Church #42. Meet Pastor John Van Haneghan. He is the solo pastor at Fairbanks Lutheran Church in Fairbanks, Alaska. With an averaging worship attendance of 100 people on a given Sunday, this church's mission is "We welcome. We worship. We serve. " With his first call in upstate New York, Van Haneghan started his puppet … Continue reading For the Love of Puppets

For the first Sunday in Advent (using the Narrative Lectionary), we hear the words from the prophet Habakkuk: "How long shall I cry out to you, O God!"  Meaning? How long are we going to have to wait for God to answer the cries and the hurts of the people? Just as the people of … Continue reading A Storytelling Advent Wreath

The other day at church, I led the adult education class on "The Why and What of the Narrative Lectionary?" as my congregation is getting ready to move into the Narrative Lectionary starting in Advent. The "what" part is easy, right?  It's a 4 year reading cycle that follows the trajectory of the Bible, from … Continue reading No More Sermon Notes

Church #41. Meet Advent Devotionals available in English and Spanish. Thanks to a generous grant from the Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd - Foundation located in south Minneapolis, MN,  there are free Advent - Christmas - Epiphany Devotions for all ages. Fifty people from around the USA shared their time writing, proofreading, translating, editing, drawing, publishing, … Continue reading The Christmas Story Composition Advent Devotions for All Ages

Church #40. Meet Inese Dahl. She is the Director of Christian Education at St Paul Lutheran Church, School and Childcare in McAllen, Texas. This congregation has an average worship attendance of 400 on a given Sunday. In honor of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, St Paul has adopted FAITH5 household devotions. (Shout out to … Continue reading The Power of a Donut Box

"If only you were here, Lord, my brother would not have died." This is what Mary and Martha said to Jesus about their brother, Lazarus, who has died. We read this story found in John 11:1-44, and it happens to be the story on All Saints 2018 (RCL).   Last week, I was at the … Continue reading If Only You Were Here…

Small children love to read the same book over and over again. I was like that. Mine was a book called "Little Witch" by Anna Elizabeth Bennett. It is a classic tale of a little witch who dreams of being a normal kid. I must have checked it out of the school library every week … Continue reading Tell the Story

Church #39. Meet Michelle Ketepa. She is the Director of Faith Formation at Beautiful Savior Luther Church in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. With an average worshiping attendance of 200 people on a given Sunday, Ketepa strives to reach all ages with the love of God. Ketepa asked, “Have you ever tried to stake a tomato plant … Continue reading The Little Little’s Blessing

Church #38. Meet Sister Emily Lalor – Clamser. She is a deacon on leave from call and located in the North Carolina Synod of the ELCA. Pastors, deacons, and children, youth and family staff know the conundrum of helping people connect faith to daily life. "It's a real struggle!" said Clamser. People long to understand … Continue reading Faith@home or Faith@Go

Church #37. Meet Carmen Retzlaff. She is the solo pastor at New Life Lutheran Church in Dripping Springs, Texas. The interesting thing about this congregation, which has an average worship attendance of 60 on a given Sunday, is that everything they do is outside: worship, Sunday School, gardening camp. And guess what? Like many things … Continue reading Growing Worship Outdoors