Prayerful planning rewarded

St Andrew’s Lutheran Church in Brisbane has been reaching out to people from different cultural backgrounds for some time, but now hopes to serve new people in new ways, thanks to grant funding designed to enhance mission culture across the LCANZ.

St Andrew’s Church Council Secretary Karyn Cullen says ‘growth and integration’ between two language groups is ‘a work in progress’ at the Brisbane City congregation. ‘This is supported by a faithful and prayerful congregation and enabled by the generous Local Mission Fund grant,’ she says of the $75,000 in support.

‘God responded to our congregation’s plan to extend its ministry with an opportunity in Pastor Yong Bong Cho and his wife, Giselle, to minister to Koreans in Brisbane city in their language,’ Karyn says.

St Andrew’s Pastor Tommi Vuorinen supervised and mentored Yong Bong from early 2023 until his ordination as a Specific Ministry Pastor in late 2024. The congregation’s church council endorsed activity for the Korean ministry, which began with a weekly prayer meeting and a shared lunch in early 2023, led by Pastor Yong Bong and supported by Giselle. Attendance grew from two people in January 2023 to 18 in February 2025. Karyn also points to further evidence that ‘growth in the Korean ministry is being realised!’ ‘On 16 February 2025, 11 members of the Korean group were accepted as members of St Andrew’s congregation,’ she says.

She says, ‘An ineffective and ageing sound system in the church was the first casualty of this growing ministry.’ A new sound system was installed along with a large-screen TV. ‘This benefits not only the Korean prayer group meeting on Sunday afternoons but also the congregation’s worship services and other Lutheran groups using the church space. Bilingual services are not unfamiliar at St Andrew’s, as Pastor Tommi also ministers to the Brisbane Finnish congregation. Now, bilingual, and even trilingual, services are becoming more common. The Korean and English groups have also shared a couple of lunches.’

After the grant was awarded in October 2024, the congregation formed a project team to direct the funds – plus $35,000 from St Andrew’s itself – toward strengthening the Korean language ministry in Brisbane in 2025.

Milestones have been set by the team, and Karyn says, ‘more great things are happening!’ These include a person from the Korean group – Anastasia Kim, who works as a chaplain for Lutheran Services at two of its aged-care communities – joining the project team. A weekly advertisement is taken out in a Korean-language newspaper, while appropriate online advertising channels are also being investigated.

‘Opportunities for increased interaction between the Korean and English groups in the congregation are being identified, while our regular Bible study group, Wine and Word, will include both language groups,’ Karyn says. ‘This is a bonus exposure to conversational English for the Korean attendees, most of whom are students. Opportunities for cultural exchanges in more interactions between English and Korean group members are being explored, too.’

Learn more about the St Andrew’s multicultural ministry in this video prepared by St Andrew’s Lutheran Church. 

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