Lent is the 46 day period before Easter: 6 Sundays of celebration amidst 40 days of fasting. During the Lenten season we are called to focus on Christ’s ministry and to spend extra time in prayer, repentance, self-sacrifice, and doing good works with a focus on the death and resurrection of Jesus. It is typical during this time for people to fast some element of food. In the early days…

I grew up on a small 160 acre farm near Pella, Iowa and it was a very different life than living here in the city. It was a life lived with a deep understanding of the natural world and of God and our dependence on him. Farmers are quite attuned to the world around them. They read the skies and recognize the different kinds of clouds and what weather…

The prayer tub wasn’t working. It was a couple weeks ago and it just quit. The lovely Mrs. Hugen went out one morning to relax in it only to discover ice cold water and no electrical power to the spa. The Encouraging Discipling Communities conference was fast approaching and I wasn’t able to any longer sit in the spa in the middle of the night and pray because it…

In a dry and weary land, Where there are no running streams, We have dug one thousand wells And parched our tongues with broken dreams.   You, oh Lord, have said, "Return To me, the spring that quenches thirst. Stop, remember I have called You to me, who loved you first.   "You have wandered far from me. Yet I am ever close behind. Leave the empty cracked cisterns,…

  I By Julie Brunson, October 2017 One of the things that happens in the church is that sin gets identified as more significant than grace. It becomes something to hide in shame, especially when it’s something we don’t seem to be able to conquer without help. This fear creates demand that we define sin in such a way that we don't commit it. We don’t want to be…

The pursuit of perfection has crippled me. It has stolen the words from my tongue. It has questioned every longing that flows from my fickle heart. Perfection showed up at my doorstep one day. Rudely unannounced. His piecing eyes contained a deep seeded pain, a malevolent strength. He saw right through me to my twisted desire. Before I could tell him to go away he made himself at home.…

Many of you know that I'm the official "administrator" of The Village Conference 2017: Encouraging Discipling Communities. In that role, I have begun in earnest some of the promotion efforts for our conference. Many of the key things we teach at the Village are somewhat contrary, if not all out contradictory, to the standard concept of promotional efforts. I'm going to be speaking on "Leading in Weakness." Now in…

At Vespers one evening Sue prayed at the beginning and mentioned something about God being around the bend and it stuck in my brain. Here is the poem that leaked out... Around The Bend Rodney J. Hugen Just around the bend, only a half turn away, legions of winged ones, mighty warriors all, are poised, hovering, ever attentive, eyes searching, a gesture here, a glance there, readying with bated…

I am overjoyed to report that Derek is doing very well. We went to the hospital this week to a follow up appointment with the ear, nose, and throat specialist. She looked at where the spot in his throat had been and it was completely healed. He is being weaned off the medication that treated the acid reflux he suffered from that kept irritating the small open sore that…

I was re-listening to the sermon I offered a few weeks ago and wanted to make a quick clarification.  I spoke about how when we choose drunkenness, we start to slip away from our identity as Children of the Light.  To offer a correction, I'm not so sure that we can ever slip away from our identities that Jesus offers us.  Romans 8:31-39 speaks to this: "What, then, shall…

7-12-2017 Just Keep Swimming I have rediscovered over the past couple of weeks the truth in the difficulty major life change has on a marriage. Thankfully, Bob and I have done this enough in our lives to realize that things will settle down and we just need to be more diligent about communicating better. What I find is important for me to remember is that even good changes are…

Village Notes July 2nd

Village Notes June 25th.

Village Notes

I am not one to write. In fact, my entire life, I have wanted to be a beautifully prosaic, profound writer. Alas, perhaps not my gift, but I have felt an extreme pull to participate on the Village website as we are discussing Thessalonians. I believe the Holy Spirit is beckoning me to publicly profess what I am discovering about myself. My head takes over first to analyze, thinking…

When I first came to The Village, I felt a bit awkward around “the service.”  I didn’t recognize the music, and was unfamiliar with the rhythms.  I was a bit out of place.  But I had been invited to the church to listen to Layne play in the band, so I felt a pull to stay and engage with what was happening around me.  I could tell that the…