Thank you for your congregation’s faithful and generous sharing of mission support with the synod and churchwide expressions of the ELCA during March 2026.
Pastor Ruthie Mhanga says one of the biggest shifts she’s gone through since becoming a pastor is changing her mindset from producing to simply being present. “My capacity to produce things in seminary was very high… completing all the readings, writing all the papers, preaching all the sermons, developing all the Bible studies. And while that prepared me to show up well in ministry, I have really had to let go of the idea that I am being called to produce things.”
Instead, she talks of being called to show up authentically. “I am called to have eyes, ears, and heart open to see where the Spirit is moving and where we might be called to go next,” Ruthie says. “I am called to listen deeply to the stories of my congregation and how they weave into the story of God and God’s people throughout all of time. The challenge has been to trust that this kind of presence is enough and that I do not need to constantly prove my worth as a pastor by the quality and amount of output I am producing.”
Ruthie was ordained in 2024 and promptly installed as the associate pastor at Gustavus Adolphus on the East Side of St. Paul. She is part of the synod’s First Call Cohort, which brings together rostered ministers in their first three years of a call for learning and support from synod staff, mentors and from each other. “Being a pastor reshapes your whole life, and it is a gift to walk through this transition with others who understand the experience,” says Ruthie. “In the small group I get to be part of, we share both the joys and struggles of ministry and help hold perspective of what is within our capacity and what we need to entrust to God.” She adds, “And best of all, we root for one another and trust God is at work in and through the ministry we are able to do even when it isn’t the way we might have imagined.”
Ruthie was one of 10 rostered ministers who participated in the First Call retreat this past January. “I really appreciate the presence of the synod staff members at the first call retreat to learn with us and have ample time to check in. It is a deeper checkpoint that builds connection and trust, so reaching out throughout the year doesn’t seem intimidating. We know they are in our corner and want us to succeed as first call pastors for ourselves and for our congregations.”
Besides the support from synod staff and her peers, Ruthie appreciates the bolstering she receives from members of her congregation. “My first year, I got to do a lot of watching and learning about how things happened and who did what at the church, and the leadership was great about looping me in,” she says gratefully. “There is so much about church life that I am learning on the job like how to supervise another staff person well, how all the different funds and budget items work, what it is like to be a church that functions as a landlord and community gathering space, and what to do when a bat gets in the church.”
“I had an idea of how ministry would be and what it would look like, but that really isn’t what it turned out to be. I had to let go of those preconceived notions and learn to be open to what the Spirit has put in front of me and what my congregation needs from me and what gifts I bring and what gifts I need to seek out in others,” Ruthie notes. “I’m learning that ministry is not about having it all together. Rather, it is about showing up, staying present, and trusting that God meets us even in the most difficult moments.”
Your mission support helps us be church together as we support rostered ministers during their first years in ministry. Thank you!
