Focus Text: Joel 2:23-32
Then afterward I will pour out my spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions…

Pastoral Reflection by Rev. Milford Oxendine, Jr., Pastor, Cordova United Methodist Church, Cordova
Is a better day coming for Lumbee Native Americans in North Carolina?  Being an optimist, I believe that God’s words, “I will pour out my spirit on all flesh” (v.28), will become a reality in the last days.

Personal Vignette by Rev. Mary Louise Frenchman (Lakota Sioux), Pastor, Living Waters Lutheran Church, Cherokee
I had no intentions of ever being involved with organized religion. I grew up on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota hearing horror stories of the religious and government boarding schools that forced Christianity upon native peoples including my parents and grandparents.

Key Fact
North Carolina has the largest Native American population east of the Mississippi River – over 115,000 by the US Census’ 2008 estimate.  NC has the fifth highest Native American population in the U.S. 

Image adapted from original by hardeep.singh at http://www.flickr.com/photos/hname/3408760673/