by Rev. William Weedon Have you ever noticed how the theme of joy trumpets through the Church’s hymns at Christmas? “Joy to the World,” “O Rejoice, Ye Christians, Loudly,” “Rejoice, Rejoice This Happy Morn,” “All My Heart Again Rejoices.” And those are just the opening lines of a few hymns! Whence this Christmas joy? Read …
by Theresa M. Shaltanis I lost my wife three years ago the week after Thanksgiving. Since then, this time of year has felt empty to me. Friends have told me it’s time I get over this, but I just can’t. What can you suggest that might make this time less melancholy? The death of a …
by Dr. Jerald C. Joersz Some TV evangelists and writers of popular religious books promote a view of the end times called “dispensationalism.” What is dispensationalism? How does it differ from how Lutherans understand biblical teaching about the end of the world? Dispensationalism (or “premillennial dispensationalism”) is a teaching that divides biblical history into seven …
‘This is all I have to give you,’ she said sadly. What a wonderful gift! It reminded me of Mark 12:42.
A number of Christmas hymns are associated with Martin Luther. Here are the most familiar.
A trip to a hometown ‘holiday’ celebration creates an opportunity to share the good news of Jesus’ birth.
If we simply tell “how much the Lord has done for [us],” wonderful miracles can happen.
The history of this favorite Christmas hymn is as vibrant and compelling as the hymn itself.
A family Christmas tradition offers an opportunity to ponder the amazing miracle of God’s grace and rejoice at the birth of His Son.
As our authors this month remind us, we have much to be thankful for, not only in the temporal sense—from the perspective of the rest of the world, we are blessed beyond measure even in these difficult times— but also in the spiritual sense, for we have been redeemed by Christ, sanctified by the Holy Spirit, and counted as our heavenly Father’s own dear children.
How a New York congregation helps ‘keep the home fires burning’ and serves as an example of the work of Operation Barnabas.
After reading the lead articles in the September issue (“Planting New Churches” and “In the Public Eye”), I reflected once again on how easy it is to have too narrow a focus even as “we” are highlighting our broadness. Here’s a case in point from each article: First, while demonstrating the diversity of new mission …