Decorating for Christmas!

On Saturday of this past weekend the congregation gathered to decorate the Chapel for the Christmas season. After two hours or so, the tree was erected and decorated with a colorful angel on top, the nativity scene in place, and garland, wreathes, branches, decorative snowflakes and lights hung throughout the room. Outside lights will be soon to follow, making both the inside and the outside festive and elegant as Christmas day approaches.

The Things We Don't Expect

Life is not linear; and most often, it is the unexpected events along the circuitous route God has us on which give life its sense of adventure and intrigue. Not only that, but by keeping us on the less direct path to wherever it is in life we think we are headed, God reminds us of His sovereignty over our lives and begs our trust in Him. Joseph, while living life as the privileged son, never expected to live his entire adult life in Egypt; King David, while he tended his sheep, never expected to one day rule Israel; and Paul, while persecuting Jewish Christians, never expected that God would use him to bring the Good News of Christ to the Roman world. It is in the surprises in life, the things we least expect, that God makes Himself most known.

Living in Montana is something I had hopes for, but never anticipated. Living in Cooke City, Montana is something I never considered. Being appointed as a pastor of any church is a ridiculous notion I laugh at even now. Yet, the Lord has combined all three unexpecteds into a great privilege and blessing in my life these last one and a half months. Truly, being called to ministry here in Cooke City, Montana is an appointment I never expected and one in which God is already revealing Himself in unexpected ways.

My name is Haley Goranson and I am the newly appointed interim pastor at Mount Republic Chapel of Peace. Originally from Minnesota, I did my undergraduate work at Crown College in St. Bonifacious, MN and graduate work at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in Hamilton, Massachusetts, where I graduated from in May 2009. I have ministered for two summers in Yellowstone National Park, many summers at Camp Victory, a Christian youth camp in Minnesota, and lived overseas both in Lithuania and Kyrgyzstan. Cooke City is not terribly different than those non-western, non-first-world countries, other than the locals and I speak the same language... sometimes.

The day I placed my faith and trust in Jesus Christ I pledged my life to be at His disposal, promising to go and do whatever and wherever He might call me. I was twelve years old. I did not know then that life is filled with uncertainties, and now it is the uncertainties in life that plague me. But while my recognition of those uncertainties has increased, so also has God increased my faith in Him who is sovereign over them. He has taught me to expect the unexpected and to discover who He is in the midst of those surprises in life we least expect.

Ch-ch-ch-Changes

Change is a part of being the church, although sometimes change in a church is like trying to alter the course of a large supertanker in the ocean. It can take miles and miles and a long time. Other times, change comes about quickly and, really, it is all we can really count on in our life with God. When God does new things, it is often not kind of like things that went before. Rather, they are completely new - like crossing into a new land or meeting Jesus for the first time.

And so it is in our life in the church. Usually the biggest change in a church is changing pastors. Mount Republic Chapel of Peace has a small advantage in that they are used to it, since they rightfully consider themselves a training ground for new pastors. They serve that mission very, very well and I am truly grateful to be a recipient of that grace and love, by the guidance of the Holy Spirit and the loving people of this congregation.

And so the changes continue. My family and I will be moving to the Mid-Coast area of Maine, to Rockland - the Lobster Capital of the World - in November. Rockland Maine is 2900 miles from the mountains of Cooke City. We will be moving from 7600 feet above sea level to about 26 feet above sea level. Rockland is right on the ocean and is about a half mile from the first place to see the sun rise in the United States. I will be pastoring the Congregational church there. We are very excited.

I am also excited for Mount Republic Chapel of Peace. Transitioning between pastors is always a difficult thing, but Mount Republic has learned to make this a smooth transition. They go out of their way to welcome and care for their pastors, which is a great blessing. Bible studies will continue; the snowmobile ministry to Crandall will go on; worship will be joyful and moving as always; and Mount Republic will continue to be a refuge for local and traveler alike, a place where God is working on God's people and in God's creation and in God's community.

I have changed the title of this blog to Mount Republic Chapel of Peace Blog and made it possible for whoever the pastor is here to update the blog. My personal blog has kept all my entries on this blog and will continue as a personal reflection blog about ministry, etc. The title of that blog is "A Pastor on The Edge of God's World".

There may be one last update from me, otherwise, Haley Goranson, my successor, will update this blog.

May the Lord be with all of you. You are a gift to the mountains, the community and the church.

With love,
Pastor Seth

Summer comes to a close

It has been a busy summer up here in Cooke City and at Mt. Republic Chapel of Peace. Weddings, baptisms, two church services on Sundays, picnics, gatherings and many a traveler to the Park. Then, on Tuesday, I woke up and it was 29 degrees with light frost on everything. I drove through town and, in part because of constant and relentless road construction, there was hardly anyone in town. Slowly, the summer residents are trickling away. In a few weeks, there will be a few die-hard summer residents and locals left. And, more than likely, our first snow-fall will be in the next few weeks as well.

Over the summer, I did several outdoor weddings. The most exciting was down in Crandall, Wyoming, just east then south of Cooke City, over on the Chief Joseph Highway. The wedding was to be at 2:00 and everything was set up beautifully. It was sunny and a light breeze blew over the mountains.

The clouds began to build and then a large black cloud surfaced over Hunter's Peak. I thought it would blow to the north of us. And I was right, except for a weird effect that comes off the mountain. Hunter's Peak is a large cliff face facing the east. My theory is that it creates downdrafts when the wind and pressure is just right. This day, it was just right. 10 minutes before the wedding, the eastern moving winds suddenly reversed direction and in a moment I was trying to stand up in a 90 mile an hour straight-line wind heading west. It knocked down two very tall and very beautiful pine trees.

Amazingly, the fallen trees just missed the wedding chairs and setup. Even more importantly, they just missed the guests who had just started to seat themselves. Even the CD player, bent and beat up from the fallen tree, still worked. God must have been looking out for the couple, though the groom had some momentary second thoughts. The bride was bound and determined to have an outdoor wedding.

As I led the service, I kept listening to the creaking of cracked tree tops and broken branches slipping and falling through the trees. It was a little nerve-wracking, but the couple said "I do" and were married happily.

Fall is in the air now and the calls for weddings have stopped. The moose have come down out of the high country, at least a couple times. And last night, the wolf pack was howling by the stream behind our house. All of these are signs that the weather has changed. It happened overnight and we can smell it in the air. The great thing about living up in Cooke City, the highest town in Montana at about 7700 feet above sea level, is how sensitive we become to the changes in the weather. It is 70 degrees today, just like it has been for the past 4 or 5 weeks. But it is different now.

It is a subtle sensibility, and as a pastor, I always have to think about the spiritual implications of such things. Our faith life is a sensibility as well. We do not just agree in our minds to a thing and then it is done. We develop a sensitivity to the invisible things of the spirit and hopefully seek to increase our sense of those subtle movements of God in our lives. It is not easy and there are many things we can do to mask what some deeper part of ourselves already sense. But sometimes the greatest act of faith is to simply stand there and feel the changes in the weather, however subtle they may be.
Peace to all,
Pastor Seth

The Busy Season

For most pastors, the summer is the slow time. Clergy groups don't meet. Staff take long vacations. Worship relaxes a bit. But up here in the mountains, everything is in reverse. Summer is the busy time up here and can be a lot of fun.


Last week we had our Outback Express Vacation Bible School, with 13 kids. We had a great time and the kids all learned a lot about Australia and about Jesus, though not necessarily in that order. They had hikes, a cookout, lots of crafts and Bible stories. Peter was the focus of the week and as a pastor, I can't think of a better person to learn about Jesus through than Peter. He was impulsive, made a lot of mistakes, never thought things through and mostly just made a nuisance of himself as a disciple. A lot like my relationship with God.


We also had our annual Memorial Service for those people who died during the past year. This past year, we celebrated the lives of many long-time residents and "people of influence" up in these here parts. It was a beautiful day, filled with music and remembrance.

Coming up, we have "Christmas in August", a legendary event in Yellowstone National Park. It was started (according to one version of the story) by some Christian Ministry in the National Parks participants who were trapped here in August during a snowstorm. We have a Christmas service in the morning and a dinner in the afternoon. It is quite the event, but as a pastor, few things are more strange than trying to preach the Christmas story in the middle of summer. As a theologian and student of the Bible, however, it is probably the most likely time of Jesus' birth - the middle of the summer.

Summer moves fast up here. Weddings, renewal of vows, baptisms and special services are all packed into about 4 months. Then, in the space of a couple weeks, all the people who spend their summers here go home for the winter. In those couple of weeks, the church goes from worshiping almost 100 or more on any given Sunday morning to as few as 10. There are a few weeks of adjustment, and then everything normalizes to a small, intimate and devoted Sunday group that live here year-round.


My wife, Kate, and daughter, Rhiannon, have been traveling for 3 weeks and have not been around. A fast summer without my family around is a bitter-sweet experience. The other day, I was walking the dogs on Lulu Pass. The flowers are all in bloom up there and it is a riot of yellow, purple, red and green. I think they may all be gone by the time my family returns on Friday and that is a little sad. But the dogs love it and so do I. I am trying to take some pictures to remember it by.


Peace to all!
Pastor Seth

The blessing of Pride

For me, it is always a challenge to keep something like a blog up to date. I suppose once one has some readership, one is obligated to at least make the effort to update it regularly. I will try to do better with the upkeep of this blog.

Last week, I was in the great city of Milwaukee for my denomination/association's annual meeting. (My association is the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches). It was great fun to be with fellow pastors and to see old friends. My denomination (there are many who hate it being called that) is really an association of congregational churches who consider themselves, piously and with great pride, "the continuing congregationalists". The title is probably correct, given how much the UCC sacrificed in terms of congregational church governance when they formed in the 1950s. The NACCC are the churches that didn't go with that merger. Like other groups who splintered and split (the Presbyterians, Lutherans, Methodists, etc. etc. ad infinitum), we have no association with the other congregational bodies in the nation, which is ashame and a testament to the very human quality of churches in general. Nonetheless, I take pride in my Congregational history and in the history of my denomination.

Normally, we consider pride to be the root of all evil, but I think it has a lot to do with priorities. If we know the source of that which we take pride in, we can avoid the pitfalls of self-aggrandizement that occurs when we claim the thing we take pride in for ourselves. As a monotheist and a Christian, the source of all which I take pride in ideally is centrally located in God and Jesus Christ. So when I say I am very proud of Mount Republic Chapel of Peace, that is what I mean to say. The reason I am proud of the church I pastor is because while I was in Milwaukee, the congregation ran the service. One person even said, "I guess we don't need a guest pastor to come in every time the pastor leaves on a trip. We can do this ourselves." That is exactly right.

In the corporate world, since I always worked in lowly customer service positions, I was very aware that there is no position in the company that can't be done by someone else. In church, it is a little different. God uses those things that make us uniquely individuals to do God's work in the world, so it can be likely that there are things to be done that no other person can do. Likewise, every church is unique and unusual and cannot be replaced. And so when the congregation steps up to lead services when the pastor is gone, it is a time to rejoice and be proud that the unique individuals that make up a church can make the time of worship a unique experience for everyone present.

Of course, if I say that it means the pastor is always replaceable (s/he is, in many ways) because the congregation can do the service without his/her presence, it would mean a lot of pastors would lose their work. But it brings up an important point - what is the purpose of a pastor? If the congregation can do the service on their own (most can), and the services provided by the church can be done by leaders in the congregation (there are many), then why have a clergy? Some groups don't - the Quakers, many Anabaptists, the Amish, some emergent/house movement churches. Most do, however, and that is a good and holy thing. I won't answer the question, but I think it is valuable for a congregation to reflect why they have a pastor and what the pastor does that they either cannot or will not do for themselves.

In the meantime, as a pastor, I feel blessed to have a congregation that is willing to step up and lead worship for each other. And that seems worthy of a certain amount of God-centered pride.

Peace to all!
Pastor Seth

Is It Really June 7th?

Yesterday, we went to Bozeman to celebrate Kate's birthday. It was a beautiful drive, as always, through the park. On our way home, it was raining. Then the clouds broke about 20 miles outside Cooke City. The clouds floated low on the mountains and the rain made the colors of spring stand out. We unloaded all our supplies that we picked up from Costco just before the rains started again. After about 20 minutes of rain, it changed over to snow. I thought, fortunately, it is not sticking on the ground. And as we walked the dogs, we pointed out to our daughter that it could always be worse - you could be the guy on the motorcycle who just drove by in the driving snow. It is always an adventure weather-wise up here. Many people, though, who live here year-round have had enough of the snow and winter. I told my daughter, 'At least you will have bragging rights wherever you live from now on. Besides, it will all melt...someday?'

I am aware my last several posts have been about the weather. I don't mean to be discouraging. I actually find it to be an adventure and a little crazy. I mean, you would have to be a little crazy to live up here anyway, so why wouldn't the weather reflect that? For the past several weeks, it has been beautiful up here - high 60s, rain in the afternoon, everything turning green. I just also know that for a lot of people, our unusual weather is unusual everywhere. So we all talk about it...but as my friend Jeff said the other day, "no one ever does anything about it."

We had a "Hymn Sunday" in church this morning, which went very well. We sang some old favorite hymns and talked about the history behind the songs. It was very interesting, and it is always surprising how many hymns are born from adversity and difficulty and God's transformation of that trouble into assurance, hope and trust. And, the guy on the motorcycle who drove by last night was there this morning.

This Friday, we are hosting the girl's choir from the Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd in Billings, Montana. They will perform a concert for us and we are hoping for a large turnout. I think it will be great fun.

Peace!
Pastor Seth

Spring Is Here (?)

Keeping up a blog is a little like caring for some small furry creature, except that the small furry creature is within you. In the night sometimes, it calls out to you and maybe you are able to awaken to its call. I have started about 6 blogs and all of them wilt from neglect and disuse. Part of the reason for not fulfilling the obligations of maintaining a blog is, out here, winter is just ending. Today, it is almost 60 degrees and it actually smells and feels like spring. Last week, there was a day when it was pretty warm, but it was really just a warning for a coming snowstorm. We got 5 inches of snow on Tuesday and Wednesday. 20 miles out, to the south and east, it was 70 degrees and sunny. Such is the weather of the high mountains.

As spring comes upon us, our home has been blessed by a new black lab puppy named Xena. She is 10 weeks old, extremely cute, happy and growing fast. We are glad to have her and our other dog, Marla, who is 6 years old, is getting used to having another 4-legged critter in her midst. They are learning to play together and even share. For a few days Marla was put out by the whole thing, but she is rapidly recovering her sense of self and, in the fashion of divas everywhere, entitlement to attention and being first in everything.

Be that as it may, spring also means that the people who leave for the winter are returning slowly but surely for the summer. Our little cadre of locals welcome them back gladly. One of the locals told me this past week, after the snowstorm, that your spouse could have become pregnant at the beginning of winter and when she had her baby there would still be snow on the ground. There may be no other place in America where that analogy is so accurate, or likely to be said. I laughed hard when I heard him say it.

Worship at Mount Republic Chapel of Peace during the winter becomes an intimate and welcome gathering, reminding us that "wherever two or three are gathered, Jesus is with us". That is a blessing and provides an ember of strength to light the fires of spring and summer here. We have just started a Wednesday night Bible study on the Lord's Prayer, which has created lively and intense discussions about what Jesus' prayer means for us and what God intends in our lives together. On May 31st, Pentecost Sunday, rather than a sermon and on the recommendation of a close friend in Minnesota, I thought we might have an "Ask the Pastor Sunday". On June 7th, we will have a Hymn Sunday and will talk about the theology and history of the hymns we sing. On Friday, June 12th, the Girl's Choir from the Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd will be here to perform for our community and church.

We are looking forward to the activities of spring and summer here and we await to find out what the Lord has in store for us. May our church and our community be a blessing to all who visit us.
Peace of Christ to you!

Pastor Seth

Wedding in the Mountains

(picture is from Donna Rowland's FaceBook site)
On Saturday, I did a wedding for a couple from northern Minnesota. They came out to Cooke City with family and friends...and about 15 snowmobiles. The groom proposed to his fiance after he was dug out from an avalanche on Lulu Pass. Of course, the plan was to propose in a more appropriate place. When I met with them in the summer I thought they wanted to be married in Mount Republic Chapel, given that it would still be winter and all, but they said they wanted to be married at the top of Daisy Pass. I said OK to it, never having been up there and never having been on a snowmobile. But by the time they got here, I had been up to Daisy Pass numerous times and have been on a snowmobile more than I would have imagined.

So on Saturday morning at about 10:45, I got on the Yamaha Mountain Max 600 I am borrowing and rode up to Daisy Pass with about 30 other people to do a wedding on the mountain. Once up there, they decided to line up the snowmobiles facing one another, forming an aisle. The bride and groom rode down the aisle on a hyped up Polaris snowmobile and we did the ceremony right at the edge of the Daisy Pass hill. The weather was spectacular - clear, 50 degrees and hot in the sun. At 9300 feet, we are closer to the sun and the atmosphere is thinner. My friend Jeff took this picture. I will have more pictures of the event soon.

I write this on the evening of Easter Sunday. Again, we had beautiful weather up here in Cooke City. The church was full and children sang as we prayed. When we celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus Christ we are celebrating an historical event that is astonishing and crazy and wonderful. But that is the way God is with us - in our spiritual lives, in our shared history and in our experience here on this lonely planet. May the resurrection live in your hearts, minds and souls. May it be as true for you as it was for the disciples who witnessed it all those many years ago.
Peace!
Pastor Seth

When does it end?

Snowing again in Cooke City? Who would have believed it...?

(the truck is supposed to be white-where the paint is not peeling-but has been given a Cooke City paint job)

Being from Minnesota, I know well the trajectory of winter. In Minnesota, about 3 weeks ago, everybody would be ornery, frustrated and tired. Why? Because it just won't stop being cold and snowy. Here, in Cooke City, the trajectory is the same. With a big exception. About 4 times more snow and another month of variable winter weather. Spring lurks in Minnesota, threatening to rush forth at any moment, at this time of year. Here, spring hides and peers out, meekly sticking a robin in a tree, suggesting a migration of a moose or buffalo to lower ground. I haven't been out here long enough to know how spring appears, so I have to have some confidence that, if it is appearing elsewhere, it must show up here...someday? I had a teacher once who said, "Well, there must be something more important to you than the weather, otherwise why would you stay?" Indeed, the church, the people and the amazing creation that surrounds us goes far toward lessening the worok of constantly renewing my hope for spring.

Regardless, whether or not spring comes sooner or later, my primary life is governed by the church calendar, not the seasonal calendar. We have just finished a series of sermons on Spiritual Disciplines at Mount Republic Chapel and we are entering Easter Week with Palm Sunday this Sunday. Easter is my favorite holiday. Celebrating the reason we believe is what we do every Sunday, but how much more so on the day we honor as the day Christ rose from the dead. (For those who wonder when that is calculated to be, just find the date of the Spring Equinox, then find out when the next full moon is, then count 3 Sundays following that...I think).
(this wolf was on the Lamar River, just inside Yellowstone Park, only about 15 miles from our home. He was huge.)

Got 'er Done Stuck Right Good

In the space of about 3 days, Cooke City and the surrounding area got about 24 inches of snow. Most of it was heavy and wet. After a while, it was like being in Minnesota again, except with more of everything. Also like Minnesota, I had a traditional March thought: "Isn't it about time for winter to be over?" Then the thought passed into the snowy, windy day.


Which was about the time I decided I needed to take the snowmobile out because they shouldn't sit still for long periods of time in the cold. So I set off down into the meadow towards the Bannock Trail. Kate said I was going along and then it was like I fell into a big hole. I dropped about 2 1/2 feet into a soft spot in the meadow. After she and I spent about 45 minutes trying to dig it out, we gave up. So I called the mastermind of snowmobiling-- a man of infinite patience and good humor and a great friend-- Jeff Menuey. He can get a snowmobile out of anywhere and sure enough, after about 20 minutes we had the darn thing unstuck.


Like everyone else, a situation like the above leads to complaining and a few choice words. For some people in these here parts, getting stuck is all part of the adventure. For a few, it ends the whole experience for them and the snowmobile becomes the transport of last resort. I fall somewhere in between, I suppose. They are heavy, loud, smelly and temperamental machines, but when they get you to the top of Lulu Pass or Mount Henderson, the view makes the adventure all worthwhile.
Peace!
Pastor Seth

Lent Begins...

The season of Lent is a mystery for many in evangelical Christian circles, and that is a loss. The Lenten journey refocuses our attention on Jesus' journey to the Cross and asks us to participate in that journey intentionally and together. Lent represents the 40 days before Easter Sunday and, as many of you who are well-read in your Bible know, 40 is a number of great meaning in the Bible. In particular, the 40 days of Lent bring our minds back to the Israelite stay in the desert for 40 years, Noah's 40 days and nights of rain (Noah and family were actually on the boat a lot longer than 40 days and nights), Jesus' 40 days of prayer and temptation in the desert and the 40 days following the Resurrection.

Regardless of the numerological references to 40, Lent is a time of self-reflection, repentance, prayer, fasting, reading Scripture together and fellowship with a focus on acceptance and lifting up of one another. The history goes way back into the earliest church. The time of Lent was especially important, perhaps even created for, those who would become new Christians through baptism. For 40 days before Easter, the catechumens (those who are being trained into the faith) - who have been studying the faith with mentors and other congregants for about 3 years - come together as a group and begin a period of fasting, prayer and Scripture study to prepare themselves for baptism. On Easter Eve, or Dark Saturday, they would gather in the back foyer of the church. The Easter service was just after midnight. As the service began, the ready-to-be-baptized would be led down a dark corridor and, just off the main sanctuary, they would be baptized. Then the new Christians, dressed in glistening white gowns, would be led into the sanctuary. It would be lit like the sun with thousands of candles to celebrate the new light of Christ in the world. There, the new Christian would be surrounded by their new family. A great celebration would ensue and would culminate in the newly baptized members of the church being led forward to partake of their first communion.

It sounds romantic and almost mythic, but the Lenten preparation and the welcoming of the newly baptized is a well-documented process from the early church. For myself, as a modern-day Protestant who mistrusts authority and any group that would have me as a member, the imagery and stories of this discipline and ritual fills me with nostalgia and desire. Some churches, particularly the Methodists and the Lutherans, are trying to recapture this beautiful and powerful way of bringing people into the family and body of Christ. Some have done it this way for almost 1900 years - the Eastern Orthodox, the Egyptian church, some of the Northern African churches.

For us, in our little church in the mountains, though, Lent is a time to remember who we are and whose we are. We will take time to reflect on what Christ has done for us, to pray and study what has happened and is happening in our relationship with greater things than ourselves and to remember that we are created beings who owe everything to our Creator.

We will begin with an Ash Wednesday service on February 25th at 7pm. For the Wednesdays of Lent, we will experiment with an intuitive, reflective way of reading Scripture called "lectio divina". We will follow Jesus to the Cross during the 6 weeks to Easter. I hope you can join us!
Peace!
Pastor Seth

(image is from Cerezo Beraebo)

Lessons with Jeff

On Friday, I had the great opportunity to go snowmobiling with my good friend, Jeff. He was my snowmobile instructor for the afternoon. He got me standing on one runner to balance the machine going around corners and got me to the base of Henderson Mountain (pictured at right). Coming off of Henderson Jeff took me down a steep hill. I learned very quickly that too much brake on the slope means the back of the snowmobile begins to swing around. And I also learned that speed is your friend on a snowmobile. It was great fun. Fortunately for me, and probably unfortunately for you, Jeff did not get the picture of me standing next to the sled when I turned it onto its side by driving it into a tree well. You will just have to wait.

This afternoon I took my daughter Rhiannon up to the top of Daisy Pass on the snowmobile. It was snowing pretty heavily up there and with the polarized goggles everything turns white and it becomes very difficult to see the pathway down the mountain. 35 mph up became 15-20 mph down the mountain. But it was fun and Rhiannon was thrilled to be on a snowmobile for her first time.

Check out this week's sermon! It may be the first and last time I use a sports analogy for a sermon. This time, I made an analogy on boxing, which by the way is also the title of one of the best written books I have ever read. It was written by Joyce Carol Oates and is one of the best books you will ever read on the Sweet Science.
Peace to all!
Pastor Seth

Snowmobile ministry!

(pictured above:the machine I would like to use to go to Crandall)

Yesterday, after church, I picked up a beat-up old snowmobile from our friends at the edge of Cooke City and followed a wonderful couple to their home in Crandall, WY. We snowmobiled all the way there - about 18 miles - and it was beautiful. We followed the Pilot Creek trail until it turned off onto an ungroomed trail. We went high up a ridge and were able to see all the way down the Chief Joseph Highway and the mountains surrounding. The sun was shining and up at the top, it was hot. Of course, a snowmobile suit, heavy shirt, long underwear and all the equipment a snowmobile requires didn't help how hot I was. This was also my first real snowmobile ride, and it was great fun.

That afternoon, we had our first worship service for the people in Crandall and Sunlight Basin. 6 people showed up and we had a great, informal service that included prayer, discussion and song. I am planning, assuming the weather permits, to go over there twice a month until the road east of Cooke City opens again.

When we returned this morning, an elk carcass, stripped bare by the winter carnivores lay across the path. It was a strange sight. But the machine I was using got me home, this after we stripped the pull-cord trying to start it this morning. When I got back to Cooke City, I found out that the machine had been shot twice by a shotgun. Since that time, the snowmobile has been passed around to several people. Regardless, it was fast and, for a first time snowmobile experience, it was great fun.

A year or so ago, I read a great book called "The Hammer of God" by Bo Giertz, which traces 3 generations of Lutheran pastors way out in the outback of Sweden. They gave it away to all the graduating students of Luther Seminary. It is a very inspiring book. Of course, being Sweden, much of the book takes place in snow and mountains. I felt some vague connection to the pastors in that story as I traversed the trails out of Cooke City to Crandall, WY.

Next time I go, I will take pictures. I wish I had a picture of that elk carcass.
Peace!
Pastor Seth

A Personal Hope...for all of us.

(image from http://pennsylvaniaflyfishing.blogspot.com/2007/11/beartooth-mountain-serenade.html)

On Friday, I had the great honor of being invited to speak at Travis Engstrom's funeral. He is the man who died at Crown Butte (pictured above) last weekend. Kelly, his lovely wife, and his 5-month old son, Kaden, were at Hope Lutheran Church in Bozeman, MT. Surrounding them were friends, in-laws, family and acquaintances. It was a great and comforting thing to see. During the service, several people got up and commented on what a giving and loving person Travis was. I have never met Travis, but as I looked around that room, I saw over 350 people there for one person. Most of them were around 35 years old and almost all of them considered Travis a good friend. In the center of all of this sat Kelly with Kaden. My hope and wish as I sat there would be that all of us could have that kind of impact and support in a tragic situation. Better, after having lived a full and fulfilled life, that all of us would have 350 people at our funeral or memorial service. I was touched and moved deeply. Even though I have never met Travis, through him I got to know his wonderful family and was able to see a powerful example of what it means to be loved and loving in this world. May peace be with Travis and may blessings and peace surround his family and friends.
Peace!
Pastor Seth

PS: Comments have been fixed to allow anyone to comment. Sorry for any confusion!

Wild Week In Cooke City

Our little town had a crazy week that unfortunately ended in tragedy.
On Wednesday night, the house at Elkhorn Lodge blew up. You read that right. There was a propane leak and something triggered an explosion that several people in town thought was an earthquake. The explosion pushed out the floor and the bottom of the house, moving the whole thing off its foundation. Jan and I went into town after hearing about it. The woman who was in the house, by the grace of God, had only a bruised hip...after being thrown across the living room into the opposite wall. She walked out of the house. That was a good ending to what could have been a horrifying accident.
The horrifying accident happened on Saturday night when the Crown Butte avalanched. It was a huge break and it took a new father with it as his wife watched from below. It took several hours of searching to find him. 35 people were on the mountain - everyone who could in Cooke City went out to help. I was deeply moved by how willing people were to help out. A few people even came in on Saturday asking if there was any way they could help. The wife had friends and family here and I stayed with them until they left town. It was a very sad, very troubling situation, particularly since the snowmobilers were highly experienced and well-trained.
So if you are reading this, please include our little town in your prayers - prayers of thanks for protecting those who work here and prayers of healing and comfort to those who lost a loved one this weekend.
Peace!
Pastor Seth

-27 And Sunny

We have had several snowstorms over the past 2 weeks. The clearer photograph is from a week and a half ago. The fuzzy picture is a picture of Cooke City during the storm on New Years Eve. We went to Buns n' Beds for their delicious New Years Eve dinner. It was crowded and fun. Jan and Leo made an excellent dinner of prime rib, potatoes, salad, bread and cheesecake. It was a fun way to ride out a powerful winter storm. The winds picked up to about 45 mph sustained with gusts of 65-75 mph. Rhiannon was a little frightened by it all, but I went out into the adventure to snowshoe on New Years Day.

This morning, it was -27 when I woke up. The dog would have nothing to do with it and she went back to bed, probably the smartest one in the family. I was impressed though, that the Cooke Pass contingent braved the cold for church this morning. They had to snowmobile into town, then they all climbed into one truck. It was the only one that would start.

But the sun was bright and the skies were clear, so it seemed warmer than it was and it made everything look sharp and beautiful.

This morning we talked about God's will and intent for us in our lives. We can only understand this when we understand Jesus as God incarnate and what that means for us. First and foremost, it doesn't mean a bunch of rules, a perfect doctrine, the right church or a really good preacher. It means a relationship with Jesus, the Holy Spirit and God - directly.

I try to update the website with the sermon text and announcements every week. If you see something that needs to be changed or you would like to see something else over at www.mountrepublicchapel.org, just let me know.
Peace!
Pastor Seth