Mission trip 2010 update

If you don't already know, we are planning to travel to the Lake Traverse Reservation in Sisseton, SD on the week of June 6, 2010. We are working with an organization called YouthWorks, and we’ll do some fund-raising in the coming year to lessen the cost for families. CrossWind youth should have received at least one mailing about this already (another is coming)--if you didn't get yours (or lost it), just call the Fron office (or let me know) and I'll send you another.

Now is the time to register. Really. Please call the Fron office, or talk to or email me as soon as possible to reserve your space. You can either turn in your deposit or talk to me if you need to make other arrangements. We need you to commit to this trip as soon as possible, preferably in writing, so that we can make sure there is a space for you. If you're still not sure, please let me know what you are thinking! (Going with YouthWorks offers us all sorts of advantages, but it also means that we need to be really firm about the deadlines.) Anyone in 7th through 12th grade is welcome to register—you may also invite your friends from outside of the parish!

Parents and other adults: Please talk to the youth in your lives about this amazing opportunity! If you have any questions, or if you are interested in being an adult participant (we are allowed one for every five youth), please let me know!

~Pastor Sarah

It's snowing again (+larger church news)

But I can't complain like I did in October, because it's supposed to snow in December. (And actually, it's kind of pretty.)

At 4:30 (Central), the ELCA is supposed to put up the video from yesterday's Town Hall Meeting with Bishop Hanson. Some of my seminary classmates saw it, but I was still driving back from the airport and did not get home until it was nearly over. Anybody get to participate live? Even if you disagree with Bishop Hanson (or aren't into this new-fangled technology stuff), it's at least interesting as a first-of-a-kind thing for our larger church. Will there be more? Should there be more? Should the presiding bishop be focusing on other issues, or is this precisely what he ought to be doing?

The Lutheran World Federation is calling on member churches (we're one of them) to ring church bells "or take other symbolic actions for climate justice" on December 13. This is designed to coincide with the talks in Copenhagen. This is a huge issue with theological, ethical, and missional implications for the church, and it's exciting to see Lutherans around the world attempting to address it. And besides, it involves church bells. (If it's got church bells, I'm bound to like it.)

I don't know that we will be doing anything in particular, but as we always ring our church bells on Sundays, and the 13th is a Sunday, we will at least sort of technically be participating (although probably we will not give the suggested 350 rings). Which could be cool, if it makes the news.

~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.

---

“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.

Thanksgiving is coming...

So, our Thanksgiving Eve service is on Wednesday (at 7:00 p.m. at Fron--join us!). In additional to a lot of fantastic music (really, you have to come just to see how many groups we've got singing, you wouldn't believe me otherwise), I hope to be showing a slide show of photos from the life of our parish in the past year, or several months, or whatever I happen to have photos of. (So, this is the disclaimer: It's whatever I happen to have photos of. Since I am at best a very amateur photographer, with a strong tendency to forget that I am supposed to be taking pictures, this does not come close to representing the full scope of life in our parish. To really do this right, you would have to be a lot more intentional about it, working on it for AT LEAST a whole year.)


The idea is to demonstrate that yes, even though the economy is bad, even though there is always anxiety and tension in the church (at even the best of times)...we have an awful lot to be thankful for. God is doing some amazing things in our community!

So, since this is necessarily only a glimpse of some of what there is to see...what photos would you want to include? What stories would you want to add? What memories would you want to make sure we remember?

~Pastor Sarah

Follow-up: Captive Free

I just realized that although I posted that Captive Free was coming to Starbuck, I never said anything about how it went! I had a great time at both the Saturday night program and the Sunday morning service. Both were a little light on youth attendance (what's up with that? anyone?), but I got a lot of great comments from the people who were there. The music was lovely (I really love organ and piano music and traditional hymns, but it does my heart good to hear something different from time to time), the team was fantastic, and the puppets were adorable.

So, lots of thanks to Captive Free Central Plains, a talented group with strong gifts for ministry. (And they figured out why my computer was projecting green-tinted images.) And thanks to everybody who helped to make their visit a success!

~Pastor Sarah

Prayers: School sports

I have to admit, I'm really not a very good sports fan. I consider it a win if everyone gets home without any serious injuries, and if the players on both sides can be reasonably proud that they played a good game, that's an added bonus.

That said, there are some great athletes in our area, and all of the student athletes I know are dedicated and hard-working. They have a lot on their plates, too, what with juggling school and friends and church as well as athletics. Right now, the fall sports schedule is pretty much over, except at the state level. So, I'll say a few extra prayers for those like some of the swimmers in our community, who are still hard at work. May they stay safe, do well, and remember that all of the glory belongs to God! Prayers also go to the teams that are just starting out!

~Pastor Sarah

Interested in global mission?

This year in K.I.C.K. we are talking about global mission (among other things, including what God is doing right here in our community). As we have done some of the groundwork (as in, some biblical foundations for why we are interested in this kind of thing), I've also been looking up stories and information about what the church in its various forms is doing in other parts up of the world. I've had such a good time reading them that I had to share stories from ELCA World Hunger. (From there, you can navigate to the more obvious place to start, which is ELCA Global Mission.)

It's really amazing what God is doing with our gifts in other parts of the world--and it's just as amazing to read about the partners in ministry who put them to work! Gone are the days when we can imagine that we are the parent church "taking care of" younger churches--now, it is a privilege and a blessing to be able to walk alongside our brothers and sisters who graciously allow us to share in their journeys as they share in ours.

~Pastor Sarah