Message From the Pastor - Remembering and Renewing

November is a month of remembering. On All Saints Sunday, we name aloud those who have gone before us—saints of our families, friends, and congregation—whose faith helped shape our own. We light candles for them and lift up the quiet saints whose light still flickers in our hearts. 

Each year, this moment touches me deeply. It reminds me that the Church universal—and this congregation in particular—was not built in a day or by one generation. It was built, and continues to be built, by faithful people who prayed, worshiped, served, gave, and imagined a future they could not yet see. Their courage and generosity are the shoulders on which we stand. 

This fall, we continue the work of discernment following our 170th-anniversary celebration last July—a milestone that invited both gratitude and honesty. We gave thanks for the legacy of those who have led and loved this congregation, even as we acknowledged the complexity of our past. We lifted up our land acknowledgment, which we’ll share again on the Sunday before Thanksgiving, remembering that we live and serve on the homelands of the Dakota Nation. This practice reminds us that history is layered—and that faith calls us to repair and restore, as well as to remember and rejoice. 

Our Leadership Board is currently engaging in a visioning touchpoint, listening for how God is calling us forward. We are asking three guiding questions: 

Where have we been? 

Where are we now? 

How do we position ourselves for future possibilities? 

These are not just organizational questions—they are spiritual ones. They call us to look with integrity and hope at the gifts we carry, the challenges we face, and the future God imagines for us. 

In this season of gratitude and vision, I’m also mindful of our call to care for creation—the land, water, and creatures that surround and sustain us. Creation care is not only an environmental issue; it’s a spiritual one. To love God and neighbor is to love this good earth and to live in ways that nurture life for generations yet to come. 

As we remember the saints and dream new dreams, I’m reminded of words from Jan Richardson: 

“What the departed leave behind is more than memory; it is the enduring echo of love that calls us to live as those who remember what it means to be alive.”

May this November be a season of remembering and renewing—of gratitude for the saints who shaped our path, and courage to follow where the Spirit is leading next. Look for updates from the Leadership Board in the coming month as we continue discerning the next faithful steps of our shared ministry.

Blessings, 

Donna