A BIG Weekend

This Sunday, October 25th, is a big day in the life of the congregation. We'll celebrate Reformation Sunday, singing some favorite hymns, giving thanks for the good news of the Gospel of Jesus and all those the Spirit uses to call people to faithfulness (Martin Luther included!).
Two of the youth of the congregation will publicly affirm their baptism during worship at 10:00am, and profess their faith. It's a big deal, and definitely a day for the church community to gather around them for prayer and support. When an individual is baptized, the assembly is asked this question: "People of God, do you promise to support name and pray for him/her in his/her new life in Christ?"
And the assembly responds: We do.
Then, after the baptism, the congregation addresses the newly baptized: We welcome you into the body of Christ and into the mission we share: join us in giving thanks and praise to God and bearing God's creative and redeeming word to all the world.
That baptismal journey continues, and Affirmation of Baptism (aka Confirmation) is a big step on that journey, when a young person becomes an adult member of the community of faith. Don't miss it!
There will be a reception, with cake, and a Reformation Sunday photo booth, after worship.

Sunday afternoon we hold our annual Trunk or Treat. It's always a ton of fun, and a great way to reach out into the neighborhood. Trunk or treating will happen in the parking lot, and there will be games, crafts, and less sugary snacks in the social hall, 4:30-6:00pm. (Family-friendly) costumes are encouraged!

Be still and know that I am God.

My life is not very quiet these days.

This is why I need the quiet atmosphere of midweek Lenten worship to calm my mind, body, and spirit.

I have always enjoyed evening worship. There is something about darkness, candlelight, quiet music, and gentle voices that calm me and help me be still.

My eldest daughter Marit won’t take an afternoon nap unless she is still and quiet.

I have a hard time sensing the presence of the Holy Spirit unless I am still and quiet.

Evening worship provides an opportunity to be still and quiet.

A musical prelude and postlude draws me into the worship space, and keeps me there when I think I need to leave to tend to my duties as a pastor, husband, and father.

The contrast between darkness and light during evening worship holds my attention, unlike some other lighting arrangements.

Quiet voices reading scripture, uttering prayers, and singing hymns calm me down much like when I speak to my boisterous children with a still, small voice.

I will continue to participate in evening worship because I need the quiet, I need the calm, and I need the stillness to help me sense the presence of God’s Holy Spirit.

Perhaps that is God’s gift to us during this season leading up to Holy Week and Easter.

We need the quiet. We need the calm. We need the stillness to help us sense the presence of God’s Holy Spirit.

ELCA Churchwide Assembly

This post is from the Bishop of the Montana Synod, Jessica Crist. It comes from the August issue of the Montana Synod Newsletter.

When you read this article, the Churchwide Assembly will be in session in Orlando, Florida. Twelve voting members, elected at the 2010 Montana Synod Assembly, will join approximately 1000 other voting members from around the Church to do the business of the Church. These volunteers are giving up a week of their summer to vote on resolutions and budgets, constitutional changes and a social statement. Please keep them in your prayers, and thank them if you get a chance. And feel free to invite them to your congregation and your fall cluster meetings, in order to hear from them directly.
If you are reading this, pass it on. Pass on the newsletter, pass on the article, pass on the information about accessing the Churchwide Assembly. Here is our group: Pastor Carol Karres is a retired pastor living in Sidney and serving on the Synod’s Candidacy Committee. Jim Allen of Great Falls, is about to start his freshman year at Concordia College, Mike Young, newly-elected Synod Vice President, is a Billings-based health care consultant. Pastor Dan Heskett serves Northridge in Kalispell, and is Dean of the Flathead Clus-ter. Sandy Lange of Choteau, is on the Churchwide Board of the Women of the ELCA. Wayne Saverud, of Kalispell, works for Immanuel Lutheran Corporation. Trudi Schmidt is a State Legislator from Great Falls, and a member of the Synodically Authorized Worshipping Community, New Hope. Tonia Fisher-Clark, is an LPA and a member of King of Glory in Billings. Lee Christianson is an active member of First Lutheran in Havre, and works for Thrivent. Pastor Tim Tostengard serves American Lutheran in Billings, and is Dean of the Shepherd Cluster. Amanda Gerber is a college student from Libby. As Bishop, I am the twelfth member of the group. And Pastor Phil Wold, of Sheridan, Wyoming, will be there as a member of the ELCA Church Council.
You can keep track of what is going on at the Churchwide Assembly several ways. One way is to watch the streaming video feed at http://www.elca.org/. You can watch in live time the presentations, debates, bible studies and more. Another way is to follow the blog that our synod group will have. Go to http://www.soulcafe.org/, sign up, and go to the Montana Synod page, where you will find a link to our blog. Soul Café is an experiment in communications we are engaged in in the synods of Region I (the Northwest). It is a great way to get information and make connections not only across the syn-od, but across all our synods in the northwest. Check it out.
So what will we do for five days at the Assembly? We’ll have daily worship and prayer. We’ll study scrip-ture. We’ll listen to presentations from staff, from volunteers, from visiting dignitaries. We’ll grapple together with the theme: “Freed in Christ to Serve.” We’ll look at the report of the LIFT Task Force, prayerfully consider what kinds of structure and governance will help us be effective witnesses to the Gospel of Jesus Christ in our complex world today and in the future. We’ll debate and vote on the genetics social statement, and discuss why we as a church have social statements. We’ll adopt a budget, look at constitutional changes, hear memorials from synods, elect people to churchwide boards.
The Churchwide Assembly is people like you and me, clergy and laity from across the country, elected by their Synod Assemblies from congregations across the whole church. We are as diverse in our backgrounds and opinions and experiences as this whole church is.
But we are united in our love of the Church, the Body of Christ. We are united in our commitment to be faithful witnesses to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We are united in our desire to serve God and neighbor.

God’s work. Our hands.

Your partner in ministry,

Bishop Jessica Crist

I encourage you to check out the ELCA webpage and watch some of the Assembly. You can see streaming video here. It's always interesting, and a good way to stay connected with what our church is doing - "church" is a whole lot bigger than just an individual congregation!

Churchwide Assembly Preparations

Christ the King is one of more than 10,000 congregations of our church, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Just as synods (we're part of the Montana Synod) meet in assembly every year, the whole ELCA gathers every other year in Churchwide Assembly. It happens this year in August in Minneapolis. Ever wondered what happens at a Churchwide Assembly? Curious what the hot topics will be this year? Check out the 2009 Churchwide Assembly Update.