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Tanzania Day 7: That day you find you have hundreds of new friends
Today was an incredible day. This morning, Trinity member Dave Chatelaine and I climbed aboard one of the Land Cruisers and made our way back out to Kimpungua Lutheran Church, our partner congregation. There, we attended worship with the community. The worship service was beautiful. The people of Kimpungua have an incredible heart. It is
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Tanzania Day 6: The Bishop Regina Girl’s School
Today was a day of joy! This morning was pretty low-key. A few in our group whose congregation is connected to a palliative care program in Singida when to buy supplies that they are bringing to the program when they visit next week. The rest of us stuck around the hotel until about 11am, when
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Tanzania Day 5: Kimpungua Lutheran Church
Assistant to the Bishop (and Trinity member) Kathy Chatelaine shared Psalm 148 tonight with our group at devotions. I’ve been thinking about it all evening and wanted to share it with you here: Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord from the heavens; praise him in the heights above.Praise him, all his angels; praise him, all his heavenly hosts.Praise him, sun and
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Tanzania Day 4: Singida
Today after breakfast, our team loaded our vehicles and began the trek to Singida. It took us about 6 hours to get here. Singida sits in the wide, open center of Tanzania, where the land feels unhurried, As we approached the city, we could see how life here is shaped by farming and herding.. Just
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Tanzania Day 3: A Day of Discovery
Today our group was up and moving early. At 7am we loaded our vehicles and headed to Ngorongoro Conservation Area for a safari. The Ngorongoro crater is an amazing place. What had been an active volcano, after it blew, then collapsed upon itself. This formed then a crater, between 12 and 14 miles across, and
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Tanzania Day 2: Getting Settled
This morning at 6:15am (Tanzania time…which is 9:15pm Owatonna time) I sent my family a text: “Tanzania has roosters.” I know this because after a solid 24 hours of travel, I wasn’t planning on getting up at 6:15am. The roosters, however, had other ideas. But at that time of the morning there were things I
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Tanzania Day 1: 3 Continents. 1 Day.
The team traveling to Tanzania has arrived safely! Thanks be to God for that. The team is made up of 13 people from three different congregations around the Southeast Minnesota Synod of the ELCA. From Trinity, Kathy and Dave Chatelaine, and Pastor Todd are traveling. Kathy also serves as the Assistant to the Bishop for
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An Update on Pastor Amanda’s Health
Dear Trinity friends, I want to give you a quick update on Pastor Amanda’s health and medical treatment. We are grateful that Pastor Amanda has completed both her chemotherapy and radiation treatments for cancer. That is a significant milestone, and one we give thanks for together. At this point, while she is considered “cancer free,”
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From Trinity to Tanzania: Meeting Face to Face
Dear Trinity friends, On January 18, I will board a plane and begin a journey that I have been looking forward to for a long time. I will be traveling to Singida, Tanzania, to make my first visit to our partner congregation, Kimpungua Lutheran Church. This is a trip rooted in relationship, gratitude, learning, and
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Words Matter
Language experts tell us that on any given day, the average person speaks about 7,000 words. That includes conversations with other people, muttering under your breath in the grocery store, singing in the car, arguing with the radio, and yes, talking to yourself. Those words add up quickly. The words you speak in a single
Test Driving Theology
Sermons and thoughts from Pastor Todd