Download Life Guide My dad used to describe himself as a “Jack of all trades, master of none.” It was his way of saying that while he tried his hand at a lot of things, he wasn’t an expert at any of them. Sure, he could replace a washer in a faucet, but that […]
Download Life Guide Life was hard for Bill Grob – partly because of choices he had made and partly because of the times in which he lived. Born in January 1900, young Bill witnessed two world wars and, like so many others, suffered through the Great Depression sandwiched in between them. Years later a work-related […]
Download Life Guide In my work as a member of our synod’s Assignment Committee, I have the great privilege of helping to assign young pastors to their first congregation. It’s a responsibility that no one on the committee takes lightly. We study the needs of each congregation requesting a pastor and then we pore over […]
Download Life Guide Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. (1 Peter 3:15). These words of the Apostle Peter were ringing in my ears as we visited with Charlie, our taxicab driver. All total, Cindy and I would spend […]
Download Life Guide When Lifetouch was here last, the company that did our most recent pictorial directory, the photographer mentioned that they could touch-up my photo. “What do you mean by that?” I asked, rather intrigued? “Can you get rid of these bags beneath my eyes?” “Yes we can.” I was assured. “And how about […]
Do you remember a time in your life when you felt like Christmas couldn’t come soon enough? Last week Pastor Raasch talked about the signs of the times. Already as a child, I learned to spot the signs of the coming of Christmas. At church it started with the midweek Advent services, rehearsing Christmas music […]
Download Life Guide When introducing his study of the Lord’s Prayer, Martin Luther writes: “Our Father in heaven. What does this mean? With these words God tenderly invites us to believe that he is our true Father and that we are his true children, so that we may pray to him as boldly and […]
Download Life Guide Do you ever wonder what heaven will be like? How it will look? What we will do there? I ask the question because over the past couple of weeks I’ve gotten a “taste” of heaven. It’s came during the time I’ve spent at our WELS worker training schools – Martin Luther […]
Download Life Guide Our daughter Carrie was a little more than four years old when the two of us took road trip to attend my uncle’s funeral. On the ride home Carrie chattered away about seeing Grandma and her cousins, but eventually the conversation dropped off. I had assumed that Carrie had fallen asleep until […]
How often through the years I’ve imagined the scene of Christ’s birth – the dingy stable, the lowly manger, the swaddling clothes, Mary and Joseph and the shepherds. It is all quite a sight. But I must confess that seldom, if ever have I tried to picture the scene from the Christ-child’s point of view. […]