Lutheran Witness: October 2008
As with last month, we are overflowing with feature stories, beginning with our Reformation cover story by Dr. Robert A. Kolb and Dr. Charles P. Arand.
Pilots Help Tell the Story
by Diane Strzelecki Nate Predoehl, a lifelong Lutheran, first heard about Mission Central from his mother, who had seen Gary Thies speak at an LWML event. He later met Thies at his church, Good Shepherd Lutheran, in Gretna, Neb., after Thies’ presentation there. “After he learned that I was a corporate pilot, Gary asked right …
“With the Cross of Jesus”
by James Heine While a raging Cedar River may have forced Harlan and Marge Ketelsen to abandon the home they have lived in for 50 years, it has not dampened Ketelsen’s determination to continue producing the little walnut crosses he has been distributing for 25 years. “Harlan’s crosses have traveled around the world,” says Rev. …
I, Athanasius
Accused of murder and exiled five times, Athanasius did not lead a dull life. Later, he even had a creed named after him. by Rev. Gordon A. Beck Although I have an unusual name for the final years of the 20th century, it was a common-enough name in the decades leading up to the fall …
Just a Layman?
Serving God and others with our gifts of knowledge, wisdom, time, and financial resources is a very important part of our Christian calling.
Shedding Some Light
Back to School: Test Preparation One night, after they had helped their son, Mike, with his homework and then tucked him safely in bed, Mike’s parents overheard this prayer just after they closed his bedroom door: “Now I lay me down to rest. I hope to pass tomorrow’s test. If I should die before I …
Is a New Beginning Possible?
by Dr. Randy Schroeder I found out recently that over a six-month period my husband had an affair with one of his co-workers. I was so devastated and heartbroken that I told my best friend. She said I should divorce him because I have biblical reasons. I don’t know what to do. I thought we …
A dedicated servant
Thanks for the beautiful article “When at Last I Near the Shore” by Edie Sodowsky in the May Lutheran Witness. Mrs. Esther Wilke was a member of the church we have attended for many years. She was a quietly faithful and dedicated servant of the Lord in church, in the LWML, in helping with the …
The older brother
Several times I have listened to sermons about the prodigal son and have been disappointed that the older son’s reaction is either ignored or taken to such an extreme it is hard to personally relate to his reaction toward the return of his younger brother. Once again, in June’s “Searching Scripture,” the older brother was …
Degrees of glory
Regarding “Degrees of Glory” (“Q&A,” June/July): Jesus’ parable, “Laborers in the Vineyard” (Matt. 20:1–16), does not support the response to the question. See verse 12: “‘These men who were hired last worked only one hour,’ they said, ‘and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the …
Does everything mean ‘everything’?
God Bless the Jack Karches in our midst! EMT, chaplain, pastor! I can’t imagine a better combination for this day and age. What a thought-provoking essay, so much so that I ask for a sequel by Rev Karch. Regarding the last incident he mentions, I want to know how he would respond to those parents …
In the footsteps of Luther and Paul
As you read these lines, we will have traveled this summer with both Luther and Paul, visiting Rome and Turkey, where our New Testament churches took root and grew. The June/July Lutheran Witness projects a Martin Luther exhibiting a rock-like determination to read the apostolic words of Paul, who indeed was knocked down on the …