By Pastor Jeff Jacobs Unity Lutheran Parish - St. Paul, Saetersdal and St. Matthew’s, Granger One of my favorite poets is George Herbert, who is commemorated in the Lutheran church on the date of his death, March 1, 1633.  He was born April 3, 1593, in Montgomery, Wales, into an aristocratic family.  In 1609 he began studies at Trinity College, Cambridge, where in 1616 he … [Read more...]

Rev. Peter J. Haugen St. Paul Evangelical Lutheran Church The glory of the Lord was once found in the pillars of cloud by day and of fire by night. That glory filled the temple, but that glory departed from the temple in judgement before the Babylonian Captivity. That glory did not return when the temple was rebuilt, not as it had been. And that glory is now found in … [Read more...]

As the boy crawled on his stomach with his face near the ground, there were about four inches of clean air below the smoke. No, he was not escaping a burning building. The building was not on fire, but it contained a fire. It was just one of many chores for young Warren Lange during the early 1930s on the family farm on South Ridge in Houston County. In the smoke house, there … [Read more...]

By Rev. Deanna Woodward Maple Leaf Parish United Methodist Churches of Cherry Grove, Fountain, Preston and Spring Valley You may have heard of “seasonal affective disorder,” a condition in which the shorter hours of sunlight during the winter months may affect a person’s moods and ability to cope with life effectively.  I had an uncle who suffered from this disorder and … [Read more...]

By Pastor Nissa Peterson Chatfield and Root Prairie Lutheran Churches Today I bought Valentine’s cards for my kid’s school classes- because if I don’t buy them early, I’m making a frantic shopping trip Febuary 12 and nobody wants that. And even over a month before Valentine’s day, there was a whole aisle of red and pink choices — because the world is ready to talk about … [Read more...]

By Pastor Pam Seebach Harmony, Mabel, and Newburg United Methodist Churches My husband and I have a 1 ½-year-old black Labrador retriever; his name is Haka.  Haka loves to do many things: play in the snow, play in the creek, play with the neighbor’s dog, … play just about anywhere and anytime!  But Haka also loves to sleep.  This morning, before he left for work, my husband … [Read more...]

By Pastor Kevin Barnhart Spring Grove Evangelical Free Everyone runs to the gym, memberships spike, diet plans soar, fitness coaches, life coaches, all kinds of new year’s resolutions are being planned right now as I type.    Those are all good things; do them, stick to them.  But what if this year, instead of a new goal, we all grabbed hold of an ancient promise, a past … [Read more...]

By Pastor Stuart Weist First Baptist Church of Preston We have come to the time of year again when many people make plans for the coming year.  Resolutions generally at the top of the list are to lose weight, improve wealth, spend time with family, complete education, etc.  But, what about your faith? Where is your relationship with the King of Kings and Lord of Lords?  As a … [Read more...]

By Rev. Debra Jene Collum Chatfield United Methodist Imagine for a moment, a gift you received from a child: a grand child, a son or daughter, a niece or nephew, a neighbor child. Think carefully. What did it look like? Was it a clay mug with a misshapen handle? A leather key fob made at camp with the word “mom” crookedly stamped on to it? Or a cross made from macaroni and … [Read more...]

By Pastor Mark Woodward Maple Leaf Parish Churches: Spring Valley: Faith, Cherry Grove, Fountain, Preston (and Lenora) Please take a moment and look at the Nativity Scene pictured here... take a moment to consider the Good News of the birth of our Savior Jesus... This is the Good News of Christmas...John 3:16 reminds us that God sent his only Son out of love for the human … [Read more...]