Good morning: Yesterday morning after our VBS opening devotion, a preschooler, hand in hand with his teacher, came to my office on an urgent mission. The little one had arrived late, missed the collection during the devotion, and was concerned that he wouldn’t be able to give his offering to help other children learn about…
Good morning: You’re heading down the freeway, making good time toward your destination. Suddenly you see a solid river of red brake lights stretching for miles ahead. Like many others, wouldn’t you veer off onto the nearest exit and avoid the backup and long delay? It’s the path of least resistance and sometimes it’s the…
Good morning: Which would you rather be: a student or the teacher, one of thousands of employees of a Fortune 500 company or the CEO, a slave or the master? Most of us would quickly agree that we would much rather be the teacher, the boss, or the master. Aren’t they the ones who benefit…
Good morning: At one time or another you have probably heard the expression: “The elephant in the room.” It’s used to describe a major issue which everyone is aware of, but no one wants to talk about. A husband and wife who can’t agree on priorities for the family budget may skirt the issue by…
Good morning: “I’ll forgive, but I won’t forget!” “I’ve forgiven them, but I’ll never speak to them again for as long as I live!” “I’ll forgive as long as they don’t do it again.” Forgiveness from our human perspective is limited. It’s just not in us by nature to forgive completely and unconditionally, no matter…
Good morning: Tomorrow is designated on the church calendar as Trinity Sunday, and in many of our CLC churches the Apostles’ Creed will be replaced with the much longer Athanasian Creed. It is fitting since the Athanasian Creed delves into the mystery of how God is one God and yet, at the same time, three…
Good morning: Run through a list of all the people you know. Do you envy someone because they seem to “have it all together”? Do you wonder how they manage to have all the answers, be so sure of things, and keep all the aspects of their lives going smoothly? The truth is, no one…
Good morning: Tomorrow is Confirmation Sunday. We look forward to hearing four young men confess their Christian faith in preparation for receiving the strengthening and comforting blessing of Jesus’ body and blood in Holy Communion. It’s easy to think of the confirmands standing in front of the congregation as the center of attention. Yet that…
Good morning: “I don’t want to go to school!” Sooner or later nearly every child says that to Mom and Dad. There may be tears and tantrums as the parents try to convince the son or daughter that school is good and learning is important. In our complicated, technology-driven world, education is essential. Learning to…
Good morning: Did you wake up this morning with a favorite melody playing in your head? Did you take advantage of bathroom acoustics and sing in the shower? We like to sing. Even if our voices and sense of pitch are less than ideal, there’s nothing quite like expressing ourselves in song. Joy, sadness, and…