First Lutheran Church, Rugby ND

09/07/2026

Women...Take time to enjoy the sights and sounds of Lake Metigoshe, enjoy a meal and bible study at Metigoshe Ministries Christian Center and enjoy the fun bus trip home. Get Signed up by stopping by the church and getting your name on the sheet or calling the church. Hope to see you on the bus SEPTEMBER 17

09/07/2026

God Pause - Luther Seminary
Monday, September 7, 2026
Genesis 50:15-21 (NRSV)

Realizing that their father was dead, Joseph's brothers said, "What if Joseph still bears a grudge against us and pays us back in full for all the wrong that we did to him?" So they approached Joseph, saying, "Your father gave this instruction before he died, 'Say to Joseph: I beg you, forgive the crime of your brothers and the wrong they did in harming you.' Now therefore please forgive the crime of the servants of the God of your father." Joseph wept when they spoke to him. Then his brothers also wept, fell down before him, and said, "We are here as your slaves." But Joseph said to them, "Do not be afraid! Am I in the place of God? Even though you intended to do harm to me, God intended it for good, in order to preserve a numerous people, as he is doing today. So have no fear; I myself will provide for you and your little ones." In this way he reassured them, speaking kindly to them.

Devotion
Forgiveness is probably one of the hardest things to offer, especially when we have been emotionally or physically harmed. Joseph’s brothers feared retaliation for all the suffering they had caused him. Yet, in looking back, Joseph could see how God was using his circumstance to provide a way to save people during the famine.

In Prof. Lois Malcolm’s seminary class, Forgiveness and Reconciliation, one of the books for required reading was Simon Wiesenthal’s The Sunflower. The first half of the book tells the story of a Jewish prisoner in a concentration camp, to whom a dying N**i soldier confesses a wrong, asking for the Jewish man’s forgiveness. The second half of the book relates responses from prominent people who are asked the question “What would you do?”

Granted, these two men were strangers. But for Joseph, this is his family. Joseph does more than forgive them. He welcomes them and their families to ensure they are provided for.

Prayer
Forgiving God, sometimes it is difficult to forgive when we have been wronged. Yet we know you want restored relationships. Help us to see where you may be at work in the situation and open our hearts for conversation. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Rev. Sue Lynn White ’17 M.Div.
Pastor, St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, Salisbury, NC

09/06/2026

09/06/2026

God Pause - Luther Seminary
Sunday, September 6, 2026
Lord, Speak to Us, That We May Speak (ELW 676)

1 Lord, speak to us, that we may speak
in living echoes of your tone;
as you have sought, so let us seek
your straying children, lost and lone.

2 Oh, lead us, Lord, that we may lead
the wand’ring and the wav’ring feet;
oh, feed us, Lord, that we may feed
your hung’ring ones with manna sweet.

3 Oh, teach us, Lord, that we may teach
the precious truths which you impart;
and wing our words, that thy may reach
the hidden depths of many a heart.

4 Oh, fill us with your fullness, Lord,
until my very hearts o’erflow
in kindling thought and glowing word,
your love to tell, your praise to show.

Text: Frances R. Havergal; Music: Robert Schumann; Public Domain

Devotion
The opening verses of this hymn express a prayer that we will be spoken to, led, fed, and taught. Verse 4 asks, “What comes next?”

The end of verse 3 actually anticipates this beautifully as it points to the truth that a word, once received, doesn’t stay put. It moves. It enters into a neighbor’s story, a hard conversation, a stranger’s need. And so, in the final verse of this hymn, we pray that we would be so filled with God’s word that our hearts would overflow.

Overflow is exactly the right image, I think. It’s not about effort or obligation. It’s just what happens when a heart has actually been filled. So may we be filled to overflowing today so that we might be sentinels of God’s abundant grace: in our neighborhoods, our workplaces, and wherever love finds something to do.

Prayer
Lord, fill us until what we’ve received overflows into the world. Amen.

Joe Jorgensen ’23 M.Div.
Pastor, Christ Lutheran Church, Faribault, MN; Gol Lutheran Church, Kenyon, MN

09/05/2026

God Pause - Luther Seminary
Saturday, September 5, 2026
Lord, Speak to Us, That We May Speak (ELW 676)

1 Lord, speak to us, that we may speak
in living echoes of your tone;
as you have sought, so let us seek
your straying children, lost and lone.

2 Oh, lead us, Lord, that we may lead
the wand’ring and the wav’ring feet;
oh, feed us, Lord, that we may feed
your hung’ring ones with manna sweet.

3 Oh, teach us, Lord, that we may teach
the precious truths which you impart;
and wing our words, that thy may reach
the hidden depths of many a heart.

4 Oh, fill us with your fullness, Lord,
until my very hearts o’erflow
in kindling thought and glowing word,
your love to tell, your praise to show.

Text: Frances R. Havergal; Music: Robert Schumann; Public Domain

Devotion
This hymn, written by Frances Ridley Havergal in 1872, was originally titled “A Worker’s Prayer.” It reflects a belief that service flows from being shaped first by God. To me, it echoes the psalmist’s desire expressed in Psalm 119. The hymn’s first three verses give voice to that desire.

“Speak… lead… feed… teach.” Verse after verse asks for the same thing in different forms: before we can offer anything to anyone, we need to have first received it ourselves. We speak only as an echo of a voice we’ve heard. We lead only because we’ve been led first—through wandering, uncertainty, our own need to turn back. We feed only on bread that was placed in our hands by another. We teach only truths that were first taught to us.

This pattern underlies everything we have been hearing and pondering this week: we can’t pour out what we haven’t first received.

Prayer
Lord, speak, lead, feed, and teach us, so that we might do the same for others. Amen.

Joe Jorgensen ’23 M.Div.
Pastor, Christ Lutheran Church, Faribault, MN; Gol Lutheran Church, Kenyon, MN

09/04/2026

God Pause - Luther Seminary
Friday, September 4, 2026
Matthew 18:15-20 (NRSV)

"If another member of the church sins against you, go and point out the fault when the two of you are alone. If the member listens to you, you have regained that one. But if you are not listened to, take one or two others along with you, so that every word may be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If the member refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if the offender refuses to listen even to the church, let such a one be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. Again, truly I tell you, if two of you agree on earth about anything you ask, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them."

Devotion
“Where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.”

I often hear these words spoken as a promise about worship, about Sunday mornings. But Jesus says these words right after talking about confrontation and reconciliation. He’s not just promising to show up when we sing. He’s promising to show up in the hard conversations, too. He promises to be present in moments where someone has to say “you hurt me” and someone else has to hear it.

And that is good news, because this work is hard—reconciling, speaking truth to those who’ve wronged us, forgiving. We need God’s presence to turn our hearts from hurt to restoration. We need the Holy Spirit to give us the words to speak.

None of this is meant to be done alone. Not the confrontation, not the forgiveness, not the restoring. Christ is in the room for all of it. Thanks be to God.

Prayer
Lord, meet us in all our gatherings—especially the hard ones. Amen.

Joe Jorgensen ’23 M.Div.
Pastor, Christ Lutheran Church, Faribault, MN; Gol Lutheran Church, Kenyon, MN

09/03/2026

God Pause - Luther Seminary
Thursday, September 3, 2026
Matthew 18:15-20 (NRSV)

"If another member of the church sins against you, go and point out the fault when the two of you are alone. If the member listens to you, you have regained that one. But if you are not listened to, take one or two others along with you, so that every word may be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If the member refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if the offender refuses to listen even to the church, let such a one be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. Again, truly I tell you, if two of you agree on earth about anything you ask, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them."

Devotion
What happens when someone wrongs you? Maybe you pretend it didn’t happen. Maybe you post about it on social media. Maybe you rant to family or friends.

But Jesus says, first go to the one who wronged you and point out the fault. Privately. Directly. To their face, not behind their back.

I don’t know about you, but that sounds like hard, uncomfortable work. It would be easier to talk about the person than to them. But Jesus treats the relationship as worth more than our comfort. “If you are listened to, you have regained that one.” Not defeated them. Not proven a point. Regained them. The relationship is something precious that was in danger of being lost.

Only if that word goes unheard does the circle widen, first to witnesses, then the whole community. Confrontation, Jesus’ way, stays as small as it can, because the goal was never to win, but to restore a broken relationship.

Prayer
Lord, give us the courage to go to one another in times of conflict, and to seek restoration. Amen.

Joe Jorgensen ’23 M.Div.
Pastor, Christ Lutheran Church, Faribault, MN; Gol Lutheran Church, Kenyon, MN

09/03/2026

THANK YOU to everyone—young and old—who came to the church this evening, signed up, played some games, and enjoyed a delicious treat from Lulabelle’s Ice Cream Truck!

A special thank-you to Opal (and Ashley, too!) for capturing the fun and memories from the evening.

If you weren’t able to join us tonight but are still interested in being part of all the great things happening for our youth at First Lutheran, we’d love to hear from you!

Contact the church at 776-5801 or reach out to Leah at 771-1000.

We’re excited about what’s ahead and would love to have you be part of it!

09/02/2026

If anyone is needing a dehumidifier right now to help take out some moisture, Craig Wollenburg has two that he would let people borrow. You can reach out to him at 701-208-0577

09/02/2026

God Pause - Luther Seminary
Wednesday, September 2, 2026
Romans 13:8-14 (NRSV)

Owe no one anything, except to love one another; for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. The commandments, "You shall not commit adultery; You shall not murder; You shall not steal; You shall not covet"; and any other commandment, are summed up in this word, "Love your neighbor as yourself." Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore, love is the fulfilling of the law.

Besides this, you know what time it is, how it is now the moment for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we became believers; the night is far gone, the day is near. Let us then lay aside the works of darkness and put on the armor of light; let us live honorably as in the day, not in reveling and drunkenness, not in debauchery and licentiousness, not in quarreling and jealousy. Instead, put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.

Devotion
Paul offers a clear instruction to the Romans: turn toward love. “Owe no one anything, except to love one another, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.”

When you look at the commandments, it’s easy to see that many of them coalesce into this one instruction. Not because the rules stop mattering, but because love was always what they were pointing to. Love does no wrong to a neighbor. It’s not a soft substitute for the law. It’s the whole point of the law.

And Paul’s invitation to love is an urgent one: “the night is far gone; the day is near.” Wake up. This isn’t a task for someday, it is a task for today, now. “Put on the Lord Jesus Christ” today, see the shape of his way, and speak his message to the world. In today’s ordinary rooms, to today’s ordinary neighbors: love, and love now.

Prayer
Lord, wake us up and send us to love, today. Amen.

Joe Jorgensen ’23 M.Div.
Pastor, Christ Lutheran Church, Faribault, MN; Gol Lutheran Church, Kenyon, MN