Going to church as a family is a blessing. When young children are a part of your family, you need to think ahead when it comes to church. Families with young children may need to ask these questions when preparing for worship: “How do I help my child participate in the service?”; “How do I help them concentrate?”; “What should I do if my child wants to start moving around?”

A popular way churches equip families with young children is by providing “busy bags” or “quiet bags” to keep children engaged during the church service. Rather than putting together a random selection of toys or books, consider these resources, which will also help your child learn about what they are experiencing at church!

As we move on from the Ten Commandments portion of Luther’s Small Catechism, we will look at two articles of the Apostles’ Creed and examine what they mean. We will use Law and Gospel to view these two parts of the Creed.

The season of Lent is a time to reflect on repentance, grow in love, and recognize Jesus’ work on the cross. Lent connects us to the Bride of Christ throughout all time and all places. It is historic. It is personal. However, that doesn’t mean that it is easy to teach! Let’s take a little pressure off of planning and look at 5 books to use during this Lenten season to teach kids what it means that God made us His through Jesus.

One of the challenges of teaching the Ten Commandments is helping students to understand that God’s directives and prohibitions are broader than they seem.

Vacation Bible School is a great tool for engagement, learning about Jesus, and sharing the Gospel. It is a big undertaking to plan and put together a successful VBS.

The month of January marks not only a new year but the start of a fresh series of blogs for Sunday School teachers. The plan over the coming months is to reflect upon and offer teaching ideas related to the Six Chief Parts of Luther’s Small Catechism. The Six Chief Parts are the Ten Commandments, the Apostles’ Creed, the Lord’s Prayer, the Sacrament of Holy Baptism, Confession, and the Sacrament of the Altar. It is my sincere hope that this series will be an edifying confirmation review for you, the teacher, and a useful tool for presenting the basics of the faith to your students.

When we teach children, we tend to simplify things. When we teach children about God, we want them to understand the truths we are communicating on their level in a way that is comforting, helpful, and life-giving for them. Today, I would like to propose that we use the “big words” of our faith when we teach our kids, preteens, and teenagers, whether that be in the home, in the church, or in a school setting. When it comes to terms like justification, sanctification, absolution, incarnation, Law, Gospel, atonement, resurrection, ascension, and so on, which ones have you taken the time to use and define with the young people in your life?

The den of our home features a set of large windows. Aside from the aesthetic beauty of their shape and design, the windows also let in a more-than-ample amount of glorious sunshine throughout the year. Little compares to napping in the easy chair with beams of solar warmth pouring over you. The only downside to so much light is that the illumination mercilessly reveals the dust all over the furniture and television and even floating through the air. I just dusted yesterday! Light is glorious except when it reveals imperfections.

The Lord speaks to His people through the prophet Malachi in the fifth century before Christ regarding a similarly thorough revelation.

This summer at Vacation Bible School, we’re covered in Jesus’ grace! Our theme for this year, God’s Living Water: Covered in Jesus’ Grace, is inspired by 1 Timothy 1:14, which says, “The grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.” Each of the lessons focuses on biblical accounts that emphasize the Living Water, Jesus Christ. In this post, we’ll break down how to use the curriculum for Vacation Bible School.

At Halloween when I was a child, one of my brothers and I would trick-or-treat in the apartment complex where we lived. One year, we were both costumed as characters from the television science-fiction program Battlestar Galactica, which was popular at the time. But every year, we made the most efficient use of our time by starting out the moment trick-or-treating hours began, trying to garner as much candy as possible by hitting every apartment with its light on.