“Disasters are a leading cause of hunger, affecting all aspects of food security: economic and physical access to food, availability and stability of supplies, and nutrition,” according to the World Food Programme. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations estimates that as much as 25 percent of the damage and economic losses caused by disasters in developing countries falls on the agriculture sector – a huge problem when we consider the sheer number of people dependent on agriculture worldwide.

The immediate losses of homes and lives caused by Hurricane Harvey have been devastating in Texas:

• 93,942 homes damaged or destroyed
• 33,800 people in shelters across the state
• At least 46 deaths

But these numbers don’t fully capture the long-term and long-range effects the disaster may have on food security and the economy, particularly for farmers in Texas and beyond. Whether left in the fields or stored in bulk, crops such as grain, corn, wheat cotton are all likely to be affected.

“I can’t think of a crop that is designed to handle four feet of rain in a short period of time,” Mike Steenhoek said in a recent interview. Steenhoek is the executive director of the Soy Transportation Coalition. While many crops in Texas have already been harvested, anything still waiting for harvest will be at a risk of a total loss. Crops that have been harvested – rice, corn and the like – are at risk of contamination from floodwaters.

Even crops shipped from other states are at risk because of structural damage to infrastructure. Damage to roads and railroad lines may cause grain elevator operators to lower commodity prices that are paid to farmers from as far away as Kansas and Illinois. Steenhoek estimates that nearly a quarter of the country’s wheat is shipped through the Texas Gulf region, creating uncertainty for farmers across the country.

The road to recovery from Hurricane Harvey will be long. The pictures and videos coming across the news wires today are important calls to action to respond in the here-and-now, but as a recent editorial in the Chicago Tribune points out, “it’s important to remember Houston and neighboring areas once the sun is shining” and the storm (and media attention) has passed. Lutheran Disaster Response, the ELCA’s primary ministry accompanying communities faced by disaster, has been hard at work through its affiliate in the area to respond to the devastation of Hurricane Harvey. But we know from experience that this will be a years-long effort. Local congregations and affiliates of Lutheran Disaster Response are still at work in communities now years past their own disasters.

We also know that hurricane season is far from over, and even now, authorities are keeping a close eye on Hurricane Irma as it winds its way across the Atlantic.

It may be easy to see vulnerability to storms like Harvey as a regional issue, but with the widespread effects on food supply and livelihoods for farmers, the effects of disaster aren’t limited by regional or state borders. Thankfully, neither is the concern of our church and of other people of goodwill. Please keep in your prayers the people affected – directly or indirectly – by the storm, the first-responders working tirelessly to assist victims and the many folks who will be invested in long-term recovery.

For more information on the recovery effort, visit the Lutheran Disaster Response blog to sign up for updates. You can also read an article featuring interviews with staff from Lutheran Disaster response here. To support Lutheran Disaster Response’s accompaniment of communities affected by Hurricane Harvey and other hurricanes in the United States, please visit https://community.elca.org/ushurricanerelief?_ga=2.153566650.3498744.1504023048-1341912399.1476461047.

Amy Martinell, Sioux Falls, SD

Warm-up Question

Do you forgive easily or do you tend to hold a grudge?

Forgiveness:  Hard Healing Work

For months Margot Van Sluytman traded emails with Glen Flett.  It was not your ordinary email exchange.  In 1978 when Margot was only 16, Flett  killed her father while he attempted to rob the convivence store at which her father worked.  After being released from prison, Flett attended an event aiming at bringing victims and perpetrators together where he received help  connecting with Margot and they begin to email.

According to Margot, “They were emails filled with humanity. His words helped to heal me, but after a while the words weren’t enough and I knew I needed to look into his eyes. So, three months later I met the man who killed my father.”  When they first met, they both sobbed and hugged each other.  Margot shared that after her father died a part of her seemed to go blank, but after this meeting she felt the color begin to return to her life.

This was a long process to get to, at first Margot could not even contemplate forgiveness, it made her too angry.  Later as she began to work through her anger with poetry, she became more open to the concept, and soon as she began to consider forgiveness, she noticed a change in her whole body, that she felt more complete and more at peace.  Forgiveness was a healing process.  Before Van Sluytman begin the path to forgiveness she felt a void full of nothingness, now  that the void has begun to be filled by the friendship she has with the man who killed her father.  This friendship has helped put meaning back into her life.

Margot Van Sluytman’s story is one of the many stories collected by The Forgiveness Project.  The Forgiveness Project is an organization that collects stories of forgiveness to share the power of reconciliation, help build understanding, and empower people to tell their stories and reconcile with the pain of their past. (theforgivenessproject.com)

Discussion Questions

• Margot Van Sluytman was open to forming a relationship with the man who killed her father. In her situation, do you think you would be willing to do so?  Why or why not?
• Margot helped work through her pain and anger by writing poetry. What activities help you when you feel hurt and angry?
• When have been times you have had a hard time asking for forgiveness or accepting others’ apologies?

Fourteenth Sunday After Pentecost

Ezekiel 33:7-11

Romans 13:8-14

Matthew 18:15-20

(Text links are to Oremus Bible Browser. Oremus Bible Browser is not affiliated with or supported by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. You can find the calendar of readings for Year B at Lectionary Readings

For lectionary humor and insight, check the weekly comic Agnus Day.

Gospel Reflection

Jesus talks about a truth we all know well.  We know what it feels like to be hurt by others and we know what it feels like to hurt others.  It happens all too often.

We can guess the people who first read Matthew’s gospel were dealing with this problem as well.  “What do we do in our church when people hurt each other?”  In our reading, we have a set of instructions for dealing with conflict.  The focus is on rebuilding relationships, not on handing out punishments.  It is about restoring the person to the community, not about making sure everyone gets what they deserve.

And we restore relationships with face to face talks.  This is hard.  Today it sounds so much easier to send an email or text than to have to tell someone to their face that they have hurt us, but it is when we sit down in person that we are best able to see the other person’s point of view and become open to forgiveness and reconciliation.

Forgiveness is hard work; sometime we need to include others people, sometimes we may need more time before we are ready to forgive, and sometimes the person may not be open to hearing how they hurt us or what they have done wrong.  Forgiveness is hard work, but we can trust that our Lord is with us through the process we can reach out with love and forgiveness.

Discussion Questions

• When you are upset with someone do you prefer to go and talk with them face to face or would you rather do it over text or email? Why might it be important to have these conversations in person?
• When someone close to you has hurt you is it hard for you to trust them again and welcome them back into your community?
• Have you ever been part of a group or team where members were not getting along? How did this affect everyone else?

Activity Suggestions

• Visit The Forgiveness Project website and read another story and discuss together the power of forgiveness.
• Brainstorm different constructive ways to deal with hurt and anger (poetry, exercise, music, etc.). Make a list of all the different options and give students time to explore one or two of the options.

Closing Prayer

Gracious God, you call us to love one another, but it is hard to be in community together.  Forgive the pain and hurt we cause our neighbors and help us to reach out with love and forgiveness when others hurt us.

Today’s post is from Paul Vasile, Executive Director of Music that Makes Community.

For over ten years Music That Makes Community has hosted workshops around the United States and Canada inviting participants to experience the power of paperless singing. The work started with a question and a challenge: how could we invite worshippers to participate in liturgy without hymnals, bulletins, or screens? How might clergy and musicians develop the skills – non-verbal communication, modeling and imitation, focused listening – to lead song (and liturgy) with sensitivity and care? And without minimizing the richness and depth of musical experiences mediated through paper, how could singing ‘by heart’ strengthen community and invite the participation of reluctant or disenfranchised singers?

A central piece of our work has been finding and creating repertoire that lends itself to paperless singing. Looking to ancient sources, songs and song forms used in cultures where communal singing is the norm, as well as a talented group of living composers, MMC has been developing a body of song for use in liturgy and community life. Singing in Community published by Augsburg Fortress in July 2017 is our newest compilation, with 50+ songs drawn from our first collection, Music By Heart, global songs, and new material written by our workshop facilitators and participants.

There are gathering songs, prayer songs in several languages, Eucharistic responses, songs for distribution, and table graces, as well as tunes and texts well-suited to ecumenical and interfaith gatherings. The range of musical styles is intentionally eclectic and broad, and we encourage congregations to discover the songs best serve their worship context and needs. Introductory essays give helpful guidance in leading and introducing paperless song to your community.

We invite you to pick up a copy of ‘Singing in Community,’ find additional resources and repertoire on our website,  or join us for an upcoming workshop and experience our work firsthand!

Greetings! My name is Jennifer Baker-Trinity. As a Deacon in the ELCA and the new Program Director for Resource Development here in the ELCA/Augsburg Fortress, I am excited to share with you a bit about this shared position and a little about me.

About this new position…

“Program Director for Resource Development.” After managing the 12-syllable title, you might wonder, what is that? This new position is creative in that it is shared between the ELCA worship office and Augsburg Fortress, part of 1517 Media. Since Augsburg Fortress works closely with the worship office in publishing materials for the church, it makes sense to have someone working in both worlds. On the Augsburg Fortress side, my position will include editing Sundays and Seasons and other worship/music related resources. With wonderful colleagues, I look forward to visioning together about resources to serve the church.

In the ELCA world, I will be helping to lead events and teach, thereby connecting leaders to resources that will help them along the way. For example, my first task will be in working with the upcoming Worship at the Center event: “Journeying from Ash Wednesday to Easter.” I am thrilled to be working with a talented team of presenters who will engage us in why and how we keep The Three Days (shameless plug: Registration goes up in mid-September at www.elca.org/Worship so stay tuned!)

About me…

I come to this position with a background in liturgy and church music and a love for interdisciplinary work. I found the training of musicians with pastors at the then Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia to be especially formative for my call as well as my involvement with the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians (ALCM). Since seminary, I served as a writer and church musician, most recently from Beaver Springs, Pennsylvania.

Another hat I wear is serving as Co-Director for the Institute of Liturgical Studies at Valparaiso University. This Institute has continually been a source for my spiritual renewal, first as a college student in the previous millennium!

I am discovering a few of this state’s ten thousand lakes as I make my home with my spouse, three children and one cat in Shoreview, Minnesota. I work out of the office at 1517 Media in Minneapolis. I even got to see the eclipse out the 8^th floor window on my first day!

I look forward to good conversations and partnerships in this church and beyond.

Brian Hiortdahl, Overland Park, KS

 Warm-up Question

What does success look like?

Success or Bust

Darko Milicic was the number two overall selection in the 2003 NBA Draft, chosen behind only LeBron James, and ahead of several other notable stars.  His professional basketball career is widely considered such a disastrous disappointment that his name has become almost synonymous with the term “bust”:  a colossal failure.  Yet in a lengthy article, Sam Borden offers ten reasons why Darko should be considered a success.  Despite his failure in the NBA, Milicic has become more emotionally mature, financially secure, and at a peace with himself and his history.  He is able to acknowledge past mistakes without being defeated by them.

Discussion Questions

• Would you consider Darko Milicic a failure or a success?  Why?
• Have you ever felt pressure to continue something you really wanted to quit?
• What expectations from others impact you?  In what ways are these expectations positive or negative; how do they help or hurt you?

Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost

(Text links are to Oremus Bible Browser. Oremus Bible Browser is not affiliated with or supported by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. You can find the calendar of readings for Year B at Lectionary ReadingsFor lectionary humor and insight, check the weekly comic Agnus Day.

Gospel Reflection

Peter has just correctly identified Jesus as “the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”  This title comes with enormous expectations.  Jesus then “sternly ordered the disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah” and, as this week’s reading opens, “Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and undergo great suffering… and be killed, and on the third day be raised.”  The Messiah was expected to restore power and glory to Israel; being crucified (by Rome) is the complete and exact opposite of this.  Peter tries to talk Jesus out of this nonsense and gets harshly scolded for it.  God has other things in mind.

As Jesus elaborates, he says something very difficult that resonates with Darko’s story:  “For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those lose their life for my sake will find it.  For what will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life?”  The word “life” can also be translated “soul”—one’s truest self. Expectations and appearances can cloud our understanding of who we really are, and what God wants for us and from us.  Getting there is often a difficult climb beginning with loss that feels like death, “like Old Darko died.”

In our confirmation class, the pastor wrote on the board about twenty responses to the question:  “What do you and your parents hope for in your life?”  The list included answers like happiness, financial security, a home, family, good health and reputation—the things usually associated with success.  Then the pastor said, “Let’s evaluate Jesus on the cross.”  Every last item was eliminated; Jesus was a “failure” on every count.  A total messianic bust.

Things are not always as they appear, the pastor explained.  Maybe the antisocial nerd everyone considers a loser is a future CEO.  Maybe the beautiful and popular student everyone admires is a lonely self-injurer.  Success can be an impossible burden and failure freedom.  The cross reminds us that God has other things in mind than we do, and the truth is usually deeper than the surface suggests.

Discussion Questions

•  How does Darko’s story illustrate what Jesus is trying to teach his disciples?  Where do you detect God’s grace at work in his life?
• Who judges you, and how?  Whom do you judge?  How might you reconsider your evaluation of them?
• When have you experienced a loss that you later saw was the beginning of a blessing?
• What in you, or in your church, needs to die in order for you to live?

Activity Suggestions

• In your group, make your own list of hopes that you and your parents have for your life.  Do any of these describe Jesus on the cross?  Do these hopes enliven or threaten the soul—are they human things or divine things?
• Identify a “bust” you know—someone (or a population) considered a failure or a disappointment.  Pray for them, write them an encouraging letter, and find a way to appreciate or serve them.
• Visit a monastery and share a prayer liturgy with the community there.  Stay and talk afterward.  What new perspectives do you get?

Closing Prayer

Set our minds, Lord Jesus, on divine things.  Show us the truth about ourselves and others and you.  Empower us to shoulder our callings, and give us the courage to follow you through times of confusion and pain and loss to the joy of new life.  Amen

Bishop James Muney of the ELCA VA Synod.

On this Friday, some things bear repeating (written Friday, August 18, 2017):

The first is to repeat my request that all of us lift up the town of Charlottesville, its people, its government and first responders, its injured from last weekend, and the families of Heather Heyer, Lt. Jay Cullen, and Trooper Berke Bates. I ask that you would lift up the congregations of St. Mark and Peace along with the many houses of faith in Charlottesville. In conversations this week with pastors in Charlottesville, we pray for a healing and a strengthening by the Holy Spirit for a returning of this place of people, commerce, culture, and learning to its vibrant sense of well-being and joy.

It bears repeating that we do not talk enough about the outright lie that the color of one’s skin contributes to the value that God has for them or the intelligence that one has or the content of the character of a person. We do not talk enough about the outright lie that says the south wasn’t built on the backs of people sold and regarded as property. We do not talk enough that we are “one nation under God indivisible with liberty and justice FOR ALL.”

It bears repeating, that as a Lutheran Christian I regard my faith as founded upon a Galilean Jew crucified and risen from the dead, from faithful Jewish disciples and apostles of Judea, Samaria, and Galilee and a Pharisee from Tarsus and the key early centers of faith in Damascus and Syria. I give thanks for the crafter of the Nicene Creed, Bishop Athanasius of Alexandria, described as black as tar. I give thanks for Bishop Augustine, Bishop of Hippo in Northern Africa, whose theology shaped the faith of an Augustinian monk named Martin Luther, 1000 years later. My faith has been built upon the shoulders of Jews, Arabs, Africans, Greeks, Christians and martyrs of Asia Minor. It wasn’t until after 800 AD that my Anglo-Saxon ancestors even heard of Jesus Christ. I am honored to be grafted to the tree of faithful Israel that St. Paul speaks to in Romans 9-11.  As Christians we remember Ephesians 4: “There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all.”

It bears reflection that the great anniversaries of the civil war have also been within our nation rises of white supremacy, particularly following the 50th, where the vast majority of our confederate statues were erected. And we recall the tens of thousands of hooded figures parading in the streets of cities across America in the 1920’s. Rather than let such anniversaries or public parades redraw lines, we should all learn from such events that our strength is in our rich resource of gifted people of all nationalities, cultures, faiths, and languages and the conviction that access to equal opportunity for all results in the strength of a united nation.

A PETITION FOR THE VARIETY OF FACES AND CULTURES

“O God, you created all people in your image. We thank you for the astonishing variety of races and cultures in this world. Enrich our lives by ever-widening circles of fellowship, and show us your presence in those who differ most from us, until our knowledge of your love is made perfect in our love for all your children; through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.” (LBW, p. 42)

I will join you in prayer this Sunday and I will be praying for your preaching, teaching, and worship of our Lord who emptied himself and came for us all.

Yours in Christ,
The Rev. James F. Mauney

Since Congress has gone home for August recess, the budget for Fiscal Year 2018 remains unclear. It is during these times of uncertainty, that it becomes even more important to remember the most vulnerable around the world. There are various ways that the United States assists those in need in the international community and it is no surprise that securing food—a necessity for all people—is one way to do this. “Food for Peace” is a program that began in the 1950s as a way to provide food assistance to those in need in other countries. After several innovations over the years, including restructuring under the Food for Peace Act (2008), it is now a program that is managed primarily by the United States Agency of International Development (USAID) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The most important piece of the program is arguably Title II, which provides emergency and development food aid to countries that face difficulty with feeding their people.

How does Title II work?

The mission of Food for Peace programs is to “combat malnutrition, improve the livelihoods of vulnerable groups and mitigate the impact of disasters which are occurring with greater frequency.” Keeping these goals in mind, as well as the proposed budget of the President, USAID and the State Department submit an annual budget to Congress to be approved. When levels of funding are established, international organizations and private organizations submit program proposals and work with USAID to create food aid plans. The USDA plays a part in the process by obtaining agricultural commodities, while USAID facilitates getting the food shipped to the various countries. This process ultimately leads to feeding millions of children, mothers, the elderly, and other vulnerable populations. Approximately 3 billion have benefited from U.S. food assistance to date.

Our priorities as Lutherans

Scripture teaches us that having been justified by faith, one of the ways faith is revealed is through good works: “For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is also dead” (James 2:26 NRSV). Food for Peace is an exemplary program and is an essential element in promoting food security in times of natural disaster, famine, and high levels of world poverty. As disciples of Christ, we are not only members of our familiar communities at home, but are a part of a global community. This fact, combined with our strong belief in helping our neighbor, compels us to support communities that are in the most need—no matter their country of origin or circumstances.

Alleviating hunger is one of several ways we can serve all people and contribute to the establishment of peace in our world, an important part of the Lutheran baptismal covenant. Programs like Food for Peace are critical for countries like the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) where violent conflicts continue to wreak havoc in various regions of the country.  This is reflected in the 3.8 million who remain internally displaced in the DRC, many of which are unable to feed their families. The struggle of food security in conflict zones that exist within unstable countries like the DRC is prevalent, but this is where food assistance provided from Food for Peace can really make an important difference. Lutherans have long supported the revitalization of foreign humanitarian aid that brings us closer to a peaceful world.

As Lutherans, let us not forget about those who go without the most basic necessities and let us prayerfully use our voices to support programs that help bring peace to the world.

Bishop Bill Gafkjen serves as Chair of the ELCA Conference of Bishops and Bishop of the Indiana-Kentucky Synod of the ELCA.

Racism—a mix of power, privilege, and prejudice—is sin, a violation of God’s intention for humanity. The resulting racial, ethnic, or cultural barriers deny the truth that all people are God’s creatures and, therefore, persons of dignity. Racism fractures and fragments both church and society. [The ELCA’s social statement, Freed in Christ: Race, Ethnicity and Culture][i]

In late July, I was honored and blessed to participate in a joint gathering of the African-Descent Lutheran Association (ELCA) and the Union of Black Episcopalians in Philadelphia. Over meals, in the hallways, and in plenary sessions I was able to listen deeply to the concerns of people of color, especially people of African descent, who are part of the church. I was honored to sit for part of an afternoon with ELCA rostered ministers of African descent and heard stories of painful experiences of marginalization, disrespect, and discrimination in our life together as the ELCA. During the opening worship service, I was invited to bring a greeting on behalf of the I-K Synod and, as its chair, the ELCA Conference of Bishops. In that greeting I thanked these dear sisters and brothers for their partnership in the gospel and for their persistent prophetic witness to the kind of beloved community Christ has made us to be and to how very far we still have to go in realizing that community.

On the flight home, I committed to three things: (1) engage the difficult process of facing and repenting of the ways in which I am complicit in, even a perpetrator of, racism; (2) do what I can in my various leadership roles in the church and as a citizen of this country to surface, challenge, and do something about systemic/institutional racism; and (3) share this with you, the good people of the I-K Synod, in this newsletter and invite you to join me on this journey.

And then Charlottesville happened. There, again, tragically, starkly, we saw the truth of what we said together in a social statement almost 25 years ago: Racism is sin and it fractures and fragments both church and society. Racism robs people of their God-given dignity. It privileges some at the expense of many. Racism kills. And, as a church and for so many of us as individuals, including me, we have done very little to challenge and change this great evil.

Did you know that the Southern Poverty Law Center – a well-respected group committed to identifying hate, combating intolerance, and dismantling racism – has identified 26 hate groups in Indiana and 23 in Kentucky? Most of them are white supremacist/nationalist groups of the ilk that were part of the troubles in Charlottesville.[ii] Somehow, we need to present a counter-witness to these groups, many of whom try to claim the name of Jesus. We need to step up our presence in the public arena – much like those from the ELCA and others who went to Charlottesville – to work toward a community that honors all, welcomes all, receives the gifts of all, and makes space for all, for every single one, to walk alongside others toward a beautiful future where we actually embody the community Christ has made us to be.

Of course, hate groups are the obvious ones to combat. As individuals, as local congregations, as a synod, as a church, we have a great deal of perhaps less immediately obvious need for self-reflection, confession, repentance, and change to engage ourselves…even and especially for things that are just so much part of the dominant local or broader culture or way of doing things that we don’t even see how they hurt, exclude, and denigrate people of races, ethnicities, and self-identities different from our own. This may be the most challenging and difficult work of all. But, for the sake of our sisters and brothers, for Jesus’ sake, we just have to do it. The love of Christ compels us. “All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation” [2 Corinthians 5:18].

We will be working on these things synodically this fall. I hope that as the fall school year/program year begins, you will join me in finding ways to face and resist racism and its shadowy siblings. Together, we seek to not be conformed to this world, but transformed by the renewing of our minds, our inmost beings, in the power of the Spirit (Romans 12:1), in families, in congregations, and in our communities.

This will not be easy, sisters and brothers. But, thanks be to God, this hard and necessary work is bathed in promise, for “those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it” [Jesus, Matthew 16:25].

Peace be with you,

Bishop Bill Gafkjen

[i] Download a PDF here: http://ow.ly/YEEn30ep7r5

[ii] https://www.splcenter.org/hate-map

A prayer written by Bishop Gafkjen the weekend of the events in Charlottesville can be found here: http://livingcommunion.blogspot.com/

Today’s post is from Shelly Satran, a pastor at Our Savior Lutheran Church in Vero Beach, FL.

How can we engage children in worship when we don’t know if there will even be any?

We regularly ask ourselves this question at the congregation I serve. We have families and children in our congregation, but spread across our three worship services, and given our demographic in a Florida coastal retirement town we never know if we might have two kids (“kids” used broadly here, one might be a toddler and one a teenager) or ten at a worship service.

This question presented itself to us eight years ago when we realized children’s sermons weren’t working in our context. We decided to drop them, but committed to involving kids in worship in any way we could. We still have work to do, but here are some things that have been successful.

The first simple way we engage kids in worship, is to ask them! This one is a no-brainer, but still worth stating. We wear ourselves out texting, calling, asking in person, instant messaging, anything we can think of to involve young people in worship. As a result, not counting the youth acolytes, there is rarely a Sunday service that we don’t have youth or children involved as ushers, greeters, readers, musicians (from talented high school instrumentalists to an eight-year-old playing the rain stick), or worship leaders. It is definitely harder work to get youth to commit versus an adult. We have more issues with no shows than we do with adults, but it is worth it. The more we ask our young people to participate in the regular roles in worship the more they feel worship is for them.

Secondly, and this falls into an important category for us of ideas we can add or omit depending on whether children are present, is to have a “kids’ question” in the sermon. This works similarly to how a children’s sermon question might work, but the kids are less on the spot, they can choose to raise their hand from their seats or not, and they are never on their own to answer because there are always adults who may whisper the answer or can’t help but blurt it out themselves. Plus we fold the questions into the sermon so that it isn’t a separate kids’ moment, but rather they are a part of what everyone else is participating in—God’s Word.

Our kids’ questions might involve an activity like: “Look through your worship folder/bulletin and count how many times the word “peace” appears.” As they are looking the sermon continues, but at some point I ask the kids for the answer and fold it into the rest of the sermon. Another kid’s question might be to circle all of the animals (or plants, or towns, or disciples, or anything that forms a small category) in the readings and show me after worship. Sometimes, not always, I have stickers or candy in my pocket as a prize.

The kids’ question might be some very basic Bible trivia that even the youngest would know or it might relate to the bulletin cover art—“Listen to the Gospel reading and see if you can name the three people depicted on the bulletin.” The great thing about the kids’ question is that it works if there are 20 kids in worship or two or zero. We have a Saturday night worship service that is usually not attended by kids, except for one not-shy boy. I will often call the kids question the “Gregory question” at that service, or if no kids are present I will make the kids’ question into an everybody question. We don’t have the kids’ question in the sermon every week. Then it would lose some of its novelty, but regularly enough that the kids know to listen up and wait for it.

Third, and also in the category of easily added or omitted, during the sending hymn we gather up any youth in worship (again they may range from toddler to teenager) invite them up front with the pastors and worship leaders. By “gather them up” I mean one of us pastors walks out and gets them. Or at a service with more children, we send older kids out to do the gathering. Once the young people are all up front, two or twelve of them, we all recess out of worship together and then the children lead the final “Go in Peace. Serve the Lord.” sending from the baptismal font. We’ve never had any trouble recruiting kids for this role probably because being first to the back of the sanctuary positions them to be first in line for cookies after worship.

So if you are like us and you may only have a smattering of children in worship, don’t be discouraged. Wear yourself out to include them. It will be worth the effort. To them and the congregation, their presence will feel larger than the actual numbers. Hear it in the voices of children: “Go in Peace. Serve the Lord!”

Today’s post is from Marie Sager, Pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Hays KS.

Have you ever been to a coffee shop and seen people working on their computers? How about reading a book? You probably answered yes to both of these questions, but have you seen someone praying? A ministry that is starting to take off is Free Prayer.

I first heard about the ministry of Free Prayer via Facebook in a post that featured an article about The Rev. Thomas Rusert, a pastor in Pennsylvania. The article talked about why he offers “Free Prayer” at different places. The idea sounded interesting to me, so I decided to try it. I requested a Free Prayer sign, and I was off to the local coffee shop near me.

I have been doing Free Prayer, at a local coffee shop, since April 2016. It has been such an amazing ministry. I have received lots of inquisitive smiles, and those who do venture over to pull up a chair have had many different prayers. I have had a request from a kid eating lunch with their family about safety in an upcoming storm, to requests for family members in the hospital, to safe travel on road trips. There are no “small prayers” prayers.

Besides praying for people, one of the reasons I do Free Prayer, is to offer a ministry to the community. I sit in my clerical collar most Thursdays with my sign offering Free Prayer. In a predominantly Catholic and non-denominational community, I am one of the only female pastors. Therefore I also view my Free Prayer ministry as an evangelism tool, to let people know that women can and have been Lutheran pastors for around 45 years.

Lastly, I post on Facebook about this ministry as well. I have a pinned post on my PastorMarie Sager page with dates of upcoming Free Prayer times. I also post in real time as I am doing Free Prayer asking what I may pray for.