Thank you for connecting online with us!  We are so blessed to have you as part of our family of faith.  Inspired by God’s promises to us in Jesus, we are motivated by His Spirit to place our faith into action and accomplish our mission of showing others by word and deed just how beautiful it is to live with Jesus!  We would appreciate the opportunity to get to know you better, pray for you and your family, and help you connect with the people and ministries of our congregation and schools.  May God be with you and bless you as we worship, study, serve, and witness alongside each other! 

As for me, I am a saved son of God by grace through faith in Jesus.  I am happily and humbly married to my wonderful wife, Lisa; and we have been blessed with five children (Riley, Aidan, Ethan, Addison, and Nora).  We enjoy spending time together and attending the activities and events of our children.  I thrive being outside and by the water, and like hiking trails, reading, and watching tv.  I officiate basketball, have coached youth sports (football, basketball, lacrosse) and serve in volunteer positions with the Michigan District and Camp Arcadia.  I look forward to sharing in life and ministry with you and our St. Lorenz family of faith! 

“What do you want to do with your life?  Do you want to follow God or follow your friends?” A good friend of mine asked me those questions shortly after I reconnected with the church. He knew I had a heart to help others and challenged me to consider using my gifts to serve the Lord. At the time, I was working as an Emergency Medical Technician in the East Bay Area of California. Those questions opened my eyes to what I already knew deep down, (on the ambulance, you quickly learn what matters). God used my experiences to show me that those who had a faith life just seem to do better. The biggest reason is the hope He provides us.

I graduated from the Seminary in St. Louis, MO in June of 2007. Shortly afterwards I married my wife, Noelle. For a little over nine years, it was just the two of us. We had tried to have children of our own, but the Lord had different plans. In Dec 2016, we welcomed our first foster care child into our home. Her adoption was final in July of 2018. Our lives have been richly blessed by this little girl. God’s plan has been wonderfully overwhelming and beyond words. 

I joined the pastoral team here at St. Lorenz in August of 2015. Over the years, I have been able to serve the community and congregation in different areas. Most recently, (In the summer of 2022), I became the Associate Pastor of Worship. It is a joy to be a part of a talented team that plans and prepares worship for both our traditional and contemporary contexts. Each expression of worship gives the opportunity to reflect on how the gospel message of salvation in Jesus Christ is present in each part of the service.

  “For we walk by faith, and not by sight.” -2 Corinthians 5:7

Hello! My name is Pastor Joel Kaiser and I serve as the Pastoral Care here at St. Lorenz.  This is a relatively new position for me, but I have served at St. Lorenz since 1998. It continues to be a privilege and a joy to serve God’s people in this great congregation and school, and in this wonderful locale!!  I pray that God blesses you through your connection with St. Lorenz as much as He has blessed me and my family!! My wife, Pamela, and I, and our 5 children have all experienced the love and grace of our Heavenly Father here through the people whom God has called to be part of this “Family.” The St. Lorenz Family definitely demonstrates “How Beautiful it is to Live With Jesus!”

As I have the privilege to minister to people from this congregation and community, I am reminded of how challenging life can be at times, especially when we cannot "see" what lies ahead.  Perhaps that is why the verse from II Corinthians above is so powerful to me.  Dealing with my own visual impairment has caused me to daily apply the lessons learned from my "physical walk" to my "spiritual walk," learning the meaning of "walking by faith."  I pray that God uses me to assist others in growing in their "faith-walk" as well!

Welcome to St. Lorenz Lutheran Church & School! It’s a big place, and many life stories have been written and shared here. As I serve here, my desire is to get to know your story more and help you see God’s work in your story, whether you come from a long line of German Lutherans or you have never had any interest in or introduction to the Christian faith at all. No matter how broken, abnormal, or “perfect” your life has been, I would welcome the opportunity to hear it and learn from you. In the meantime, here’s a little bit of my story.

I was born into this world in Illinois and born into the family of God not long thereafter. My life has taken me from Illinois to Indiana to Michigan to Nebraska to Missouri back to Michigan back to Missouri and back to Michigan again. Along the way, God called me into ministry a few days before I turned 19, and I was finally ordained at Christ Our Savior Lutheran Church in Livonia, Michigan at the age of 38 after attending five different universities in Michigan and Nebraska as well as Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, Missouri. During those years, I also met and married Erica, a woman filled with the Spirit of God and much more athletic than me. Together we have been working on raising seven children: Nicole (now married to Elliott), Noah, Natalie, Naomi, Nathaniel, Nolan, & Noelle. Erica and I love encouraging youth and parents in the faith God has given us and eagerly await the resurrection of the dead when we will be united with many precious family members and friends who now rest in the presence of Yahweh. Even though we fail miserably at times in our roles as parents, friends, and workers in God’s kingdom, our hope, joy, peace, and comfort are deeply rooted in the gracious love, forgiveness, mercy, and providence of Jesus Christ, the king of creation, God the Father, the giver of all good things, and the Holy Spirit, who works constantly to point us and all people to the cross of Jesus Christ. Before St. Lorenz, I served with and was shaped by the wonderful people at Christ Our Savior in Livonia, Michigan for eight years and was privileged to serve my vicarage here at St. Lorenz during the 2012-2013 school year.

God has been more than merciful to me throughout my years and despite my unworthiness, and I am grateful for the opportunity to share that story here at St. Lorenz and be part of the story of God’s work of salvation in this place.