I recently removed several unused books from one of the shelves in my office at church, and as I looked at some of them, I realized I should never have bought them. Some of the other books I removed had found their way into my possession because I claimed them off of some freebie table. I should have let those books remain as orphans on that freebie table. There are other books that I bought thinking they would become long-term resources for my ministry, but trends change.

After school is homework time at my house. The kids are working on their homework, and as I tell them, “Mom has some homework too.” So they work through math problems, reading assignments, and memory work while I tackle emails or other work projects that need to be addressed before the end of the day. Recently, during our homework time, I perked up when my eight-year-old said, “Alexa, open the Small Catechism.” Alexa greeted him, then Connor asked, “Alexa, what is the Second Commandment?”

At a time when the world endures the pain and devastation of sin, the music of the church provides a special comfort. The life of Johann Sebastian Bach, a Lutheran composer of renown, comes to mind on this day, the anniversary of his death, as his music shaped generations of Church music around the world.  This special excerpt from Celebrating the Saints on the life of Johann Sebastian Bach includes a brief biography and ends with a prayer asking God's continued blessings from Bach's and other composer's music:

This prayer has been well loved by the church for years. Luther’s words accompany many of us each night as we talk with God. As Lutherans, we learn this prayer in childhood.

Luther's morning prayer has been well loved by the church for years. Luther’s words accompany many of us each morning as we talk with God.

In the following excerpt from his book, Being Lutheran, author Trevor Sutton talks about Jesus saving the world from a “meh” mentality and what that means for us as followers of Christ.

Martin Luther had a lot to say about a lot of things. The poor man even ate dinner with people sitting around taking notes every time he spoke. As a result of Luther saying so much for so long, Luther quotes can often be apocryphal in nature. When I hear one of these quotes, I like to say, “Well that certainly sounds like something Luther could have said, and maybe he should have said it, but he actually never did, as far as we know.”

National Lutheran Schools Week is always a great time to show appreciation not only for Lutheran schools but also for the teachers who make it such a wonderful place. All too often, however, the week sneaks up on us, and we’re left without time or ideas to show our teachers how much we care! Take about five minutes to read the five ideas below for ways to show our Lutheran teachers our love and support!

Lutherans teach that our Lord Jesus Christ “will come again to judge the living and the dead” (Apostles’ Creed).