Find many of the MERCY Pamphlets HERE.

Click HERE a number of papers on the various aspects of the church's role of mercy in the world.

Pastor H.

Key to keeping the passion in a Lutheran marriage?

CRUX sola est nostra theologia.

Luther, WA 5.176.32-33.

As Luther remarks, Anfechtung, 'in so far as it takes everything away from us, leaves us nothing but God: it cannot take God aweay from us, and actually brings him closer to us.' It is through undergoing the torment of the cross, death and hell that true theology and the knowledge of God come about. 'The Cross alone is our theology (CRUX sola est nostra theologia). It is only by experiencing the wrath of God in this manner that a man becomes a 'theologian of the cross.' It is precisely this consideration which underlies Luther's celebrated statement concerning the qualifications of a true theologian: 'living, or rather dying and being damned make a theologian, not understanding, reading or speculating' (vivendo immo moriendo et damnando fit theologus, non intelligendo, legendo aut speculando).

McGrath, Luther's Theology of the Cross, p. 152.

Find the Web page of the Confessional Lutheran Church of Chile

HERE.

USGS Shakemap for Chile 2/27/10

Visit to Springfield Missouri for my son's Lutheran Schools B-Ball tourney

Goin' Down the Road Feelin' Bad

"We are faced with the demand of a life under the cross."

The meaning of the cross does not disclose itself in contemplative thought but only in experience. The theologian of the cross does not confront the cross of Christ as a spectator, but is himself drawn into this event. He knows that God can be found only in cross and suffering (W. I, 262, 28f). For that reason he does not, like the theologian of glory, shun suffering, but regards it as he would the holy relics, which are to be embraced devoutly. For God himself is "hidden in sufferings" and wants us to worship him as such. If the footprints of God in our life are all to visible before us, we have no need of faith, and then faith does not come into being. Therefore faith stands in a closer relationship to suffering than to works. If we are serious about the idea of God and the concept of faith in the theology of the cross, we are faced with the demand of a life under the cross.

von Loewenich, Luther's Theology of the Cross, p. 113.

Paper on Paul's Collection for Jerusalem, Preface by Dean Wenthe

Here's a paper produced a couple of years ago on St. Paul's great collection for the poor in Jerusalem.

Pastor H.


One of the constant callings and simultaneous challenges for the church is to embody Christ’spresence in concrete acts of charity and mercy. As the faithful hear the living voice of Jesus through His apostles and prophets, and as they experience His presence at the font and on the altar, they are to live out this gracious reality of God’s mercy and compassion in Christ. Matthew C. Harrison’s study of Paul’s collection for Jerusalem displays how Paul’s theology was embodied in this apostolic effort. The examination of scriptural texts is scholarly and thorough. At the same time the author goes beyond exegetical research that remains abstract. Rather, Harrison persuasively recommends that Paul’s practice is the appropriate paradigm for churchly care and compassion for the neighbor in the 21st century. Here is a refreshing, scriptural antidote to a sterile and abstract orthodoxy on the one hand, and liberalism’s empty effort to do good on the other hand. Here Christ and His gifts permeate the actions as well as the thought of the church. Readers will benefit from this insightful exposition of a frequently neglected aspect of Paul’s apostolic mission. May the church hear afresh Paul’s invitation: “Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.” 1 Corinthians 11:1

Dean O. Wenthe
September 2007

Click HERE.

De fructu verae et seriae poenitentiae

If you know that "ubi" means "where" and "ibi" means "there", then this passage from Gerhard's great Sacred Meditations is quite simple. Ignatius wrote "Ubi Christus, ibi ecclesia", "Where there is Christ, there is the church."

Matt H.


Fundamentum et principum sanctae vitae est salutaris poenitentia.
Ubi enim vera poenitentia, ibi remissio peccatorum;
ubi peccatorum remission, ibi gratia Dei;
ubi gratia Dei, ibi Christus;
ubi Christus, ibi ipsius meritum;
ubi Christus meritum, ibi satisfactio pro peccatis;
ubi satisfactio pro peccatis, ibi justitia;
ubi justitia, ibi laeta et tranquilla conscientia;
ubi tranquillitas conscientiae, ibi spiritus sanctus;
ubi spiritus sanctus, ibi tota sacrosancta trinitas;
ubi sancta trinitas, ibi vita aeterna.

III. De fructu verae et seriae poenitentiae,
Johann Gerhard, Meditationes Sacrae

David Holt and Doc Watson Play Soldier's Joy

God is active in suffering...

God is particularly known through suffering. Although this is essentially a reference to the passiones Christi, a far deeper spirutal truth is involved: a fundamental contention of the theologia crucis is not merely that God is konwn through suffering (whether that of Christ or of the individual), but that God makes himself known through suffering. For Luther, God is active in this matter, rather than passive, in that suffering and temptation are seen as means by which man is brought to God.

Alister E. McGrath, Luther's Theology of the Cross, p. 150.

Haiti Update Feb. 22, 2010

Luther on the Cross: "Water reaches up to the neck"

The character of hiddenness in the Christian life can be demonstrated not only at concrete points in the life of every single Christian, but we recognize it again as we look at Luther's thoughts on Christ's kingdom and on the church from this point of view. Let us turn, fist, to Luther's statements about the kingdom of Christ (regnum Christi).

First of all, we hear again that Christ's kingdom is spiritual and therefore hidden (W. V, 58, 38ff; LW 14,328. W. XI, 182, 17ff; XVIII, 514, 20f; LW 14, 185), whose only weapons are the Word and faith (W. V, 377, 34ff.; IV, 184, 6ff). Its subjects are poor, despised people (W. V, 286, 31ff; XVIII, 513, 33ff; LW 14, 184; W. XXXI, 2, 86, 15f; LW 16, 120) The Kingdom of grace is a kingdom of faith, and here we must recall what was said about the critical delimitation of the concept of faith (W. II, 457, 21ff.; LW 27, 171; W. V, 285, 29ff). When we call to mind the contexts of faith, the hidden God, and the cross, we are not surprised to hear that the cross stands in the midst of this kingdom of faith (W. V, 129, 1ff). But we share in Christ's Cross only when we take the cross upon ourselves (W. V, 69, 5ff; LW 14, 324). Thus the course of this kingdom is the exact opposite of that of all other kingdoms (W. V, 453, 32ff). For that reason it is an insurmountable offense to the natural man; he cannot and will not acknowledge it (W. V, 68, 35ff.; LW 14, 342).

But as a hidden kingdom of faith the kingdom of Christ points beyond itself, just like the Christian life. The kingdom of glory will follow the kingdom of grace. Christmas is prelude to the parousia (W. X, I, 1, 44, 5ff). Then Christ will rule in glory over his enemies also (W. IX, 183, 23ff; W. XXXI, 2, 79, 8ff; LW 16,111). Consequently, if the water sometimes reaches up to the neck of the subjects in Christ's kingdom, they may comfort themselves with the hope, 'We suffer with him, that we may also be glorified together with him' (Romans 8:17; W. I, 204, 20ff).

Walther von Loewenich, Luther's Theology of the Cross, p. 126.

Mercy Twice Blessed

“The quality of mercy is not strained; It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven Upon the place beneath. It is twice blessed- It blesseth him that gives, and him that takes.”


William Shakespeare

At Home in the House of My Fathers

Unless they know German, members of the country’s second largest Lutheran church body could find few – if any – opportunities to read the words of their early church fathers. But a St. Louis, Mo., ministry leader fills that historical void with his comprehensive new tome, presenting many first-ever English translations of writings by the first five Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS) presidents.

In At Home in the House of My Fathers: Presidential Sermons, Essays, Letters, and Addresses from the Missouri Synod’s Great Era of Unity and Growth (Lutheran Legacy Press, 826 pages, $19.95), Rev. Matthew C. Harrison presents a clear, historical view of the Synod’s first century from the pens of the church’s German-born presidents. The diverse collection opens with C.F.W. Walther’s first presidential address to the new Synod in 1848 and spans a period that includes the Civil War, the Great Depression, a presidential assassination, and unprecedented technological advances.

In the book preface, Harrison says that "the profound lack" of significant documentation from the Synod’s early years led many of his fellow LCMS members (who number some 2.4 million) to wrongly assume that their church fathers said nothing worthwhile, lived in less complicated times, and were "impervious to foibles and weaknesses we so often behold today in our church and in ourselves."

But the next 800-plus pages reveal the first presidents – Walther, Friedrich Wyneken, H.C. Schwan, Franz Pieper, and Friedrich Pfotenhauer – as men Harrison calls "thoroughly human." Three church presidents suffered at times from depression, writing about how church leadership challenges and concerns take a toll on both physical and mental health.

"They struggled along with the church with theological discord, the limits of churchly freedom in questions of worship, questions of church fellowship, church structure, hard-nosed and flippant clergy, and with congregations hard on pastors and pastors hard on congregations," writes Harrison, a former parish pastor in Iowa and Indiana who now serves as executive director of LCMS World Relief and Human Care in St. Louis.

The book also offers theological reflections to situations that remain surprisingly contemporary, addressing "Encouragement for Lonely Preachers and Teachers" (Pfotenhauer) and "The Offense of Divisions in the Church" (Pieper).

Founded by German immigrants, the LCMS used the German language during most of its first century. Nearly all significant documents from the church’s formative years "appeared in a language no longer accessible to the vast majority of pastors and people of the Missouri Synod," said Harrison, who began translating the church fathers’ words to help him "remain theologically grounded" amid his administrative duties with LCMS World Relief and Human Care, the Synod’s international mercy ministry that reaches out to people in need in 70 countries.

His hope, Harrison says, is that the book offers fellow Lutherans refreshment and encouragement "to work for the spread of the Gospel and the life of the church today, here and now."

Harrison is also the author of Christ Have Mercy: How to Put Your Faith in Action and editor of The Lonely Way: Selected Essays and Letters by Herman Sasse, both published by Concordia Publishing House.

For more information, visit www.lutheranlegacy.org or www.lcms.org/worldrelief.

If you have questions or would like more information about this press release, call LCMS World Relief and Human Care, 800-248-1930, ext. 1380 or e-mail lcms.worldrelief@lcms.org .

It's Time: LCMS Unity and Mission

Click HERE for my thoughts on what ails the Missouri Synod and how to solve it.

Find the audio HERE.

Matt Harrison

Mercy

In speaking of justifying faith, therefore, we must remember that these three elements always belong together: the promise itself, the fact that the promise is free, and the merits of Christ as the price and propitiation. The promise is accepted by faith; the fact that it is free excludes our merits and shows that the blessing is offered only by mercy; the merits of Christ are the price because there must be a certain propitiation for our sins. Scripture contains many pleas for mercy, and the holy Fathers often say that we are saved by mercy. And so at every mention of mercy we must remember that this requires faith, which accepts the promise of mercy. Similarly, at every mention of faith we are also thinking of its object, the promised mercy. For faith does not justify or save because it is a good work in itself, but only because it accepts the promised mercy.

Apology to the Augsburg Confession

John Nunes' Introduction to "A Little Book on Joy"

I'm honored John wrote the following introduction. Matt H.

A PRELUDE TO THIS ODE TO JOY By John Nunes
“To my exuberant surprise, I found joy everywhere” (page 3), Matthew C. Harrison exclaims after excavating the texts. What’s he been reading? Almost everything: he covers ancient authorities, Reformation leaders, as well as contemporary Christian commen- tators. On a journey from Augustine to Dostoyevsky, from Dr. Luther to C. S. Lewis, from Nairobi, Kenya to northern Canada, joy sparkles on every page. If an ode is a song, then this book is sung not to joy, but ultimately to Jesus (Hebrews 12:1–3).

With fearless snapshots of his own life, Harrison has penned a liberating look at just how seriously he takes this One who is truth, but not himself—nor anyone else who’s straitjacketed by self-important standards of pomposity or cultural severity. Both the window-breaking, BB-gun incident (chapter 9) and his wife’s forgotten birthday, leading to his faking of nausea to escape church in order to get birthday supplies (chapter 18), left me literally in tears as I reread them aloud to friends. These stories reveal a life suffused in a larger eudaemonic narrative.

Run-of-the-mill emotionalism will not do; instead, what’s here is durable and enduring—centered in Christ, born from God’s heart, revealed through Scripture, inspired by the Holy Spirit, grounded in the Lutheran Confessions, received in the Church, perfecting in trials, practiced in marriage and community, realized now in part, with an eye turned toward what’s ultimately to come forever.

Martin Luther describes the Creator’s original intent for all people: “Adam had been created in such a way that he was, so to speak, drunk with joy towards God, and rejoiced also in all other creatures” (Weimar Ausgabe 42:71). In his sobering, poetic reflection on humankind’s catastrophe, the Fall into sin, Derek Walcott describes Adam’s reality, post-Eden, as possessing now a “joy that was difficult, / but was, at least, his own” [“After Eden” in Collected Poems, 1948–1984 (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1998), 300–301]. Harrison invites us into the triune Poet’s gift of joy, fully recreated in Jesus’ death and resurrection, the epicenter of Christian faith: joy that actually is not ours, but a gift coming from the Lord. We, who veer naturally toward the shadows of gloom, how do we access, in this life, such coruscating joy?

No joy worthy of God’s name can be like hitting the “play” button on a Disney DVD whenever we need a high-definition, happy soundtrack. There “is no forcing it, no coercing it, no measuring it, no cooking it up” (page 8). The trek Harrison takes us on possesses no quick steps, no self-help remedies, no instantaneous fixes or superficial solutions. With practical, substantive, prayer suggestions, reflective questions, and ponder-worthy insights, we are offered Scripture’s nurturing that grows the fruit of the Spirit. (See, most explicitly, “The Great Ninety Days of Joy after Joy” at the end of the book). Directed to the Means of Grace, the gate of heaven, the Word and Sacraments, Harrison calls us to confess Christ with intrepidity; but thankfully, he does so without a hint of rigidity: “So Lutheranism always has and always will recognize the very broad freedom in worship . . . [but] freedom bereft of love ends in self-centeredness” (page 86).

Finally, we are escorted toward that which is beyond ourselves, that which is most expansive, the unending festival of rejoicing. Tugged along eschatologically, “through trial and cross,” God’s purposes unfold with grace for believers as the Holy Spirit kindles faith, inviting cold, hard, and sad hearts to “join the ever-rising crescendo of joy” (page 107) over God’s new creation. That’s the gift of A Little Book on Joy. I accept it with gratitude.

There are some modernists and others who conceive as antithetical the relationship between traditions committed to biblical and confessional orthodoxy and the outward expression of joyfulness. Harrison represents a return to that more timeless, reconciled tradition of truth, refusing to be boxed into such false dichotomies. In an article titled, “The Orthodox Imperative” the Fordham professor and Jesuit priest, Avery Cardinal Dulles (1918–2008), nails it: “Orthodoxy would have a brilliant future if it were represented with a more cheerful face” [First Things 165 (August/September 2006):35].

ORDER HERE

"I am the World" - Too Funny

CTS Student Reviews "A Little Book on Joy"

Reading a wee bit too much dead guy theology? Are the winter clouds beginning to look black and not grey? I offer a prescription for those winter time blues...

I just finished reading A Little Book on Joy: Living a Good News Life in a Bad News World by Matthew Harrison, http://mercyjourney.blogspot.com/. This is a great elixir in a world filled with negativity and pessimism. It is a short book, only 200 plus pages but a fast and inspirational read.

Many of you may know Matthew Harrison as the Executive Director of LCMS World Relief and Human Care. He also served in Haiti with Dr Rutt recently and has published/translated a number of books, one of which I reviewed in the last class; At Home in the House of My Fathers.

I digress...I urge you to pick up this book as soon as you can. For a mere $10 http://shop.logia.org/ you can have some great inspired reading that you can share in your parish. I will be using it for Lenten devotions and may even borrow some parts (shamelessly) for use during Lenten sermons. It will pick you up and give you encouraging ammunition in a world laden with cynicism and apathy for our fellow being.

Matthew fills his book with Scripture that speaks of God's joy in this world and personal stories that harness the God given characteristic of joyful living. Think Snoopy dancing with joy or the family gathered at table where the fragrant aroma of home cookin' mixes with shared love or think of the day when kissed your first girlfriend. This book will put a smile on your face and joy in your heart.

Our beloved professor tells us the order of the Kingdom is suffering before glory. Let me be so bold as to say... even in suffering there is joy! (1 Peter 4:13).

Terry Held

Luther: "we grumble"

Of course, we keenly feel our misfortune, and we grumble and complain of unfaithfulness, violence, and injustice; but we are unwilling to see that we ourselves are knaves who have roundly deserved punishment and that we are not one bit improved by it. We spurn favor and happiness; therefore, it is only fair that we have nothing but unhappiness without mercy. Somewhere on earth there must still be some godly people, or else God would not grant us so many blessings! If it depended on our merits, we would not have a penny6 in the house or a straw in the field. All this I have been obliged to set forth with such a profusion of words in the hope that someone may take it to heart, so that we may be delivered from the blindness and misery in which we are so deeply sunk and may rightly understand the Word and will of God and sincerely accept it. From God’s Word we could learn how to obtain an abundance of joy, happiness, and salvation, both here and in eternity. Luther, Large Catechism 155f.

Johann Kilian - What sort of love?

More from Kilian's dedication of the church in Klitten.


The friends of the Union now expect of the Lutherans a churchly unification with the Reformed. But this is to desire more of the Lutherans than their conscience allows. If the Lutherans were to support such a church union out of love for the Reformed, whose doctrine they indeed recognize as incorrect in important points, they would transgress the first table of the law of God, while trying to keep the second table. Because the Union church demands external unity at the cost of a denial of the faith by the Lutherans, it makes evident that it is not built upon the love of God, but only upon human love. It allows the Word of God to apply only so far as it accords with the people in the country and the spirit of this age. The basis of the new church is therefore not that faith, which is active through love [Galatians 5:6]. It is based on a love, which manufactures faith and doctrine according to its own discretion, as it wills. If this present love wills that Lutherans and Reformed should be one church in Prussia, so it will, for the sake of worldly peace, regard as unimportant any biblical doctrines which contradict the Reformed. It will also grant that the errors of the Reformed should have as much validity as the pure biblical doctrine. That is the kind of love Peter once had, when he admonished the Lord Jesus not to go the way of suffering and death. In response to this love the Lord responded to Peter: “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man” (Matthew 16:23). Thus there are many people in our time who constantly preach “’Peace! Peace!’ and there is no peace” [Jeremiah 6:14], because they do not think divine thoughts, but human thoughts. Trans. M.H.

Gourd Banjo

The Banjo was originally built from a gourd. This style instrument is probably nearly as old as slavery in America. The banjo was almost exclusively played by black Americans up to the Civil War, but post war a gradual shift occurred.

Matt H.

Minstrel Style Banjo

Ya, I have a banjo problem, I know. Doing some mindless reading lately on the development of the banjo. The style in this video was firmly in place well before the Civil War. The banjo is fretless (as were all until the 1870's), and five string. The fifth (drone) string dropped off with the rise of ragtime and jazz. This style of instrument had in its basics achieved its form already by say 1760.

Matt H.

Salminen on "A Little Book on Joy"

There does not seem to be a more important character trait needed today than Joy. Joy is the Christian's most obvious advertisement that he or she has something that can make a difference in life. Joy is the flag flown over the castle of or heart announcing the King is in residence. When the angels appeared to the shepherds near Bethlehem shortly after Jesus' birth, they called their message "good news of great joy." And so it is! Somehow we have forgotten the value of a joyful countenance. For some strange reason we have lost the fun in this life of faith....the contagious magnet of inner happiness has grown weak. Rev. Harrison helps us regain the joy by elevating Jesus who is the "joy of the world."

The Rev. Dr. Bryan R. Salminen, Senior Pastor, Emmanuel Lutheran Church, Cadillac Mi.

Luther: God's Word and Grace are a Passing Rain Shower

Here's the audio of a favorite synodical address by LCMS President Friedrich Pfotenhauer. It's a great message for the church to begin Lent.

Pastor H.

Click HERE.

Luther's Death Mask

Another February 18th passes. Ever notice how the casting of Luther's hands in death show the left hand as though pressing down a piece of paper, and the right hand holding a quill?

Quo proprior Luthero, eo melior theologus.

Pastor H.

"Eh, what muddleheads you people are! How do you keep lent?" The Great Ninety Days of Joy After Joy

What follows is the introduction to "The Great Ninety Days of Joy After Joy" in "A Little Book on Joy." Blessed Lent!

Matt Harrison


A Sad Brightness, and a Bright Sadness

“Eh, what muddleheads you peoples are! How do you keep Lent?” (Dostoyevsky, The Brothers Karamazov). We are “muddle- heads,” indeed, when we fail to see that Lent is also a time of joy. I am no fan of Eastern Orthodoxy but heartily concur with Alex- ander Schmemann’s description of Lent as “Sad brightness”: the sadness of my exile, of the waste I have made of my life; the brightness of God’s presence and forgiveness, the joy of the recovered desire for God, the peace of the recovered home. Such is the climate of Lenten worship; such is its first and general impact on my soul [Schmemann, Great Lent (St. Vladimir, 1974), 33].

And so, beginning with Ash Wednesday, I have added the forty days of Lent to the journey of joy. By the second century, the forty day period of preparation for baptism on Holy Saturday was well established in many places in the Church. The “fasting” of Lent did not include the Sundays which were “in” but not “of ” Lent, and so I have not numbered them below. From the festival of the Resurrection to Pentecost are fifty days, long called “Fifty Days of Joy” by the Church, and also the Lutheran Church [Hermann Sasse, “Fifty Days of Joy,” Lutheran Herald (April 8, 1961)]. The ninety days include two distinct periods. The first, forty days of “sad brightness” (Lent). The second, fifty days of Eastertide, a “bright sadness”—that is, a life facing sin, death, and the devil, but with an unquenchable resurrection joy. Thus, Ninety Days of Joy after Joy.

For the weeks prior to Easter, I have generally ordered the texts according to a regular, recurring, daily theme (common for Lent), and connected also to the theme of the previous Sunday if possible. For the weeks after Easter, I have allowed the texts to follow the themes and order of the Small Catechism, except for the Sundays.

Sunday—Joyous theme of the week
Monday—Joy in the Old Testament
Tuesday—Joy in caring for the needy
Wednesday—Joy in the Gospels
Thursday—Joy in Epistles, amidst affliction etc.
Friday—Joy in God’s gifts in this world
Saturday—Joy in repentance

Prepare to meditate. Find a quiet spot. A comfortable kneeler focuses the attention well, but you will probably find yourself at a table, a desk, or a favorite easy chair. Take a few deep, clearing breaths, and continue to breath deeply. Recite the Lord’s Prayer. Clear your mind. Pray for clarity of mind and a receptive heart. Now read the text and prayer.

1. Ash Wednesday: Blow a trumpet in Zion; sound an alarm on my holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of the Lord is coming; it is near . . . “ Yet even now,” declares the Lord, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; and rend your hearts and not your garments.” Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and he relents over disaster. “Fear not, O land; be glad and rejoice, for the Lord has done great things! . . . Be glad, O children of Zion, and rejoice in the Lord your God . . .” ( Joel 2:1, 12–13, 21, 23).

Read it again, slowly. What words are beginning to jump at you? What words trouble you? Encourage you? Disturb you? Comfort you? What does this text teach you? Possibilities abound: true repen- tance, God’s seriousness over repentance, he wants the heart. God is merciful and gracious. He acts for our benefit. We need not fear. What do we have to be thankful for in this text? Many of the same things about which he instructs us, to be sure. I’m thankful that the Lord desires us to “be glad and rejoice.” What can we confess? Thankless hearts, lack of repentance, false repentance, rejection of the Lord’s steadfast love. Now pray.

Instruction: O Lord, you teach us here that you desire true repentance and sorrow over sin, and that you are merciful and slow to anger. You also desire our joy in you.

Thanksgiving: I thank you for your mercies, for your call to repentance, for your patience with me, for your mercy, for your steadfast love.

Confession: I confess my many sins, my lack of repentance, my insincerity, my failure to follow through, secret sins of weakness, and especially my great lack of joy.

Prayer: Righteous and Just Judge, you know the hearts of all. Help me, I pray, in this time of repentance, to acknowledge my sinfulness with true sorrow. Forgive my many failings and faults, and grant me increasing joy in your eternal mercies; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

That’s “I.T.C.P.”—Instruction, Thanksgiving, Confession, Prayer. As you practice it daily, it will become second nature and a great blessing for your meditation and prayer. You may certainly read the texts with your family at the table, with your women’s/men’s group, or by yourself, even without using Luther’s method. You can also use Luther’s method as a catechetical tool with your family or others. In any case, prepare for “joy after joy.”

Kilian: "Faith speaks with certainty"

Kilian's address at the dedication of a new church in Klitten (1848) is a concise and pointed rejection of the Prussian Union. Here he points out the truth that rationalism's destruction of Lutheranism seeped in from the Reformed Church. This is a very old accusation and I think it's accurate. The principle of reason which disallowed Zwingli or Calvin from confessing Christ's body and blood in the sacrament, set reason against the clear words of scripture. That posture was advanced greatly in the enlightenment, and from Reformed sources pushed ever more into Lutheranism. Thus when Lutherans can no longer clearly confess the clear texts on the Lord's Supper, union with other Christians follows immediately. Throughout all is uncertainty. Pastor H.

"Let me note a few examples of how it goes in interpreting the scriptures, when we begin to indulge in such sophistry. Take the text where Jesus says to his disciples: “Behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the world” (Matthew 28:20). Here it is asked: Is Jesus Christ, who has come in the flesh (I John 4:2), the entire person, who is God and man, with us? Or is only his spirit or his divinity with us, and thus not the entire Christ? Or when Paul (Ephesians 4:10) says, “he ascended far above the heavens that he might fill all things,” how will we understand this? Does Jesus Christ fill all things according to his entire person, as he came in the flesh and departed in our flesh to the Father? Or is this only his spirit or his divinity, which fills all things? So is our Savior and exalted brother, our God revealed in the flesh, no longer completely [present] on earth? The Reformed assert that now we do not have him in such entirely. And therefore they assert that we do not have his body and his blood in the sacrament. They deny the omnipresence of the glorified humanity of Jesus and in such an unseemly way tear asunder his person, as though his divinity were everywhere but his humanity only in heaven. So far, the Reformed have been misled by the spirit of reason in this article, such that they do not believe what they can not comprehend. In this article they explain God’s Word according to reason, but the Word must simply be believed with childlike faith, if we do not want to forsake it.


Such a spirit of reason has forced itself into our church from the Reformed Church. This spirit has been so accepted by clergy and congregations, that nothing but horrible uncertainty remains. And there are as many different opinions regarding the faith as there are people. We who are called Lutherans and boast in the glory and majesty of the Word of God, desire to bear witness against this spirit of reason. We don’t damn the Reformed or anyone. But it causes us grief for them and for all who allow themselves to be misled by the spirit of reason. It is their misfortune to have departed from the correct truth. Therefore we bear witness against them, in order that they might become aware of the dangerous road on which they are traveling.


This necessary witness however, has been forsaken by all those Lutheran clergy who have allowed themselves to be united with the Reformed under one church government, and with a common church agenda. For a union church can in no way be called Lutheran. It is not called Lutheran. And it is not in fact Lutheran. For if two kinds of doctrine, the Lutheran and the Reformed, which in important points are divergent, have the same legal rights under one church government by means of one common agenda, it is evident that the new church can not with certainty, with complete confidence, and to the exclusion of contradictory doctrine, teach correctly. Therefore in the points at which the Lutheran church differentiates itself from the Reformed church it does not have certain, steadfast faith. In these matters it is dubious. And this duplicity of the new church is demonstrated sufficiently in its distribution of the Holy Supper, even if we had no other proof of this.


The Union formula of the distribution states: “Christ says: Take eat, this is my body etc.” With the introduction of this formula the pure Lutheran confession of the faith in the Holy Sacrament is destroyed, as we have experienced from the history of the Union. The Evangelical Lutheran faith is that the pastor [Geistliche] distributes with the bread and the wine, Christ’s body and blood. [In the Union] clergy [Geistlichen] no longer clearly confess this faith with certainty. They leave it in uncertainty, whether one truly receives the body and blood of Christ with the bread and wine, when one partakes of the Holy Supper. Thus now in the words “Christ says: This is my body” etc., only an uncertain account of those things which Christ said finds its place before God’s altar. With such an uncertain distribution formula, the faith of the Lutheran church, that the body and blood of Christ is truly distributed to the people to be partaken of, is not confessed.


This is like someone saying: “Certain Wendish clergy in Prussia say their church is still Lutheran, just as it was before the Union.” He who merely recounts the assertion leaves it uncertain as to whether or not he believes it. But he who believes the assertion does not say that “they say, etc.” He says rather: “Their churches are still Lutheran.” But we who do not believe this say, “Their churches are no longer Lutheran, even if they assert that they are.”


Thus a confession of faith is something other than a recounting of what has been said. Faith speaks with certainty, not uncertainty."

Rushmore: I Kinda Like This...

Happy Presidents' Day

We should not look back unless it is to derive useful lessons from past errors, and for the purpose of profiting by dearly bought experience.

George Washington

God makes a promise... faith wrestles much and long...

But when God makes a promise of some kind, faith wrestles much and long; for reason, or flesh and blood, regards God’s promise as altogether impossible. Therefore faith must wrestle with doubt and against reason. Luther on Genesis 2:4

Working on the Wood pile

We had to have a Maple taken down a few weeks back. This weekend past was the first chance I had to work on stacking and splitting. Just what the doctor ordered. Matt H.

Johann Kilian - Let's be Lutheran

Statement [Verantwortung] at the Dedication of a Church at Klitten
In the Royal Prussian Section of Lusatia
by Johann Kilian

Johann Kilian (1811-1884) was Wendish Lutheran who opposed the Prussian Union (the force uniting of Lutheran and Reformed congregations into one church by the Prussian King in 1817). Kilian preached at the dedication of an independent Lutheran church building in Prussian Lusatia in 1848 on being Lutheran. He suffered constant harassment as a genuine Lutheran, and finally emigrated with 500 Wends to Texas in 1853. The congregation at Klitten, Germany, where this address was given, is still a member congregation of the Independent Evangelical Lutheran Church in Germany. He officiated with Pastor Gessner (pictured left), who had been imprisoned for five years for his refusal to accept the union of Lutherans and Reformed. Kilian was a great Lutheran, and founder of confessional Lutheranism in Texas. M.H.


In the course of this discussion we now have to answer the comment that is often made among the people, that we here have started something new among the Prussian Wends. We respond that these [Wendish] Lutherans have not started anything new. What is new is the new church created in Prussia in the last thirty years, which calls itself the Evangelical Territorial Church. This church has been constructed on the denial of the Lutheran name and legal right [to exist]. The people who have built this building [we dedicate today] have come out of this [territorial church] and gone back to its true mother, the old Evangelical Lutheran Church. And I, who up to now have been a minister of this Evangelical Lutheran Church in Saxony, am united with these confessors on the same basis of faith and teaching. It does not bother us when we are called “Old Lutherans.” For that is nothing else than to be called “Lutherans.” There is no new Luther. There is only the famous old Luther. And the New Lutherans have never yet come together in order to produce some sort of new, public, Lutheran creed. So is it evident that only the Old Lutherans have the decisive right to be called members of that church which is named for Luther. In fact, all true Lutherans are Old Lutherans, if they would be what their name states. Thus Lutheran and Old Lutheran are not two different things. They are one and the same kind of people. Old Lutheran and Lutheran are entirely one and the same. He who is not Old Lutheran is not Lutheran. So when someone hears of Old Lutherans, one ought not think of these people as some sort of new sect. They desire, so far as the basis of the faith and doctrine are concerned, to be nothing other than what the Lutherans in the Kingdom of Saxony and elsewhere are, where the Evangelical Lutheran Church still retains its public Lutheran name, and its Lutheran right [to exist as such]. Trans. M.H.

Butch Robins and Sally Goodin

Here's some rare footage of banjo virtuoso Butch Robins. He played with Bill Monroe and the Bluegrass Boys for several years beginning the late 70's. I vividly recall seeing the band of this era play at a festival at Iowa State in Ames in 1979 or 80. Pure Joy.

Matt H.

Classic Monroe Playing "Roanoke"

Acute Stress Reaction

Here's an interesting brief piece from Wikipedia on Acute Stress Reaction. Our Medical Mercy Teams are seeing this in boat loads in Haiti, and those who have been on the ground assisting are also experiencing symptoms themselves.

"My strength is made perfect in weakness."

Lord Have Mercy, Pastor H.

Acute stress reaction
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article is about the psychological condition. For the circulatory condition, see shock (circulatory).
Acute Stress Reaction
Classification and external resources


After being attacked and stabbed, empress Elisabeth of Bavaria boarded a ship, unaware of the severity of her condition as consequence of an acute stress reaction. Bleeding to death from a puncture wound to the heart, Elisabeth's last words were, "What happened to me?"

Acute stress reaction (also called acute stress disorder, psychological shock, mental shock, or simply, shock) is a psychological condition arising in response to a terrifying or traumatic event. It should not be confused with the unrelated circulatory condition of shock.

"Acute stress response" was first described by Walter Cannon in the 1920s as a theory that animals react to threats with a general discharge of the sympathetic nervous system. The response was later recognized as the first stage of a general adaptation syndrome that regulates stress responses among vertebrates and other organisms.

The onset of a stress response is associated with specific physiological actions in the sympathetic nervous system, both directly and indirectly through the release of epinephrine and to a lesser extent norepinephrine from the medulla of the adrenal glands. The release is triggered by acetylcholine released from pre-ganglionic sympathetic nerves. These catecholamine hormones facilitate immediate physical reactions by triggering increases in heart rate and breathing, constricting blood vessels in many parts of the body—but not in muscles (vasodilation), brain, lungs, and heart—and tightening muscles. An abundance of catecholamines at neuroreceptor sites facilitates reliance on spontaneous or intuitive behaviors often related to combat or escape.

Normally, when a person is in a serene, unstimulated state, the "firing" of neurons in the locus ceruleus is minimal. A novel stimulus, once perceived, is relayed from the sensory cortex of the brain through the thalamus to the brain stem. That route of signaling increases the rate of noradrenergic activity in the locus ceruleus, and the person becomes alert and attentive to the environment.

If a stimulus is perceived as a threat, a more intense and prolonged discharge of the locus ceruleus activates the sympathetic division of the autonomic nervous system (Thase & Howland, 1995). The activation of the sympathetic nervous system leads to the release of norepinephrine from nerve endings acting on the heart, blood vessels, respiratory centers, and other sites. The ensuing physiological changes constitute a major part of the acute stress response. The other major player in the acute stress response is the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis.

Contents [hide]
1 Causes
2 Symptoms of acute stress reaction
3 Symptoms of acute stress disorder
4 Diagnostic guidelines
5 Treatment
6 Prognosis
7 See also
8 References
[edit]Causes

By definition, acute stress disorder is the result of a traumatic event in which the person experiences or witnesses an event that causes the victim/witness to experience extreme, disturbing or unexpected fear, stress, (and sometimes pain) and that involves or threatens serious injury, perceived serious injury (usually to someone else), or death. Acute stress reaction is a variation of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and is the mind's and body's response to feelings (both perceived and real) of intense helplessness.

Symptoms of acute stress reaction

The symptoms show great variation but typically include an initial state of "daze", with some constriction of the field of consciousness and narrowing of attention, inability to comprehend stimuli, and disorientation.

This state may be quickly followed by either further withdrawal from the surrounding situation (to the extent of a dissociative stupor), or by agitation and overeactivity, anxiety, impaired judgement, confusion, detachment, and depression. Autonomic signs of panic anxiety (tachycardia, sweating, flushing) are also commonly present.

The symptoms usually appear within minutes of the impact of the stressful stimulus or event, and disappear within 2–3 days (often within hours). Partial or complete amnesia for the episode may be present.

Symptoms of acute stress disorder

Common symptoms sufferers of acute stress disorder experience are: numbing; detachment; derealization; depersonalization or dissociative amnesia; continued re-experiencing of the event by such ways as thoughts, dreams, and flashbacks; and avoidance of any stimulation that reminds them of the event. During this time, they must have symptoms of anxiety, and significant impairment in at least one essential area of functioning. Symptoms last for a minimum of 2 days, and a maximum of 4 weeks, and occur within 4 weeks of the event.[1]

Diagnostic guidelines

There must be an immediate and clear temporal connection between the impact of an exceptional stressor and the onset of symptoms; onset is usually within a few minutes, if not immediate. In addition, the symptoms show a mixed and usually changing picture; in addition to the initial state of "daze", depression, anxiety, anger, despair, overactivity, and withdrawal may all be seen, but no one type of symptom predominates for long; resolve rapidly (within a few hours at the most) in those cases where removal from the stressful environment is possible; in cases where the stress continues or cannot by its nature be reversed, the symptoms usually begin to diminish after 24–48 hours and are usually minimal after about 3 days.[1]
The diagnostic criteria for ASD, per the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders IV (Text Revision) (DSM-IV-TR), is as follows:[2]

A. Exposure to a traumatic event

B. Either while experiencing or after experiencing the distressing event, the individual has three (or more) of the following dissociative symptoms:

(1) a subjective sense of numbing, detachment, or absence of emotional responsiveness
(2) a reduction in awareness of his or her surroundings (e.g., "being in a daze")
(3) derealization
(4) depersonalization
(5) dissociative amnesia (i.e., inability to recall an important aspect of the trauma)

C. Persistent reexperience in at least one of the following ways: recurrent images, thoughts, dreams, illusions, flashback episodes, or a sense of reliving the experience; or distress on exposure to reminders of the traumatic event.

D. Marked avoidance of stimuli that arouse recollections of the trauma (e.g., thoughts, feelings, conversations, activities, places, people).

E. Marked symptoms of anxiety or increased arousal (e.g., difficulty sleeping, irritability, poor concentration, hypervigilance, exaggerated startle response, motor restlessness).

F. The disturbance causes clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning or impairs the individual's ability to pursue some necessary task, such as obtaining necessary assistance or mobilizing personal resources by telling family members about the traumatic experience.

G. The disturbance lasts for a minimum of 2 days and a maximum of 4 weeks and occurs within 4 weeks of the traumatic event.

H. The disturbance is not due to the direct physiological effects of a substance (e.g., a drug of abuse, a medication) or a general medical condition, is not better accounted for by Brief Psychotic Disorder, and is not merely an exacerbation of a preexisting Axis I or Axis II disorder.

Treatment

This disorder may resolve itself with time or may develop into a more severe disorder such as PTSD. However, results of Creamer, O'Donnell, and Pattison's (2004) study of 363 patients suggests that a diagnoses of Acute Stress Disorder had only limited predictive validity for PTSD. Creamer et al. did however find that re-experiences of the traumatic event and arousal were better predictors of PTSD [3]. Medication can be used for a very short duration (up to four weeks)[citation needed].
A number of studies have been conducted to assess the efficacy of counselling and psychotherapy for people with ASD. Cognitive behavioral therapy which included exposure and cognitive restructuring was found to be effective in preventing PTSD in patients diagnosed with ASD with clinically significant results at 6 months follow-up. A combination of relaxation, cognitive restructuring, imaginal exposure, and in vivo exposure was superior to supportive counselling[4].

Prognosis

Prognosis for this disorder is very good. If it should progress into another disorder (usually PTSD), success rates can vary according to the specifics of that disorder.

See also

Combat stress reaction
Fight-or-flight response

References

a b [1]
American Psychiatric Association (1994). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders: DSM-IV. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Association. ISBN 0890420610.; on-line.
Creamer, M., O'Donnell, M.L., and Pattison, P.(2004). Acute stress disorder is of limited benefit in predicting post-traumatic stress disorder in people surviving traumatic injury. Behavior Research and Therapy, 42, 315-328
Lambert, M.J., (Ed.). (2004). Bergin and Garfield's Handbook of Psychotherapy and Behavioral Change. New York: Wiley
Mental and behavioral disorders (F · 290–319)

LCMS World Relief and Human Care Funds another 44,000 lbs of Food for Haiti

Greetings in Jesus Name,

LCMS-LCC Missionary Ted Krey just sent this brief update:

1. Wednesday-Food stuffs to Port au Prince arrived safe and sound to Pastor Thomas Bernards church without incidence. There was some confusion about the two finding each other at the border, but by noon they were able to connect. 22 000lbs of food.


2. Thursday-Foodstuffs to Jacmel arrived at the congregation of Rev. Marky Kessa. The driver ...after some diffiiculties at the border and a few faxes later and emails, he was permitted to cross. 22 000 lb of food.

3. Three big pots for cooking and 200 metallic plates were delivered to Jacmel along with 50 tents. Food for a food station at the church.

Praise God for the work that He has performed thus far. May He continue to guide our efforts in all things.


in Christ,

DR Team
Missionary Pastor Ted Krey
(LCMS-LCC)

Robert Baker Reviews the Joy Book

Robert's Blog is "Bioethike: Examining bioethics, morality, and culture from a distinctively orthodox Lutheran perspective. Site dedicated to the Holy Family."



Book review: Matt Harrison’s “A Little Book on Joy”
Feb 12th, 2010 by Robert C. Baker
BOOK REVIEW: A Little Book on Joy: The Secret of Living a Goods News Life in a Bad News World. By Matthew C. Harrison. Fort Wayne: Lutheran Legacy Press, 2009. 212 pages. Paperback. $9.99; quantity discount. Click here to order.

Reverend Matt Harrison’s newest book, A Little Book on Joy: The Secret of Living a Good News Life in a Bad News World, could not have come at a better time. Ongoing political strife, regardless of one’s party or affiliation, an economy still severely weak in the knees, declining membership and shrinking bank accounts among mainline denominations, massive personal and governmental debt, distrust of politicians and the political process, and the crushing power of nature—think Port-au-Prince—might give us cause for having no joy at all. But in steps Harrison, brushy mustachoed and bespectacled, Rough-Rider ready to storm the hills of gloom and despair. Bully! Or rather in the words of St. Paul, “Rejoice. . . again I say, rejoice!” It’s that refrain from Philippians 4:4 that reverberates throughout A Little Book of Joy.

Here, I must admit the appearance of this joy-filled book caught me a bit off guard. First, I was surprised at its release so soon after Harrison’s previous erudite tome, At Home in the House of My Fathers (Lutheran Legacy, 2009). I confess that I still have not finished reading many of the delightful and edifying essays from our Lutheran forefathers in that work, many of which were translated by Harrison from the German. Second, the title of A Little Book on Joy is itself a surprise since Lutherans, especially those claiming to be orthodox in both doctrine and pilsner, are often a dour bunch. Surely it is self-evident that Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee was written by a Presbyterian, not a Lutheran, although in defense we do have Bach cantatas and lutefisk and plenty of coffee. Yet A Little Book on Joy proves that when it comes to joy, other traditions have not cornered the market.

After a generous and rich “Prelude to this Ode of Joy” by the Rev. John Nunes, Harrison divides his newest work into twenty manageable chapters, each covering an aspect of joy and each taking an average reader 6-8 minutes to read. Peppered throughout are humorous illustrations by the Rev. Kurt D. Onken (Onken boldly captures the author on p. 152). The chapters are chock-full with Scripture, historical references, personal stories, and occasional explanations of Greek terms. Clearly, Harrison has done his homework. While the style of writing is conversational and engaging, A Little Book of Joy is no puff piece one might find in the spirituality shelves of a local Christian bookstore. Rather, Harrison writes as a husband, father, and pastor, covering a breadth of topics related to joy without sacrificing theological depth. Here systematic and applied theology are successfully wedded for the edification of the reader. Harrison is transparent, one might even say vulnerable, as he candidly tells stories from his own past. To reinforce the spiritual insights, each Scripture-drenched chapter ends with thought-provoking study questions penned by the Rev. John Pless.

Yet, the book has even more surprises. Although subtitled, The Secret of Living a Good News Life in a Bad News World, closer inspection reveals a “secret” in each chapter. Take worship, for example. With his customary humility (although he is a big man, he is not proud), in chapter eleven Harrison expresses “surprise and wonder of not being rejected by Christ” (p. 80). Which theologian alive today would utter such a confession, much less publish it? Obviously, this theologian does. Here Harrison connects us to the historic liturgy of the Church, in which the Old Adam is crucified in repentance and the new man emerges full of Spirit-given faith and vigor. It is such man who can rejoice, as Harrison does, in the surprise and wonder of it all: “It’s the delight of being invited into his presence—not to perform or recount my deeds, but to be forgiven and accepted. . . Greatest wonder of wonders, the Lord rejoices precisely over sinners” (p. 80).

Such a confession, both of sins and sins forgiven, can only be forged in the crucible of experience, in being crucified with Christ. For those called by the Lord to serve the Church, that also occurs within the Church. Readers will find that A Little Book on Joy is no flight of fancy to a mystically and perfectly emerging, organic, and missional Church (apart from the Gospel preached and administered) this side of heaven. Rather, the paradox of holy Church in an unholy world is laid bare. Expounding upon Ephesians 5:25-27, 1 Timothy 3:15, and 1 Corinthians 12:1ff, Harrison writes, “[The Church] only appears in this world hidden under the guise of poor sinners, flawed leaders, tensions, divisions, and even false teaching. This is at once both disturbing and comforting” (p. 166). Disturbing to be sure, but as I often say, “The Gospel liberates us from the bondage of denial.” We can look pain, suffering, and death in the face with confidence, fortified with the sure knowledge of sins forgiven because of Christ, and radiating with the power of His resurrection. Fixing our eyes upon Jesus, we can endure our crosses because of the awesome joy God sets before us: eternal life with Christ in a new heaven and a new earth (Hebrews 12:2).

A Little Book on Joy closes with two unique features not commonly associated with devotional books. First, there is an afterword by reconciler Bernie Seter. Concerning the book Seter writes, “Matt kept his promise and didn’t try to give us a ‘joy-o-meter’. . . or ‘Ten Sure-Fire Ways to Put Joy into Your life.’ What he gave us was. . . Jesus.” Seter’s assessment is accurate. A second and final feature is a section consisting of daily Scripture texts and prayers that individuals or groups could use from Ash Wednesday through Pentecost, or any 90-day period upon which to reflect upon joy. If I have only one critical comment about the book, it is this: it is little. Although at 212 pages, the trim size does not permit a more exhaustive treatment. Harrison should consider expanding the work so that it contains 52 chapters, one for each week of the year. Additionally, I could see how some of the chapters could be arranged according to topics, from which a sermon series could be developed. However, for now A Little Book of Joy packs a big punch against the devil’s schemes to rob us of the great, spiritual gift of joy, and this little book does so by giving us Christ.

Tags: Book Review
Posted in Uncategorized

Lent - Easter Sermon Series on JOY!

Pastor Dan Torkelson of Zion Lutheran, Clymen WI has done a marvelous job using the "Little Book on Joy" for the outline for a sermons series titled "The Ninety Days of Joy."

Find it HERE.

Pastor H.

Interview with Maggie Karner of World Relief and Human Care

This what it's all about. Click HERE.

Pastor H.

House of My Fathers Audio

For a number of audio files from "At Home in the House of My Fathers" click HERE.

Father John H. Delaney on "A Little Book on Joy"

"For those who look forward to an outstanding and insightful message from the Sunday sermon, Matt Harrison provides the reader of A Little Book on Joy with colorful, didactic, and spot-on illustrations that bring the stories of both Old and New Testaments into your own day-to-day experience. From Matt's own life stories, true to this book's purpose; you will discover how to find JOY that is of God alone, amid the timeless Biblical stories of the Trinitarian God coupled with your own stories of life. Matt teaches you how. The discovery of JOY, previously unnoticed and uncelebrated will be yours in the reading this timely little book. A good choice too for small faith-sharing groups!"

Rev. John H. Delaney, Pastor of St. Catherine of Siena Catholic Parish in South Bend, IN.

All sorts of LCMS World Relief and Human Care Haiti News, Interviews and Updates

Click HERE.

February 11, Haiti Mercy Medical Team Update

Check out the LCMS Disaster Master Blog

Glenn Merrit, Director of Disaster for LCMS World Relief and Human Care has a terrific blog.

Here.

Veith on "A Little Book on Joy"

This book has the makings of a devotional classic. Drawing on his keen insights into Scripture and his rich personal experiences, Rev. Harrison discloses the joy that is at the beating heart of the Christian life. Not that he minimizes the crosses, the trials, and the failures that we all know too well. Rather, he shows how we can "live a good news life in a bad news world" because the Gospel of Christ transfigures everything.

Gene Edward Veith, Provost, Patrick Henry College

Director, the Cranach Institute

This destroyed building reminded me of a cross left on a lone wall in Sri Lanka after the Tsunami

Joy

The Church of Rev. Doris Louis in Port au Prince

A notable wall outside the front door of the church served by Rev. Doris Louis, Father of Haitian Lutheranism.

Matt H.

President John Wille on "A Little Book on Joy"

Wow! With this "Little Book on Joy" Rev Harrison touches at the heart what is lacking in our sin-saddened world - Joy at the foot of the cross for every aspect of our Christ-centered vocations. A must read for God's people and church workers alike. Well done! 

 

Rev. John Wille, President, South Wisconsin District, LC-MS.

Order "A Little Book on Joy" HERE!

Pastor Kornacki Produces a Hymn for Haiti

Hymn: Sustained By Faith Among the Rubble

[Pastor Kornacki writes] I came to the greater New Orleans area a few months after Hurricane Katrina ravaged the area. The devastation was horrendous. Knowing how so many people in our church body stepped up to aid the people and communities of the gulf states in the aftermath of the storm, I've been very interested to see how the people of the LCMS would step up in the aftermath of the earthquake that annihilated Haiti. To say that I've been impressed would be an understatement. The blog posts from Pastor Matt Harrison and his staff from LCMS World Relief and Human Care have recorded their efforts and the efforts of others (like Pastor Ted Krey, my friend and a former classmate) in what continues to be a dangerous situation.

I'm not in a position to play a big role in Haiti's recovery. The people of Haiti and those who are working tirelessly on their behalf are in my prayers daily. That doesn't seem like much to me, but God gives us our vocations, and right now mine have me working where I am.

Like I said, I've been following the blog posts of Pastor Harrison and of Pastor Carlos Hernandez, Director, Districts and Congregations, LCMS World Relief and Human Care. One of the latter's recent posts caught my eye--specifically, the title. It was called Among the Rubble, Sustained by Faith. The fledgling hymn-writer in me saw that title and ran with it. This is the result.

(By the way, thank you, Pastors Harrison and Hernandez, Krey, and all those who are working in the heart of the devastation. May God sustain you as you bring both earthly blessings and the blessings of heaven to the people of Haiti.)


Sustained By Faith Among the Rubble

1. Sustained by faith among the rubble,
God's children face calamity.
Earthquake or storm--whate'er the trouble,
Christ will your strong defender be.
Even in times of great distress,
We know in all things God will bless.

2. God does not promise earthly pleasure.
Sin and its wages take their toll.
Yet He gives comfort without measure.
Baptismal waters soothe the soul.
Christ will forever faithful prove.
Trust in His grace, for God is love.

3. In His great mercy God has given;
In His great love He takes away.
When thunder rolls, when waves are driven,
When illness falls, when buildings sway,
Assailed by Satan's demon band,
We rest in God's almighty hand.

4. God hears the prayers of all who seek Him.
Boldly approach the mercy seat.
Call on His name--fear not! Bespeak Him.
His grace is sure, His bounty sweet.
God answers prayers--so says His Word.
"Thy will be done", we pray, O Lord.


(c) Alan Kornacki, Jr.
98 98 88
Tune: Wer Nur Den Lieben Gott (LSB 719)