Insight and perspective from LCMS leaders
A modern day lamentation based on Lamentations 2:13-22. "What can I say for you, to what should I compare you… Christianity’s ruin is vast as the sea; and the United States, who can heal you?! What a mess… almost seems a lost cause."
This tornado struck just 3 days after the local LERT training on March 12th. The congregation saw a need, hosted the training and became certified for disaster preparedness. No one knew at the time that they themselves would hear the tornado sirens just a few days later. Because the team was trained beforehand, they knew what to do and responded to their community.
Lutheran Congregational Mercy Work Over the last 15 years there has been a renaissance of congregational mercy work across the congregations in the LCMS. Much of this resurgence was due…
However, for almost two decades there has been an increased reliance on government funding NGOs. Many large faith-based organizations now get well over 50 percent of their annual income from the government funding sources and depend substantially on government budgets, election results, and political parties for funding their social work projects.
On January 29, 2001, President George W. Bush signed an executive order establishing The White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives (OFBCI). Many non-government organizations (NGOs) including congregations, denominations,…
We typically don’t view our nations colleges and universities as havens of virtue, but I have found that there is one virtue that nearly always reigns supreme at a given…
The Community Health Education (CHE) offered by LCMS Mercy Medical Teams is just as important as the clinical work that we provide. Through education, many conditions and diseases can be prevented, decreasing the need for medical care and improving the health of our partners.
The fact is that long term rebuilding is difficult and is not glamorous. However, LCMS Disaster Response is committed to helping communities rebuild for up to three years after a disaster has torn apart lives and homes. LCMS congregations are anchors in their community. They serve as a lighthouse of the Gospel and they can be a mercy center for helping others in a time of need.
Teach the Basics: Equipping volunteers to serve in ministry.
The need for healthcare and education internationally is enormous, and the MMT program will continue to walk alongside our international partners to help meet this need. However, that same need exists right here in the United States as well.
Families must be able to cope with disaster by preparing and working as a team. Maintaining a ready supply of food, water, hygiene, health items and a few basic tools can go a long way to making sure your family can take care of itself for a few days without outside help.
When we see positive data like the Youth Polls present, why wouldn’t we want that for all our teens? How are we investing in all youth?
On The Sign Of The Cross In Baptism - A Poem by Henry Alford In token that thou shalt not fear Christ crucified to own, We print the Cross upon…
For almost a decade LCMS Disaster Response has been training Lutheran Early Response Teams (LERT). In fact, there are over 14,000 trained LERT members across the LCMS. I am often asked how we can get a LERT training event at my church and what should I expect during the training.
Martin Luther died at 3:00 AM on February 18, 1546. Contrary to the expectations of Luther and many of his colleagues, he did not die in Wittenberg, the location of many of his greatest accomplishments.