Good Shepherd Lutheran Church is an ELCA congregation at 532 Country Day Road in Goldsboro, North Carolina, where Sunday worship has been held every week since the present building opened in 1996. The congregation grew out of a 1936 living-room Bible study, was organized in 1939, and today shares its campus with the Protestant Preschool and Kindergarten, a school that serves more than a hundred children during the school year. Sunday morning here is traditional and blended, with a strong choral sound, weekly Holy Communion open to everyone, and a stream of generations that includes preschoolers, choir singers, scout troops, and a parish-wide habit of quilting and packing kits for Lutheran World Relief.
Worship on Sunday Morning
Worship is held every Sunday at 10:00 AM in the sanctuary. The style is described by the congregation itself as traditional and blended, with a piano and organ carrying the music and other instruments sometimes featured. The order of service follows the Evangelical Lutheran Worship book, with a printed bulletin and a screen at the front of the sanctuary guiding worshippers through the responses, the hymns, and the parts of the service where the congregation stands, sits, or kneels. A prelude opens the service, and the Eucharist is celebrated every Sunday as an integral part of worship rather than as an occasional addition. Services are livestreamed each week at 10:00 AM on the church's YouTube channel, and recordings along with the corresponding bulletins are kept online so that anyone who is traveling or homebound can follow along.
What to Expect as a First-Time Visitor
The congregation has written out a short guide for first-time guests. Upon arrival, a member will greet you at the door and an usher will hand you a bulletin. From there, you find a pew. There is no dress code; some people dress up, others dress casually, and the bulletin itself notes that the church is more concerned about a visitor's heart than about clothing. Children of all ages are welcome in worship, and children's activity bags sit just outside the sanctuary for parents who want something to occupy little ones. Children's Church is offered during the service for children ages 3 to 10, with the children returning to worship in time to share communion with their families.
Open Communion at the Altar Rail
Holy Communion is celebrated every Sunday. Everyone is welcome at the Lord's Table, and you do not have to be a member of this congregation or Lutheran in order to partake. An usher comes to each row and invites worshippers to the front, where they may kneel or stand at the altar rail. The center cup of each communion tray holds grape juice (a lighter, white liquid) and the outer rings hold wine (a darker, red liquid). The communion bread is gluten free, dairy free, and nut free. Children who do not yet commune are welcome to come forward for a blessing instead. If walking to the rail is difficult, an usher can arrange to bring communion to a seat.
Children, Youth, and the Preschool Next Door
Children's Church meets every Sunday morning during worship for children ages 3 to 10, with an age-appropriate lesson on the gospel reading of the day. The church is also the host site for Protestant Preschool and Kindergarten, a program that enrolls more than 100 children during the school year. The preschool is its own organization with its own staff, but it shares the building and grounds with the congregation. In the summer, the church hosts a week-long day camp for elementary-age children led by college-aged counselors who come from Lutheridge, a Lutheran camp organization. Camp days are filled with crafts, songs, skits, Bible stories, and games, and registration forms are available online ahead of each summer.
A Music Ministry Led by Two Choral Directors
The music program is led by Jonathan and Lauren Saeger, who serve together as the church's Music Directors. Lauren Saeger holds a Doctor of Musical Arts in vocal jazz performance from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and her résumé includes three years touring with the United States Army Field Band's Soldiers' Chorus. Jonathan Saeger teaches music and directs the choir at Wayne Community College and is an experienced choral conductor. Together they lead a choir that sings in worship on Sunday mornings from September through May, with rehearsals on Wednesday evenings at 7:00 PM and an open invitation for anyone who would like to sing. A handbell choir rehearses after worship on Sunday mornings and occasionally plays in services, and a small instrumental ensemble provides special music from time to time. Musicians of any age or experience are welcome to join any of the groups.
Women of the ELCA and Lutheran Men in Mission
Two long-standing groups anchor the adult life of the congregation. Women of the ELCA gathers on the second Tuesday of each month at 10:00 AM for Bible study and fellowship, with additional luncheons and service projects woven through the year. The women regularly quilt, assemble personal care quilts, and pack school kits for Lutheran World Relief. Lutheran Men in Mission meets on the third Saturday of each month at 8:00 AM for fellowship and devotions, and the men put on an Easter breakfast, a spaghetti dinner, and church workdays, with outings such as a baseball game on the calendar as well. Christian Education offerings for adults include Sunday School, Bible studies, workshops, and Lenten and Advent study series.
Fellowship Around Coffee and Tables
Sunday morning coffee is served in the Fellowship Hall from 9:30 to 9:50 AM, just before worship, and the gathering continues after the service for anyone who would like to linger over conversation. Throughout the year the congregation also hosts potluck dinners, family game nights, church picnics, church outings and trips, Lent and Advent mid-week meals, and Christmas caroling. The Fellowship team oversees kitchen operations and supplies. A Scout troop meets in the Fellowship Hall on Monday evenings from 5:00 to 8:00 PM, and outside dance bands rehearse in the sanctuary on Sunday evenings, making the building a meeting place for community groups.
Serving Goldsboro and the Wider World
Service to neighbors is woven into the year. Outreach projects include the Angel Tree gift program at Christmas, monthly volunteering at the local soup kitchen, the preparation and delivery of zoom bags (small care packages), bell ringing for the Salvation Army, and blood drives hosted at the church. The congregation also supports Lutheran World Relief year-round, with members quilting, assembling personal care quilts, and packing school and health kits that are sent overseas. The council's Outreach team coordinates these efforts, and the Christian Education team guides members of all ages, from Children's Church through confirmation, day camp, and Vacation Bible School, in faith formation.
A Columbarium on the Parish Grounds
The grounds include a columbarium, a prayerful and private site where members and their families can have their cremated remains interred within the shadow of the church that has been a central part of their lives. The columbarium ministry handles the purchase of niches and memorial engravings and provides perpetual care of the grounds and the surrounding memorial gardens. A Funeral and Memorial Handbook is available on the church's online forms page for members who want to plan ahead.
What Lutherans Believe
Good Shepherd is a congregation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), the largest Lutheran body in the United States with more than 8,900 worshiping communities. As an ELCA church, Good Shepherd teaches that people are made right with God by God's grace alone, received through faith on account of Christ, what Lutherans call Justification by Grace through Faith. Worship is understood as the people's service rather than the pastor's performance, with a strong emphasis on preaching from scripture, the regular celebration of the Eucharist, and a tradition of congregational singing. The ELCA shares full communion with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), the Reformed Church in America, the United Church of Christ, the Moravian Church in America (Northern and Southern Provinces), The Episcopal Church, and the United Methodist Church, meaning members of those denominations are welcome at the Lord's Table here and that clergy are exchanged for shared mission. Important Lutheran documents include the Book of Concord, the Augsburg Confession, and Martin Luther's Small Catechism.
Leadership and a House Built on a Bible Study
The pastor is the Rev. Sandra Burroughs, who was ordained in 2007 and holds a bachelor's degree in psychology from Wake Forest University, a Master of Divinity from Wartburg Theological Seminary, and a certificate in Youth and Family Ministry from Gettysburg Lutheran Theological Seminary. Her previous calls have included congregations in North Carolina, Iowa, and Florida, and she has served as a chaplain and a director of counseling and spiritual care. Jonathan and Lauren Saeger serve as the church's Music Directors. The congregation is governed by a Church Council with team leaders for Property, Evangelism, Fellowship, Christian Education, Outreach, Stewardship, and Worship and Music. Together they carry forward a congregation that began in a Goldsboro living room in 1936, organized formally in 1939, and that looks toward many more years of ministry in the same spirit.