February/March newsletter

Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. 1 Corinthians 12:27

When Paul wrote those words, he wasn’t just talking about a perfect (and imaginary) church. He was addressing a real community of real people. The church in Corinth was about as real as they come—richly gifted for ministry, but also troubled by conflicting loyalties and confused practices. (Just skim 1 and 2 Corinthians and you’ll see what I mean.) Yet it is this community that Paul calls “the body of Christ”!

As we progress through the weeks after Epiphany, heading towards Lent, we have spent some time with Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians. In these chapters, Paul tells us how amazing our life together is meant to be: one body, each individual member gifted by God and placed in relationship with the others, all holding together in love.

Sometimes we get to experience that in our life as a parish. For example, if you stopped in to visit our Confirmation class on a Wednesday night, you would see youth and adults from all four congregations in our parish, sharing and learning from one another, growing in faith and in relationship. Or you might see how the body of Christ works by visiting the Minnewaska Lutheran Home, where you are sure to run into volunteers from our community, visiting and working with staff and residents.

Sometimes, however, the image of one body of Christ seems no more than a distant dream. We’ve experienced some of that this past year, as we struggle with issues brought up at last summer’s Churchwide Assembly, and as we try to faithfully respond even though we don’t all agree with each other. We read that “just as the body of is one and has many members…so it is with Christ” (1 Cor 12:12). But that isn’t always what it feels like!

But still, regardless of our experience on any given day, Paul’s words are us true in Starbuck as they were in Corinth: we are the body of Christ. We are the ones who gifted by the one Spirit for the common good—not because of our worthiness, but because “in the one Spirit we were baptized into one body” (12:13a). What exactly does this mean for our life together and for our individual lives? We’ll spend the whole season of Lent (and, indeed, the whole church year!) exploring the answers to just that question.

May God’s love and peace be with us all.

~Pastor Sarah

January newsletter

From CrossWind Photos

Although the church year technically begins with Advent, January always feels like a time for new beginnings. It’s time to pull out a new calendar, and get used to writing a new date on checks. We have to answer important questions like “is it ‘two thousand ten’ or ‘twenty-ten’?” Arguably, 2010 isn’t just a new year—it’s a new decade, even. And that’s always a great opportunity to look back on what God has done in our lives, and to look ahead to what God is going to do!

As we move into a new calendar year here are some of the things that I am looking forward to:

• Next summer’s Mission Trip to the Lake Traverse Reservation. We are going a little farther afield this summer to learn about what God is doing in a community that is quite different from ours, but not that far away! (Haven’t signed up yet? Talk to me ASAP!)


• The after-Christmas return of K.I.C.K., our after-school program, which has blossomed in the past few months.


• Joint meetings of some of our women’s groups at MLH, to change things up a bit during the winter. Always a delight!


• The return of the 30 Hour Famine at the end of February.


• Lent and Easter, 2010!


• Our post-Lent adult study on the book of Luke. It’s always great to read the Bible together, and Luke is one of my favorites!


• Presentations from our Confirmation students during worship. (I can’t tell you all the details—it’s a surprise! But they are going to be great!)

What would be on your list? What are you looking forward to in 2010? Perhaps more importantly, what do you think God might be looking forward to? I don’t know exactly what is in store for us…but knowing God, it’s bound to be good!

So…Happy New Year! And Merry Christmas! (12 days, remember?)

~Pastor Sarah

December newsletter

For those of you following along at home: Yes, I am publishing this post retroactively. Because it's tidier that way. And because I can.

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“Whatever I have, wherever I am, I can make it through anything in the One who makes me who I am.” Philippians 4:13 (The Message)

These were the words that guided our synod’s Junior High Youth Gathering in Willmar, November 20-22. We read them, and sang them, danced along to them, and wore them on our t-shirts. With 1300 other youth (and adult leaders) from around our region, we reflected on how, with God on our side, all things are indeed possible!

Thank you to everyone who supported us on this trip! It was my great privilege to attend with four youth (check out the youth news for a list of names) and one other adult from our parish. Check out our synod’s website at www.swmnelca.org to see photos from the gathering*—our group was small in numbers, but we certainly made our presence known! Going away for an event like this is a great way for us to learn and grow together in our faith. Ask us what we learned! (Also ask us about: laser tag, dodge ball, crazy hairstyles with glitter, and getting to take home drumsticks used by the actual drummer in the actual band.)

The best moment, for me, took place on Sunday morning. Between breakfast and worship, our youth had a little bit of free time. When I went looking for them, though, they were not on the computers in the business center. They were not chatting with their friends in the hallways, or sending text messages on their cell phones. They were not even at the table set up for the band. Instead, they were sitting in the very front row, ready for worship thirty minutes early—because they didn’t want to miss a single thing. And they had saved us seats, so that we wouldn’t miss out, either!

So now we are moving into the season of Advent, proclaiming again the greatest of great news: Jesus is coming! And for the One who came to earth as a tiny baby, all things are indeed possible—and he’s going to come again, and it’s going to be way too good to be missed! So come and worship with us—we’re saving you a seat!

~Pastor Sarah

*Update: You cannot see photos from the gathering on the synod website because they have decided to password-protect them to protect the privacy of our youth. When I get access, I'll find some to share around the parish.

November newsletter

We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. – Romans 8:28

As we head deeper into the fall season this year, it seems like there’s an awful lot on our minds. If you’re not concerned about the actions of the larger church, you’re worried about the economy. If you’re not worried about the economy, you’re probably worried about the flu. And through it all, the seasons are slowly (or sometimes quickly) changing, and let’s face it—the grayer skies and longer nights are a little depressing! And can you believe that early snow? Can it really be almost winter?

But we’re also coming up on Thanksgiving, when we thank God for all the blessings of the past year. And even though the days are getting shorter, still there are signs of new life all around us!

Just look at the number of knitted and crocheted hats and mittens we’re collecting, to let people right here in community know that someone really loves them. Or stop by K.I.C.K. one Wednesday afternoon, where we have more kids than ever, some of them coming into our parish for the first time, as they learn and play together and experience God’s love. (Sometimes it gets a little noisy or messy—but it’s always lively!) Or visit any one of our congregations to see the regular work being done by men and women in our parish, to maintain the church buildings and see that the coffee is served. Just this month, we have a visit from Captive Free, the Junior High Youth Gathering, our Thanksgiving service with a joint choir—and we’re already working on next year’s mission trip!

So, as we head into winter this year (hopefully later rather than sooner), let’s also keep our eyes open for all that God is doing among us. And then we’ll really see how much we have to be thankful for!

~Pastor Sarah

October newsletter

“Built on a rock the Church shall stand,
Even when steeples are falling;
Crumbled have spires in every land,
Bells still are chiming and calling…”

I’ve been thinking about this hymn recently, and not just because of the work being done at Indherred! In this parish, we know that steeples are important—and bells, too. Between our four congregations, we have four beautiful buildings in a variety of styles, standing as a physical witness to the presence of God in our midst, inspiring us to lift our eyes and hearts up to the heavens. We also know that with beautiful church buildings comes the responsibility (and sometimes the burden) of keeping them in good shape! There is always something that needs to be done.

As important as our buildings are, though, Nicolai Grundtvig’s classic hymn “Built on a Rock” (LBW #365) reminds us of what is truly foundational to our life together—no other Rock than Jesus Christ himself! Every earthly building will eventually decay. Every earthly institution will sometimes fail. Every steeple will finally fall (though not, if we can help it, for a very, very long time). But Christ remains constant. Always.

And so where steeples crumble, bells still ring out to call us back to worship. And where bells are silent, we hear God’s Word proclaimed in the voices of worshipers singing, or the cry of a newly-baptized child, or the quiet rustle of pages of Bibles or hymn-books. And Christ is present, because he is faithful to his promise. And, wonder of wonders, in him there is hope—not just in some distant future, but also right here and right now, in this place and with these people, temporary as it is, fragile as we are.

As the hymn concludes with the words of Jesus Christ:

“My peace I leave with you. Amen.”

~Pastor Sarah

September newsletter

As I reflect on my experiences at my first Churchwide Assembly, there are a lot of things I still don’t know*. I don’t know exactly what was decided (the policies and procedures adopted will need to be fleshed out over the next weeks and months), I don’t know exactly what it all means, and I don’t know exactly what happens next. But here are a few things that I do know.

First, I am grateful to this parish for allowing me this opportunity. As you may have heard, I was not a voting member, but rather a participant (and planner) for a gathering of young rostered leaders that took place at the same time, which permitted us to observe and experience what was going on at the larger assembly. That event was a great blessing to me and to the others who attended—there were times when I wanted to sing with joy and others when I thought my heart would surely break. God was present in all of them! (I also appreciated the chance to see my father, who was a lay voting member, and who did very well in the vice-presidential election, even though he wasn’t really running. I’m so proud of him!)

Second, I was amazed and impressed by the hard work, dedication, and prayerful spirit of the 1,045 voting members. I am especially thankful for the work of Ed Sievert, who is a member of Indherred and was also a CWA voting member for our conference. Please keep Ed, the other voting members, and all the lay and ordained leaders of this church in your prayers.

Finally, with everything I don’t know, no matter what else I say, no matter how I am feeling at a particular moment, I remember the words of the song I learned as a child, “Jesus loves me, this I know!” As a very young pastor, there’s a lot I don’t know, but any five-year-old knows this one—and it’s still true! Jesus still loves me! And Jesus loves you, too—and each of us.

Jesus loves the voting members at Churchwide Assembly—he loves the 60% who were lay people and the 40% who were clergy. Jesus loves the people who made me want to shout “amen!”—and Jesus loves the people who just made me want to shout. (Jesus also loves the people who may sometimes want to shout at me.) Jesus loves the people I agree with, and the people I disagree with, and the people I’m not so sure about.

And Jesus loves me. And you. And us. It always comes back to that. Isn’t that amazing? Jesus loves us! Enough to die for us, and enough to live for us. That is something I do know. Let’s tell the world!

~Pastor Sarah

*I also don't know the answer to that really pressing question, "what do you actually call those red swirly ribbon things they used in opening worship?"

August newsletter

We did it! Our 2009 youth mission trip (to Starbuck!) was a great success! How do I know? Well, we had a great time—but more importantly, we all learned about what God is doing here in our own community.

We discovered that God is present in the natural beauties that surround is: in the hills of the State Park, in the tiny little toads by the lakeshore; or even in the small and angry swallow that was nesting outside the nursing home. We discovered that God is most definitely present in the lives of our youth, who pitched in with a smile even when the chores were boring, who were brave enough to try something new, and who were even brave enough to invite their friends.

We saw how God is active in this community, in the warm welcomed we experienced everywhere we went, and especially at our time at the nursing home. And discovered that God is present and active in all four congregations of CrossWind Parish, each one full of generous people of lively faith, showing by our ministry together that the one Lord Jesus who unites us is stronger than anything that could divide us.

I usually report that there were eight participants in the mission trip—six youth and two adult leaders. But the truth is, it took a whole lot more than that to pull it off! So an extra “thank you” goes to everyone who was involved--those who prepared meals, those who helped with service projects, those who shared their time, those who greeted us as we were passing by, and especially those who remembered us in their prayers.

But wait! We’re not done yet! This is when it gets exciting, when we get to take what we learned from our trip and apply it in our everyday lives! So here’s the challenge: think about how you have seen God present and active in our community--and tell somebody about it. And always keep your eyes open to catch what God will be doing next!

~Pastor Sarah

July newsletter

I neglected to post this earlier. (My mother was visiting at the time. That's not why I forgot to post this, but it sounds good, doesn't it?)

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“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” (Luke 4:18-19)

When Jesus read these words from Scripture at the start of his ministry, he wasn’t in some far-away place. He was in Nazareth—his own home town! And although he did go to the bustling city of Jerusalem, most of his work was done not far from his own backyard, in the small towns and countryside where he grew up!

It is in that spirit that we embark on an exciting journey this summer. With youth (and adults) from our parish, we will travel as missionaries—not to far-away places, but right here to our own community. Jesus invites us to participate in the mission he described in Nazareth, and that mission starts right where we are. So we will spend some time this month exploring what God is doing right here in our midst—and perhaps discover that because God is working here, we truly are in one of the most exciting mission fields in the world.

What does it look like to “bring good news to the poor” and “proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor” in Starbuck? In your neighborhood? In your family? For this month, in celebration of our youth mission trip, I invite you to keep your eyes open and share what you see! Who are the missionaries in your life? Who are the people in your life who could stand to hear the good news? How might God be calling you to be a missionary?

~Pastor Sarah

June newsletter (47)

This year, the entire Easter season will have come to an end by June 1, with the Day of Pentecost falling on Sunday, May 31. This completes the first major segment of our church year, full of excitement and major festivals—Advent, Christmas, Lent, Easter.

We now begin that other part of the church year, the “Sundays after Pentecost”, also known as “Ordinary Time”. (Remember, it’s called “ordinary”, not because it’s boring or average, but because it’s counted, as in “the 2nd Sunday”, “the 3rd Sunday”, and so on.) There are few major festivals to break the rhythm of week after week, Sunday after Sunday. And so, freed from exciting distractions, we are able to notice the work of the Spirit among us in quieter ways, as we go about the regular business of our lives.

At the same time, we are also moving into what I think of as “Assembly Season”. Across the country, synods have already begun to gather for yearly assemblies—our Southwestern Minnesota Synod will meet June 12-14. This year, all four of our congregations are planning to send voting members. Although it seems ordinary and commonplace to us, our presence all by itself is a sign of hope in our region, where many other congregations are considering entering into parish relationships, some for the first time.

This year is especially important because it’s also a Churchwide Assembly year. As the entire ELCA prepares to gather in Minneapolis in August, our Presiding Bishop has asked that we all spend some time in prayer for 50 days before the assembly, beginning June 29. Some sample prayers will follow in this newsletter; more suggestions are available at elca.org. And I figure, why wait for June 29? Why not start now? Those of us who will be at synod assemblies will also appreciate prayers for wisdom and discernment.

Some of the business conducted will be routine—and, yes, even boring. Some of it will be more exciting, and will need extra prayer support—you may even hear about it on the news. All of it is about of how we try to live together as God’s people, called to be saints but also knowing that we are still sinners!

And may God’s love and peace be with us all, in this and every season.

~Pastor Sarah

May newsletter

Most of the world thinks that Easter is over. The last remains of Easter candy and toys and decorations have been sold (at seventy-five percent off) and now stores are marketing Mother’s Day, or graduation, or Memorial Day. But we know better! Easter Day is not the end of something—it’s the beginning of a whole season, which far surpasses even the forty days of Lent, since Easter is fifty days in length.

The good news about Jesus’ resurrection is too good for just one Sunday! It’s worth telling again, and again, and again. And so our Easter celebrations continue, not just for one day, but for fifty days—not just for one Sunday, but seven Sundays, leading up to the Day of Pentecost. And yes, I do intend to say “Happy Easter” until that time! (Not a surprise to anyone who is following along on the blog.)

Throughout the Easter season, then, we celebrate the presence of our risen Lord Jesus Christ. The focus and direction will be a little different each week, but always the good news will be the same: Alleluia! Christ is risen!

We started the season with our Easter Day gospel from Mark, which ended before Jesus had even made a personal appearance! Yet we still heard the good news: “He has been raised”. We continue by hearing about Jesus’ appearances to his disciples—including my favorite story about Thomas, who ends up believing after all. We hear how Jesus is present in meals shared with his followers, and we experience his presence ourselves as we share Holy Communion. We even hear about his mysterious ascension into heaven, because of which we know that he can be with us always. And finally, the season ends with the story of the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, affirming God’s presence with us, particularly in the community he gathers.

So, in this Easter season, may God’s love and peace continue to be with you, as we continue to proclaim:

Christ is risen indeed! Alleluia!

~Pastor Sarah

April newsletter

Is it just me, or does Lent always seem to drag on for more than just the prescribed forty days? Maybe it’s just the weather. After weeks of snow-covered ground and sub-zero temperatures, I know I ought to appreciate that at least it isn’t so terribly cold, that we are able to travel more safely, and that we are not at high risk for flooding. But still, it’s hard to get enthusiastic about gray skies, dreary forecasts, and snow that is no longer enough to make the yard look pretty again.

I don’t think it’s entirely an accident that we always hit this time of year during Lent. This is the season when, more than any other time of year, we look to the cross. Understandably, reflection on Jesus’ death and what it means for us can get a little gloomy. But without Jesus’ death, we wouldn’t have Jesus’ resurrection—so we spend a little time in the shadow of the cross, year after year, just when the skies are the grayest and the weather least encouraging.

If that were all that Lent was about, it would be unbearable, crazy, pointless. The cross, out of context, would be too terrible for prolonged contemplation. But even as we hear again the story of Jesus’ suffering and death, we never quite forget that Easter is just around the corner! We know that this death, this cross, leads not just to the tomb but to the empty tomb, not just to the grave but to glorious new life, for Jesus and for all of us, the people he came to save.

Every year, then, the whole of creation echoes that great story—descending to the grave in winter, and rising again to new life each spring. Death, first—and then, always, resurrection. Those of us who are privileged to live with regular seasons get to see this acted out each year, as winter inevitably gives way to spring—not as soon as we would like it, sometimes, but always, in the end, it comes.

So, yes, it’s a little gloomy for the moment. But it won’t always be. This, too, will end. Easter is coming!

~Pastor Sarah

March newsletter

I had to wait to post this so that the references would make sense. Sometimes it's a challenge, writing something you know will be read after the events you are trying to describe, which haven't happened yet.

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“For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me…” (Matthew 25:35)

Although I am writing in late February, by the time you are reading this, it will probably be March, and we will have completed the 30 Hour Famine. A group of youth from our parish, supported by lots of adult volunteers, will likely have learned a new appreciation for this verse from Matthew. By fasting for thirty hours, we experience first-hand what it is like to be hungry—and by collecting donations from sponsors, we play a part in giving food to people who are hungry, not just for one day, but every day of their lives.

At the same time, it’s also the first week in Lent, a time when we reflect on what it means for us to be baptized children of God. (Historically, Lent started as a time of preparation for new Christians who would be baptized on Easter.) If, as we claim, we are baptized into Christ’s death and resurrection, what difference does that make for us?

We explore this question in Lent, as we remember the story of what Jesus has done for our sake. That’s part of what we are doing at the 30 Hour Famine, or at our mid-week Lenten services, or on Sundays, or in our regular daily devotions. We even think about Jesus’ suffering and death, not because it’s depressing and we want to make ourselves feel guilty, but because Jesus’ death two thousand years ago has a real effect on our lives here and now. And because, even in Lent, we know what happens next: Easter is coming!

~Pastor Sarah

February newsletter

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people… (1 Peter 2:9a)

We used this verse at the beginning of K.I.C.K. to introduce the idea that we are all God’s saints: God’s holy people, not by our own merits, but only because of God’s great love for us. More recently, this passage from 1 Peter was the theme for our Senior High retreat at Luther Crest Bible Camp. (Perhaps you might imagine how it could relate to the “Frozen Chosen” this month as well.) We explored what it means to be God’s chosen people—what does this tell us about God, and about us?

Of course, that’s one of the points: the writer of 1 Peter isn’t talking to us just as individuals, but as a group, a community of God’s people. (My Southern cousins would just say “y’all” instead of “you” to make this more clear.) Part of our calling, then, is to be that community—chosen, not each of us alone, but as part of a larger family of God’s children. That’s part of what we are about in our parish, every day and every week, as we work and live together both as congregational families and as a parish family, all part of the larger Christian family.

How do we know that we are God’s own people? I invite you to look for the signs in the coming weeks and months. There are so many of them! One is the existence of our parish itself. Another might be the cooperative effort of some women in our parish to provide quilts for Luther Crest, or of young people preparing to go without food for 30 hours to support hungry children, or the faithful service, each and every week, of readers and greeters and ushers, in each of our congregations. Or perhaps we might see signs of God’s people at work in our families, our communities, our schools, or our jobs. God is so busy among us!

~Pastor Sarah

January newsletter

This is a season for surprises. (The first surprise might be that, if you are reading this in the very beginning of January, Christmas is not yet over! It lasts for twelve days, remember?) Hopefully, for you, they have been mostly good surprises, like a free day off from school, rather than bad surprises, like getting your car stuck in the snow.

This is also a season for making plans. There are parties to prepare, family visits to schedule, and all the the business and busy-ness of Christmas and New Year’s. Now, as we begin a new calendar year, it is only natural to consider what might happen in the year to come, and to try to plan accordingly.

But because this is winter and we live in Minnesota (as I am learning), sometimes these two elements (plans and surprises) work together. Our plans are interrupted. Sometimes there is a snow storm, and we have to try to reschedule the Christmas program (again). Sometimes the storms are less literal, but just as real—a death in the family (either recent or remembered), or even just a little touch of a cold that keeps us from enjoying the holidays as fully as we had hoped.

In the midst of all that, in both the celebrations and the chaos, this is also the season when we remember that God often works in surprising ways. God often interrupts our plans and surprises our expectations. So instead of a mighty king, God comes to us as a tiny, vulnerable baby. Instead of a palace, he is born in a stable. His parents are nobody important, and his first visitors are poor, disreputable shepherds.

But the biggest surprises are yet to come. No, not the wise men, although their visit is surprising, since it demonstrates that this child is for everyone, even foreigners (even us).

The biggest surprise of this season, and of every season, is that God becomes human for us—and this will lead, surprise of surprises, to the cross, where the same Jesus Christ who was born in Bethlehem will die for our sake. And from the cross comes yet another surprise: the empty tomb!

This greatest of all surprises interrupts our plans just as surely as winter’s first big snow storm. Everything is changed. Glory to God in the highest heaven!

May God's love and peace be with you—and a Merry Christmas and Blessed Epiphany, too!

~Pastor Sarah

Almost December

As we move into the season of Advent, we will be hearing the familiar Christmas story again and again and again, told in many different ways. If you’re like me, different parts of that story stand out for you at different times.

For me, right now, the thing I keep coming back to is this: Mary was probably about fourteen years old. She was “only” a teenager! She wouldn’t be considered a particularly responsible or trustworthy person by ancient or modern standards. Yet she was chosen to bear God’s only Son. So Mary could only praise the God who chose to work through her (see Luke 1:46-55).

I just spent part of a busy weekend with some of our youth who are about the same age as Mary. There were four brave youth from our parish who traveled with me to our Synod’s Junior High Youth Gathering in Willmar. This is an enormous event, one of the biggest in the entire ELCA, so big that it has to be divided into two separate nights. With about eight hundred other youth and adult leaders, we danced to the music of the band, laughed along with the speaker, shared worship and prayers, and even maybe learned a few things about Jesus. Most of all, though, we saw that the God who chose Mary two thousand years ago is still working in the lives of young people today—both on a large scale (did I mention there were over eight hundred of us?) and in each individual voice giving praise to God.

Of course, you don’t have to go to Willmar to see God working in the lives of youth in our parish. On just a typical, ordinary week, you will find youth and adults together in Sunday School, Sunday morning worship, Wednesday night Confirmation classes, and our new after school program, K.I.C.K. In the coming months, there will be many more opportunities specifically for youth, including a retreat at Luther Crest for our senior high youth in January and the 30 Hour Famine at the end of February.

This Advent, as we await Christ’s return and remember the miracle of his incarnation, we also witness his transforming power at work right in our own community. To me, right now, that is especially evident in our youth, as they participate in our shared ministry. Maybe you see Christ at work most obviously in a different place. Maybe you're having trouble seeing him at all right now. But Christ is also working in each of us, by the gift of his Spirit in our baptisms, even when we seem unlikely choices to be God’s servants.

~Pastor Sarah

Reflections on Reformation red

I thoroughly enjoyed Reformation Sunday, which is always one of my favorite occasions in our church year. I love the opportunity to be really, completely, totally Lutheran, to sing “A Mighty Fortress is our God” and talk about Martin Luther. Lutheran history, especially around the time of the Reformation, is fascinating.

But mostly, on Reformation Sunday, it makes me smile to see a church full of people wearing red. It’s bright, it’s cheerful—and yes, it happens to be my favorite color. Maybe you enjoyed wearing Reformation red, too—or maybe you were just wondering what on earth was going on (or maybe you were at a church that hasn't picked up this particular tradition).

I used to always ask, “why red for Reformation?” Red is often used to represent the blood of the martyrs, but that doesn’t quite seem to fit. But eventually, I realized that red is the liturgical color for another occasion, as well—it’s the color for Pentecost, the day when we remember the coming of the Holy Spirit in the form of wind and tongues of flame. (Red is also the liturgical color for ordinations, which turns out to be another Holy Spirit reference.)

On Pentecost, the color red reminds us of the fire of the Spirit—and that’s what it does on Reformation Sunday, as well. We take this opportunity to reflect on the many ways that the Holy Spirit has worked in the church. We celebrate the activity of the Spirit during the Reformation, working through Reformers like Martin Luther to call God’s people to renewed faithfulness. We also celebrate the activity of the Spirit today, calling Lutheran congregations in Starbuck to form CrossWind Parish in order to better serve God’s mission in our community--and working in many other ways, too many to count, sometimes even when we least expect it.

So when I see red on Reformation Sunday, I always smile, and it’s not just because I’m seeing my favorite color! It’s also because I am reminded that the Holy Spirit is still at work. Even as the season turns colder and the snow starts to fall (yes, that happened this week as well!), the fire of the Spirit comes to us again and again, calling us to renewed faithfulness and new life.

~Pastor Sarah