Truth. Stability. Hope.

During the joyful season of Christmas, Lisbeth Warren recollects the struggles of life and faith with her family in the Oklahoma Dust Bowl.

Watch the drama from our Christmas program in the video below and listen to Pastor Kent Hobi's brief Christmas challenge.

Beneath the Dusty Moon is an original play written and directed by Laura Hart. Actors are Rachelle Young (Lisbeth Warren), Ryan Grenier (James Warren), Rhnae King (Eleanor Brooks, "Gran"), and Ella Hoang (Luna Warren).

Historical Note

Settlers in Oklahoma, Texas, and Kansas in the 1930s faced more than the Great Depression. When wheat prices plummeted, farmers let their fields lay empty rather than face another unsellable harvest. As settlers had ripped up most of the prairie grass between 1889 and 1929, there was now nothing standing between the dry dirt and the prairie’s harsh winds. For seven years, sudden storms of dirt called “dusters” plagued the area. Settlers faced a tough choice: stick it out on the only piece of land they owned, or chance it finding work and a new life in another Depression-riddled state. Those who left had often lost their homes to the banks and had no choice but to pack up what meager possessions fit on the truck or wagon and head west. “Oakies” ended up working on farms and vineyards in California or the cotton fields of Arizona.

Pastor's Note

For many, the Christmas season is a joy-filled time! We enjoy the company of family and friends. We reflect on the blessedness of the true meaning of Christmas. For some, however, Christmas passes year after year, and its joy increasingly is lost. Today, I invite you to consider the never-changing truth of the Babe in the manger who came to die for your sins. God’s love, compassion, and faithfulness are realities, whatever comes to pass. As we consider the reality of God’s love, will you consider His offer, His gift, to you?