Browsing

Impossible Dream or Resurrection Reality?

Lectionary Reflection for the Second Sunday of Easter, April 15, 2012
No doubt about it, this Sunday is a great day to talk about stewardship and generosity. The lesson from Acts lifts up a model for Christian community that is both controversial and compelling. Are you up to the challenge? (Photo by stephen.willis used under Creative Commons License. Thanks!0

From Wrath to Worth

Lectionary Reflection for the 4th Sunday in Lent March 18, 2012 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God—not the result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are what he has made us, created in Christ Jesus […]

My season of sacrifice and self denial

IT’S PERSONAL BLOG:
I can truly relate to what Jesus is saying in this Sunday’s Gospel lesson, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me“ (Mark 8:34b). Deny myself? Oh yeah! During Lent I’m all about self denial. (Photo by Randy OHC, used by Creative Commons license. Thanks!)

A Glimpse of God-Light

Lectionary reflection for the Transfiguration of our Lord
February 19, 2012
By the love, grace, and light of Christ we are transfigured. In turn, we are called to let the God-Light of Christ shine through our lives to illumine the Way for others. (Photo by qmnonic used under Creative Commons License. Thanks!)

Fostering Giving all Year Long

‘Tis the season of gift-giving, but what about the rest of the year? Jeremy Adam Smith offers seven tips to foster giving every day of the year. Imagine how the lives of individuals and congregations might be changed by placing an emphasis on these simple principles. Click here to read Smith’s article on The Daily […]

For Granted– From Whence Cometh Your Food?

JUST LIVING Blog Have you started your preparation and cooking for Thanksgiving yet? For most of us here in North America, the meal will be a dandy one replete with family recipes, everyone’s favorites, and a table or buffet filled with delicacies. Even those who will be sharing community meals or serving in shelters and […]

For Granted–Groceries & Financial Preparedness

JUST LIVING Blog
A trip to the grocery store reminds our blogger that her daughter’s financial health and preparedness are not to be taken for granted. (Photo by gmnonic used under Creative Commons License. Thanks!

A recipe for home stewardship

IT’S PERSONAL BLOG – As a privileged, yuppie newspaper reporter in the 1980s, I was surprised to learn that the Salvation Army Citadel in my city was offering cooking classes for residents of its poorest neighborhood. I envisioned gourmet lessons a la Martha Stewart or Julia Child. What? Boeuf bourguignon avec champignons for the down […]

The New Financial Reality

It is fact that our children are not destined to inherit our standard of living and financial ease. Trent Hamm, author and blogger, runs a series of numbers in response to a reader’s question that show the extent of how our financial situation has changed and the present and future generations face. The question is […]

Environmental Awareness for Confirmands

One aspect of the Christian life that often gets little attention in most Lutheran confirmation programs is environmental stewardship. Following is a six-session program that concentrates on how each individual person interacts with his or her surrounding environment. The program has three basic goals; an awareness of how many resources it takes for each of us to live, an awareness of the amounts and kinds of waste each of us generates, and an awareness of our human and Christian responsibility to steward the use of God’s creation.