(Fremont County, WY) – In a meeting that took place on Friday, July 10, a the Wind River Hotel and Casino, members of the Northern Arapaho Business Council (NABC) and Tribal elders met with Sarah and Jason Lucas from Foundations for Nations Ministries, where the duo was told that they and their ministry were no longer welcome on the Wind River Reservation, following comments Sarah made about the Arapaho Sundance ceremony and sacred pipe during her July 5 sermon.
Lucas has since broken her silence on the situation, and, according to a letter she and Jason shared with Ministry members before their recent July 12 service, they do not plan to leave the Reservation or cease Ministry services, and will take the matter to federal court.
‘A Pipe cannot hear your prayers…’
Early last week, Sarah Lucas and Foundations for Nations began receiving online backlash from Northern Arapaho Tribal members, the indigenous community, and various supporters, regarding comments she made during her Sunday, July 5, sermon at the Ministry, which took place during the Northern Arapaho Sundance ceremony.
“…This nation gathered this week and they prayed, and they prayed to pipes and prayed to the ancestors, believing that this is the way for their freedom, to get free from addiction, for people to be healed from their sickness… this is what this culture did this week,” Lucas said in a clip from the widely circulated video recording of her service. “…We’re going to pray for our indigenous nation, our tribe this week as we’re coming out of this, because we know that Jesus is enough. He’s enough. It’s not Jesus plus, it’s Jesus everything. He’s everything.”
“Jesus is the chain breaker,” Lucas continued. “He is the only God that we should be praying to. A pipe cannot hear your prayers. It’s just a piece of material. Right? And this is the cycle that they’re caught up in…”
Following the online circulation of the service and subsequent backlash to Sarah’s words, hundreds of Arapaho Tribal members and supporters organized protests on July 7, which took place at the Ministry (located within the borders of the Wind River Reservation on Mission Road), the Ministry’s food Pantry in Riverton, and in the parking lot of Riverton City Hall. Tribal rights advocates have also continued to speak out against Lucas’s words since the protests.
Tribal and Ministry Members Meet
On Friday, July 10, members of the NABC, along with “ceremonial elders and leaders,” met with Sarah and Jason, who were also accompanied by other Ministry representatives, NABC Chairman Keenan Groesbeck shared with County 10 Monday evening.
Groesbeck stated that the ceremonial and spiritual leaders “took the lead” at the meeting, stating that Lucas’s words went “against our traditional practices, our way of life.”
“We didn’t agree with her, and they just told her that we do have a Catholic church that’s just right down the way that doesn’t speak out against our ways,” Groesbeck said, referencing the St. Stephen’s Mission.
Groesbeck elaborated that Lucas’s sermon came in the midst “of the Sundance Lodge Ceremony.”
“It is the highest ceremony that we have out of our lodges… That’s where all the tribe comes together and we sacrifice and celebrate the coming of a new year because our years are (based on) the solstice, the summer,” Groesbeck explained. “…And our Old Man Pipe was with us since the beginning, you know, since the beginning of time, when this was all water.”
NABC councilman Preston Moss told County 10 that Lucas “crossed a line” with her comments.
“And that’s a line that they can’t ever come back from,” Moss commented. “You just don’t go into somebody’s homeland and talk about their beliefs, and mock their beliefs, and cut their beliefs down. You just can’t do that. …I mean, we had respect for their organization. We never even talked about them until this all came up with what she preached… She crossed that line, and for me, she crossed the hard line.”
At the meeting, Groesbeck confirmed that Tribal leadership had directed the Lucases and the Ministry to leave the Wind River Reservation.
“We did say Foundations for Nations and Sarah and Jason… they’re not welcome here anymore…” Groesbeck said. “…We don’t ostracize any of our people that go to their church and pray… When they talked about our traditional way of life and our ceremonies, that’s when they crossed the line. The Council, myself, Councilman (Preston) Moss, Councilwoman (Sami) Dresser, Co-Chair (Kimberly Whiteman) Harjo, along with Councilman (Michael) Yellowplume and Councilman (Jesse) Crispin, we all stated to them that they crossed the line, and Foundations for Nations and Sarah and Jason, they gotta go…”
“The gospel will continue to be preached…”
Despite the directive from the NABC and Tribe leaders/elders, the Lucases asserted that they will continue with Sunday services and take the matter to Federal court if need be, maintaining that the Ministry is on “private” land despite being located within the Reservation. County 10 confirmed with Sarah Lucas that a letter circulating on social media ahead of the Ministry’s July 12 service was indeed hers and Jason’s, and was written in response to being told to leave. The letter can be read in full below.
Dear Partners of Foundations For Nations, We are writing to you with urgency and conviction regarding the work the Lord has called us to on the Wind River Reservation among the Northern Arapaho people.
We are standing firmly on the truth of the Word of God concerning idol worship. As many of you know, traditional practices here include the worship of the “old man pipe” and prayers directed to ancestors. Recently, at the conclusion of Sundance ceremonies, a significant backlash arose against Pastor Sarah, our family, and Foundations For Nations. Since then, we have received ongoing death threats and threats to burn our church. These threats have been coming daily. Because of the severity of the situation, both the FBI and local law enforcement are now involved.
This brings us to a critical question: Should we compromise the Word of God for the sake of safety or to maintain peace with a people group? Our answer is clear —no. God’s Word is unchanging, and we are here to make Him known and to lead people to Him. As Scripture says, “Stand therefore..” (Ephesians 6:14), and again, “Be strong and courageous… for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1:9). We are choosing to stand in truth and walk in courage.
Timeline of Recent Events:
On Sunday, Pastor Sarah preached that we should not be praying to a pipe, that a pipe cannot set anyone free or answer prayers, and that only Jesus Christ is the way to heaven. This message brought a significant backlash from members of the native community, as many hold the belief that the pipe is central to their spiritual life.
On Tuesday, hundreds gathered at our church, our food bank, our home, and at city hall to protest. Since then, we have experienced slander, false accusations, and continued threats against our lives and ministry.
On Friday, we met with the Tribal Council in an effort to listen and seek understanding. Unfortunately, the meeting was marked by intense opposition. We were told we could no longer conduct ministry on the reservation and were ordered to leave.
However, we own our property, and legally we cannot be removed in this manner. This matter is now moving toward the courts. We are in contact with legal counsel and are preparing to pursue this in federal court as soon as possible in order to uphold our Constitutional rights to preach the Gospel.
Despite these challenges, we want you to know: we will have church tomorrow. We are not stopping. The Gospel will continue to be preached. As Jesus declared, “the gates of hell shall not prevail against the church” (Matthew 16:18). We also hold fast to Romans 3:4: “Let God be true and every man a liar.” While opposition rises, our mission remains unchanged.
We are asking you, our partners, to stand with us in this battle. We are in need of financial support to help cover the legal expenses required to continue this mission and ensure that God’s Word continues to go forth on the Wind River Reservation. We also ask for your earnest prayers. There is deep spiritual darkness over this land, but we are confident in the promise that “more are for us than against us” (2 Kings 6:16). Please pray for protection, wisdom, favor, and breakthrough as we press forward in obedience to God’s calling. Thank you for standing with us, praying with us, and believing with us.
“…I cannot apologize for preaching what I believe God’s Word teaches…“
“I know my message about idol worship caused pain within the Native community. I understand many felt condemned or personally attacked by the way I communicated it. Love speaks truth, and I regret that my words did not reflect that as clearly as they should have,” Lucas said in the official response statement she shared with County 10. “At the same time, I cannot apologize for preaching what I believe God’s Word teaches. Scripture says, ‘You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself a carved image… you shall not bow down to them or serve them’ (Exodus 20:3–5), and ‘Little children, keep yourselves from idols’ (1 John 5:21). As a Christian pastor, my calling is to faithfully preach the Bible, even when its message is difficult.”
Lucas went on to quote further scripture, stating that “Jesus Himself warned that following Him would not always be accepted.”
“He said, ‘If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you’ (John 15:18), and ‘You will be hated by all for my name’s sake’ (Matthew 10:22). Standing for Christ and His truth often brings opposition, not because we seek conflict, but because truth confronts what is contrary to God.”
Lucas then referenced “the life of Paul.”
“In Galatians 4:16 he asked, ‘Have I therefore become your enemy because I tell you the truth?’ There was a time when he was received with love, but when he spoke truth that challenged people, he became an enemy in their eyes. This reminds us that faithfulness to God’s Word may change how others respond to us, but it does not change our responsibility to speak truth in love.”
“My desire has never been to attack people, but to point them to Jesus Christ, whom I believe is the only way to salvation,” Lucas continued. “…From the day we arrived, my family and I have loved this community. We have sought to serve, pray, feed the hungry, care for children and families, and walk alongside people in times of joy and hardship. We have helped repair homes for those in need, fed the homeless, sat in hospital rooms with the sick, visited the elderly in nursing homes, and spent time with prisoners in jail cells. We have provided Christmas toys every year, backpacks and school supplies, tennis shoes and clothing for those who needed them. We built a recreation center for kids to gather, took students on field trips, and stood with families through funerals and weddings. We have shared in everyday life together. This is our home. Although we have different spiritual beliefs, that has never changed my love or my commitment to serve the Wind River Reservation. I will continue to obey God as He has called me, while striving to speak the truth in love, remembering always that love speaks truth.”
“They still have the mentality of ‘kill the Indian, save the man…'”
“They still think that they’re saving us… as Indigenous peoples… (they are) still trying to indoctrinate us, which is wrong,” Groesbeck said in response to Lucas stating that she and the church are not leaving as directed. “This is 2026, and they still have the mentality of ‘kill the Indian, save the man.'”
As for Lucas’s comments about taking the matter to federal court, Groesbeck said, “They’re well within their bounds to do that.”
“They could, it’s probably going to get drawn out in court, but regardless, we’re going to do what we got to do on our side, you know,” Groesbeck stated. “Ultimately, we have a court system out here… we’re a sovereign nation, so we have that right to govern ourselves and govern our boundaries, our reservation boundaries.”
“If she wants to push it like that, she can, but if she had any respect or any dignity, she’d just admit that she was wrong for doing all of that, because she was,” Moss also stated. “On so many levels, she was wrong for doing that, and at the end of the day, she wore out of welcome here. …They need to take their practice somewhere else, because she disrespected my whole entire tribe… She disrespected me… all my ceremonial elders, which I have the most outward respect for all my ceremonial elders, along with our Old Man Pipe.”
In regard to Lucas stating that she and her family have received death threats, Groesbeck pointed to the peaceful protests he has witnessed.
“I can’t speak for everybody, but I do know the majority of the people who are protesting, they are doing it peacefully,” Groesbeck said, adding that protestors who showed up at the July 12 service at the Ministry site noted/recorded he Lucases being escorted by armed individuals into and out of the service, which he called “disturbing.”
Groesbeck said attention to the situation is growing daily.
“This issue is kind of like wildfire. It’s all over Indian Country now. We’ve got a lot of people reaching out to us from other tribes wanting to know what’s going on… It has upset a lot of people from quite a few other tribes throughout the United States.”
County 10 will continue to report on the situation, along with any ensuing court cases.