The site consists of 5 congregations. Two of these churches are in small towns. I will be living in Dundee, MN where the congregation of First Lutheran is located. Evangelical is located in the town of Heron Lake, while the other three congregations, Immanuel, Amo, and Grace, are all open country churches. There is also a retreat/education facility as part of the parish as well, called Shalom Hill Farm, and yes it is an actual farm.
Some of you may chuckle at the thought of me in this situation. After all I was born and raised in Phoenix, AZ which is not only a very large city, but smack in the middle of the desert. As if that was not enough the only other time I have lived away from home I lived in Tokyo, which is one of the largest cities in the world. Yet here I am getting ready to live in a place that has a population of just over 100 people, and work in a ministry that will require driving around from one small congregation to the next. I am sure many of you will find the thought of me living and working in such a situation comical. I also chuckle from time to time about how out of my element I will be. However, I chose this site purposely, knowing that as I learned how to be a pastor in this setting, I would have the chance to grow in a situation that I have never been a part of.
I am of course scared about how good a job I will do. I will be out of my element. I will be on a huge learning curve. I will also be sure to make a few thousand mistakes along the way. Yet I get to do that among a great team of people who will all have a large stake in this ministry. I do not just mean the other pastors that I will work with, but all of the other who work alongside them, and all of the people who attend the congregations.
I am sure that this will be a wonderful opportunity to grow further in my call to ministry. This is probably true because it is such a change from my past experiences. I look forward to the experience and to sharing it with you.
Peace in Christ!
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