Pastor Rhoads graduated from Concordia Seminary in St. Louis  with a Master’s of Divinity degree in 2008. He has served as Associate Pastor at Christ Our Savior since his graduation. Before entering the seminary, he served as a Director of Christian Education at LCMS churches in Florida, Alabama, and Texas.

  Pastor Rhoads enjoys teaching the faith and providing opportunities for people to live out their faith in daily life. “My greatest joy in ministry is helping people grow in their knowledge and appreciation of the grace of God as revealed in the Bible.” In his free time, he enjoys spending time with his family and hiking the many trails in our area.

Pastor's Message

Howdy Partners!

In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who be-gan a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. (Philippians 1:4-6)

As I begin my time as your sole pastor, I echo the words of St. Paul quoted above. Being a pastor to over 300 members, plus all the guests the Lord continues to bring to our campus, would be overwhelming if I were truly the sole person doing ministry. But I’m not! The Lord has surrounded me with so many Spirit-filled people who are just as excited and filled with joy as I am.

In my prayers of joy because of you, I also pray for you to experience ever-increasing joy. This world is full of reasons to become tired and discouraged. We get tired when we feel that we have to do more than our share because of a lack of volunteers. We get discouraged when we don’t see the expected results of our hard work. I understand these feelings. We have a lot of ministry opportunities going on at Christ Our Savior. Other pastors and church leaders who visit our campus are amazed at how much we are doing here. These ministries require volunteers. While the vast majority of our members are involved in at least one ministry, there are still not enough volunteers to fill all of our ministry teams.

What is the answer? We can stop doing ministry, OR we can find ways to increase our joy in ministry. Making a commitment to be in worship and Bible Study every Sunday is a great way to start. Celebrating your partnership with Jesus gives you the strength to partner with your brothers and sisters in Christ in ministry. Your partnership with Jesus and your church family is further enhanced in the various activities scheduled throughout the week. Check out the weekly schedule in our church bulletins and weekly announcements. Participate in those activities which fit your interests and your schedule. If you are wondering where you might fit in, please make arrangements to meet with me.

I love being a pastor. I am so thankful that my job allows me the time and opportunity to read and study the Bible every day. I also love being your pastor. Whether in worship, Bible Study, formal or informal conversations, or joining in one of our ministries, our partnership in the gospel brings me great joy. Be assured that “in all my prayers for you I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel.”

Thanks again, partners, for all you do with me in the name of Jesus. You bring joy to me and our God by all you do. As I pray with joy in my heart for you, I pray that your joy will be complete.

Pastor Mark

Here’s an interesting comparison by Rev. Dr. James Baneck of the LCMS that might answer that question. The lambs and sheep our Savior sent Peter to feed and tend were not the wooly kind residing on a beautiful hillside. There are, however, rich parallels between shepherding sheep and shepherding God's people.

James Rebanks watches over real four-legged sheep in the United Kingdom. He writes about the parallels in his article, “Are You Hard Enough to Survive as a Shepherd?”
"The romance wears off after a few weeks, believe me, and you will be left standing cold and lonely on a mountain. It is all about endurance. Digging in. Holding on. You will also need to be emotionally. tough … Carrion crows hang over our lambing fields waiting to steal the eyes out of anything sick or dead that cannot resist … You’ll need the patience of a saint, too, because sheep test you to the limit with a million ways to escape, ail, or die … It requires a body of knowledge and skills that shepherds devote decades to learning."

How this applies to our pastors! There is nothing romantic about being a pastor; it is hard work and often lonely. It demands an endurance that comes only from God. Like carrion crows, Satan seeks to devour God’s people. The pastor stands guard. protecting and feeding God’s sheep with Christ in the preached Word and blessed Sacraments. The formation of men for the Holy Ministry begins at Baptism. And while pastoral formation is intensified during seminary, “it requires a body of knowledge and skills that [pastors] devote decades to learning."

Pastors are to be clothed with the humility of Christ, “who humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross” (Phil. 2:8). Pastors must be equipped to lead Gods people to the waters of Holy Baptism, where God gives new birth to sinners and opens the kingdom of heaven for them. Pastors are formed to be stewards of the mysteries of God. Pastors feed God’s sheep the Word of God in preaching and teaching and with the body and blood of our Lord at His table. Pastors listen, love and seek the lost.

Looking at all that a Pastor does, how is he prepared for this role at the Seminars’? Can you help with this preparation? Could you sponsor a seminarian? Could you help COS in their sponsoring of eight seminary students? Please help with your gift! ‘For more information, contact John W. Smith. God bless your help.