. I look forward to this service knowing that it is for the glory of God that we labor together in the fields.
If Pastor Burakowski's name sounds familiar that is because he served St. John's Beloit in the recent past; and was much loved by God's people at St. John's. When I asked Rev. Dan McMiller from LCMS International Mission for his thoughts regarding Pastor Burakowski, his reply was "excellent!"
Pastor Burakowski and his family (three girls) are in the process of moving to SWD, and will live in the Hartford area. His starting date will be sometime toward the end of August.
On behalf of the SWD staff I can tell you that we are all very much excited about having this position filled, excited that Pastor Burakowski will be joining our SWD staff!
Regarding Pastor Burakowski's installation, we are working on a time and place for that. We will keep you posted regarding the installation.
"Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever!" Psalm 106:1
May our gracious Lord Jesus bless!
Rev. Dr. John C. Wille
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