Our Most Important Relationship is with God

Because of deadlines for the Tempo publication I sit to write this in mid-November.  Christmas seems to be far away, yet I know that it is only about a month off.

The pace of life is such that most of us can barely come up for air. Christmas seems to speed that pace up. Things to do, people to see, gifts to buy, cards to write. All of these things are centered in relationships.

Of course the most important relationship is the one with the Incarnate Word of God made flesh in Jesus. Take time to think of Jesus, take time to talk to Jesus, take time to worship Jesus and all the other things
will fall into place.

I invite you to be in worship each week during Advent and following Christmas. Your celebration will be so much more enriched.
See you in church.
Love,

Pastor Frank

The Vibrant Part of the Body of Christ

Pastor Frank graciously offered me the opportunity to tell you a little about myself. My first thought is that while he loves to run, I prefer to  walk—preferably outdoors, when it is cool, the sun is coming up, the woods are close around me, and I can enjoy the presence of Our Lord and the beauty of creation. This is one of my ways to live in gratitude and remember God’s grace.

Another way I have grown spiritually is by working alongside others in our church community. The staff and lay ministry volunteers of Holy Trinity have welcomed me with great warmth and I have known the energy and creativity of the Holy Spirit among them these last few weeks. We are truly blessed to have such a dedicated group of servants at HTLC!

A third way I have experienced the nearness and power of God is through years of involvement with many varieties of Small Groups. Small Groups are relational, and I believe we grow as we share our joys, fears, sorrows, and shortcomings in trusted relationships with other people who gather to pray, study scripture, and try to live out our faith in our challenging daily lives. Jesus ministers to us in life-giving ways when we are gathered in His name. Please notice the pages in this newsletter highlighting many of the groups at HTLC, sign up to take part, and help us welcome others into new groups in the coming months.

I have so much enjoyed visiting and praying with many of you. Especially, I am honored to pray for Pastor Janet and for her timely return to ministering to all of you. Thank you for greeting my wonderful husband Keith and for listening to me tell of my sons, our crazy black lab, my chickens who lay green eggs, and our vacation camping and hiking in the state of Washington.

May you all find ways to connect into this vibrant part of the Body of Christ in the months ahead. May you be welcomed. May you know the healing presence of our living Lord. Thank you for this opportunity to minister among you.

Grace and peace in Christ,

Pastor Christine

We’re the Same Family

Well, we are moving our way through the summer. I hope you have had a time away, and if not it is coming soon. Linda and I were able to attend her family’s reunion in North Dakota. It was a real treat to see some of her family that she hadn’t seen for a long time and some cousins she had never met.

I got to thinking about the church. Our theology tells us that in Jesus we all share the same inheritance, therefore in our baptism we are all part of the same family.

I remember sitting at the horseshoe tournament at the reunion listening to some opinions about our world and even our God, and thinking, I am not sure I agree with that.

I respect it, but I don’t agree with it. Did that make me or that person any less part of the family? NO, it did not.

We live in trying times politically and economically. Life is changing faster than any of us would like to affirm, and we are asked to take our faith and make sense of this ever changing and challenging world. I believe that God gives us the community of faith, as a place where we can come and talk about this ever changing place, and know that we all still live in Jesus.

It is His Lordship over us that unifies us. I pray that as we journey toward this fall’s election and all that it means to our world and our nation, that as people of faith we could disagree about issues but remain united in Jesus.

After all, we are part of the same family, but what family always thinks alike?

We Have Freedom to Proclaim Chist Crucified and Risen Again

As we enter into the summer, full blast, I am excited by a couple of things. We will be moving ahead on the building program and having meetings to help us focus on the design of the new fellowship hall and what a remodeled fellowship hall might look like.

We are continuing to try to reach our goal on the money we need to move ahead. This is an act of faith, I believe, in a shaky economy. We are also putting together a 50th Anniversary celebration committee to move us ahead for 2009 and 2010.

We are moving ahead with plans for new small groups and other ministries in the fall along with some real strides in Family Ministry. As Holy Trinity “gets older” it is also working at getting younger or renewing itself. This is a good process. I believe that we are incredibly blessed, because we have the freedom to do all of this work without worry of persecution or being arrested.

The freedom we have in the USA is something we all take for granted, but is something that is a gift and has been for only a relatively short time. Freedom demands our vigilance and our concern. Freedom also challenges us to respond to our responsibility to our neighbors and our communities.

Within this freedom we proclaim Christ crucified and risen again. We proclaim new life for all who would
follow Him. What a gift we have. Celebrate that gift this month of July.