1890

“Ore carriers at the Duluth docks take iron ore to the blast furnaces of Pennsylvania. Duluth is booming on the promise of lumber and iron ore. Its population is nearly 10 times what it was 10 years before.” * 

For those not acquainted with Minnesota, it is necessary to define the huge northeastern portion of state once so rich in iron ore. Folks here usually shorten it to “the Range” or if I use correct pronunciation of the local dialect; “Da Range”. Below is a nice snippet to give us some accuracy to pray through.

“The Iron Range is an informal and unofficially designated region that makes up the northeastern section of Minnesota in the United States. It is a region with multiple distinct bands of iron ore. The far eastern area, along the shore of Lake Superior, and the far northern area, along the Canadian border, of the region are not associated with iron ore mining. Due to its shape, the area is collectively referred to as the Arrowhead region of the state.” **

Thank you for the blessing our state with iron ore! Thank you for its discovery! Thank you for the roles both Native Minnesotans’ and eastern geologists played in finding rich sources of this useful metal!

Will You forgive the injustices, bitterness, and divisive competitiveness of this era? Will You replace the deficits of love that have created an inheritance of distrust in Duluth, its’ mining interests, and across the steel industry? Will you give grace to those whose water or land or air were tainted through ore mining? Christ have mercy on us! We are offended and honestly wronged by our neighbor. We form grudges. Then we become the prisoners of our own grudges! Will you show us how to let the other guy ‘off the hook’ so the we do not continue in hypocrisy? Will You give us trust that You will make things right, even though we see no signs of change no matter how hard we search for it?

Because You are “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness…” by faith, I announce Your blessing to the Arrowhead region. May your land, air, water, all above you, and all below you, continue into eternal space as a ray of blessing! May your peoples, of all races and creeds, see and feel and know that You are a GOOD FATHER! May this region be known in the present and the future as a people of forbearance who conduct their business and government with the same gemutichkeit (goodwill)! May the plans of the Enemy to turn our hearts hard as iron ore come to nothing! Please use this Arrowhead region to point and lead into a future of blessing for our state and all people!

* http://www.mnhs.org/about/dipity_timeline.htm

**http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iron_Range