I buy books for professional development. Some are theological, some are Bible Studies, and others are books to help me put more tools in my tool belt. Recently, I purchased a quick read on anxiety since anxiety is so prevalent, especially after 2020. I know I’ve felt more anxious recently, so I pulled that … Read more
The Church celebrated this past year the lowest attending Sunday of all: Christmas. It’s common to hear laments of how few church goers attend on Christmas Day, but even more so when it lands on a Sunday as it did in 2022. Social Media was full of warning posts to Christians the week before. “Christians … Read more
In August, I became the Preschool Director and an assistant in the afternoon class. It is fun doing something new. One of the benefits of working more closely with both the church and the Preschool is being able to brainstorm ways our church and Preschool can become more integrated. In September, we had … Read more
I love All Saints’ Day! It is one of my favorite Sundays and services of the year. The imagery is beautiful. All Saints’ Day brings to the forefront something we know but may not always take time to acknowledge. We are CELEBRATING with the saints of all times, places, and peoples. In our sermon on … Read more
I had the opportunity to attend a few conferences at the very end of September and the beginning of October. One of my favorites to attend is our Indiana District DCE conference. Mark Kiessling, Director of Youth Ministry in the LCMS, was our speaker. He spoke about young adults and how/why they stay, or leave … Read more
Church attendance is one of the most frustrating things to address. It’s hard not to sound legalistic: “Come to church – or else!” It’s hard not to sound like church is about numbers: “We NEED stronger attendance, We NEED more young families, We NEED more giving!” It’s hard not to sound like it’s being taken … Read more
Recently, I had the privilege of attending a Lutheran Administrator’s Conference in Florida. While I was there, I learned many things about Early Childhood Education and Administration. I also received a few books at the conference. I decided to start with a one written by Jeffrey Leininger called Callings for Life: God’s Plan, Your Purpose. … Read more
This article was written for our March Newsletter. “Your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for” You may have noticed the past couple of Sundays that I gave a different blessing at the end of each communion table. Instead of normally saying “Depart in peace; your sins are forgiven”, I said “Depart in … Read more
Something I enjoy is history in the Bible unfold. In preparing for Kitchen Table Bible Study, I’ve been reading through the book of Hosea and listening to commentaries on Hosea. I think it’s fascinating the amount of history that plays into the first few chapters of Hosea. Israel’s early history in the promised land sets … Read more
A few weeks ago, we were blessed to hear the Kantorei from the Seminary in Fort Wayne sing in church. When all the members of the choir were returning from Communion, one of my toddlers said, “That’s a lot of pastors.” It made us chuckle because it’s not entirely accurate, yet. Most, if not all, … Read more