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Snapshots of our Social Media Lives
By Elisabeth Horning We all want our lives to look perfect to the outside world. In the age of rampant social media, the pressure to look perfect and have a perfect home and weigh a certain amount is multiplied. In fact, it is multiplied so much so, we lose sight of who we are if we aren’t careful. It is all too easy to begin thinking we’re not good enough. One of my favorite social media platforms is Instagram. I’ve been an active member of the app since its inception, and I’ve watched it grow. The best part of Instagram? The filters. Anyone who has an account knows what I…
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7 Simple Ways to Serve Your Sunday School Teacher
By Pam Thompson I’ve been teaching Sunday School off and on (more on than off) since I was in high school. You could probably say I am a professional Sunday School teacher. I’ve taught classes that had only my own children enrolled other classes with as many as 15 eager (and not-so-eager) students. Teaching Sunday School is a labor of love, but there are some things that would make my job even better. Insist on respectful behavior. A Sunday School teacher may or may not have a teaching degree, but they do have authority over their students. Most Sunday School periods are as short as 40 minutes, which is not a lot…
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Whitewashed In Brokenness
By Kaitlin Jandereski A lot of normality goes on in this world. People wake up, fix their daily cup of joe and read their Treasury of Daily Prayer. Then they brush their teeth, comb their hair, clock in and end the day with tired feet. It’s all in the day-to-day grind. Except when it’s not. Except when something is off, when your stomach turns before you know why, when your day-to-day life isn’t like any other day anymore. I had a day like that and I think it’s important that we talk about it. *** On a winter eve, a friend of mine had asked me to come to his…
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Article XXIII (XI): Of the Marriage of Priests- Part 1
1] Despite the great infamy of their defiled celibacy, the adversaries have the presumption not only to defend the pontifical law by the wicked and false pretext of the divine name, but even to exhort the Emperor and princes, to the disgrace and infamy of the Roman Empire, not to tolerate the marriage of priests. For thus they speak. [Although the great, unheard-of lewdness, fornication, and adultery among priests, monks, etc., at the great abbeys, in other churches and cloisters, has become so notorious throughout the world that people sing and talk about it, still the adversaries who have presented the Confutation are so blind and without shame that they…
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Article XXII (X): Of Both Kinds In the Lord’s Supper
1] It cannot be doubted that it is godly and in accordance with the institution of Christ and the words of Paul to use both parts in the Lord’s Supper. For Christ instituted both parts, and instituted them not for a part of the Church, but for the entire Church. For not only the presbyters, but the entire Church uses the Sacrament by the authority of Christ, and not by human authority; and this, 2] we suppose, the adversaries acknowledge. Now, if Christ has instituted it for the entire Church, why is one kind denied to a part of the Church? Why is the use of the other kind prohibited?…
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Celebrating the Church Year In May
By Marie McNary Are you ready to start May celebrating our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ? I sure am! This month as we study and learn more about the Church Year, I want to take us to the Treasury of Daily Prayer. This book is a daily devotional resource written around the Christian Church Year. (In case you missed it, this site just had a post walking you through the book. Dust off your copy (or head over to CPH and buy one or borrow a copy from your Church library) and get a great overview of each day we celebrate this month. May 1: St. Philip and St. James,…
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The Post-Confirmation Journey
By Ellie Corrow The Confirmation Season undoubtedly brings a great deal of joy to many families, as children go through this rite of passage, finally receiving the Sacrament of the Altar alongside their parents. Indeed, Palm Sunday this year was, for me, easily one of the happiest days of life, as I admittedly wiped a tear or two, watching my son confess his faith before God, our pastors, and the congregation; it was a time of enormous thanksgiving, as we gave thanks to God for the faith He had given my son and the other confirmands, and a time of reflection, as I considered the road that had brought us…
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The Perfect Potluck Plate {infographic}
By Vanessa Rasanen Who doesn’t love a church potluck? I mean, sure, it can be stressful sometimes to decide what to bring, but there’s just something comforting and wonderful about the homemade secret-recipe hot-dishes mingling with box of store-bought donuts being passed off as desserts (ahem, not that I’ve ever done that or anything…). Not to mention the salads that aren’t really salads at all — hello, jello. My favorite! But potlucks may not always be happy affairs. Without proper planning and execution, your potluck plate can end up being a sad dish of regret rather than the happy helping of comfort and joy. To help avoid the unfortunate, here’s…
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Call Week
By Holly Scheer This is “Call Week” for the LCMS. This is the week when Vicarage placements, Deaconess assignments, and first Calls for seminarians are issued. The services started Monday night and continue through the week. You can view them in real time or check out the lists after the fact — here and here. For anyone unfamiliar with the gravity of this week, here’s a bit of background. Most of the pastors and deaconesses in our Synod, after completing their bachelor’s degree, are trained at one of two seminaries — Ft. Wayne and St. Louis. This involves uprooting the family and moving. That’s move number one. After their second year of study,…
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Treasury of Daily Prayer
By Amanda Markel Many individuals and families struggle with having a devotional time in the home. What should this time look like? What do you actually need to do? What resources are available — and not just available, but theologically sound — for you to use? A few years ago, Concordia Publishing House came out with a book that takes all of the guesswork out of spending time in the Word. It’s called the Treasury of Daily Prayer, and it’s a wonderful resource for use in the home, for people of all ages and from all walks of life. And the best part is, you don’t have to worry about…
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