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Over the last two years, I enjoyed a perfect view of Vander Veer Park from my office window in the 129 House. No matter the time of year, whenever I’ve looked out across the street, I could count on spotting at least one jogger making the approximate…
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I recently spent about five months apartment shopping. With the end date of my lease looming, I could feel the pressure growing about where I would call home. I was prepared to settle for somewhere that was probably overpriced, in a location that was…
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While vacationing in Wisconsin last week, and out on a morning stroll, I spotted a large red tow truck beside a service garage. What caught my eye and prompted me to snap a photo was the advertising decal across its windshield: 23-Hr Towing. I didn’t…
Last week, the St. Paul I-Spy boxes made their debut in the gathering area for all to enjoy. Beginning in early July, head outside to stroll the St. Paul campus to view these art installations designed by youth in grades 6-8. Constructed from all sor…
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Serit arbores, quae alteri saeclo prosint. “A person plants trees for the benefit of later generations.” These words of the Roman poet Caecilius Statius (220 – 167 BC) may not be original to him. And, poets, preachers, and philosophers have certainl…
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Despite a good rainstorm early this week, we are experiencing a bit of a drought here in southeastern Iowa. Its impact on the farmers is worrisome and they are grateful for any centimeter of water that falls on the shoots of corn growing. And while o…
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Bill Campbell has been a staple of Sunday worship for the past 17 years. Every Sunday, Bill arrives at St. Paul around 10 a.m., messenger bag over his shoulder, ready to set up and spend the next two hours rehearsing with the Open Spirit Ensemble and…
Oscar Wilde believed theater to be one of the greatest of all art forms saying that the theater is “…the most immediate way in which a human being can share with another the sense of what it is to be a human being.” Many St. Paul people find someth…
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St. Paul is abuzz this week with Vacation Bible School. Upwards of 150 children are responding to the Hero Hotline. Inspired by SuperMeer – hardly a mere cat – and “The Professor,” they are learning to be God’s superheroes for the world. At the heart…
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The term “work/life balance” has become somewhat of a buzzword over the last few years, especially among the Millennial and Gen Z populations. In general, work/life balance seems to serve as a catchall phrase for how we ration the scarce commodity of…
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One of the most important things I think Dietrich Bonhoeffer ever said relates to human prosperity. In an autumn 1931 sermon, this German pastor and theologian told his congregation that seven million people in Germany would be without jobs that wint…
St. Paul is blessed to have two care ministries, both of which intentionally connect members of the St. Paul community beyond the walls of the church. The Hospital Befrienders program is a team of volunteers who visit hospitalized St. Paul people in…