“For I was hungry and you gave me food.”

Kim Ode, a feature writer for the Strib, did a piece recently about Minnesota’s state photograph. It was taken by Eric Enstrom in 1918 and it is called “Grace.” (I always thought it was a painting, but there you are.) In the article, she says (and I quote): “The crazy thing about being thankful is that it is the shortest distance between feeling OK and feeling great.” (Star Tribune, November 2, 2014)

As we sit around our Thanksgiving tables next week, surely we will feel thankful for the feast we are sharing with the ones we love. And we will think about those who don’t have enough to eat. Some families even have a tradition of joining together to serve a community meal for those neighbors who are alone and “food-insecure” before they sit down to their own turkey and all the trimmings. How beautiful!

What a difference a day makes!

In honor of Veterans Day this week, I had the joy of delivering 50 cards, made by Sunday school kids and a confirmation group, to the Minnesota Veterans Home in Minneapolis. What a wonderful way to honor, encourage, and remember our veterans who have given much for our country. And, like most of you, I noticed the big change in our weather! Not sure if you know, but I love to follow the weather. My undergraduate degree is in meteorology, and even though it’s not my field of profession it is an area of interest. Thinking about these two events this week, I remembered an article my husband, Gregg, shared with me about the D-Day invasion so many years ago. Take note of how the weather played a role in this important event in U.S. history:

Home is where our hearts are

Last week, we hosted a large memorial service at Family of Christ for the Maloney family. Their son Kevin, 32 years old and a husband and father, had died in a car/train accident the week before. Kevin had been involved in the youth program when I was associate pastor here in the late 90s. He had gone on at least two of the summer trips I led, and we even roomed together during our trip to Juarez, Mexico. As of late, the family has not been active at Family of Christ, but they certainly remember their connections to our church, and even remember Kevin’s connections to me. So when the family approached us and asked if we could minister to them and host Kevin’s memorial service, we were glad to answer that call with a resounding “Yes!”