| PASTOR MARCIA KIFER CELEBRATES 25 YEARS OF ORDINATION |
|
Dinner Celebration with the Congregation
In Holy Baptism God places a claim on each of our lives and in so doing calls us to serve Him and all creation. We chose the occasion of the 25th Anniversary of Pastor Marcia Kifer's ordination to celebrate all of our individual calls to serve. The dinner was coordinated by a Discipleship group that came together as a result of the Marks of Discipleship groups of a few years ago and has stayed connected through other activities. The evenings program focused on Pastor Kifer's 25 years of service to God. Pastor Tim Selbo reflected on the fact that Pastor Kifer was among one of the very earliest groups of women to be ordained in the Lutheran church. We were all touched the emotion shared by her father, the Rev. Hal Bolm, when he spoke of the pride he had in his heart when his daughter realized God was calling her to the ordained ministry. That pride continues as the family shared their joy that son Ben Kifer had been admitted to seminary for the fall. All great celebrations include surprises and gifts and this was no exception. Jack Kifer had told us that Pastor Marcia loved to hear Amazing Grace on the bagpipes. And so - we had a bag piper! Gifts were presented on behalf of the congregation beginning with a piece of art with the famous scripture from Joshua -' ...as for me and my house - we will serve the Lord.'. Additionally, some seed money was given towards a fund established to enable Marcia's lifelong dream of a trip to the Holy Land. The Coordinating Committee has every hope that the fund will be supported such as to allow her to travel next year. In the concluding comments of the evening - spoken through many tears - Pastor Marcia expressed thanks to all. She made special note of the beauty of sharing this evening with all the saints and affirmed the 'many and wonderful' ways she sees that the people of God at LWLC continue to live out their baptismal calls. It was a great evening for the family of God. |