I've always loved jigsaw puzzles. Finally spotting that funny-shaped, blue-green piece with the tiny corner of yellow and having it fit perfectly in place. The rush of fitting in those last few pieces. The satisfaction of seeing the completed picture.

How good it would be if life felt like that: a lovely, completed picture. Instead, much of my life feels like fractured pieces all over the floor; even when I scoop them up, they don't quite fit together. And then, just when I do get a bit of the puzzle of my life together, the dog runs by and knocks the puzzle apart again! Seems that we could spend our whole lives just picking up the pieces that get knocked around or lost. There's seldom time left to figure out how things fit together.

But I think God loves puzzles, too. So we can get some help putting our lives together. I believe that's what happens when we pray together for healing, as some of us did during a time of laying on of hands for healing at Our Saviour's last month. We touch the puzzle of other's broken lives and pray, "... that you may know the healing power of God's love." And God gathers up the scattered and lost and broken pieces and puts us together again. We are made whole.

We are truly healed. The completed picture may not be the perfectly beautiful one we imagined. We may still need our crutches or our divorce or our treatment program ... or maybe we won't. But our lives are made whole. Healing puts us precisely in the place where God wants us to be for this part of our journey toward God. It may be a place of joy or of pain or of both. It is always a place of shalom, of God's own peace.

Healing is a place where we know we are loved and a place from which we can grow. Growth, of course, means change. We heal and grow and the pieces of our life change, so the puzzle comes apart, and we begin again. But we're not alone in the puzzle of our lives. God always knows where that funny-shaped, blue-green piece with the tiny corner of yellow has fallen, and God waits to be invited to help us put together our next picture.

I wonder, does God smile as each new puzzle fits together into an increasingly familiar Image?

May you know the healing power of God's love

MEET OUR MINISTRY TEAM

St. John's, St. Cloud

Called to be Outreach Minister

I am employed as a pharmacy technician at Coborn's Long Term Care Pharmacy in St.Cloud. I have worked as a technician for 3 years and before that I worked at the Cashwise (Coborn Owned) Grocery Store for 4 years doing all kinds of jobs.

I joined Holy Apostles Episcopal Church in Duluth in 1978 and was very active in the ECW as treasurer and on the Bishop's Committee. I taught Confirmation classes for 2 years and helped get the food shelf donations and food baskets started in the community. I helped on many outreach projects there. One year we helped wrap toiletries for the seafarers and one year we gave them hats and mittens.

When Randy's job moved us to Ishpeming, Michigan we joined the church there. I was in the choir, taught Sunday school and was part of their ECW also. I belonged to a group called "GOOD SAM". It was part of the outreach program to help people in the church and community when they were out of work or had a major crisis and needed help with utilities or food.

Since coming to St. John's St. Cloud 7 years ago. I have been in the choir, ECW and on the vestry. I helped with the Outreach committee here also. We made lap robes for the shut ins and made up cookie boxes at Christmas time for them. We also help with the food shelf and the holiday baskets.

I enjoy helping others and especially our own in our communities and churches. I went through cursillo in 1991-WOW!! what a spiritual weekend.(I recommend it to everyone). I am in my 2nd year of EFM and am glad to be part of the Spirit of the Heartland Total Ministry Team.

I love to sew and work on crafts. I also like camping and visiting with family and friends. Lately Randy and I have gotten involved with Rendezvous (Primitive Camping back in the 1800-1840 era) It has become a source of relaxation for us. It is so nice and peaceful to be outdoors at night and all you see is the stars, moon, campfires and candlelight. Very pretty and peaceful.

WHERE'S OUR TEAM

Now, that is a good question! Some of you may have been wondering why there seemed to be fewer people in church on Sunday, October 8 and some of you may have been startled to see so many people in church that same Sunday in Little Falls. The Ministry Team ministers were on retreat that weekend in Little Falls and celebrated the addition of four new team ministers and affirmed the calls of the rest of the team ministers on Sunday morning in a recognition ceremony that was a part of the worship. The Rev. Canon Dr. Sandi Holmberg (the new canon missioner from North Dakota) officiated at the Eucharist and blessed the team ministers. The team ministers were pleased to see that some people from other churches made the journey to join us in worship that morning.

The team ministers demonstrated Gospel-based Discipleship for the sermon that morning. We all listened to the readings for the day and then took some time to discuss how they spoke to us as individuals and to the greater church in Spirit of the Heartland. Sandi then took all of our thoughts and insights and wrapped up the sermon with a few brief remarks. By using a very simple method of reflecting on Scripture, we showed how easy it really is to find a way to make our ancient Scripture speak to us today. It was an interesting and fun way to present a "sermon" for the day!

The retreat was wonderful and gave us time to get to know each other in more depth, to bond, to sing, to pray and study together, and to play and laugh together. Although it was a large time commitment to set aside Friday evening through late Sunday afternoon, it was definitely time well spent.

Do you wonder where the team ministers are on other occasions when you don't see them in their "normal pew" on Sunday morning? Although the team has not yet been commissioned and no ordinations have taken place, there are various ministries that are already being implemented throughout The Spirit of the Heartland. So sometimes we are ministering in the other churches that we have also been called to serve with and in. Other times, we are on "vacation" and going to visit other churches so that we can simply be a "prayerful person in the pew" as a way to meet our own needs for community worship without ministering. (We have really come to appreciate how difficult it must be for most priests not to have that opportunity on a very regular basis.) And for some of us, we really are on vacation and are just out of town, out of state or in some cases - out of the country.

Please join us for the next Team Meeting in Paynesville on November 11th, from 2-4pm.

Submitted by - Cedar Morrigan

• Ann Beard, Good Samaritan
• Antonia Kehr, St. Stephens
• Cedar Morrigan, Our Saviour's
• Cynthia Evans, Good Samaritan
• Doris Dodds, St. Stephen's
• Harriette Burkhalter, St. Stephen's
• Jan (Zippy) Zeman, Our Saviour's
• Johanna Morrigan, Our Saviour's
• Lu Tax, Our Saviour's
• Maren Kay Welsand, St. John's
• Randy Welsand, St. John's
• Rob Cavanna, St. John's

MEET OUR PARISHIONERS
Virginia Berguson
Our Saviour's, Little Falls
Senior Warden

Dick and I and family moved to Little Falls in 1957 after spending three years in the southeast part of the U.S. in the Navy and four years in Hallock, Mn. while Dick got established in a dental practice. I am originally from New York City and Dick is from Minneapolis. We have five children and nine Grandchildren. Those living closest to us are in Duluth and Minneapolis.

We became active in the church of Our Saviour and were impressed with the beauty of the church and the active congregation. I joined the Altar Guild and ECW first ,and later became interested in the Sunday School, choir , and now the Vestry. I am currently the Sr. Warden.

As with many rural churches the members age and numbers decrease. We are also among the "snowbirds" as we spend part of the winter with our youngest daughter and her family in the Texas hill country.We feel fortunate to have made many close friends through the church, and hope to continue to contribute to its vitality. With Pat's coming as Priest and the beginning of The Spirit of the Heartlnd we feel more confident of the future of all our churches.

How Do I Write a Sermon?

Writing a sermon is one of the most difficult things to do. One is relying on one's own sources of motivation as well as the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Sometimes there is a period of great ideas and high inspiration. At other times, the "well is dry," so to speak. Before even beginning the proces of writing a sermon, I try to follow these steps:

1) Read the propers for that day as far in advance as possible.
2) Pray a lot for guidance from the Holy Spirit.
3) Wait for ideas and stories to percolate and unfold.
4) See if there might be a theme to focus on throughout the sermon. Consult a commentary.
5) Try to connect the readings to happenings in everyday living.
6) Pray again for guidance and inspiration.
7) Begin to do an outline of the major points/themes of the sermon.
8) If you are fortunate enough to settle on a theme and personal experiences fit into the theme and tie back to the Gospel, begin to write the sermon.
9) Doing a draft is ideal. Even more ideal would be the luxury of putting it aside for a day. This is often unattainable - so try to put it aside for an hour or two.
10) Return to your draft and cut out unnecessary words and refine it. Check to be sure you have developed one theme well and that you aren't trying to cover too many ideas poorly.
11) Do a final copy and rehearse it out loud as if you were actually preaching it. You may also wish to record it.
12) Pray again and pray before you preach so that your words may not only be acceptable to God but also meaningful to your listeners.

Preaching is a very serious and humbling task. It should not be approached lightly as it is an overwhelming responsibility. With God's help and the Holy Spirit's guiding hand, one will be able to bring God's word to a whole variety of people. It is up to them to find ways to live out the Gospel in their own lives. You are just a catalyst enriching their spiritual lives and hopefully bringing them closer to God.

Rob Cavanna

A Preacher's Partner's Perspective

It all starts when I hear her say: "The next time you are on line, would you please print out the Propers (readings and collect) for Sunday the . That is my first clue that she will be preaching on a given Sunday. So, shortly thereafter, I go on line to the lectionary page at: www.io.com/~kellywp/ . As I scroll down the calendar looking for the right Propers, my prayers begin. I know that for the next few weeks she will be reading those propers on an almost daily basis, listening with her heart and her mind, praying about and over them and jotting down notes and ideas on a tablet on her desk. Within a day or two, she will announce "the date." That date will be the day that she plans to spend writing the actual sermon. NOTHING else can be scheduled on that day.

Between the time I print out those propers and "the date" I have learned to look at every scrap of paper, paper napkins and towels and used envelopes that I find lying around the house, in her pockets when I do laundry or on the dash of the car; because she may have also written down something that the Spirit whispered or yelled to her while she was not anywhere near that tablet on her desk. When I find those treasures, I tuck them under that tablet. And each time I do that or walk by that tablet or see those propers I too say a prayer for her, for the Spirit to continue to speak to her, and the courage to speak what she finds when she breaks open the Word.

Eventually, "the date" arrives. On that day, she will basically be unavailable to me and the rest of the world until that sermon is finished. I will spend that day praying as I rush to answer the phone, fix meals, give her encouraging kisses on the top of her head, run interference between the dogs and cats and her "sermon space" as she moves about the house in prayer and pondering. Sometimes, I remember to actually pray for her during that day. But mostly, I pray that I remember not to talk to her unless someone has died or is bleeding to death, I pray that the phone won't ring, I pray that none of her clients (she is a psychologist) have a crisis, I pray that the computer won't crash when she does the actual compilation and writing, I pray that our Internet service provider is functioning so that she can email the final draft off to Pat and I pray that the Spirit speaks LOUDLY and she listens closely. At our house, we dread "breech sermons"- those are the ones that she labors over for days and nothing is born other than patience. And I pray that what she writes is something I can tell her is good or solid or insightful or powerful or inspiring or on the mark.

Then she comes to me and says "Are you ready to hear it?" I reply affirmatively, (unless I am dying or bleeding to death) sit back, close my eyes, and am amazed. Once again she has heard God and the Spirit speaking and I thank God that our family has lived through yet another sermon! Sometimes, I wonder if God chuckles at me, shakes his head and thinks, "oh, ye of little faith" as I worry and pray and stay out of the way all day.

Cedar Morrigan

DIRECTORY CHANGES:

Paynesville:

Doris Dodds, new address
715 Paine Drive
Elaine Vanderpool, new address
719 Paine Drive

Clayton & Dorothy Peterson, add phone
320-732-3530
Roger & Rosemary Phillips, correct zip code
56336

DIOCESAN CHANGES
You may have heard about some recent changes in diocesan staff. This transition time should not result in any problems for our parish ministries. Diocesan press releases are available at MotherFlash.com/diocese or if you do not have computer access, you may request them via US mail from any Team Minister.

LECTORS
If you read the lessons during worship, our preachers request that, where there is an option, the entire longer version of the passage be read. Sometimes that optional part is key to the sermon. Also, unless you have checked with the preacher first, do not add introductory comments to the reading or use a different translation. Everyone who reads in church should have and have read a copy of our Ministers' Guide. If you need one, ask Pat.

FOOD SHELF
The Church of Our Saviour congregation is invited to bring non-perishable food shelf items to decorate the altar on Sunday Nov 19, the Sunday before Thanksgiving. Please bring items the week before if possible, but if not, the 19th before church would be great. The proceeds will be brought to the food shelf in Little Falls, so people in need will have the goodies before Thanksgiving. Thanks for sharing!

COMPUTERS AND CHURCH WORK
Don't know how to get to the Good Sam open house pictures mentioned above? Mystified by others who use email and seem to know church news even sooner than the more trustworthy and traditional word-of-mouth grapevine? Come and find out how to use your computer or the library's computers for church information and ministry. All are welcome at Our Saviour's in Little Falls for the November Christian Education program on computers and the church. Sundays in November after worship during coffee hour at 11 am and beyond. Hands on and individual support with lots of time for questions.

VISITORS !
Spirit of the Heartland Churches will soon be welcoming an assortment of diocesan visitors. Nov 12, Sun 11:00 am - Good Samaritan - The Rt. Rev. Dan Swenson

LESSONS & CAROLS at GOOD SAMARITAN
Save the dates: December 16 and 17.

MINISTRY SCHEDULES

Good Samaritan
Our Saviour's
St. Stephen's

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