A Lutheran Congregation on Hartness Road
Holy Trinity Lutheran Church meets on Hartness Road in Statesville, North Carolina, in a single-story brick building set back from the road among the residential streets on the west side of town. The congregation belongs to the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod and is a member of the South Eastern District of that Synod. Its motto captures the heartbeat of the parish: Overflowing with Christ's love, we teach God's Word so the Grace of God flows over into the lives of others. Members describe the mission more simply: Teaching God's Word, Sharing God's Grace.
For about ten years the congregation has been gathering to spread that message in Statesville and beyond. The road name lends the parish a small wordplay it likes to repeat: Hartness is more than the name of the street, they say, because faith in Jesus Christ is an essential gift and the heart of the Christian.
Sunday Morning at Holy Trinity
Worship is held every Sunday at 11:00 am, preceded at 9:45 am by Adult Bible Study in the same building. The service is liturgical and grounded in the Lutheran Confessions. Members confess the Apostle's Creed and the Nicene Creed during the service, and all parts of the service are grounded in the Bible, which the congregation is committed to upholding. Holy Communion is celebrated on the second and fourth Sundays of each month.
Visitors stepping in for the first time are met by greeters who will help locate the nursery, restrooms, sanctuary and the coffee that follows the service. The nursery is fully staffed and safely run, so families with young children can worship together. Worship assistants - lectors, altar care, counters, cleaners, bulletin folders, nursery workers, video and sound volunteers - serve in scheduled monthly rotations. The roster of volunteers is posted openly, a small sign of how the parish runs itself.
Those who cannot attend in person can watch services on the church's YouTube channel. Recordings of recent sermons - labeled by the Sundays of the church year (Sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost, Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost, and so on back through Lent and Easter) - are posted weekly and can be replayed at any time. Pastor Glenn Roseman preaches most Sundays; visiting pastors, including Rev. Tim Sandeno of the LCMS, preach when their travels bring them through Statesville.
Wednesday Nights Around the Table
Midweek formation takes place on Wednesday evenings in the fellowship hall. Members bring their own meal at 6:00 pm, and Bible study begins at 6:30 pm. The same study is offered on Zoom for those at home or traveling, so that the Wednesday conversation includes members who are sick, on the road or simply off-site. The Zoom meeting ID is 859 7283 6531, and a recurring calendar invitation is available so participants can drop the study into their personal calendars automatically. The Wednesday study ranges through specific books of the Bible or topical themes rooted in the Scriptures, and members are invited back week after week.
There are two more weekly touchpoints. The Beikirch Life Group gathers every other Monday at 4:00 pm in a member's home for fellowship, prayer and conversation around Scripture. And on Sunday mornings at 9:45 am, the Adult Bible Study meets before worship, with topics that rotate through the church year.
What Holy Trinity Believes
Holy Trinity teaches belief in God the Father, in Jesus Christ as the Son of God, and in the Holy Spirit. The congregation confesses the death, descent into hell, resurrection and ascension of Christ, and looks for his second coming, the Day of Judgment, and the salvation of the faithful. These statements are drawn directly from the historic creeds.
The congregation is confessionally Lutheran. Worship, preaching and pastoral care at Holy Trinity are shaped by the Lutheran Confessions - the Small and Large Catechisms and the wider Book of Concord - which set out the teachings of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod. Baptism and Holy Communion are received as means of grace, and members are invited to learn what God the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit, the Holy Bible and the Lutheran Confessions say about these gifts.
Mission Beyond the Building
The parish takes seriously the call to serve neighbors and the wider world. Locally, Holy Trinity partners with Iredell Christian Ministries, a community organization that serves people going without food each night in the Statesville area. Members support this work with non-perishable food items, which can be dropped off at the church any day of the week from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm or 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm. The partnership is one of the most visible ways the congregation lives out its faith.
Globally, the congregation supports Lutheran Church Missouri Synod missionaries. In particular, members follow the ministry of Rev. Tim and Lisa Sandeno, LCMS missionaries serving in Germany, and a fellowship potluck is held when the Sandenos visit Statesville. Their ministry is part of the Synod's broader effort to share the gospel in places where the Lutheran church has historical roots but is now small.
The church frames its purpose plainly: the mission is to spread the gospel throughout the world through local and global mission projects, ranging from feeding the hungry in the backyard to sending food and health supplies overseas.
Pastoral Care and Leadership
The congregation is served by Pastor Glenn Roseman. A Worship Leader, a Secretary and a Webmaster round out the staff. The Webmaster, Maurice (known to the congregation as Moose), can be reached at webmaster@holytritylc.org and is currently overseeing improvements to the church's online presence. Day-to-day pastoral care is shared with a team of Elders - a Head Elder and additional Elders - who meet regularly on the fourth Tuesday of each month at 6:30 pm. The church Council meets on the second Tuesday of each month at 6:30 pm.
Holy Trinity is governed in the traditional LCMS congregational pattern, with a Voters' Assembly that includes all communicant members, an Elders' group that handles spiritual oversight, and a Council that handles temporal affairs. Members can sign up to volunteer for specific events, and the parish publishes photographs of baptisms, anniversaries and other milestones on its photo gallery.
Bible Reading Throughout the Week
Holy Trinity offers structured Bible reading plans. Members and visitors can follow a Bible in a Year plan, an Old Testament in a Year plan, a New Testament in 90 Days plan, a Gospels in 30 Days plan, or a Psalms and Proverbs in 30 Days plan. A full online Bible reader is also accessible, with all sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments available chapter by chapter.
A Prayer Wall allows members and visitors to submit prayer requests and to pray for others. The congregation takes seriously the call to bear one another's burdens, and the wall is one of the quieter ministries of the parish.
Joining the Congregation
Newcomers are welcomed at any service. Those arriving for the first time can expect a greeter at the door, a place for children in the staffed nursery, a Bible-based liturgy, and coffee after the service with a chance to meet the pastor and other members. The building is at 465 Hartness Road, Statesville, NC 28677, with parking on site. The phone number is 704-873-3591, and the pastor can be reached by email at pastor-htlc@att.net.
Giving is available online through a secure giving page, with options for one-time, weekly or monthly contributions directed to the general fund, the building fund, or the youth mission trip. A mobile app, "Our Church," is available in the Apple App Store and Google Play for those who prefer to follow along on their phones. The congregation also maintains active Facebook and YouTube presences for updates, sermon recordings and announcements.
Holy Trinity is part of the South Eastern District of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod, a network of congregations working together for church worker training, mission support and shared resources. Members of other LCMS congregations can be assured that worship and teaching at Holy Trinity follow the practices they are used to, and visitors from any background - or none - are welcome to join.