Our STORY

We are a Christian congregation in the Lutheran tradition. Organized in 1983 by faithful Lutherans who (mostly) moved from elsewhere and didn’t find a Lutheran church in the Lakes Region, they put down their Lutheran roots in this rocky New England soil and started Good Shepherd. Since that time, the congregation has expanded to include people who didn’t know what Lutheran is, and many who don’t identify as Lutheran – so if this describes you, you’re in good company! If you are Lutheran, you’re in good company! In either case, welcome home!

Good Shepherd is part of a larger church body: the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Historically, the Lutheran church is a reforming movement. You may remember Martin Luther from history class – Luther was a German monk in the 16th century. Luther had questions about some of the practices of the church in his day and he wanted to talk about them. He called for an open conversation by nailing his famous 95 theses (or statements) to the castle door in Wittenburg, Germany. (The castle door served as the community bulletin board.) He was simply calling for public conversation and reform, but he ended up as the instigator of the Protestant Reformation. To make a very long story short, Lutherans have a long history of questioning and of reform.

Lutherans are grounded in worship. (See more about that under “our Beliefs.”) Our pastor’s preaching connects the Bible stories we hear with our lives, bringing ancient texts into contemporary experiences. Through it all, we pray and we sing. We are then sent out to embody God’s love in the world! (but not before coffee and munchies in the Parish Hall!)

Our LEADERSHIP

Welcome!  We are a community filled with Joy!  We are an eclectic group, welcoming all, and we love sharing our faith journeys!

I arrived here in 2019 to serve St James, and by 2020 I was serving St James and Good Shepherd.  I was called to be Rector of Saint James and Pastor of Good Shepherd in 2022.  I am delighted to serve these faith-filled communities.  We now worship together at 10:00am, with the service being a mix of Episcopal and Lutheran hymns and liturgy.   We have found a good balance that seems to support everyone’s needs.

A bit more about me. I have been ordained over 25 years and have served many churches throughout New Hampshire.  I have a Doctor of Ministry in Congregational Development, as well as Masters Degrees in Divinity and Education.  I am passionate about sharing my faith and inspiring others into action.   I believe that God loves us and that we are God’s hands and heart in the world.

We are an inclusive community and welcome all. So, wherever you are on your faith journey, St James and Good Shepherd welcome you as fellow travelers, always seeking to grow, learning to walk closer with God and God’s son, Jesus.

Blessings, 

Pastor Janet

E-Mail: pastor@goodshepherdnh.org

Office EMail: office@goodshepherdnh.org

Phone: 603-528-4078

Pastor: The Rev. Dr. Janet Lombardo

Property Mgr: Bruce Wilhelm & Jeff Pearson

Organist: Jan Learned

Music: Linda Fischer (Choir Director)

Ashleigh Roberts (Bell Choir Director)

Melissa McCarthy (Worship Music Coordinator)

OFFICERS

President: Don Vietor

Vice President: Walter Smith

Secretary: Bev Nelson

Treasurer: Bill Frank

MEMBERS AT LARGE

Debbie Brooks

Melissa McCarthy

Nancy Nesheim

Lynn Sanford

Beverly Wolf

FINANCIAL SECRETARY

Bruce Wilhelm

Our BELIEFS

For many of us, we’re still trying to figure that out- and that’s ok. As a congregation, we’re part of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. “We are the church that shares a living, daring confidence in God’s grace. For us, as the ELCA, this faith comes through the good news of Jesus Christ and gives us the freedom and the courage to wonder, discover and boldly participate in what God is up to in the world. “

If you’re the kind of person who likes footnotes, or if you’re looking for more details, here are some:

Historically, the Lutheran church is a reforming movement. You may remember Martin Luther from history class – Luther was a German monk in the 16th century. Luther had questions about some of the practices of the church in his day and he wanted to talk about them. He called for an open conversation by nailing his famous 95 theses (or statements) to the castle door in Wittenburg, Germany. (The castle door served as the community bulletin board.) He was simply calling for public conversation and reform, but he ended up as the instigator of the Protestant Reformation. To make a very long story short, Lutherans have a long history of questioning and of reform.

Lutherans are grounded in worship. As we worship, we gather around Word and Sacrament. Word is the Word of God, both scripture reading and the way the Word comes alive through preaching. Sacraments are ways God comes to us in physical, tangible things. In Baptism, water combines with the word of God, washing us into God's mercy. In Holy Communion, bread and wine combine with the Word of God and are, for us, the body and blood of Christ, forgiving our sins and sustaining us for the journey of life. Every Sunday morning as we gather for worship, we remember our baptism, we hear the Word of God read and proclaimed through preaching and we celebrate the Lord's Supper, or Holy Communion. Through it all, we pray and we sing.

What do we believe? That we are saved by grace alone. Not by anything we do, but by what God has done for us. We strive for peace and justice in the world as a response to the amazing gifts God has given us. We're "born again" Christians through baptism, not by any conscious decision of our own or by any experience, but by God's reaching out and claiming us in baptism. We read scripture through the lens of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. Lutherans read the Bible not as a rule book but as a source of wisdom & inspiration. We seek what God is telling us today through these ancient texts and stories. One of Martin Luther's contributions was to put scripture into the language of the people. He believed that the revealed Word of God was accessible to all people, not just the learned class.

For more information about Lutherans, check out this helpful link from the ELCA: ELCA TEACHING

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To read the BY-LAWS of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, click here:

To read the CONSTITUTION of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, click here: