Baptized Into Christ

There are a lot of false teachers in this world and there always have been.  One false teaching that Christians have always had to battle is the idea that once something comes to faith in Jesus, everything will go well for them.  There is an idea that as long as your faith is strong, God will give you health, wealth and happiness.  Even though Jesus told His disciples to "deny yourselves, take up your cross, and follow me," and Paul wasn't healed of the "thorn" in his flesh, but instead he was told "My grace is sufficient for you," there are still false teachers like Joel Osteen and Joyce Meyer who tell people that God's plan for them is physical and financial blessings in this life. Physical afflictions are not God's way of punish us, but a result of the fall into sin.  However, they can be used by God for His good because when you are weak, you must look to Christ for strength, just as St. Paul did.  I think that most Christians understand ...

Last week we celebrated national Lutheran Schools Week.  All over the country (in fact there are Lutheran Schools all over the world) Lutheran Schools had special events and did fun things like sports day, school spirit day, and the so on. But what makes Lutheran Schools so special?  Why are they worth the cost to a congregation?  Why not just assimilate our kids into the other schools? Here are just some of the reasons that Lutheran Schools are worth the cost. The most important job that parents have is raising their children in the Christian faith.  Obviously parents can raise their children as Christians without a Lutheran School, but the reality is that it is harder without the help that you can receive at a Lutheran School.  Instead of a curriculum that is entirely secular, your child gets to see all things through the lens of Christ.  Rather than children being left to pray on their own, they learn to pray with their teachers and other child...