by Pastor Sonja Hagander

What a delight all the cottage meetings have been! I’m grateful for the generosity offered by each of the hosts and the more than 100 of you that have participated.  I am learning so much!

We’re not done yet! Some important focused cottage meetings are preparing to launch:

You may ask, “What are focused cottage meetings?”  They are key opportunities to gather 2-4 times with specific parts of the congregation to wonder how best to support, accompany, journey, do ministry with these vital areas of our life together…and it begins with deep listening to these voices of parents. Why parents?  One of the principles is the fact that parents are the most important people in a child’s life (more than a coach, pastor, youth director, teacher, friend, peers….(from National Study on Youth and Religion and The Search Institute).  

Cohorts will meet with Rollie Martinson, consultant, professor, pastor, congregant, friend, who has accompanied the field of children, youth and family ministry for many decades.  There is a Families with Young Children Cohort and a Families with Teens Cohort and a Young Adult Cohort.  

I have hunches what we might hear and learn, but it’s important to pause and deeply listen and not make assumptions.  Vision and structure follows from listening. What might nurture connectedness?  How might our congregation help people thrive? What does it look like to live our Christian calling out in the world at our places of work, home, school, travel and recreation?  In other words, how might CtK help one another love God and neighbor as we continue to form our faith and be deeply connected to one another across all generations?

As we move towards the end of summer and into early fall,  we will ask: what have we heard? What stories are we telling?  What do we yearn for as a congregation?  What are our neighbors hopes?  How are we getting to know one another?

By Pastor Sarah Anderson

This is the third blog post in the series exploring CtK’s Welcome Statement and it highlights the final paragraph which reads:

“We offer Christian worship in the Lutheran tradition with the goals of making worship meaningful and readily accessible. We welcome the diversity of families present in our neighborhood. We welcome children, offering a community of worship and faith development where they are seen and heard, respected and accepted as they are. No matter where you find yourself on the journey of faith,  we warmly welcome you here.”
Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God (Romans 15:7).”

Worship is a central expression of our life together, drawing us further into relationship with God. In our Lutheran tradition, worship consists of four parts: Gathering, Word, Meal, Sending, and you can see these headings marked each week in CtK’s bulletin. While there are specific liturgical elements which fall under each category (i.e. Thanksgiving for Baptism, Scripture Reading, Holy Communion, etc.) there is a lot of flexibility for what the content is. For instance, much of the spoken elements of worship this month draw from the Pride resources of Reconciling Works. From the variety of music to the use of expansive language and names we use for God and everything in-between, worship is as diverse as the people who gather. This diversity is a gift from God, making space for each and every one of us to experience the fullness of God.

Questions to ponder this week:

• What parts of worship are consistently meaningful for you? Ask family, friends, or those who worship near you what they find meaningful in worship. Are your responses the same?
  
• ​Read the entirety of CtK’s Welcome Statement again. Where can you grow in your embrace of welcoming all people into the life and ministry of Christ the King?

By Pastor Sarah Anderson

This week we lift up Juneteenth, which commemorates the end to slavery in the United States. Next Saturday, June 22, join other Minnesotans for an all ages event at the State capitol for a day of celebration, education, and community building. The next time you’re in the building of CtK, check out the Racial Justice Team bulletin board across from the office, to further explore the importance of Juneteenth.

Additionally, as Pride month continues, so does our closer look at CtK’s Welcome Statement. The first paragraph focuses on the life-transforming nature of God’s love and grace, and the second paragraph continues with: “Christ the King is constituted by people of many backgrounds. Grounded in the promise of God’s grace, we are called to extend Christ’s welcome to all people. We welcome all, regardless of race, age, culture, national origin, ethnicity, language, sexual orientation, gender identity, family status, marital status, physical or cognitive ability, theological knowledge, education, political perspective, economic condition, or religious background. Our journeys in life often look very different on the surface, but we believe that God’s love changes everything for everybody.”

Pointing out differences might just be the universal superpower humanity never wanted, because so often differences divide what is better when remained together. God created a world with a kaleidoscope of difference because it is beautiful and wonderful. For instance, in these summer months the beauty of difference is celebrated when an assortment of flowers fill our landscape and various vegetables grow in CtK’s Community Garden. Why do we celebrate some differences and not others? The apostle Paul’s reminder to the people of Galatia can be our reminder as well, “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28)

Questions to ponder this week:

• When you notice yourself identifying differences between people, can you pause and wonder, ‘how does God see this person’?
• Spend time writing down the ways you celebrate and look forward to interacting with people who aren’t similar to you.

By Pastor Sarah Anderson

Among many celebrations, like the official first day of summer, June is also Pride month. Like Black History month, Asian American and Pacific Islander and Hispanic Heritage months celebrate culture and race alongside pointing to the inequities in our society, Pride month is part celebration and part protest, drawing attention to the issues still facing the community.

At the February 2018 annual meeting, CtK voted to approve a Welcome Statement that continues to guide us. This statement also led Christ the King to become a Reconciling in Christ (RIC) Partner, which you can read more about at Reconciling Works. CtK’s Welcome Statement is three paragraphs long and for the next three blogs, each paragraph will be highlighted.

Paragraph one begins, “The congregation of Christ the King Lutheran Church affirms that: All are welcome in this place,” and it continues, “Our faith is based on a life-transforming story that is both ancient and timely. It is a story of a compassionate and patient God who has boundless love for all people. It is a story of Jesus Christ changing lives and transforming hearts. It is a story of God’s Spirit bringing us comfort and strength.”

This week, you are invited to wonder more deeply about the life-transforming story God invites each of us into. Questions to ponder:

• Have you experienced transformation because of God’s love and grace? Did the transformation happen all at once, or did it occur over time?
  
• ​Can you recall a time when you encountered compassion from God?

By Vern Rice

About 20 years ago one of our pastors suggested to our member, Paul Redlinger, that we start a Lutheran College Scholarship Fund to encourage members to attend one of our Lutheran colleges. Currently our Evangelical Lutheran Church in America has 26 colleges which include Upper Midwest schools, Augsburg, Augustana, Concordia (Moorhead), Luther and Saint Olaf. All these colleges match all or part of the $1,000 scholarships.

A group of members each year led by Paul Redlinger has offered scholarships of about $1,000 to seventy five students who tell stories of going on to various callings including a pastor among them. It is very encouraging this year to have four students awarded scholarships at our service on Sunday, June 2nd.

​Following the congregational meeting, a SALT session in the Trinity room led by Vern Rice will help the students and some parents tell their stories about what the college experience means to them. We're hoping to continue this service in years to come. Anyone wishing to contribute to the ELCA  Lutheran College Scholarship Fund may make out a check to Christ the King marking  "Lutheran College Scholarship" in the memo line. Anyone who would like to work with the committee, contact Karen Hillerman or Vern Rice