In the Field 

Featuring the Rev. Raymond Mueller, 
Pastor at Shepherd by the Lakes Lutheran Church 
North Webster, Ind.

by Pam Knepper
Managing Editor, For the Life of the World

Born in Kodaikanal, India in 1929 to Lutheran missionary parents, Rev. Mueller spent the first four and a half years of his life in this foreign country until illness forced the family to return to the United States. Upon their return they lived in a missionary house in south St. Louis, Missouri for six months until Rev. Muellerís father accepted a call to a two-point parish in Topeka, Illinois. It was here that Raymond spent all of his elementary years in a one-room schoolhouse. 

In 1944, during his sophomore year in high school, Raymondís father accepted a call and the family moved to Elberfield, Indiana, and again in 1946 to Seymour, Indiana, where his father became pastor of First St. John Lutheran Church. 

When Rev. Mueller reached the ninth grade he began his studies for the ministry at Concordia Lutheran High School and Junior College in Fort Wayne, Indiana. In those days boys who were considering studying for the Holy Ministry were required to attend four years of high school followed by two years of college before they could attend seminary. While at Concordia, Rev. Mueller prepared for his years at the seminary by studying Latin, German and Greek. 

In the fall of 1949, Rev. Mueller began his seminary studies at Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, Missouri. While there, he experienced a time when he began to question whether God even existed. 

"In early 1950 during my first year at the seminary, I had a professor that told us the Bible had mistakes in it and that it was a human book and not really God's word in the full sense of that term," remembered Rev. Mueller. "I was being taught to accept the historical critical method of Biblical interpretation. Other professors of this stripe also had a profound influence on me, but it really didnít take hold until almost three years later when I went out on vicarage." 

Assigned to Grace Lutheran Church in Fargo, North Dakota, Rev. Mueller said it was during this time when he really began to question Godís existence. 

"During vicarage I saw how cruel certain church members could be to one another. When both my bishop and I addressed these matters in our preaching and the cruel behavior did not change even though 'the love of Christ constraineth us' I drew the conclusion that there was nothing to the Bible or to Christianity," explained Rev. Mueller. 

For nearly a month Rev. Mueller found himself preaching and teaching things he did not believe while he tried to tie everything together in his mind without God as creator. 

"I was constantly asking myself, 'What is the Bible? Is it Godís Word or just man's imagination,' " explained Rev. Mueller. "Finally God in His grace forced me to ask deeper questions about Himself and His word than I had ever asked. It was then that I came to the conclusion that there must be a God and the Bible must be His word." 

Rev. Mueller further explained, "God led me into a situation in which I experienced anger, sympathy, and pangs of conscience. I thought, 'How can such experiences fit into a world without God, a world without any spirituality or differences between right and wrong which is what logically results from atheism?' Then I went to my room, opened my Bible, accidentally found Psalm 34 and ran across verse eight, 'O taste and see that the Lord is good!' So I began to taste the Scriptures and, after much contemplation concluded that there has to be a God. And not only a God but also One, who invented communication, including the Bible, which is how God communicates with His people. Then I tested Luther's Catechism and it too rang true. By midnight I had not only come completely away from atheism but had also become a thoroughly convinced and joyfully confessional Lutheran. God was awesomely gracious!" 

Rev. Mueller said that while this time was extremely frustrating for him, it also proved to be very beneficial because it prepared him for many hurdles that he would later experience as a pastor. 

Graduating in 1954 from the seminary, Rev. Mueller's first call was to Zion and St. Paul's Lutheran churches, a two-point parish in Gladwin, Michigan. Serving from 1954-1957, Rev. Mueller said his first call provided him with many opportunities for growth as a pastor. 

"Think of any situation that could possibly come up for a pastor to deal with and I dealt with it while in Gladwin," said Rev. Mueller. 

In 1957, Rev. Mueller left Gladwin to accept a call to St. Mark's Lutheran Church in Battle Creek, Michigan. During his 8 1/2 years at this parish, the church grew from 27 communicant members to 312. While there he also was elected to serve on the district stewardship board. 

His next call was to St. Paul's Lutheran Church in Bremen, Indiana. Serving from 1966 to 1975, during his time at St. Paulís Rev. Mueller proved to be instrumental in reviving the parochial school that was attached to the church. 

"When I first arrived the congregation was trying to decide whether they should phase out the school. Its enrollment had dropped from 79 to 17, but a very hard-working principal was trying, with the Lordís help, to revive it," explained Rev. Mueller. "When I suggested that we hire new teachers and buy new property and build a new school, the congregation voted in favor of my suggestion and almost instantly we saw improvement. Both the congregation and the school, now under the shepherding of two faithful pastors, both of whom graduated from Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, Indiana, are joyful examples of what the grace of our Lord Jesus does among His people." 

After serving St. Paul's for nine and a half years, Rev. Mueller accepted a call to Holy Cross Lutheran Church in St. Louis, Missouri. A large church located in the inner city, Rev. Mueller served as the senior pastor out of a staff of three ministers. Spending much of his time making shut-in calls, visiting those in the hospital and performing funerals, Rev. Mueller also was responsible for overseeing the school that was attached to the church. 

While at Holy Cross, Rev. Mueller also spent time serving on the Missouri Synod's Board for Parish Services (now a part of the Board for Congregational Services). Elected in 1977, Rev. Mueller went on to become chairman of the board in 1981 and served in that capacity until 1986 when Synod's bylaw limitations forced him to step down. 

During this time, Rev. Mueller decided to leave Holy Cross and accepted a call to St. Thomas Lutheran Church in Rocky River, Ohio. Located in an upper middle class suburb of Cleveland, Rev. Mueller served the 1,100 member church from 1983 until 1994 when he decided to retire from the Holy Ministry. 

Like his experience at Holy Cross, while serving at St. Thomas Rev. Mueller was once again elected to serve on a board. This time it was the Board of Regents at Concordia Theological. Elected in 1986, Rev. Mueller went on to become chairman in 1995 and served until 1998 when the bylaws of Synod again required him to step down. 

"During my time on the Board of Regents I was able to see the seminary grow and expand in a very positive way," explained Rev. Mueller. "I came to deeply appreciate the attitude that the Lord has developed in the students at Concordia Theological Seminary especially since Dr. Dean Wenthe has become president. Again I saw Godís rich grace at work and the marvelous developments since 1995 make me wish I could go back to the seminary and start all over!" 

After retiring from the Holy Ministry in 1994, Rev. Mueller decided to take a trip to Nagercoil, India, a town not far from where he was born. 

"I wanted to go back to where I was born and see where I had spent my early years of life," remembered Rev. Mueller. "I was able to do all of that and I even had the opportunity to see the very room where I was born." 

Along with visiting his birthplace, Rev. Mueller also taught classes on preaching, the Augsburg Confession, and the Ecumenical Creeds at Concordia Theological Seminary in Nagercoil. 

"When the principal (president) of the Nagercoil seminary found out I was going to take a trip to India he approached me about teaching classes while I was there," explained Rev. Mueller. "I agreed to teach for one quarter. In addition, I visited fellow Lutherans of the India Evangelical Lutheran Church-the former Missouri Synod mission field-in nearly fifty places. It ended up being a very informative experience for meóand, I hope, strengthening for them." 

Shortly before leaving for India, Rev. Mueller received word that there was a mission church in North Webster, Indiana, that was interested in having a retired pastor serve as their part-time mission developer. This would be on the order of an experiment to see whether a very small mission church that could not afford a full-time, non-retired pastor could be established under the leadership of a pastor whose living expenses were assured for the most part by retirement income. The idea was that the Lord would grant enough growth that the retiree could "retire again" and the congregation could then call a full-time pastor. 

In October 1994, after returning from India, Rev. Mueller was installed as pastor at Shepherd by the Lakes Lutheran Church, then located in a township hall in North Webster, Indiana. 

In the last five years, God has granted remarkable growth at Shepherd by the Lakes. Beginning with 10 people and using only a straight Word and Sacrament, Law and Gospel approach, the church now has 80 baptized members and in November 1998 dedicated their first church building. 

"It has been wonderful to see how the Lord has blessed all of us at Shepherd by the Lakes," said Rev. Mueller. "At this point I plan to stay here for at least another year or two until the church can afford a full-time pastor. After that I am preparing to retire for good. But as a pastor you never can tell what God may have in store for you!" 

Rev. Raymond Mueller and his wife Vivian are the parents of three children and four grandchildren. They reside in North Webster, Indiana.