Pastor Marsha Farewell

Dear friends in Christ,

As you all know too well, two years go by quickly! I can hardly believe I am saying farewell to all of my dear friends and colleagues here at Trinity. As I think back on our time together, I think of so many ministries and so many good times we had together. I think of traveling to Haiti, building a Habitat house, selling fair trade coffee, hunger banquets, small groups, meals together, chatting in the hallways of Trinity, worshiping together, and being united with all of you around the communion table each week. With all of that and more running through my mind and heart, I am full of gratitude. Thank you for welcoming me into this community and for helping me figure out what it means to be a pastor. Thank you for your hospitality to me and for your continued hospitality to first-call pastors. Supporting first-call pastors is an important ministry for which Trinity is uniquely suited, and I hope you will continue to nurture young pastors for many years to come.

As for what is next for me, my last Sunday at Trinity will be June 13, and then I will return to Moorhead for the TiM farewell celebration on Sunday, July 11. And on a happier note, I will be married on June 19 to Brian Ballantine. We are incredibly excited to begin this new chapter of our life together and to finally live in the same city! I will be moving to Berkeley, CA, where Brian is pursuing an MDiv at the Jesuit School of Theology, and I will serve as a hospital chaplain at Alta Bates Medical Center in Berkeley for at least one year. After that, who knows!

Life is truly an adventure, and I am so glad I got to spend part of my adventure with all of you. Thank you for being a blessing to me and to many others. I carry you with me as I go – full of lessons-learned, joy and struggles shared, and full of the love of our Lord Jesus, which brings us together and then inevitably sends us out to live our faith boldly in new and exciting ways. I will miss you, but I know that whether we are in Minnesota or California, we are there with God who unites us in the body of Christ.

Grace and peace to you all,
Pastor Marsha

A Farewell

On Sunday, July 11th Trinity hosted a Farewell Celebration for us. What a great way to end our two years in ministry here! Thanks to the congregation, quilters and knitters for the special gifts. Thanks to many of you for the many well wishes you shared with us that day. Finally, thanks to the Worship, Too! Band for the special song:

Marsha, Josh and Emmy came to us from the seminary. One from Wisconsin, a Minnesotan and one from somehwere out east.

Emmy's dog named Mable would come to church if she were able. Valley City's, really pretty but winter's still a beast!

Josh is a servant. He can build sandbag dams. He'll miss being (that's a one syllable word in this song) in his office hanging out with the YAMS!

Marsha you now carry a more diverse vocabulary. We must warn ya, in California uffda and yikes won't do. Out in Berkeley you won't need your snow boots!

Ah Ah Ah, etc. Hope you've had a good time here. We've enjoyed having you. And by gosh by golly, we're just so gosh darn melancholy. As you go, we hope you know that we're going to miss you so. But we send you God's blessings as you go.

Thanks for sharing life and ministry with us. Blessings to you.
Your "old" TiM Pastors - Josh, Marsha and Emmy

'Before the Flood'

'Before the Flood' is a live album by Bob Dylan and my favorite band, aptly-named The Band. And I can't help but think of this album's title while we are all waiting for the Red River to crest in the next couple of days.

Many of us have events in our lives that are so significant that we can't help but think of life in two sections: before that event and after that event. Before that death, and after it...before that big move, and after...or maybe, for you, it's before the flood and after it.

I've been reflecting on my own big events during the last few days, and I'd welcome you all to join me in that reflection, if it's helpful for you. What are the big events in your life that marked a signficant change or milestone...before and after?

If last year's flood was one of those events for you, you are being held in prayer by many people in this community, and by our community at Trinity, as we wait to see what this year's flood will bring.

posted by Marsha.

"Chasing the Divine"

Last week, I was out in Berkeley, CA, and I attended a lecture series on the topic, "Spiritual but not Religious: Chasing the Divine." The very first speaker talked a little bit about that tagline "Chasing the Divine." And I couldn't help but think, 'Why the chase? God is here already.'

We talk about following Jesus...and I suppose a chase is a frantic sort of following....trying really hard to be a good disciple.

But what if we just stop.

Take a breath.

There - right there - God in our midst.

We are with God; God is with us.

Yes, we follow, and maybe sometimes it feels a little frantic. But it seems to me that the key is to slow down - to not run so fast - to recognize that God is already with us.

So let's stop the chase and just breathe. And there God is, waiting for us.

posted by Marsha.

Ways to help Haiti

We are in mourning for the people of Haiti - holding them in prayer, as they face this new chapter. And our prayers are also with the service group from Trinity that is trying to get home, and with the medical team from Fargo/Moorhead that is still working in Pignon.

If you are able to help financially, here are some options:

The American Red Cross is pledging an initial $200,000 to assist communities impacted by this earthquake. They expect to provide immediate needs for food, water, temporary shelter, medical services and emotional support. They are accepting donations through their International Response Fund.

•UNICEF has issued a statement that "Children are always the most vulnerable population in any natural disaster, and UNICEF is there for them." UNICEF requests donations for relief for children in Haiti via their Haiti Earthquake Fund. You can also call 1-800-4UNICEF.

•Donate through Wyclef Jean's foundation, Yele Haiti. Text "Yele" to 501501 and $5 will be charged to your phone bill and given to relief projects through the organization.

•Operation USA is appealing for donations of funds from the public and corporate donations in bulk of health care materials, water purification supplies and food supplements which it will ship to the region from its base in the Port of Los Angeles. Donate online at www.opusa.org, by phone at 1-800-678-7255 or, by check made out to Operation USA, 3617 Hayden Ave, Suite A, Culver City, CA 90232.

•Ben Stiller's Stillerstrong campaign will be temporarily diverting all donations to support the Haiti relief effort.

•Partners In Health reports its Port-au-Prince clinical director, Louise Ivers, has appealed for assistance: "Port-au-Prince is devastated, lot of deaths. SOS. SOS... Temporary field hospital by us at UNDP needs supplies, pain meds, bandages. Please help us." Donate to their Haiti earthquake fund.

•Mercy Corps is sending a team of emergency responders to assess damage, and seek to fulfill immediate needs of quake survivors. The agency aided families after earthquakes in Peru in 2007, China and Pakistan in 2008, and Indonesia last year. Donate online, call 1-888-256-1900 or send checks to Mercy Corps Haiti Earthquake Fund; Dept NR; PO Box 2669; Portland, OR 97208.

•Direct Relief is committing up to $1 million in aid for the response and is coordinating with its other in-country partners and colleague organizations. Their partners in Haiti include Partners in Health, St. Damien Children's Hospital, and the Visitation Hospital, which are particularly active in emergency response. Donate to Direct Relief online.

•Oxfam is rushing in teams from around the region to respond to the situation to provide clean water, shelter, sanitation and help people recover. Donate to Oxfam America online.

•International Medical Corps is assembling a team of first responders and resources to provide lifesaving medical care and other emergency services to survivors of the earthquake. Donate online.

The Pilgrim's Coat

Today I was interviewed by a man from the church I went to as a little girl - Holy Trinity Lutheran Church in Raleigh, NC. Just like Trinity in Moorhead, they've had lots of folks from their congregation enter ordained and rostered ministries. They're doing a research project in order to learn about what aspects of their congregational life have influenced people in their sense of call to ministry. So, I was asked lots of questions about what I remember being key experiences in my life of faith while I was growing up at Holy Trinity.

It was great fun to relive these childhood moments - everything from live Nativity scenes to a confirmation retreat to a very profound moment when I watched my pastor help a homeless man get something to eat for lunch. I was reminded by this interview how much little moments make a big difference, and how important it is, from time-to-time, to reflect on what moments have made us the people we are today.

And then, I happened upon this blog post about Pilgrim's Coats: http://theadventdoor.com/2008/12/05/the-pilgrims-coat/

Here's a quote from that blog: "Painted with Buddhist mantras in flowing Japanese calligraphy, a simple coat such as this would have been worn by a person as they traveled from temple to temple on their spiritual journey. Each temple had its own stamp, and a typical pilgrim’s coat is laden with vivid cinnabar imprints gathered from the temples. The coat of a pilgrim who had been traveling for some time would have looked something like a cross between a passport and prayerbook, with the cinnabar stamps and calligraphic mantras mingling together to enfold the wearer."

We are stamped, marked, formed into who we are by things we experience along our way.

And, so, during this season of Advent reflection, I invite you to think about the experiences, people, places, and moments that have made an imprint on your life.

What's on your "pilgrim's coat"? And where might you look for your next stamp?

posted by Marsha.

An unpreached sermon

Once upon a time, a preacher carefully prepared a sermon. When it came time to preach the sermon, she went to print it off and realized that she wasn't able to open the document. That night, she preached what she could. Here is what she intended to share...

Scripture passages: Psalm 139:1-18//Jeremiah 1:4-10//John 8:21-38

Tonight. In this space. I invite you to take a deep breath. Breath in. And breath out. Let the tension from the day subside.

Tonight. In this space. As we breath in. And breath out. We step out of the hustle and bustle of life. We step out of the fear and anxiety of life. We step in to a time of prayer and a time of reflection.

Tonight. In this space. As we breath in. And breath out. God meets us. God fills us.

As we breath in. And breath out. We think of the One who first breathed life into out being--the One who formed our inward parts, who knit us together in the comfort of our mother’s womb. We think of this One who is with us.

This One who searches us. Who Knows us. Who knows when we sit, when we rise up...

This One who goes with us, to the highest heights and the deepest depths. In the light and in the the darkness...

As we breath in. And breath out. We recall that this One who is with us, knows us. In the deepest way.

This One knows...

how we try to flee from our past,

how we try to flee from being that which we were created to be,

how we try to flee from doing that which we were created to do,

how we try to flee like the prophet Jeremiah, saying we unable, unequipped

And this One, God, knows that when we try to flee, we are really bound, we are really slaves to sin...we cannot really flee on our own. God knows. God cares.

And so God the Father, sent the Son into the world. Because of Jesus Christ, we are not dead in our sins. We are not bound by our sins. We no longer need to try to flee on our own.

Rather, we are freed. Freed to be who God created us to be. To do what God created us to do. So that when we, like Jeremiah, hear God telling us to go, we can go. Knowing that the one who formed us, who knit us together is the one who goes with us. Knowing that the one who formed us, who knit us together, enables and equips us.

Tonight. In this space. Let us take a few moments, in silence, to breath in and to breath out. To dwell in the presence of God. To let the Spirit of God fill us. So that we may go...freed to be who God created us to be and to do what God created us to do.

posted by Pastor Emmy