McFarland

Naomi Garber Bio

Who am I?

I am very thankful for the gift of serving as an Intentional Interim Pastor.   Together with a congregation we discover more about our God, our faith, our church, and each other.  Some things about me as an introduction.

  • I was conceived a Lutheran….I had no choice but be a Lutheran.  
  • My father is a Lutheran pastor, continues to be actively serving rural churches at the age of 85.
  • I grew up in west-central Minnesota.  
  • I am a recovering church organist (remember when you are in recovery you are making a commitment to never do it again!).
  • My husband, Greg, and I have been married since 1982.
  • I was ordained in 2000 following a career in strategic planning in healthcare.
  • I prefer to be called either Pastor Naomi or Naomi.
  • I have served God’s people in Menomonee Falls, Eastern North Dakota, and Janesville in open-ended, settled calls.
  • I am a full time interim Pastor for the synod.
  • I have served God’s people as Interim Pastor in Devils Lake, North Dakota and in Wisconsin in Richland Center, Fitchburg, Platteville, and Oregon.
  • We have one daughter who lives in Scotland with our four grandchildren (two girls and two boys).  And yes, Scotland is a beautiful place primarily because of the wee ones who live there!
  • I love to garden and be outside.
  • I have a needle in my hands every day—knitting needle, stitching needle, quilting needle.
  • I love to read and read a wide variety of genres.
  • I love to cook and bake.
  • My favorite color is green…followed closely by yellow and coral/orange.
  • I try my very best to be physically fit.  So, I walk most days and have a personal trainer who attempts to keep me on the right path.
  • LuLu is our beloved Bassett Hound…and yes, she is a character and full of life!
  • God’s greatest gift to me is the gift of ministry!  I cannot imagine doing anything else.

Faith basics

  • Our God is with us always, sometimes silent but always present.
  • The Holy Spirit  blesses us with gifts, passions, and abilities, we may not need all of these all the time in every situation.
  • Jesus came to teach us how to live and love with his new commandment “to love one another.”
  • We are simultaneously saints and sinners.
  • The world is changed with each encounter we have with God’s people and God’s creation.
  • We become more of who God created us to be when we embrace the entirety of God’s amazing and diverse world.
  • We are constantly being shaped and re-shaped to become more of who God created us to be.
  • We need each other.
  • God fills our hearts and lives with joy.
  • I want to introduce people to the God I know in the Creator, the Savior, the Sustainer.