A Lutheran Congregation on Combie Road
Faith Lutheran Church gathers each Sunday on Combie Road in Meadow Vista, a small foothill community in Placer County between Sacramento and the Sierra Nevada. The congregation's mission - "Gathered by Christ. Living in Grace. Serving in Love." - shapes a church that is deeply woven into the rhythms of its town. Faith Lutheran is a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and has been a Reconciling in Christ congregation since 2018, declaring its welcome of every age, color and culture, financial circumstance, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, and relationship status.
Sunday worship is at 10 AM, both in-person and live-streamed on YouTube, with services built around a liturgical framework that includes readings, prayers, hymns, and Holy Communion every week.
Sunday Worship at 10 AM
Each Sunday at 10 AM, the congregation gathers in a sanctuary built for participation. The service follows a liturgical setting - a framework of worship elements passed down for centuries - and weaves in a diverse array of old and new songs, scripture readings, prayer, and the sacrament of Holy Communion. The communion table is open to all, and the bread is gluten-free. Anointing for Healing, an ancient biblical practice Jesus encouraged his disciples to offer, is available one Sunday each month during communion.
Visitors are greeted as they enter, and the sharing of Christ's peace is a favorite moment of the morning. Hospitality continues afterward in the Fireside Room with coffee, snacks, and conversation. Dress is mostly casual: shorts and nice shirts sit alongside dresses, slacks, and collared shirts.
Children are always welcome in worship. After a brief "kids time" early in the service, children in second grade and younger may go downstairs for a time of fellowship and supervised play, while older children remain in the sanctuary. During the school year, adults gather for an education hour at 9 AM in the Fireside Room, and Sunday School for pre-K through fifth grade runs during the worship hour.
Every Sunday during communion, a prayer minister stands by to pray with anyone who has a personal need or a prayer on behalf of another. Prayer requests are confidential unless the person asks for them to be shared.
E3 Sundays: Experience, Explore, Embrace
On the third Sunday of each month, the congregation skips the sermon. Called "E3 Sundays" - Experience, Explore, Embrace - these lay-led services focus on interactive spiritual practices. The sanctuary fills with prayer stations and intergenerational activities, and people are invited to move freely through the space. For those who prefer to stay seated, there are activities planned at the pews as well.
Past practices have included journaling, play-do prayers, blessing of hands, audio divina, mapping a spiritual journey, old-fashioned hymn singing, and storytelling. Future ideas in the works include chair tai chi, guided body-scan meditation, breath prayers, caregiving, rest, rosary making, and laughter.
Music That Crosses Generations
Music Director Janine Dexter has shaped Faith Lutheran's sound since 1995, serving as pianist, organist, composer, arranger, and conductor. She holds a Bachelor of Music from the University of the Pacific's Conservatory of Music and a Master of Music in choral conducting from CSULA, and is the founding artistic director of Colla Voce of the Sierra, based in Auburn.
The music ministry has built a wide range of programs: an Adult Choir, a Bell Choir, a Wind Ensemble, "Exploring Music" and Orff training for children, youth vocal leadership training that prepares teenagers to lead the congregation's singing, and the Threshold Choir, which sings at the thresholds of life. Services blend traditional liturgy with modern elements, and the team regularly incorporates different instruments and vocal ensembles, mixing music from the past and the present.
Children, Youth, and the Summer Day Camp
Children and youth sit at the center of life at Faith Lutheran. Sunday School for pre-K through fifth grade meets during worship, August through May, with children starting their morning with their families in the sanctuary, then moving with adult leaders to the education building.
Middle schoolers and high schoolers in sixth through twelfth grades are encouraged to take on worship leadership, with practice happening during the Sunday School hour. Confirmation is a three-year study for those grades that uses Luther's Small Catechism as its guide.
Each June, Faith Lutheran hosts a week of Summer Day Camp for children ages 6 through 12, running from 9 AM to noon. The week is built around dress-up themes, a food drive and coin drive, and as much outdoor time as possible.
Adults Around the Table
Adult faith formation at Faith Lutheran takes several shapes during the school year. A Sunday morning adult education class meets at 9 AM in the Fireside Room and works through video series on topics ranging from biblical archaeology to the writings of the early Church.
On Thursdays at 9 AM, a Bible study gathers in the "Wheaties Box," a small room in the church, for conversation on a topic that changes every six to eight weeks. After the study, anyone is welcome to meet at Sweetpea's in Auburn at 1 PM for a no-host "Breakfast for Lunch."
On Tuesday evenings at 6 PM, the Contemplative Pathways to a Better Life book club meets in the Wheaties Box to read and discuss non-Christian spiritual paths and their relationship to Christianity. Most recently the group has worked through books on Stoicism and Buddhism. All are welcome to the collegial exploration of big ideas.
Walking With: Accompaniment, Compassion, and Prayer
Faith Lutheran describes its outreach as "accompaniment" - a model rooted in mutuality rather than giver and recipient. The relationship, the church teaches, is one in which both parties benefit, both are willing to be changed, and walking with each other is as important as any material support.
The congregation lives this out through several ministries. A Thanksgiving Turkeys effort supports Stand-Up Placer. A Coat Drive collects winter gear for Christ the King Lutheran Church in Tahoe City. Half a Blanket is a community group that walks with neighbors in the immigration court system. Each year the church joins other ELCA congregations for "God's Work. Our Hands. Sunday," a day of service.
Inside the congregation, the Compassion Ministry sends cards, makes phone calls, and visits people who might benefit from a moment of connection. The Prayer Chain circulates requests for illness, grief, financial hardship, family struggles, or major life decisions by email and through a green paper bulletin passed on Sunday mornings. The Men's Group meets on the first Thursday of each month for dinner and conversation and organizes church-wide events including a Memorial Day weekend yard sale, a St. Patrick's Day brunch, and an Oktoberfest, with proceeds supporting church activities and youth scholarships.
Hunger Relief
Hunger relief is a particular emphasis at Faith Lutheran. The congregation prepares and serves a meal at The Gathering Inn, a shelter in mid-Placer County serving more than 160 residents, several times a year. Members take on every role: planning, coordinating, shopping, preparing, cooking, serving, and cleaning up. Members of Faith Lutheran are also active volunteers at the Auburn Interfaith Food Closet. Food drives and the collection of hygiene kits and other supplies round out the work.
A Wide Welcome
Faith Lutheran's welcome is intentional and written down. After months of small group discussions, Bible study, and one-on-one conversations, the congregation voted in January 2018 to adopt a new welcoming statement and join the coalition of Lutheran congregations known as Reconciling in Christ.
The statement invites "people of every age and size, color and culture, financial circumstance, all sexual orientations, gender identities, gender expressions, and relationship status." It welcomes those affected by addiction, physical or mental health challenges, or past imprisonment. It welcomes contemplative thinkers and spirited children, believers, questioners, and questioning believers. The congregation also commits itself to racial equity - "actively working to dismantle racism and injustice, and to build a place where all people can flourish."
Beliefs in the Lutheran Tradition
Faith Lutheran teaches that God's Living Word is Jesus Christ, and that this Living Word can be heard within the Old and New Testaments of the Bible. The two central visual symbols of the faith are Jesus' cross and empty tomb: in the cross, God meets humanity hidden in weakness and suffering; through the empty tomb, God proclaims the triumph of love over evil.
The church celebrates two sacraments. In Baptism, the old self is crucified and buried with Christ and the believer is raised to new life. In Holy Communion, Christ comes to the gathered community in the bread and wine and bestows gifts of faith, peace, hope, love, courage, humility, integrity, and kindness. The communion table is open to all.
Service to neighbors is central. Lutheranism, the congregation teaches, is not primarily a system of doctrines and dogmas but a way of seeing, hearing, teaching, and following - and Jesus meets the congregation in the people it serves.
Pastor, Staff, and the Congregation
The Rev. Dr. Gabriele Schroeder, known as Pastor Gabi, became part of Faith Lutheran in February 2026. She studied theology in Berlin, Heidelberg, Jerusalem, and Berkeley, and holds a German master's degree in theology and a Ph.D. in church history. Her previous calls include congregations in South San Francisco, Cupertino, and Citrus Heights, and service with ELCA Global Mission in Hyderabad, India, where she taught post-graduate theology students. She also worked in interfaith hospital chaplaincy and in nonprofit fundraising. Pastor Gabi commutes from Fair Oaks and is supported by her daughters, two dogs, and a wide network of family in Southern India.
Janine Dexter serves as Music Director. The Church Council, which has general oversight of the congregation's life and activities, meets monthly to oversee the church budget, staff, and property, with decisions rooted in Scripture and informed by the mission of the congregation and the confessions of the ELCA. Becky Stonestreet serves as Office Administrator, and Jana Brown and Violet Peak serve as Child Care Workers.
The church office at 1115 Combie Road is open Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday from 11 AM to 1 PM. Pastor Gabi's office hours are Wednesday and Thursday from 11 AM to 1 PM, and by appointment. The phone is (530) 878-1870.