Greetings Orchard Family,
On Sunday, we will celebrate what the Church calls All Saints Sunday, a time to remember those who came before us and lived their faith in ways that continue to inspire us. As we enter November, which is also Indigenous Peoples Month, I think of the stories passed down through my people, stories of endurance, grace, and unwavering faith in God’s goodness.
I often think of my grandmother, English name Denise Dugan, whose Indian name was SaDii’. She attended an Indian boarding school where Native American children were taken from their families, forbidden to speak our Yuman language, had their hair cut, and were prevented from practicing culture or traditional ways of prayer so they could become what was called “more civil citizens.” The wounds from those places did not end when the schools closed. Their impact continues in our families and communities today through cycles of loss, addiction, and disconnection. I am part of that story too. In the midst of all she endured, my grandmother still found her way to God. And when she did, her faith became her strength. She had every reason to walk away, yet she chose to keep believing there was light at the end of the tunnel, and she was right. Her life reminds me that faith can emerge from even the hardest spaces in life, and that God meets us in the very places we thought hope could never live.
There are people like that in every generation. Some are family, others are teachers, mentors, or friends. They remind us that faith is not about perfection. It is about persistence. It is about choosing to believe when life gives reasons to give up.
As we prepare to gather on Sunday, I invite you to think about those who have shown you what faith looks like in real life. Who has taught you to keep trusting God through challenge or change? Who helped you see that God remains faithful across the years?
Their stories give courage to ours. If they could keep believing, we can too. The same God who sustained them is The One who sustains us now.
May this week remind you that faith lives among us. God continues to write stories of courage through our lives, and what began in those who came before us continues through us today.
With love and gratitude,
Pastor Tamara
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