By Pastor Paul Hauschild Chatfield and Root Prairie Lutheran Churches Pastor Phil Callaway tells of driving his 5-year-old son past a local cemetery.  Of course, 5-year-olds sometimes have an interesting perspective on things.  Noticing a large pile of dirt beside a newly excavated grave, the boy pointed and said, “Look, Dad, one got out!!!”  Calloway laughed at the … [Read more...]

By Pastor Mark Woodward Maple Leaf Parish of the UMC Cherry Grove, Fountain, Preston, and Spring Valley: Faith Churches (and Lenora)  I believe many of my readers know that I appreciate the depth, integrity and theology of traditional Christian hymns.  I often use my hymnbook as a devotional resource in my life.  As we approach Easter and come down the homestretch of the … [Read more...]

Rev. Peter J. Haugen St. Paul Evangelical  Lutheran Church Genesis 27:6-40 tells us about Jacob, one of the Patriarchs of Israel, one of the great Fathers of the Old Testament Church. And he is despicable. And yet God blesses him, honoring the blessing pronounced upon him by his father Isaac, making him a part of the lineage of our Lord Jesus, part of the Promise … [Read more...]

By Pastor Kevin Barnhart Spring Grove Evangelical Free I sometimes get angry at God.  With the twists and turns of life, over the mountains and valleys that we all must transverse I have accumulated a myriad of tears and trials that can weigh like lead on my heart.  Questions that seem lost in a vast abyss of silence … why not just run away; rail on God’s big powerful … [Read more...]

By Rev. Anders Nelson Mabel-Henrytown Tri-Point Parish - Mabel First Lutheran Church, Scheie Lutheran Church and Henrytown Lutheran Church For many Christians around the world, these weeks are the beginning of the Lenten season, a season that might be most recognized by the cross of ash many people wear on Ash Wednesday to start the season and, for many people, a Lenten fast … [Read more...]

By Rev. Debra Jene Collum Chatfield United Methodist Teaching and leading a group of young people towards the day when they confirm their commit-ment to Christianity is a challenge and a privilege for clergy. I take this role very seriously. In this world of ours, naming oneself Christian is no longer a given. And it never should be. Naming oneself Christian comes with a … [Read more...]

By Pastor Bridget Sheely Co-Pastor of Prairieland Parish As we walk through each day and navigate our way through ups and downs, joys and concerns, happy moments and heartache, it becomes very clear that this earthly life is anything but redundant, mundane or one dimensional.  Yes, we can feel at times that we are stuck in a rut.  But the truth is we all have our peak and … [Read more...]

By Pastor Mark Geselle Valley Christian Center “For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God. For, “all people are like grass, and all their glory (like the K. C. Chiefs) is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord endures forever.  And this is … [Read more...]

By Pastor Kris Hertsgaard Kincaid Christ Lutheran Church, Preston Have you noticed how much Jesus prays? Throughout the Gospel of Luke, we see Jesus pray when he is baptized, lonely or tired, and making important decisions. One of the prayers Christians recite most often is the Lord’s Prayer. Jesus taught this prayer after being asked by a disciple for Jesus to teach him … [Read more...]

By Pastor Mark Woodward Maple Leaf Parish Churches: Spring Valley: Faith, Cherry Grove, Fountain, Preston  (and Lenora)  Even since the days of the pandemic, I have been very careful with taking needed precautions with regard to COVID-19.  Well...it finally caught up with me early in January 2025.  I was fully vaccinated so I am thankful the symptoms were mild.  … [Read more...]

By Pastor Paul Hauschild Chatfield and Root Prairie Lutheran Churches How is 2025 going for you so far? A new year often signifies a fresh start for many people but, more often than not, resolutions set on December 31 are abandoned a few weeks into January. Practiced in most parts of the world, people set goals for a new year which revolve around continuing good … [Read more...]

By Pastor Jeff Jacobs Unity Lutheran Parish -  St. Paul, Saetersdal and  St. Matthew’s, Granger The Christian Century, a Protestant periodical, began as The Christian Oracle, then in 1900 became The Christian Century, with hope “genuine Christian faith could live in mutual harmony with the modern developments in science, technology, immigration, communication and … [Read more...]

Rev. Peter J. Haugen St. Paul Evangelical Lutheran Church Herod was troubled at the news of the Christ Child’s birth, as were the religious leaders and all of Jerusalem. But the magi rejoiced and worshipped the Infant King, even as had the shepherds before them. God grant us the faith to join the magi and the shepherds! “For behold, darkness will cover the earth, and deep … [Read more...]

By Pastor Nissa Peterson Chatfield and Root Prairie Lutheran Churches I was driving home from a Christmas celebration one year late at night. At 11:58 p.m. on December 25 the radio station played a Christmas song. And the very next song, starting at 12:01 a.m. on December 26, returned to classic rock. For much of the world, Christmas ends at midnight on the 25th. But for … [Read more...]

By Pastor Pam Seebach Harmony, Mabel, and Newburg United Methodist Churches A common phrase, when one doesn’t understand what the person in front of them just said is, “Come again?”  In effect, you are asking them to repeat what they just said so that you might hear, and understand, the second time.  We just experienced the coming of the Christ Child, a joyous event for those … [Read more...]