Resource company back in church hands

Mission, ministry and serving the LCA are the motivations behind LifeWay Lutheran Church’s purchase of church resource company ACR. The church, which has congregations at Epping in northern Sydney and Newcastle, north of the capital, became the new owner of Australian Church Resources (ACR) on 1 January this year.

The company formerly was owned by Mike and Leoni Grieger, who established it after the closure of the LCA’s Openbook Publishers in 2007. The printing side of that business continued through the merger of Openbook and Howden Printing, but ACR filled the void left by the closure in church supplies and resourcing. Mike, who along with his wife, Leoni, had previously worked for Openbook Publishers, said he was thrilled the company was now ‘back in church hands’.

‘It’s a wonderful step of faith for LifeWay and I pray that God will richly bless them as they serve the broader church and continue to minister to their local communities’, he said. The business remains Adelaide-based until mid-year, when operations will shift to Sydney.

Despite the move away from LCA heartland in South Australia, LifeWay Specific Ministries Pastor and new ACR Business Director Mark Simpfendorfer said internet and phone servicing meant company clients would continue to be catered for no matter where they were from in Australia, New Zealand or South-East Asia.

Mark, who also previously worked for Openbook, said ACR remained committed to serving the LCA through ‘resources that help disciples of all ages grow deeper in their relationship with Jesus Christ’. ‘With God’s help, by taking this step we also hope to be able to develop and grow the mission of the church in the Sydney area’, Mark said. ‘We would appreciate the prayers of members of the church in this transition phase. It is an exciting time as we look at ways to better serve the whole church with resources to further God’s mission to all nations. And we look forward to the continuing support of the church.’