By Pastor Wondimu Sonessa
As part of the DEM office and the Mission Table’s “Year of Partnership” project, we are glad to highlight our Amazing Grace Ministry (AGM) and invite your congregation to start partnership conversations with Pastor Nhiabee Vang. AGM started in 2018 with 13 families and is in the sixth year of being a Synodically Authorized Worshipping Community (SAWC) with Oak Knoll Lutheran Church in Minnetonka serving as its fiscal agent.
Currently about 50 families from the Hmong community gather at St. Philip’s Lutheran Church in Fridley for worship every Sunday beginning at 1:00 p.m. New members are joining the ministry. This worshipping community will soon be organized as a congregation.
“A partnership congregation is expected to bring a companionship that fosters genuine Christian fellowship.”
Pastor Nhiabee believes that growing stronger relationships with other congregations of the MAS is imperative for the future of the Amazing Grace ministry. A reliable fellowship for new start and strategic ministries, particularly multi-ethnic churches, comes from connecting them with the local congregations. Our “Year of Partnership” approach has a unique emphasis on a triangular view of partnership. The three sides represent God and the two congregations. This allows us to think about what each congregation expects from partnership to enrich their joint engagement in God’s mission.
AMAZING GRACE IS A community of Hmong Christians with many youth and children in their Sunday school. The cooperative and committed young adult members of the congregation, the well-organized women’s ministry, and the supportive lay leadership make Amazing Grace a great companion in mission. For the MAS congregations that the Holy Spirit is calling to a new missional connection, Amazing Grace Ministry offers a strong potential for evangelism among the wider Hmong community in the Twin Cities and beyond. 
A partnership congregation is expected to bring a companionship that fosters genuine Christian fellowship. This includes engaging in constructive conversations focusing on faith formation, proclaiming the Good News, and rendering an inclusive ministry to all people together. An intentional partnership allows for participation in special events and ministry opportunities, including pulpit exchange and support for the youth and children ministry.
In Pastor Nhiabee’s words, “As with other new ministries, particularly immigrants/refugee ministries, we are in need of financial support. At the moment, we are able to serve our people and community, mostly due to the Resurrection Fund from the Minneapolis Area Synod and the grant from the churchwide office. Our concern is how this will play out as we continue to look toward the future.” This is why the Mission Table calls for partnership connections that allow congregations to share resources that enrich their respective ministries.
“The Amazing Grace Lutheran worshipping community will soon be organized as a congregation.”
Finally, Amazing Grace prioritizes ministries that “Grow in Faith, Share the Good News, and Provide Service to All People.” Pastor Nhiabee says, “At Amazing Grace Ministry, this is what we are striving to live by as we continue to share the story of Jesus Christ to our Hmong community. Many of our older members are new to the Chrisitan faith so we continue to learn about our newfound faith in God and how to live out this faith in our daily life. We came from very strong traditions of animism/shamanism. Therefore . . . growing in faith and understanding who we are as a people of God is important to us.”
Any Minneapolis Area Synod congregation interested in partnership connection with the Amazing Grace ministry is invited to reach out to Pastor Nhiabee Vang via his email at vangb30@yahoo.com. Or, you may reach out to the synod DEM office. Together, we are the church.