Reading & Study

Seven ‘senses’ of teen leaders

From my 38 years in LCMS Youth Ministry, I've observed youth who make strong leaders to have certain God-given gifts in common.

Disaster Response Conference in South America for Pastors and Seminarians

Last week LCMS Disaster Response and Luther Academy led a three day conference in South America for 76 Pastors and Seminarians on how to respond to disasters and minister to people hurting from a wide variety of tragedies.

Reformation Spotlight: Johann Walter

Johann Walter lived through the early and late years of the Lutheran Reformation, and as the “first cantor of the Lutheran Church,” significantly shaped the musical life of the church.

Catechism Study: The Lord’s Prayer

As recorded in Luke 11, the disciples ask Jesus to teach them how to pray, and he does not respond with comments about posture or attitude or sentiment, but with specific words that serve as a foundation on which all Christian prayer is built.

Lutheran Spotlight: Johannes Bugenhagen

If the Reformation is compared to a vine, the work of men like Johannes Bugenhagen may be likened to a trellis. Bugenhagen was a reformer without whom...

The Church and Mental Health Workshop Audio Presentations

These audio presentations were recorded on Saturday, April 9, 2016, when LCMS Life Ministry hosted a one-day symposium at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis.

Big Things are Happening in Latin America

There are about 14,000 trained volunteers across the United States and about 2,000 more are trained every year. What you might not know is that we train leaders and missionaries around the world to respond mercifully in times of tragedy with the love of Christ.

LCMS Disaster Response takes a FORO into Uruguay

LCMS Disaster Response’s role at the FORO is to be a subject matter expert in the area of Mercy work and giving a merciful response in times of tragedy.

Why Luther’s Hymns Sound the Way They Do

A composer can never escape his own style, and this is true even of amateur composers such as Martin Luther. Embracing the musical arts in both his schooling and his cloistered life, Luther became a proficient instrumentalist on the lute and the transverse flute.

Lost

You have probably read the startling statistics of teens and young adults lost from the church. The church must take seriously the search for young adults. God hasn’t given up on bringing them back, and neither should we.

Helping the Right Way

The most well-intentioned gifts, given in the wrong way, often end up hurting the recipient, the community, and the local church.

Journal of Lutheran Mission – April 2016

Featuring papers from the recent LCMS Mission Summit, the April issue of the Journal of Lutheran Mission discusses and critiques seminary education and the importance of teaching the faith both at home and around the world.

Bible Study with Luther: Galatians 3:1-9

The Holy Spirit is not simply the initial cause of faith but continues to be at work in the life of the Church keeping us in the faith by the proclamation of the Word and through that faith the Lord declares us to be righteous and heirs of eternal life.

When Trolls Attack

By Peter Slayton One of the most discouraging things about social media is the existence of trolls. I’m not talking about your high school friend that disagrees with every single…

The Doctrine of the Church in the Lutheran Confessions

In 1521 Thomas Murner, one of Luther’s early Catholic opponents, attacked Luther’s view of the church, accusing him of “building a church the way that Plato builds a city”