November 2025
Fall is my favorite time of year. I love being outside in the brisk autumn air and seeing the trees and forests set ablaze with color. As much as I am decidedly not a fan of it being dark when my alarm goes off every morning, there is something special about seeing the sunrise when I take my dog for her morning walk before I drive to the church. I get to see my children bursting at the seams with excitement over Halloween, picking out their costumes and getting ready to go trick-or-treating with their parents. Then in just a few weeks it’s one of my favorite holidays: Thanksgiving. I love cooking Thanksgiving dinner. I spend all day in the kitchen, inhaling the aromas of roasting poultry and fresh sage and thyme, and then I get to have a feast with people I love. It’s a joyous day.
Yet as I look forward to that day, I’m painfully aware of the struggle that so many people right here in Minnesota are experiencing in finding enough to eat. Because of the government shutdown, it is estimated that 440,000 people in our state are going to be losing their SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) benefits. This means that people in our state, in our cities and towns, are going to seriously struggle to bring home enough food to meet their nutritional needs. As followers of Jesus, as members of the body of Christ, we are called to take action to care for our neighbors in this time of need. We are charged by our Lord to feed the hungry, give water to the thirsty, welcome the stranger, clothe the naked, and visit the sick and the prisoner. He tells us, “As you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me.” (Matt. 25:35-40).
The best way to respond to this is by leaning into our mission focus for November – Second Harvest Heartland. I urge all of us to give generously as they attempt to help keep our food shelves well stocked to meet this increased need. In doing so you are meaningfully witnessing to Christ in a world filled with need.
Grace and Peace,
– Pastor Jeff