Prayer will bring about greater things than just a building.

As we approach dedication Sunday we focus on prayer. There is a prayer vigil on Thursday evening and we have all been asked to pray about our giving and for English Lutheran Church. As I see my refrigerator magnet each day (many times), I am constantly reminded to pray and focus on what God wants us to do for English Lutheran. Pastor Mark keeps telling us that this is not just about a building, but about our faith and this process of bathing the Church in prayer will bring about greater things than just a building. I will say for our family, that is already happening.


I like this idea of a family gathering together and praying for big decisions in life. So, I decided to apply that to our own little family. We gathered together as a family and talked about all the things going on and what we want our lives to really look like. Now every day each of us prays for ELC and for our family's future and focus in life. We have been greatly enriched by bathing ELC in prayer and my hope is that you all have found that this process of community prayer has brought benefits beyond a decision as to how much to give to the Capital Campaign.


May your prayer life continue to grow and enrich all that you enjoy in life. Amen.


Eva Marie R.

A Dwelling Place for All

Is there a special place in your heart that your mind travels to when your soul needs a safe place to dwell?  When life has become too complicated and you long for a "simpler place in time?"  When I was younger, this special place was my grandparents' farm in Deforest, Wisconsin.  A quiet man of the earth, my grandfather raised pigs and grew field corn and tobacco.  My grandmother was gracious and always hospitable -  an amazing cook, a gifted quilter and seamstress, and an award-winning baker.  Their door was open to anyone in need of a meal or in need of good company.  The aroma of freshly baked bread and the warmth from the wood burning stove had a way of saying to every guest -  "Welcome,  take your coat off and stay a while."   As a teenager, and well into my adult years, a visit to my grandparents' was always a time of respite and renewal for me.

As the years moved on and my faith grew deeper, the Church became that special place in my heart.  The place I learned to turn to for security, friendship, and a sense of belonging.  The Church became that safe place for my soul to dwell.  In Psalm 23, David reflects on the wonderful assurances we have as God's people.  He ends the Psalm by proclaiming "I shall dwell in the House of the Lord my whole life long."  What a comfort. What a promise.  To dwell with God's people forever.  To be God's child forever.  To be redeemed.  To be assured of a place in God's House forever. What a treasure! The world may change.  Our lives may be uncertain at times, but we can be assured that we will always have the Church.  We will always have God's family to surround us. 

I cannot imagine my life without the Church and I give thanks to God that I don't have to.  The Church is my lifeline.  It's what sustains me.  It's where I get my strength and confidence to be a follower of Christ in the world.  As we prepare our hearts to make a commitment to our capital appeal, and prayerfully consider our gift, I invite you to reflect on how the Church has been a blessing on your life.  How the Church has changed your life.  And then, consider the generations to come who will need the Church.  And finally, consider this:  that well over half of our La Crosse community does not have a church home - a "dwelling place" where they can be surrounded by God's family.  What an opportunity for us to create a building that will warmly welcome the stranger.  And a building that will not only welcome the stranger, but a dwelling place that gently says "take your coat off and stay a while."

In Christ, Together We Grow.

In peace,

Cara H.

Money, money, money, money....MONEY

“Some people got to have it
Some people really need it
Listen to me y'all, do things, do things, do bad things with it
You wanna do things, do things, do things, good things with it”

As I’m writing this blog I’m listening to the O’Jays 1973 hit. As your read this blog, it may help to listen to it. {Turn it up!} Here’s a link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ll3uipTO-4A

Money. We do things with it. We do things for it. The Mean Green. The Almighty Dollar.

My financial adviser likes to quote Kahlil Gibran “ Money is like love; it kills slowly and painfully the one who withholds it, and it enlivens the other who turns it on his fellow man.”

Money is a medium by which we tell the world what we value, by how we acquire it and how we spend it– or to put it more simply – Every dollar you spend is a statement of your values. I learned that lesson the hard way. I let money control me, define my relationships, impact my work, occupy my thoughts, keep me from sleeping – then I realized I could control it and make it do what I wanted it to.

This is nothing new.

Jesus said in Matthew 6:21: Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.

Rick Warren wrote” If you show me how you spend your time and how you spend your money, I’ll show you what’s important in your life. No matter what you say is important—show me your schedule and your checkbook stubs and I’ll tell you what’s really important to you.”

James W Frick, the highly successful VP of Development for Notre Dame put it this way, “ Don’t tell me what your priorities are, show me how you spend your money and I’ll tell you what they are.”

Pointed, pithy comments.

Yes, we’re in a capital campaign to make some much-needed improvements to our congregational gathering place. That’s gonna take money. Everyone will make a decision about what they will contribute to the project. Does it align with your values? Is it important to you? Is it a priority? Wish you could give more? Then give more. I recently sold some old books I no longer had use for. Now I reclaimed some space, some other book collector is happy and I can make a donation to something I value. Win-Win.

“Don't let, don't let, don't let money rule you
For the love of money
Money can change people sometimes
Don't let, don't let, don't let money fool you
Money can fool people sometimes
People! Don't let money, don't let money change you,
it will keep on changing, changing up your mind.”

“For the Love of Money” Lyrics by Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff