Tag Archive for: Apache reservations

This feels like a Hallmark movie!

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Do you open Christmas presents on Christmas Eve or Christmas morning? Do you love the neatness of the artificial tree or would it be unthinkable to not have the sap and scent of a real tree in your house? Is the highlight of Christmas dinner Mom’s special ham or is it grilled salmon, beef brisket, or even Grandmother’s tamales? Families have different traditions when it comes to celebrating Christmas. But the best traditions are the ones you make.

If participation makes memories, then Christmas on the San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation this year was a success.

On Wednesdays in December, the members of Peridot and Grace Lutheran Churches gathered to prepare for Christmas. After worshiping together by spending time in the Word and singing Christmas carols, the evening transitioned to a beautiful, organized chaos. Confirmation students worked hand-in-hand with the Women in Christ and church council members to clean and make each sanctuary sparkle. Then, out came the Christmas decorations. The tree was assembled and each member of the family decorated from oldest to youngest. Adults took the tops of the trees while the littlest hands and smallest people decorated the bottoms. Teens climbed ladders to hang banners on the walls. The garland was wrapped, the nativity scenes were placed, and the lights and candles were tested and twinkling. In the background a quartet of musicians played Christmas music on piano, guitar, flute, and mellophone. (Yes, there is such an instrument and it is as delightful as the name suggests!). A steady stream of Christmas cookies and hot chocolate provided ample opportunities for rest, laughter, and fellowship.

Peridot Lutheran Church

As some church members took it all in near the end of one evening, the remark was heard, “This feels like a Hallmark movie.” Another replied, “Yes, but better because this is real.”

The true value of the Christmas traditions was revealed in subsequent weeks as more than three dozen adults and children joined together to tell full churches the magnificent true story of God coming from heaven to earth to save us. The ancient story was proudly passed on from parent to child and grandparent to grandchild.

These are the traditions that matter because this is the story that matters. These are the memories that we want to imprint on the minds and hearts of each new generation because we want them to last into eternity. An event so momentous and beautiful deserves that.

Written by Rev. Daniel Rautenberg, field coordinator for the Native American Mission. 

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Our dwelling place

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The foundation is poured. The walls are up. The roof is on.

Dry wall is fastened. Doors and windows are in place.

The building? A side-by-side duplex.

The builders? A faith-bound band of brothers and sisters known as Builders For Christ.

The location? Peridot, Ariz. on the San Carlos Reservation.

Not everyone gets to enjoy living in a house that Builders For Christ has built, but some fortunate ones already have, and soon, two more families will be moving into the duplex in Peridot, Ariz. This side-by-side duplex is intended to house two teachers and their families. It’ll be a place for each of the families to call home.

“Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labor in vain” (Psalm 127:1).

It’ll be their dwelling place.

A place to kick off their shoes and enjoy family life. The teachers who will be moving into this duplex will be teaching at Peridot-Our Savior’s school which stands just a literal stone’s throw away.

The foundation was poured in November 2022 and the building started taking shape in January 2023. And look at it now! The pictures tell the story much better than I can. The people working on projects are a wonderful crew of kind-hearted, hardworking volunteers who have a passion for building and a heart for Christ. Especially a heart for Christ. So if you don’t find them on the roof, a ladder, or in the house, you’ll likely find them in the nearby church. Singing. Praying. Studying. Enjoying fellowship. Hearing the word.

The Lord is building this house. These builders are not laboring in vain.

Yes, it’s the fingers, hands, arms, and backs of the Builders For Christ volunteers that are digging, lifting, measuring, framing, plumbing, and painting; but the Lord is the One behind it all. He not only gives the builders the strength to build, but the motivation to do so. What’s better than the gospel of Jesus Christ to do that? The building is going up and so is glory and praise to the chief cornerstone. The Builders For Christ people have reminded me by their own humble witness and their own servant attitude: it pays to pay attention to God’s blueprints.

After all, isn’t Jesus Christ, the Jewish carpenter, the ultimate and expert home builder? I’m not referring only to the home that he is preparing in heaven. That eternal home is magnificent, has many rooms, and one of those doors has your name on it. What a home to anticipate.

Jesus replied, “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.” (John 14:23).

Quite something to think about, hey? We almost miss it. God making His home with us. We think of God as our Redeemer and our Savior, our father and our brother – which he is – and so much more – but he’s also our home. He desires to be the very one in whom “we live and move and have our being.” (Acts 17:28).

Our Dwelling Place.

Moses regarded him as such: “Lord, you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations.” (Psalm 90:1). This burning bush prophet believed that statement until his dying day and he wanted us to believe it, too. So just prior to his climb up the mountain and his impending death, Moses, from the inspired script, assured everyone who would read his words:

“The eternal God is your dwelling place…” (Deuteronomy 33:27a).

Yours.

Make God your dwelling place and you’ll discover that you truly lack nothing. You’ll find nourishment provided. You’ll find protection. You’ll find comfort in Him. Even if your own house now is not a place of safe refuge, his is. Even if you lack peace in your house, you’ll enjoy it in his. Even if your house does not feel like a home, his is the home you’ve always been hoping for.

Trust him. Enjoy the stay. His foundation doesn’t crack, His roof doesn’t leak, and his walls won’t buckle.

Now that’s a home and by only God’s grace, he’s…

Our Dwelling Place.

Written by Rev. John Holtz, Native Christians Counselor for the Native American Mission

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Growing in faith

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Autumn is a time to be thankful for the plentiful harvest and the journey of growth in our faith throughout the year.

At the beginning of the year with the slow re-opening of the reservation due to the Covid-19 pandemic, members of our Apache Lutheran churches were happy to get back to church to worship and and meet at the church garden with fellow Christians. Cheryl Pailzote took the initiative to revitalize the garden at Open Bible Lutheran Church in Whiteriver, Ariz., and shared her knowledge with others to build a healthier community, physically and spiritually.

Plentiful harvest from the garden

Bernard Dale, from the Hondah community on the Fort Apache Indian Reservation, shares his experience of planting from the seed to harvesting and tasting the abundance of hard work and dedication.

Bernard compared his experience of growing food, to also growing in faith. He was feeling the repercussions of the pandemic with faith the size of a seed. Throughout the year while they tended to the garden, they were also able to tend to their faith with the support of others from the group who shared devotions and God’s Word with one another. By the time harvest time came around, Bernard recalled the feeling of revitalization.

We are thankful for the blessings from the harvest from the garden, and the growth of our faith in God’s Word.

Written by Kasheena Miles, WELS Native American missions and assistant with Native Christians.

 

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Faces of faith on the Apache reservations in Arizona

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I love the inspiring Faces of Faith articles that are done by WELS Mission Promotions. The trouble these days is that faces are all I get to see. I don’t know how it is for all of you in the rest of the world, but the COVID-19 virus has locked our Apache reservations up tightly.

Some of our reservation communities have high rates of infection, and in other communities, there is fear that the virus will spread quickly because the average home is crowded and multi-generational. There have been no church services or Bible Classes since March. Gatherings of more than 10 and now 5 are prohibited. Stay at home orders have taken away the ability to go fishing or walk along the road for exercise. Checkpoints are set up at community entrance points to keep visitors out and restrict residents from leaving except on certain days of the week. So, we’re left with faces. Faces on Zoom meetings or video calls from home, and halves of faces behind a mask from six feet away at the grocery store.

Devastation from the wildfires

But those faces still show us faith. Or at least the evidence of it. Several weeks ago, there was a wildfire in one of our reservation communities. Several families lost everything. Houses, vehicles, personal possessions, and irreplaceable family mementos went up in smoke on one terrible afternoon. And guess what happened? Before the smoke even cleared, our church members were offering to help. Over the next days, truckloads of clothes, personal hygiene supplies, blankets, and food came from Native Christians expressing their faith through their actions. Others brought money to help the families. Their generosity was astounding! They gave freely and willingly from what they had without holding back. They couldn’t hug, couldn’t gather at the same time, and couldn’t even get closer than six feet. Their faces were masked, but their faith was visible.

It could be a while on our Apache reservations before we can see more than faces on a video screen. But the faith of our Native Christian people remains very visible in new ways.

As Native Christians we have donated more than 1,900 masks to local hospitals, and our members are working hard sewing hundreds more. While our pastors and teachers work hard to share Jesus without church services or classrooms full of students, our members are also being bold in sharing God’s Word and showing Christian concern with words and actions. May God bless you too as you find new and creative ways to share the ancient and unchanging story of Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith!

Written by Dan Rautenberg, Field Coordinator on the Apache reservations in Arizona

 

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Two Walking Miracles

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“Two walking miracles.” That’s how Marlene Truax describes her twin grandsons, Thomas and Dakota.

Born at 26 weeks and weighing just 1 pound 13 ounces and 1 pound 11 ounces respectively, doctors gave them a 50% chance of survival at best. All the family could do was put them in the Lord’s hands and find peace in trusting him. As Marlene remembered thinking, “If they live; they live. If they don’t, it’s still the Lord’s plan.” The boys spent much of the next year in the hospital, and over those long months the prognosis was not always good. Even after their eventual release from the hospital, Marlene remembers that the first three years were an especially difficult struggle.

But even when survival was in doubt and the future very murky, one thing that was always certain was that the boys were loved. And as the boys grew, Grandma Marlene especially made sure that they knew not only about the love of family but the love of Jesus. Every Sunday they were in church at the Lutheran Church of the Open Bible in Whiteriver, and they were enrolled at East Fork Lutheran School.

This past May, these two walking miracles walked across the stage to receive diplomas as members of the first graduating class of the reopened East Fork Lutheran High School. It was a special moment and a testimony to the power of prayer, the goodness of our God, and the blessing of Christian family. As Marlene put it, it was also a time to be thankful. She was thankful for the people who have helped them along the way, and especially thankful to the Lord for taking care of them. She gives all credit to the Lord – that it was only through him that this special day was possible, only through him that these young Christian men can look forward to serving the Lord in their future, and only through him that we all have the promise to eventually live with him forever.

Her faith and thankful heart have been passed on to these two young men. Dakota’s advice and encouragement is to, “In everything, do it all for the Lord. Always thank God for waking you up every morning and for all he does. In everything be content and give thanks.” Dakota also had the opportunity this past year to take courses in the Apache Christian Training School (ACTS) and use his training to do readings in church. After high school, he hopes to continue learning and helping people to look to the Lord for help when life is difficult.

Thomas is also thankful for being able to learn God’s Word every day at East Fork Lutheran School. In his words, the most important thing he learned was God’s Word and, “how we will be with him if we believe and trust in him because he is the one and only God.” He hopes to teach that to others after high school.

Please join all of us on the Apache reservations in thanking our God for the miracles we can see and the ones we can’t. Thank him for providing mature Christians who make a difference in the lives of their family, friends, and communities, and the called workers who assist in sharing the love of Jesus. Pray for Thomas and Dakota and young Christians everywhere that they may grow in faith and godly living and accomplish the work God will give them to do in the years ahead.

Love in Christ from your Native brothers and sisters,

Rev. Dan Rautenberg, Field Coordinator for WELS Native American Missions

To learn more about mission work on the Apache Reservations, visit wels.net/apache.

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