July 16, 2026

Dear FPCA family,

This week I dove into the new Netflix version of The Little House on the Prairie. I was a massive fan of the books as a child. Who am I kidding? I was giddy with joy when I discovered my second call in ministry took me within an hour drive of the town the Ingalls lived in during the time period portrayed in The Little House in the Big Woods, Pepin, Wisconsin. In my viewing of the new series so far I have been impressed by the way the script stays close to the details of the books, but also fills in the gaps where the books were silent. The impact  of military service in the Civil War on several characters is closer to the surface than it was in books written for children.  The reality of the mistreatment of Native American communities and underhanded dealing when it came to treaties is dealt with head on. I’m enjoying revisiting these old stories with a new perspective and attention to new details.

The sermon series we started last week, Disputing with God, invites us to do the same thing with some stories that we might think we know very well – look beyond the familiar highlights we learned in Sunday School and see what’s going on in the details of the strained relationships. Last week we looked at the story of the Golden Calf and found some parts of the narrative we may never have seen before or maybe didn’t remember.  This week we’ll continue from that story of the broken relationships among God, God’s people, and Moses and go a little deeper into how those torn relationships and shattered tablets were mended a little further. I look forward to worshiping together soon!

Peace,

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