A Message from Pastor Brian

Dear Members and Friends of Faith Lutheran,

Mary, Brian, Jessi and I want to thank you for the wonderful welcome and warm reception the weekend of June 13. It was such a joy to meet all of you, and it is with great excitement and anticipation that I begin ministry with you August 1.

My first task is to get to know as many of you as possible, as fast as possible. Ministry always takes place in a context, and one of my primary tasks now is to come to a deeper understanding of the context of northern Virginia and Washington D.C. You will be my teachers as you share your dreams, values, traditions, and hopes, for yourself, for your family, for your community, for Faith Lutheran Church.

Early this fall I will work with your leaders to set up a series of small group gatherings where we can come together and you can tell me about yourself, why and how you got involved in Faith Lutheran, and what your dreams and hopes are for Faith.  In the meantime, let me know if you would like to get together to visit. We can meet at the church office, go to lunch or coffee, play golf or I would be glad to come to your home or place of work. At this point I plan on the following schedule. I will be in the office on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday mornings and Thursday afternoon. On the afternoons of Monday through Wednesday I will either be in the office or out making visits, including hospital, nursing home, and homebound. Thursday morning will be study time at the parsonage, writing sermons, preparing Bible studies, etc.

Friday will be my day off (Pastor Bill is going back to taking Mondays off.) Of course, there any many things, including Synod and Conference meetings, that can change this schedule, so please set up an appointment ahead of time. The phone number for the church office is 703-525-9283, the parsonage 703-243-9350 and my email is pastorbrian@flcva.org.

I look forward to seeing you in August and beginning our work of discipleship together, sharing the gracious and powerful message of Christ’s love for all people.
Pastor Brian

It’s a Fair Booth

The Arlington County Fair is just around the corner……

Both literally and figuratively! Each year, Faith Lutheran Church participates as a sponsor of the Arlington County Fair in exchange for allowing fair-goers to park at Faith and walk across the bridge over Arlington Blvd to the Thomas Jefferson Community Center. It’s a great way to reach out to our community and let people know that Faith is here! We also have a booth at the fair where we hand out toys for the kids, bibles to adults who would like one and extend our hand to the Arlington Community to let them know they can experience God’s grace right here at Faith. This year, the fair starts on Thursday, August 19 and goes until Sunday August 22. We need volunteers to man Faith’s booth so please prayerfully consider donating an hour or your time over those four days. For more information, please contact Larry Farnsworth at lfarnsworth@crosbyvolmer.com or at (703) 489-9633.

Welcome, Pastor Brian!

On Sunday, August 1, we welcomed our new Senior Pastor, the Rev. Dr. Brian L. Erickson. Pastor Brian comes to Faith with more than 30 years in the ministry, having most recently served at an ELCA congregation in Arizona. We are excited about this new chapter in the life of Faith Lutheran Church and look forward to working and growing with him. Please pray for the congregation and also for Pastor Brian, his wife, Mary, and children Jessica and Brian, as they begin this new experience in their lives, as well.

Stay tuned for an announcement about Pastor Brian’s service of installation to be held later this summer.