Prairie Pastoral

This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.

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July 12, 2023 | Leave a Comment

A Wet Vac for Jesus

It’s been raining. A lot.

A drainpipe backed up, so that water came into the church basement. A lot.

On the newly laid flooring in our soon-to-be remodeled Fellowship Hall, through the kitchen, down the hallway, into the computer lab and the bathrooms.  There was a great weeping and gnashing of teeth. Ugh.

I suppose I could use this space for a devotional comparing the drainpipe to our hearts, and how we need to flush our hearts—like a drain pipe—if we want the Holy Spirit to flow through us.

Yeah, yeah? No. The metaphor falls flat.

Instead, I want to devote these words [Read more…]

Church, Gratitude, Perseverance, Small town Tagged: church family, flooding, wet vac


March 11, 2021 | Leave a Comment

My quest for a personal retreat day

The mythologist Joseph Campbell described the quest as the hero’s journey out from the ordinary to a place of adventure with the hope of magical rewards. It sounds fabulous. Until it’s not.

I’m currently on a quest for a personal retreat day. It’s not nearly so heroic as what Capbell described. Magical rewards? No, I just want to find a place where I can spend the day away with Jesus for prayer and journaling. A place without ping pong. Ping pong? [Read more…]

Frustration, Jesus Christ, Small town Tagged: frustration, Joseph Campbell, personal retreat, silence, solitude


May 28, 2020 | Leave a Comment

Talking to teens about racism: one small town perspective

Racism between and within racial ethnic groups exists everywhere. It exists in our small town of 7,000 on the plains of eastern Colorado.  

What we do not experience, however, is racism in its most extreme expressions.  The  redlining, brutality, and systematic dehumanization we witness in some cities simply hasn’t happened here in anyone’s memory. Our Anglo and Hispanic kids grow up together.  There’s some social segregation as they grow older, but friends remain friends for lifetimes.  We have a very small African American community whom we know personally and love dearly. 

I’m not trying to paint our community as perfect.  It is not.  Skin color gives advantages to some over others.  Racial insult is real, and the achievement gap persists.  We have work to do. Nevertheless, I lived in St. Louis for eleven years and owned a home in Ferguson–yes, THE Ferguson where Michael Brown was shot by Darren Wilson. I feel qualified to say that the reality here in our small town is simply not the same. In fact, an African American man who moved to our community several years ago told me plainly how much he appreciates living here where he can just be known for himself and not only as a stereotyped black man.   [Read more…]

Courage, Fear, Hope, Racism, Small town, Teenagers


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This is the day that
the Lord has made;
let us rejoice
and be glad in it.

– Psalm 118:24
Rev. Dr. MJ Romano

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Bible Verse of the Day

There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.
1 John 4:18
DailyVerses.net
LaJunta Presbyterian Church

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