I believe that all baptized children are welcome to the Altar. The following is a guide that will hopefully help parents with bringing their children forward to receive communion. First, for all children, it’s important to see what’s going on at the altar. There is a drama unfolding at the the table during the liturgy and like any good drama it should be seen and heard first hand. Parents might sit in a pew closer Read More …
Many people outside of San Diego probably don’t know about Jeff & Jer’s “Breaking and Entering Christmas.” The concept of the event is this. People will send in letters on the behalf of needy families. The Jeff & Jer Radio Show chooses a family and the show’s producer, Little Tommy, takes some of his friends from Chula Vista break into their house and leave presents for the whole family. They get locksmiths, police, and Read More …
A new school year has started and I want to drop some words of wisdom on the next class. For those of you in Seminary here are some tips for succeeding at getting your master’s degree. 1. Realize this is a choice: It may not feel like you have a choice, but you do. You can quit anytime you want. There is no one making you do this. You have been called to a path that Read More …
“It is folly, it is madness, to fill our wardrobes full of clothes and to regard with indifference a human being, a being made in the image and likeness of God, who is naked, trembling with cold and almost unable to stand.You say: ‘But that fellow there is pretending to tremble and not to have any strength.” So what? If that poor fellow is putting it on, he is doing it because he is trapped Read More …
Rachel Held Evans posted on her blog a wonderful article, 11 Things I Wish More Pastors Would Say. As a Pastor in training, I think the flip side of the coin is also important. Here are 10 Things I Wish More Parishioners Would Say in no particular order. “Take some time off, we can handle it around here.” “I pray for you daily” (And actually does it). “Can I take you out to lunch?” “I didn’t understand Read More …
So, I’m reading Theology for the Community of God by Stanley Grenz in preparation for a sermon I’m giving on Trinity Sunday. Before I get into the thick of it let me tell you, this is a fine book. His understanding of the Trinity is very well done. In fact, I’ll use a good portion of what he writes as a basis for my sermon. BUT, I came to the following section and I had some Read More …
On August 29, 1996 Bill Clinton said at the Democratic National Convention, “Abortion should not only be safe and legal, it should be rare.” I couldn’t agree with him more. Unfortunately, it seems the most ardent modern pro-choice advocates have forgotten the “rare” part of Clinton’s comment. When it comes to the ethics surrounding abortion, the focus seems to have fundamentally shifted; the question of whether or not the child is a living being seems to Read More …
Where did the water go? As a person who goes into the sanctuary almost daily I find it odd when I find the Baptismal font empty. In some congregations the baptismal font is filled before the Sunday service and emptied afterward. I am not sure why some Altar Guilds do this. I think that I can make a case that the Baptismal font should always have water in it (Lent is not exception to this, but Read More …
Worship, outreach, learning, and fellowship are core aspects of any healthy youth ministry; exclude any one of these and a youth ministry is found wanting. Though a youth ministry needs these four practices, it doesn’t mean that all four need to be done at every meeting. Each gathering should be purposeful in its planning and implementation. Even a plan to “just hang out,” is still a plan. Here is a regular youth group meeting Read More …
I came across the following site in my search for contemporary-written in the last 50 years or so-praise music in Lutheran congregations. The Missouri Synod has put out the following document in which it gives contemporary songs and how they fit in to Lutheran theology. LCMS you may have gotten a little crazy with the whole youth gathering SNAFU, but thank you for this. You are doing this right. Here’s what I like about Read More …