District convention coverage | Evangelism lessons from the Savior

A lifelong treasureThe gospel keeps us focused on Jesus

and our vision clear. Page 10

August 2018

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August 2013 3

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Our treasure: the gospelThis treasure keeps our vision clear.Kevin P. Westra

Evangelism lessons from the SaviorListeningDonn G. Dobberstein

Confessions of faithCuriosity and a long journeybrought a woman to the Bible and changed her life.Yi Zhang

Heart to heart: Parent conversationsHow can we support a child who is struggling?

NoA simple word can carry such negative energy, yet it also can bring great comfort.Sarah E. Proeber

From the mountains tothe skies: The story ofHue ThaoBounkeo Lor

Water for the soulThe Lord loves the lost, the weary,and the thirsty. In Christ crucified,he offers the relief we all crave.Lincoln A. Albrecht

August 2018 3

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VOLUME 105, NUMBER 8

IN EVERY ISSUE

May the LORD our God be with us as he was with our ancestors; may he never leave us nor forsake us.—1 KINGS 8:57

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FeedbackReaders share their opinions

DevotionA hallelujah helper

From the president’s deskTrained and ready

Light for our pathRebaptism

Teen talkTune in

Bulletin boardAnnouncements from around the synod

2032333435

NewsWhat’s happening in WELS

Editorial commentFree, but expensive

Bible studyMajoring on the minors: Nahum

A thoughtUnlocked by God’s power

Interactive Bible studyCome, Lord Jesus, be our guest: “Did you wash your hands?”

August 2018 5

EDITORIAL OFFICE

Forward in Christ magazineWELS Communication ServicesN16W23377 Stone Ridge DrWaukesha WI 53188-1108Phone: 414-256-3210E-mail: fic@wels.netwels.net/forwardinchrist

EXECUTIVE EDITOR

Rev. John A. Braun braunj@nph.wels.net

MANAGING EDITOR

Julie K. Wietzkejulie.wietzke@wels.net

STAFF WRITER

Nicole R. Balzanicole.balza@wels.net

SEMINARY CONSULTANT

Prof. Samuel Degner

ART DIRECTOR

Karen Knutson

DESIGNER

Carianne Ciriacks

COPYRIGHT

©2018 by Forward in Christ. Printed in the USA. Forward in Christ grantspermission for any original article (not a reprint) to be photocopied for use in a WELS church, school, or organization,provided that copies are distributedfree and indicate Forward in Christ asthe source. Artwork may not be repro-duced except in the context of its article. For other copyright questions,contact Kristine Laufer, 414-615-5706;lauferk@nph.wels.net.All Scripture quotations, unless otherwiseindicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE,NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copy-right ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica,Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan.All rights reserved worldwide.

POSTMASTER

Send address changes to Forward in Christ,c/o Northwestern Publishing House, 1250N 113 St, Milwaukee WI 53226-3284.Forward in Christ (ISSN 1541-8936) is published monthly through Northwest-ern Publishing House, 1250 N 113 St,Milwaukee WI 53226-3284. Periodicalpostage paid at Milwaukee, Wisconsin,and additional mailing offices.

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WHAT’S INSIDEWe like to tell stories in Forward in Christ—stories that share how the gospel changes livesand how it serves as a guide and comfort to all of us, no matter what happens in this world. Take Hue Thao for example. Born in Laos, he didn’t know about God’s grace until hemoved to Kansas City and ran into Bounkeo Lor, a Hmong pastor—a man he actually hadmet years earlier in a refugee camp in Thailand (p. 30). And now Lor is teaching that samegospel message to Hmong pastors in the communist country of Vietnam (p. 23).Or what about Yi Zhang, who grew up in China and saw how Christianity changed themother of her friend (p. 14). Years later she learned about her Savior in a WELS churchin Canada, and she shares how that has changed her as well.But the story that really hit me this month is that of Mike Young. We actually told hisstory a few months ago in our series “Our treasure: the gospel.” His pastor, Nate Buege,wrote about how the message of forgiveness through Jesus changed the outlook of a manwho was struggling in life. In a Feedback letter, Buege resumes Mike’s story, telling howthe gospel continued to bring him peace (p. 6).

Julie Wietzke

FEEDBACK

6 August 2018

THE GOSPEL CHANGES LIVESI wrote an article about how the gospelchanged the life of Mike Young [“Ourtreasure, the gospel,” June]. When Isent in that article this past March,nobody except our Savior could haveknown that on April 27, Mike would be diagnosed with liver cancer, and onJune 4, he would enter his heavenlyhome. I was able to deliver a copy ofthe issue to Mike before he died. Hewas so excited to get it.Mike’s faith was sturdy to the end. TheChristian peace in his soul made a deepimpression on many people during hislast days on earth. He simply was un-afraid to die. He was ready to be withJesus. He told me, “Pastor, thank you forsharing Jesus with me. If this cancer hadcome six years ago, all I’d be thinkingabout right now is what hell would belike. Instead, all I’m thinking about rightnow is what heaven is going to be like.”  Never underestimate the spectacularimpact of one soul coming to faith inChrist! Many of you didn’t get to meetMike on this earth . . . but you sure willenjoy meeting him in glory.

Nathan BuegeKaty, Texas

WE ARE LIGHT“If you are not witnessing . . . then,frankly, why are you breathing?”My soul has been pricked with a pene-trating yet life-bestowing wound. Pas-tor Hein [“We are light: Our reason forbeing,” May] masterfully cut throughall of our rational lies and flimsy excusesfor neglecting the necessity of Christianwitnessing. We were left defenselessand called to account for each breathwe are graciously granted.“For the word of God is living and ac-tive, sharper than any two-edged sword,piercing to the division of soul and ofspirit, of joints and of marrow, and dis-cerning the thoughts and intentions ofthe heart. . . . All are naked and exposedto the eyes of him to whom we mustgive account” (Hebrews 4:12,13 ESV).Without God’s mercy, we would andshould die. After confronting us withour sin of omission, Pastor Hein skill-fully provided the gospel motivation of

forgiveness and Christ’s Ascension tojoyfully play a role in his saving work.I am grateful for this compelling arti-cle. I admire content of this caliber. Weare blessed as a synod to have PastorHein’s valuable contributions.

Jude PeckColumbia, South Carolina

I think one of the goals for the two-partseries “We are light” [May/June] was toinspire readers to witness. However,saying that failing to witness is a sin isan overzealous statement that borderson legalism. . . .

Greg AlschMilwaukee, Wisconsin

THE WORD AMENWhat a fine article by Pastor JohnBraun on the biblical word amen[May]. He draws out the rich mean-ing of faith’s certainty, which firstfinds expression in a verbal form ofthat Hebrew word in Genesis 15:6:“Abram believed the LORD, and hecredited it to him as righteousness.”He correctly notes that amen is oftenrendered as it stands in the Psalms andepistles and that on the lips of Jesus inthe gospels, it is translated as “verily”(KJV) and “truly” (ESV and NIV).Yet, given the subject of the article—the use of amen in the Scriptures—Iwas surprised to find no mention of

the fact that the Evangelical HeritageVersion (EHV), in line with the Psalmsand epistles, translates amen from thelips of our Savior as “amen.” . . .Thanks for the article and for the oppor-tunity to point out that the EHV doeswhat Pastor Braun encourages. It keeps“amen on the lips of God’s people.”

Roy W. HeftiBangor, Wisconsin

BONDAGE AND FREEDOMThank you for the recent article“Bondage and freedom” [June, p. 34]. Ithought it was so well done that I usedit as the basis of my Trinity/MemorialDay sermon last Sunday. The themewas “Penetrating the hard ceiling ofhuman sense!” In a dying world, it is sorefreshing to receive FIC and its Christ-centered articles. It always gives a liftof faith. Atheism and science havebecome partners, and this is sad. . . . I can always count on your writing to be deep and at the same time practical.

Dave PriebeSeminole, Florida

Send your letters to Feedback, Forward in Christ,N16W23377 Stone Ridge Dr, Waukesha WI 53188;fic@wels.net. Letters between 100 and 200 wordsare preferred. Include full name and address. Lettersare edited for clarity, conciseness, and relevance.Not all letters received can be acknowledged orused. Writers’ views are not necessarily those ofWELS or Forward in Christ.

1. Job 11 & 12 2. Job 13 & 14 3. Job 15–17 4. Job 18 & 19 5. Job 20 & 21 6. Job 22–24 7. Job 25–27 8. Job 28 & 29 9. Job 30 & 3110. Job 32 & 3311. Job 34 & 35

12. Job 36 & 3713. Job 38:1–40:514. Job 40:6–42:615. Job 42:7-1716. Psalm 42 & 4317. Ps. 4418. Ps. 4519. Ps. 46-4820. Ps. 4921. Ps. 5022. Ps. 51

23. 2 Samuel 124. 2 Sa. 2 & 325. 2 Sa. 4:1–5:1626. 2 Sa. 5:17–6:2327. 2 Sa. 728. 2 Sa. 8 & 929. 2 Sa. 10 & 1130. 2 Sa. 12:1–13:3731. 2 Sa. 13:38–14:33

Read or listen online at wels.net/bible3.

2018

AUGUST 2018

DEVOTION

Millions have used Hamburger Helpersince 1971. You may even have a cou-ple boxes in your pantry. The dry mixmakes a quick dinner for everyone inthe family. Just as we need help with meal prepfrom time to time, we Christians oftenneed help with our praise prep. Isn’t thatespecially true during the doldrums ofAugust? The excitement of Easter islong past, and our favorite Christmashymns are still five months away. Fellowmembers are away on vacation, so wor-ship lacks its usual energy. What if there was a product that couldfill our mouths and hearts with praiseevery day? Hamburger Helper can’t, butPsalm 111 can. It’s a hallelujah helper.

GOD IS WORTH PRAISINGPsalm 111 begins with “Hallelujah!” or“Praise the Lord!” Why praise? For one,because “the LORD’s works are great.” Just think how awesome it is that Godcreated the universe in six days. I trulyappreciated God’s creation feat afterbeing involved with a church buildingproject. In all, it took more than 250skilled workers 285 days to refurbishour 1,600 sq. ft. church and to build a 3,200 sq. ft. addition. Even then, itwasn’t perfect. It took another twoyears for the finishing touches. Andyet, when God was done with his workof creation on that first-ever Fridayafternoon, he looked with satisfactionon stars, comets, oceans, animals, andtwo people named Adam and Eve, anddeclared them very good. Wow! But then sin came into the world andruined everything. So perhaps you don’tfeel inclined to raise a hallelujah forGod’s work of creation—not when yoursummer has had too much family ten-sion and conflict, even on vacation. But

Psalm 111 offers another motivation forour hallelujahs: God “has sent redemp-tion to his people. He has ordained hiscovenant forever.” A covenant is like acontract. I saw a lot of those with ourbuilding project. Each contract stated

what the plumber or electrician woulddo in exchange for our payment. Com-pare those contracts with the covenantGod made with you in Baptism. Godwashed your sins away, gave you theHoly Spirit, and granted you eternallife. What did it cost you? Nothing.So how can we not respond with ahearty “Hallelujah!”?

HIS WORD SHARES HIS GREAT WORKSAnd yet days can go by without praisesparting our lips. We get too busy to re-flect on God’s blessings. Psalm 111

describes God’s people studying God’sgreat works. The word study in Hebrewmeans to “visit often.” Do you visit God’sWord as often as you visit Facebook? It’strue, the content of Faithbook doesn’tget updated like the content on Face-book, but don’t let Satan convince youthat it’s pointless to open your Biblefrequently. God’s Word doesn’t change,but your life does. A psalm you readlast year may not have seemed to saymuch to you at that time, but whatabout today? What new challengesconfront you that God’s multifacetedWord would speak to? When you’re stuck for a meal idea,you can reach for Hamburger Helper.But when your hallelujahs get stuckin your throat, reach for a hallelujahhelper like Psalm 111. Be remindedof the many daily reasons you have topraise the Lord. Your awesome Godhas saved you from your sin, and henever takes a break from caring foryou. Hallelujah!

Contributing editor Daniel Habben ispastor at St. John, Saint John, Antigua.

A hallelujah helperHallelujah! . . . The LORD’s works are great. . . . He has sent redemption to his people. He has ordained his covenant forever. Psalm 111:1,2,9 Christian Standard BibleDaniel J. Habben

Be reminded of themany daily reasons youhave to praise the Lord.

August 2018 7PHOTO: LIGHTSTOCK�������������������

8 August 2018

FROM THE PRESIDENT’S DESK

Trained and ready

Because you have trained

[your children] in God’s Word

and have taughtthem to know their

Savior, you haveequipped them to

withstand the mostfurious attacks.

Long before soldiers are sent into battle,they undergo rigorous and thoroughtraining. They train to improve theirphysical strength and endurance and to instill discipline and a sense of team-work. They learn to use their weaponswith skill and confidence. They trainand train again, so that when the timecomes, the skills they have learned willbe used instantly and instinctively, with-out thought or hesitation.No general would send troops intobattle without giving them thoroughtraining. And all soldiers recognizethat training is one of the most im-portant factors to achieve success forthemselves, for their fellow soldiers,and for their country.Another important factor for a soldier’ssuccess in battle is the support receivedfrom “back home.” It’s the letters andphone calls; prayers; and encourage-ment of friends, family, and fellow citi-zens that remind soldiers why they arefighting and help soldiers to devotethemselves fully to their mission.It’s August, and throughout our coun-try young men and women are prepar-ing to head into battle. For some, it willbe their third or fourth tour of duty. Forothers, it will be their first taste of com-bat. The battle will have extremely highstakes for them and for the people theyrepresent. And the enemy they face willbe fierce, committed, and unrelenting.But this battle will not take place in far-away deserts or jungles. Instead, manyof our young people will be heading in-to hostile territory on the campuses ofsecular colleges and universities. Thedangers will come in the ideas, instruc-tion, and pressures they will encounterin classrooms and dormitories. Theywill encounter furious assaults on theirfaith, their values, and their very souls.Atheist professors will try to teachthem that there is no such thing as ab-solute truth—much less biblical truth.Science, despite its changing conclu-sions, will be elevated to godlike status,

and anyone who believes that Godcreated the universe in six days will bemocked. Faculty and fellow studentswill vigorously defend the killing of un-born children and promote a distortedview of God-given sexual identity. Ouryoung people will be accused of beingbigots when they express their beliefs;they will be branded as naïve when theyconfess their faith. They will be ostra-cized from their social circles when theyrefrain from sexual immorality and theabuse of alcohol and drugs. The attacksagainst faithful Christian students willbe relentless and furious. They will stoponly when that Christian student givesin, goes along, or remains silent.God knows the importance of train-ing for such battles. God says we areresponsible to show our children “theway they should go” (Proverbs 22:6).“Bring [your children] up in the train-ing and instruction of the Lord” (Eph-esians 6:4). I’m confident that WELSparents who are sending their childrenoff to college have made good use ofthose 18 years of training time. Be-cause you have trained them in God’sWord and have taught them to knowtheir Savior, you have equipped themto withstand the most furious attacks.So send them out with confidenceand trust that God will give them thestrength to hold on to their faith andconfess their Savior without hesitation.And keep up that support from thehome front. Encourage them to befaithful in worship. Help them con-nect with a WELS Campus Ministryor campus pastor. Remind them whothey are and whom they serve. Andpray for them. Protected by God’sstrength and armed with his powerfulWord, it’s a battle that they will win.

Want to help college students in the battle?Register them with WELS Campus Ministryat wels.net/campus-ministry for freehelpful materials, including Forward inChrist magazine and Meditations.

Light for our path

Your question illustrates the need to clarify several points about Baptism.

INFANT BAPTISMThe Bible provides three compelling reasons for baptizing infants: (1) Children are a part of “all nations”(Matthew 28:19), the object of the church’s“baptizing” and “teaching.” “Nations” con-sist of people of all ages, including infants.Consider that it was the practice of theapostles to baptize households. (2) Because children are sinful from birth(Psalm 51:5; John 3:5,6), they need theforgiveness of sins. Peter encouraged, “Bebaptized . . . for the forgiveness of yoursins” (Acts 2:38). The water and Wordof God bestows forgiveness and remainsvalid for children as well as adults. (3) We baptize children and infants be-cause Scripture tells us they can believe(Matthew 18:6; Luke 18:15-17; 2 Timothy3:15). They can believe because God is theone who creates faith in people throughthe gospel (Hebrews 12:2; Romans 10:17). In carrying out infant Baptism, your god-son’s parents did the right thing.

BAPTISM INTO THE HOLY CHRISTIAN CHURCHA second important point about Baptismis the meaning and significance of yourgodson’s infant baptism. While his baptismtook place in a Lutheran church, the resultof that action went far beyond denomina-tional lines. Baptism works forgiveness ofsins and gives eternal salvation just as Godpromises. Therefore, it brings people intothe holy Christian church.This is why there is no need for a rebap-tism if a person changes church member-ship and affiliates with another Christianchurch: A valid baptism establishes mem-

bership in the church that supersedesmembership in any earthly church. Theblessing of forgiveness in Baptism standson God’s promise.

BAPTISM AS AN ACT OF GODFinally, your godson’s desire to be rebap-tized to “choose his own faith” reflects an-other misunderstanding of Baptism. Somechurches turn Baptism into a human work.It becomes an act associated with a person’sdecision to follow Christ. It then amountsto a person’s confession of faith.That is not what the Bible teaches aboutBaptism. Scripture explains that Baptismis an act of God. In Baptism, people do notdo anything for God; God does somethingfor them. The Holy Spirit works throughBaptism to change hearts by connectingthem to Jesus Christ in saving faith. Scrip-ture teaches that, in Baptism, people areon the receiving end of God’s powerfulwork and promise. So, is there harm in being baptized again?The spiritual harm of another baptism—asin the circumstances you described—is thatthe person’s actions can amount to a rejec-tion of what the Bible teaches about thepower of God in Baptism and a denial ofGod as the creator of saving faith. You willknow whether or not those are the thoughtsof your godson only by asking him. As one of his sponsors, do what you canto remind your godson of what God has al-ready done for him in his infant baptism andcontinue to remember him in your prayers.

Contributing editor James Pope, professor atMartin Luther College, New Ulm, Minnesota,is a member at St. John, New Ulm. James Pope also answers questions online atwels.net/questions. Submit your questionsthere or to fic@wels.net.

QUESTION & ANSWER

My godson was baptized 20 years ago in an Evangelical LutheranChurch in America church. He has been involved in his college campusministry and has decided to be baptized again. What reason wouldthis campus ministry be giving him to be baptized again? He felt thathis infant baptism was his parents’ choosing a faith for him as a child,and this baptism is his choosing the faith he would have.James F. Pope

August 2018 9ILLUSTRATION: SHUTTERSTOCK

THIS TREASURE KEEPS OUR VISION CLEAR

The gospel is a lifelongtreasure that keeps us focused on Jesus.Kevin P. Westra

I used to live near the foothills of the CascadeMountains in Washington State. When I firstmoved there and drove around the area andgazed at the beauty of God’s creation, I remem-ber thinking to myself, I will never get used toseeing this beautiful scenery. I was surprisedwhen lifelong residents didn’t share my ex-citement at seeing the mountains every day.I promised myself it would never happen tome. Well, after a few years of living there, themountains were still there every day and theywere just as beautiful as always. But I didn’talways notice them.

A MISSING TREASURECan something like this happen to us whenit comes to the gospel? Many of us grew upin Christian homes. We don’t really know alife that doesn’t have the beautiful treasureof the gospel in it. This is certainly a wonder-ful blessing. But it can also be something thatSatan uses against us. It’s always there, alwayshas been, always will be. We take it for granted.Sometimes we don’t appreciate that treas-ure until it is gone. Paul and Betty joined aWELS mission church in southeast Ohio.One of their first Sundays there, the pastorannounced that he was taking a call to an-other church. They liked the church andprayed that when a new pastor came, he

Our treasure:the gospel

10 August 2018PHOTO: FREELY, AARON BURDEN

would preach that same gospel mes-sage that brought them there in thefirst place. They were not disappointed.Paul and Betty continued to worshipthere for many years. Changes in life—getting older and retirement—led them to move awayfrom that town. They found a newhome in a retirement village in an-other town. There was no WELSchurch nearby. They went to a churchin town, one that was a denominationthey had been involved with in thepast. Though they tried it for a while,they realized something was missing.Unfortunately, it was the clear preach-ing of the gospel. They were used tohearing about their sin problem andthe only solution to that problem—their Savior—week after week. Theywere no longer hearing the messagethat for so many years had kept theirvision clear and their lives and heartsfocused on Jesus. Instead, they heard a lot of talk about society and politics.Something they were used to hearingevery time they went to church wasmissing. The treasure of the gospelwas no longer there.

A TREASURED MESSAGEThe idea of living out their goldenyears without this treasure was bothunappealing and scary.They called their former WELS pastorand said, “What do we do? We liveover two hours away from you, andwe aren’t getting the gospel here.”The pastor told them that they lived60 miles away from another WELSchurch. Would they be willing to makethat drive? They tried it out, and theyfound out the drive was worth it. Theywent almost every Sunday for a while.Then age made it harder for them tomake that drive, so they tried to goon Communion Sundays. Eventuallyage made that drive too much as well,and they became shut-in members.But they were thankful to have a pas-tor and a vicar who regularly visitedthem with Word and sacrament andkept their eyes on the treasure ofJesus their Savior.

During those years, many situationsdeveloped in their lives. They had anadult son who lived only a few milesfrom their new church. He startedcoming, eventually took classes, andbecame a member. Shortly after that,he was diagnosed with cancer, whicheventually took his life. Another sonwho lived in a different state lost hisjob and his wife left him. He movedto Ohio with his parents and beganlooking to start a new life. He was thendiagnosed with leukemia. He has sincebeen baptized and has started taking

instruction classes. He continues hishealth battle. One year ago, Bettystarted having some serious health issues, and God called her home. Paul continues to get older, and hisbody is wearing down. He has movedto an assisted living home and has plansto move across the courtyard to a placethat offers more care if he needs it andif God continues to bless him withmore days. On one of my visits with Paul, wewere discussing all the challengeshe has faced in his life. He made thecomment, “I don’t know how anyonedeals with all these things withoutChrist in their life. How do you dealwith things like cancer, death, jobloss, divorce, sin, and guilt withoutknowing Jesus? How do you live with-out that treasure?”

A CLEAR VISIONPaul and Betty’s life story is not muchdifferent from your story. Some of us

may have more hardships in our livesand some may have less. But we all dealwith life and everything that comeswith it. The longer we live here, themore challenges it seems we have toface. What a blessing it is to have thetreasure of the gospel as we deal withall the things that life can throw at us.It keeps our vision clear. The Scripturesremind us so clearly, “Let us keep oureyes fixed on Jesus, who is the authorof our faith and the one who brings itto its goal” (Hebrews 12:2 EvangelicalHeritage Version). We know life canbe hard sometimes. But what a treas-ure it is to know that our sins are for-given, our hardships here on earth areonly temporary, and we have a homewaiting for us in heaven. When we keepour eyes on Jesus and the treasure ofthe gospel, our vision is clear. In all oflife’s ups and downs, the gospel keepsreminding us of the beautiful treasureswe have in Jesus.Fourteen years after moving awayfrom the mountains, I still miss them.The first several months that I livedin Ohio I would find myself lookingtoward the western sky, hoping tosee the mountains. They still haven’tshown up. I didn’t always appreciatethem when I could. Don’t let that hap-pen with the treasure of the gospel.God’s gospel gift is here for you. It ishere to keep your vision clear and tokeep your eyes focused on your Sav-ior, Jesus. As you think about what that treasuremeans to you, remember there arepeople who don’t know the messageof their Savior. That treasure that ishere for you is also a treasure to sharewith others.

Kevin Westra is pastor at Beautiful Savior,Grove City, Ohio.

This is the fourth article in a six-part serieson the power of the gospel.

August 2018 11

In all of life’s ups and downs,

the gospel keeps reminding us of

the beautiful treasureswe have in Jesus.

ListeningDonn G. Dobberstein

The average human speaks 125 to 150words per minute, but the human brainis capable of comprehending and listen-ing to 600 words per minute. We listento music and movies for enjoyment. Welisten to directions to reach our destina-tion. We listen to podcasts and educa-tional videos for continued growth. Given all the listening that we do, youwould think that we’d be good at it. Yetresearchers believe we only remembersomewhere between 25 to 50 percentof what we hear.

WE DON’T REALLY LISTENWhy is that? I’ll venture out on a limbto give some answers: 1. People like to talk more thanthey listen.Studies have shown that 40 percent of everyday speech is devoted to

telling other people how we feel orwhat we think. So, for most of us,we think we know where the conver-sation is going and we begin formu-lating our response. Instead of con-centrating on what is being said, weare busy preparing our reply or men-tally rejecting the other person’s pointof view. We’re half-eared, because ourattention is divided. 2. People are more interested inwhat they are doing. How many of us haven’t been part ofa conversation that goes somethinglike this:Mom: “Hey Sweetie, can you take therecyclables out to the garage and takethe laundry basket of clothes to yourroom?”Distracted teen watching TV or playinga game: “Uh, yeah . . . okay.”A half hour later . . .Annoyed Mom: “Didn’t I ask you to

do something? Why haven’t you doneit yet?”Distracted teen: “Yeah, I heard. . . .I’m going to do it in a sec.”Another half hour later . . .Exasperated Mom: “Why does every-one around here ignore what I say? Ifeel like I’m talking to myself!” You may ask them to repeat back whatyou just said to see if they were reallylistening. Even if they regurgitate itcorrectly, it still doesn’t address whatannoyed you in the first place or whatthey think is more important. It’s thefrustrating feeling of not being heard.

JESUS SHOWS US HOW TO LISTENIn John chapter 4, Jesus models whatreal listening looks like in a short con-versation with a Samaritan woman.During those few minutes, Jesus tookthe conversation from friendly and ca-sual to deeply spiritual and personal.

PHOTO: LIGHTSTOCK12 August 2018

The conversation went somethinglike this:Jesus: “Can I have a drink of water?”Samaritan woman: “Are you sure youwant to ask ME for a drink?” (Jewishmen did not talk to women, and shewas not with the women of the village.)Jesus: “If you knew who was askingyou for a drink, you’d ask him to giveyou a drink of living water.”Samaritan woman: “Are you sayingyou’re greater than our ancestor,Jacob, who made this well?”Jesus: “Jacob’s water will leave youstill thirsty. The water I give takesaway thirst forever.”Samaritan woman: “Give me some of your water so I don’t have to keepcoming back here!”A discussion about water led Jesus tospeak about spiritual thirst that onlyGod can quench. Every response toher questions led to deeper conver-sation. Jesus did it in such a way thatit did not end the conversation. Ratherhe steered the conversation towardher personal life, which mattered mostto him. Even when the woman latertried to redirect the topic away fromher marred marital history toward thelocation of worship (4:16-24), Jesuskept the focus on her heart with sim-ple, sacred truth. Jesus did more than talk. He listened. With every word he spoke, Jesus wastelling her, “I’m listening to you.”

LISTENING IS A WAY OF LOVINGThere is a direct connect between thewords love and listen. When you reallylove someone, you desire to hear them.In The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Peo-ple, Stephen Covey explains the wayswe listen:• We ignore a person (not listening.

at all).• We pretend to be listening. (“Yeah.

Uh-huh. Right.”)• We pay close attention to what some-

one is saying (active listening).

But the highest form of listening is thekind that dives into someone else’sworld in order to understand his orher perspective. How many of yourbest friends are your best friends be-cause they truly “listen” to you? Is notlistening a way of loving? That’s Jesus! He walked straight into this alienatedwoman’s world of isolation and broken-ness. He observed her hands drawingwater—out of the sight of others—andunderstood why. He knew her crushedheart and the baggage she was carryinginside. He listened and watched to un-derstand her questions.

We don’t possess Jesus’ ability to seewithin a person and know their realneeds. How much more then is ourneed to listen rather than talk! Are welosing the ability and willingness tolove by not listening to people whosound and look nothing like us? Doesprejudice block our ears? We say welove people, but do we show love onlyif it is on our terms or if they are in-terested in coming to our church or if they respect our way of life? Listening is important. When youneed to pour out your heart or seeksound advice, to whom do you go totalk? Is it someone who can talk agood talk or someone who intentlylistens to you because they genuinelycare about you?Jesus engaged and listened to a Samari-tan woman because he genuinely lovedher. Our love for others often takes abackseat. It’s me and my self-absorptionthat doesn’t like to listen to someonewho may have absolutely nothing to

offer me in terms of personal friend-ship. Self-absorption is not love.

LISTENING HELPS BUILD RELATIONSHIPSListening is one of the most impor-tant skills you can have in buildingrelationships with others for Jesus:• Listening provides a direct con-

nection with people. It is a way toengage in a relationship. The betterwe get at listening, the less scary it isto share our faith. Becoming a betterlistener can improve your ability toinfluence with God’s Word. What’smore, you’ll avoid conflict and mis-understandings.

• Listening creates “space” for some-one else to open up and talk. It willmean you have to be quiet. Can youdo that? Can you set yourself andyour life aside in order to focus 100percent on another person? Somehave said that the best conversationswith me were the ones when I hardlysaid anything! I just listened to themas they unburdened themselves.

• Listening sounds easy, yet it’s oneof the hardest things to do. It takestime and practice. And it takes acaring heart.

Next time you’re in a conversationwith someone, try giving both ears tohim or her! Listening tells people theymatter. If love for God begins with lis-tening to his Word, then love for oth-ers is learning to listen to them.“Speak, LORD, for your servant is listen-ing” (1 Samuel 3:9).

Donn Dobberstein, director of disciple-ship for WELS, is a member at Trinity,Waukesha, Wisconsin.

This is the second article in a four-part series on evangelism lessons from the account of the Samaritan woman in Johnchapter 4.

PHOTO: XXXAugust 2018 13

e better we get at listening,

the less scary it is to share our faith.

Curiosity and a long journey brought awoman to the Bible and changed her life.Yi Zhang

I was raised in a northwest city ofChina in a nonreligious environment.My parents were loving, caring, andhardworking people who struggled toput enough food on the table everyday. They insisted on sending my sis-ter and me to school, provided finan-cial support to my grandparents wholived in another city far away, and dideverything to raise up their childrenphysically healthy and happy.

CURIOSITYMy first experience with a church goesback to when I was a first-year univer-sity student in China. My universitywas located in Tianjin, a historical cityof China. The city was colonized from1858 to 1930 by Europeans living inChina. They left behind buildings, in-cluding beautiful Catholic churches.Whenever I passed by those beauti-ful church buildings, I always felt thatsome myth or mystery existed behindthe walls, and I was curious to find outwhat it was. One Sunday morning, I was finallybrave enough to push the carved doorsopen. I saw hundreds of people kneel-

ing down with the voice of a priestechoing in the air. An old slim usher,in a low but firm tone, suggested Ikneel down too. Being a bit unpre-pared and confused, I quietly with-drew and stepped outside. For some reason, the usher’s emo-tionless face and voice dampened mycuriosity, until I witnessed some un-believable changes in Auntie Zhao.

ONE CHANGED LIFEAuntie Zhao is the mom of my clos-est friend in high school. Whenever I went to her house, Auntie Zhao al-ways sat at the other side of the table,looking at us with quiet smiles. I likedher gentle eyes and soft voice. Oneday, my friend was not around, andAuntie Zhao started telling me herown story. I don’t remember how westarted the conversation or the de-tails of her story. All that I rememberis pieces of scenes that tore her lifeapart, and her tears. After that conversation, every time I went to my friend’s home, I alwaystried to find a way to chat with Aun-tie Zhao for a moment. Quite often,the only thing I could do was listen to different stories of the journey ofher life. The tears often streamed out of her gentle eyes down her cheeks.When I went on to the university inTianjin, over 1,000 km away from myhometown, I only got to visit Auntie

Zhao two times a year. Each time Iwent there, the heaviness and strug-gling behind the quiet and gentlesmiles were still lingering.During winter break of 1996, when Istepped into my friend’s house, I heardAuntie Zhao singing for the first time.I saw her laughing over the dinnertable for the first time. Unbelievably,she had turned into a completely dif-ferent person, a newly created person!She told me that she was so happy tofind her dear Father in heaven. She wasso happy to be a Christian! I wondered,What is a Christian? What kind ofpower removes an old cumbersomeshell that had been covering her forover 30 years just within a year?

A LONG JOURNEY AND CURIOSITY AGAINI left China three years later. But beforeI left for Canada, Auntie Zhao gaveme two tiny pocket books in Chinese—a Holy Bible and a hymnal—and apiece of paper with her handwritingof the Lord’s Prayer. She told me when-ever I felt sad or frustrated, I couldread aloud this prayer and then myspirit would be cheered up. This wasthe first time I opened a Bible. Butafter flipping a few pages, I found thesentences were written in those Chi-nese characters that I seldom used inmy daily life. The sentences or para-graphs just appeared too complicated

BACKGROUND PHOTO: DOLLAR PHOTO CLUB14 August 2018

for me to understand. So everythingwas still a mystery to me.In Ottawa, there were two beautifulchurch buildings five or six blocksaway from my new home. Every timeI went grocery shopping, I passed bythe buildings. The image of AuntieZhao and the curiosity filled my mindagain. Finally, one afternoon of a sunnyday in summer, I decided to hold mybreath and approached one churchbuilding. Suddenly, I saw a homelessman standing in the backyard of thechurch, staring at me without anyemotion. I remembered the face ofthe old usher in the Catholic churchof Tianjin. I paused, turned away, andwalked toward the next church downthe road, St. Paul’s. Gently knocking on the side door, Iheard footsteps approaching the door.The door opened, and a peaceful facewith a quiet smile and beautiful sky-blue eyes was right in front me. “Hi!”she said. I smiled back, and in mystumbled English, I asked, “Can Iborrow a Bible?” A little surprise was on her face,“Sure, just a minute.” She went intoher office and came back with a HolyBible in her hand. “By the way, if youare interested, we have a Bible infor-mation class for students each Sun-day. You are more than welcome tojoin us!”

A few weeks later, I sat in a room witha group of other international studentsand started the Bible study. Honestly, my initial intention was toimprove my English and to continueseeking that mysterious magic powerthat had changed Auntie Zhao. In thebeginning of the class, despite the factthat the leader explained each versepatiently, slowly, and cheerfully, I wasnervous, shy, and struggling with themeaning and pronunciation of someEnglish words. But the urge to find thatmagnificent power became strongerand stronger. Over time, the storiesand messages became clearer; they wereno longer just a story or a fairy tale.They started touching my real life.Over the years, I had been constant-ly looking for the magic power thattouched Auntie Zhao. I was lost, con-fused, and covered by various sinsthat I never realized. Then the Biblegently tapped my soul, woke up mycuriosity, and slowly pulled me closerand closer to Jesus Christ and grantedme a spiritual introduction to him. Iused to think that coming to Canadawas just to seek a new adventure. NowI know that the Lord guided me tocome to Canada to know more abouthim and to be his dear child. There are moments that I feel worriedand stressed. But I know there’s al-ways a place and a hand there where

I can cast all my worries. Every singleday, I’m constantly wrestling and dis-tracted by the earthly routines. But I know the Eyes from the Above arewatching me, the Hands from theAbove are holding me, and I pray forthe Spirit from the Above to guideme through daily activities in honor-ing his name. Under his grace, I praythat I will continuously grow in faithand that I will never be lost.

Yi Zhang is a member at St. Paul, Ottawa,Ontario, Canada.

August 2018 15

Yi Zhang

What’s the best way to sup-port our kids when they’re notthe best at something? Do wereward effort and encouragethem to keep trying? Steerthem toward areas in whichthey excel? Praise mediocrity?Offer honest feedback? Aswith so much of parenting, theanswer probably changes de-pending on the child and thecircumstances. This month’s authors give ussome go-to options when ourchildren are struggling with thevery real feelings that go alongwith realizing that they are notgoing to be the best at every-thing, that some things are hard.If you don’t have time to read allthree articles, I’d encourage youto read at least the last para-graph of each one. A wealth ofgodly wisdom is found in thosefinal paragraphs.

Nicole Balza

My husband and I have raised three boys who areincredibly different from one another and have very differ-ent gifts, despite their shared DNA. It has made parentingthem interesting . . . and challenging. What came so easilyto one was a struggle for another. One lived for the gradeschool science fair and eagerly cultivated bacteria in petridishes for weeks. The other started his project the nightbefore it was due. Sound familiar? As parents, how do we support our kidswhen they don’t excel in a certain area?First of all, remind your kids (and yourself!) not tobelieve everything they see on social media. A scrollthrough your Facebook feed will convince you that every-one else’s kids are destined to be doctors, pro athletes,rocket scientists, etc. Don’t buy into the lie! Discuss withyour kids how social media can be about sharing “moun-taintop” experiences—the perfect facade people present tothe world. In reality, all kids fail, feel excluded, and strugglewith self-doubt. They just might not show it. Help your kids realize that struggles in this sinfulworld are inevitable. Satan has made sure of that. The

HOW CAN W

E SUPPORT A CHILD W

HO IS

STRUGGLING?

Join theconversation!

Visit wels.net/forwardinchrist and look for the

Heart to heart link.

My three teenagers experience a fair amount ofworldly success in academics, sports, and music. This isnot a bragging moment; it is simply an acknowledgementthat God has given my kids a range of abilities, which aregifts they can’t take credit for in the same way they can’ttake credit for their natural hair color. (Curious about this?Check out Letter 14 in Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis.)

So, for those who are used to consistent success, what hap-pens when they encounter something they’re not naturallygood at? 

Well, first, we simply accept those weaknesses.Society, in the name of well-rounded kiddos, places anawful lot of pressure on them to do everything. In reality,

“I’m no good at anything.”“Sam is the best. Why can’t I be like him?”

“Everyone else can do it but me!”

Do these words activate your parent panic alarm? Thesephrases and others like them are a common and normalpart of the growing process. However, as a parent I feel theneed to spring into action and do something. My naturalinstinct is to argue, “You are good at many things.” Enterkid response, “No, I’m not.” Followed by my educated, all-knowing parental response, “Yes, you are.”

Perhaps in my panic of seeing my child hurting, this “No,I’m not/yes, you are” approach could turn into more of anargument than anything else. I have found it a little (maybea lot) more challenging for me to take a more unnatural ap-proach during times like this. In fact, I have had to tellmyself to STOP—and just listen. An expression of feel-ings associated with not excelling in a certain area can firstbe acknowledged—then argued with (kidding about thearguing). Here’s my secret template:

important thing is what we do with those struggles. Wedon’t let them define us; we let them teach us. Sometimesour kids’ struggles will lead them down a path they neverwould have chosen for themselves. Help them identify thevaluable life lessons that can be learned from struggles.Remind your kids that struggles are in God’s perfectplan for their lives. Wise King Solomon reminds us, “Intheir hearts humans plan their course, but the LORD estab-lishes their steps” (Proverbs 16:9). Remember that God knowswhat our kids need better than we do. In our time-bound,earthly thinking, we cannot comprehend how all the disparatepieces of our kids’ lives—their successes and struggles—arepart of God’s divine plan for them and fulfill his purposes.Gently help your kids deal with failure. Kids no longerknow how to fail! This sounds odd, but think about our soci-ety. It rewards kids with medals and trophies just for partici-pating. Our attempts not to let any child’s feelings get hurtare doing kids a disservice. When they get older, they willnot always be #1 or #2 but might be #27 or #1,127. Kids needto learn how to deal with failure and how to work throughthe depression and anxiety they might feel when they realizethey aren’t #1 at everything they do. At the same time, remind

your kids that the “place” or “rank” the world has assigned tothem in no way changes the way you, or their heavenly Father,love and cherish them.Help your kids identify and cultivate their God-givengifts and areas where they excel. Think about whatmotivates them. What makes them come alive? What canthey do for hours without looking at the clock? Sometimesit’s easier for us, as parents and observers, to see where ourkids’ gifts lie. It is our job to help them discover and usethose gifts for God’s glory. Remind them that God giveseveryone different gifts (Romans 12:6-8) and that theyshouldn’t compare their gifts to the gifts of others. Assurethem that God’s love does not depend on their success andneither does your love for them.Ultimately, let’s pray for God’s guidance inteaching our kids that their most importantstatus is that of redeemed child of God,purchased with Jesus’ blood on the cross.

Ann Jahns and her husband, ad, havethree sons and a recently emptied nest.

it’s refreshing to say, “We’re not even going to worry aboutthat.” Not pressuring them to strive for things that aren’t intheir wheelhouse gives them a chance to celebrate others’successes and gifts.

Then, after our kids accept their weaknesses, we encourage them not to completely accept their weak-nesses (and not just because we’re trying to mess withthem!). The parenting cliché “You don’t have to be the best,but you need to do your best” is a good one to use here.

Kids can’t just blow off math or English because it’s nottheir gift. Certain skills do need to be learned. Plus, with somany things, kids are accountable to a team or a group, sothey need to work on their portion of the robotics project

or practice free throws or rehearse their music. People arecounting on them to contribute. This is where character isbuilt. As kids struggle, they learn perseverance, determina-tion, empathy, and humility. They learn that there is oftena greater sense of satisfaction that comes along with hardwork than from accomplishments that come easy.

Mainly, it boils down to giving thanks.We give thanks for the natural gifts Godhas given our kids. Then we give thanksfor the lessons they learn as they workthrough their struggles.

Linda Buxa and her husband, Greg, have two daughters and a son.

“Sounds like you felt a little (insert feeling word here) when(insert event here) happened.”

It feels a bit unnatural to me, but I have found that ifI do not give our kids an understanding of how theyfeel, nothing else I say seems to be heard. It makesme think of the accounts in Scripture when Jesus sat withthe woman at the well and when he walked along the roadto Emmaus with the disciples. He seemed to join them andexpress his understanding before teaching them a new way.

So what’s next? I’ve joined my child and expressed an un-derstanding of how he feels about not excelling in a certainarea. Now it’s time to debate, right? Set this child straightand tell him what he is good at and he will walk away withnew confidence, right?

Maybe sometimes that approach is needed. Maybe it helpsat times to minimize a mistake or encourage hard workand practice. Maybe sometimes it is an opportunity to ac-knowledge the effort and not the end result. Lots of helpfulapproaches can be used at different times and special situ-

ations. As I keep my radar up for a teachable moment,one thing I tend to be on guard for in my kids is theirsense that Mom and Dad will only love them if theyare the best. Wrong! This becomes a great opportunityfor a reminder of God’s unconditional love. He loves us allwith our successes and failures. We as parents try to use thatas our guide. While we were still sinners (failures, broken,not good at anything), Christ died for us. There was noth-ing we had to do to earn God’s love. It is unconditional.

As parents, we can remain watchful for opportunities toexpress understanding when our kids experience disap-pointments and do not excel in a certain area. Let’s askfor the Lord’s guidance to help us use thebest tool of redirection at the right timeand always to be aware of the momentswe are given to remind our kids of God’sunconditional love.

Dan Nommensen and his wife, Kelly, have a teenage daughter and a preteen son.

We’ve all been there: sitting in the pewearly on Sunday morning, using all yourstrength to keep yourself from noddingoff for the fifth time during the seem-ingly eternal sermon. No matter howhard you try to listen, the words com-ing from the pastor’s mouth sound likenothing new as he repeats the gospelmessage you’ve heard hundreds oftimes before. And not only do youhave to stay for the entire service, butyou also have to sit through anotherentire Bible study based on the book of Deuteronomy, which is just soBORING for you as a teen. Sure, your love for Jesus is strong andyour faith is the most important thing toyou, but sometimes as a teen it’s just sohard to connect to the material beingtaught in a church that’s primarily filledwith those who are much older than you.As the 17-year-old daughter of a pastorand Lutheran school teacher, I get it.Taking sermons and devotions to heartcan be extremely difficult if they don’tseem to correlate to our everyday livesas teenagers. Sometimes as a teen, it’shard to relate to the old biblical teach-ings that we’ve been hearing for yearsand years. You know how the saying

goes: “In one ear and out the other!”Truly tuning in to the words beingspoken to us can be challenging andfrustrating.

Through my personal strugglewith paying attention duringchurch and connecting the wordsto my life, I’ve come up with someways to take God’s words he is preach-ing to us truly to heart.When we prepare our hearts for wor-ship, our number-one focus should begrowing in our faith and in our rela-tionship with God. Ultimately, the HolySpirit is the one doing the work, andit’s not all about us. The time we haveto study God’s Word and reflect on it isprecious, and we should never take itfor granted, no matter how tired we arefrom staying up late on Saturday night. I’ve heard that advice so often and I’vetried to put it into practice. When I sitdown in the pew on Sunday morning, I take the time to tune in to the wordsand focus on the message that the pas-tor feels is important to share. Thatmessage is for me. Remember that Godis speaking through his called servant,and he wants us to listen.

Believe it or not, this same prob-lem was very much present dur-ing biblical times as well. The mostobvious example was in the Garden ofGethsemane, as Jesus was preparingfor his betrayal and death. Jesus had in-structed his disciples to keep watch andpray while he was gone. The disciples,like us, were sinful and gave in to thetemptations of falling asleep, not unlikethe occasional dozing off during church.Jesus quickly rebuked them: “Watch andpray so that you will not fall into temp-tation. The spirit is willing, but the fleshis weak” (Matthew 26:41).Jesus gives us many opportunities tostudy his Word, which we should will-ingly hear and learn. His words are therespecifically to help us in our everydaystruggles of life. Remember regularly totune in to the sermon or any other Biblestudy you might attend. The words havebeen prepared for your benefit. Ask God to bless your studies and keepyour mind alert, even after those Sat-urday night Netflix marathons. 

Rebekah Stahmann, a 2018 graduate ofArizona Lutheran Academy, Phoenix, Ari-zona, is a member at Salem, Scottsdale,Arizona.

Tune inIt’s easy for our minds to drift when we hear God’s Word, but it’s important to tune in.Rebekah M. Stahmann

TEEN MINISTRY

18 August 2018 PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCK

BULLETIN BOARD

CHANGES IN MINISTRY PastorsCherney, Ethan, to Our Savior, Pomona,Calif.

Cloute, Justin, to St. Luke, Watertown, Wis. Guenther, Robert, to St. John’s, New Ulm,Minn.

Gumm, Tim, to St. John, Doylestown, Wis.Hansen, Eric, to Crown of Life, Corona,Calif.

Hoff, Joel, to Trinity, Neenah, Wis.Jensen, Robert, to Living Water, HotSprings Village, Ark.

Kuehn, Paul, to Salem, Loretto, Minn.Laabs, David, to retirementMetzger, Peter, to St. Peter, St. Albert,Alberta, Canada

Micheel, Paul, to St. Paul, Grant Park, Ill. Roecker, James, to St. Andrew’s, Saint PaulPark, Minn.

Seeger, Norman, to retirementSpiegelberg II, omas, to Saving Grace,Mobile, Ala.

Walther, Peter, to Our Savior’s, EastBrunswick, N.J.

Witt III, James, to retirementTeachersAchey, Erin, to St. John, Lake City, Minn.Adickes, Philip, to Illinois Lutheran HighSchool, Crete, Ill.

Anthony, Darnell, to East Fork, Whiteriver,Ariz.

Anthony, Scott, to East Fork, Whiteriver,Ariz.

Bremer, Steven, to Nebraska EvangelicalLutheran High School, Waco, Neb.

Ceasar, Robert, to Mt. Lebanon, Milwaukee,Wis.

Datka, James, to St. Marcus, Milwaukee, Wis.Gorzalski, Emily, to St. Lucas, Milwaukee,Wis.

Grys, Cassandra, to St. John, Maribel,Wis.

Habeck, David, to Evergreen LutheranHigh School, Tacoma, Wash.

Heiderich, Deborah, to St. John, Maribel,Wis.

Herlich, Lisa, to Redeemer, Tucson, Ariz.Hoenecke, Henry, to Crown of LifeChristian Academy, Fort Myers, Fla.

Humann, Amanda, to St. John, Muk-wonago, Wis.

Humann, Brian, to St. John, Mukwonago,Wis.

Jensen, Renee, to Bethany, Hustisford, Wis. Kock, Seth, to St. Marcus, Milwaukee, Wis. Krause, Melody, to Trinity, Kaukauna, Wis. Lecker, David, to Redeemer, Fond du Lac,Wis.

Luehring, Karen, to Shepherd of the Valley,Westminster, Colo.

Mattes, Dane, to Northdale, Tampa, Fla.Moon, Ju Yeon, to Jerusalem, MortonGrove, Ill.

Nelson, Joshua, to Wisconsin LutheranHigh School, Milwaukee, Wis.

Nommensen, Dyann, to St. Paul, Cudahy,Wis.

Nottling, Rachel, to Divine Grace, LakeOrion, Mich.

Obry, Ryan, to Samuel, Marshall, Minn. Oertel, Ryan, to Wisconsin Lutheran Col-lege, Milwaukee, Wis.

Pieper, Susan, to Martin Luther, Oshkosh,Wis.

Platzer, Emily, to Our Savior, Grafton, Wis. Schaffer, Megan, to St. John, Mukwonago,Wis.

Schmiege, Jennifer, to Trinity, Marinette,Wis.

Schultz, Daniel, to Bloomington, Bloom-ington, Minn.

Schultz, Monica, to Bloomington, Bloom-ington, Minn.

Scriver, Bailey, to Lord of Life, Friendswood,Texas

Sievert, Amy, to St. John, Watertown, Wis. Smukowski, Tammy, to St. Paul, Cudahy,Wis.

Sprewer, Shawn, to Kingdom Prep LutheranHigh School, Milwaukee, Wis.

Sullivan, Amy, to Christ Our Savior, Rock-ford, Mich.

Uher, Jennifer, to Minnesota Valley LutheranHigh School, New Ulm, Minn.

Walker, Joshua, to St. Jacobi, Greenfield,Wis.

Wardell, Kelly, to St. Philip, Milwaukee, Wis. Wehausen, Andrew, to St. Paul, Onalaska,Wis. Staff ministerFavorite, Jonathan, to St. Peter, Appleton,Wis. ANNIVERSARIESCornell, Wis.—St. John (100). Aug. 4–5.Aug. 4. Open house/ice cream social, 1-4P.M. Aug. 5. Worship, 3 P.M.; meal to follow.No RSVP necessary. 715-239-6081.

Anchorage, Alaska—Faith (50). Aug. 5. An-niversary worship, 10:30 A.M.; potluck andprogram to follow. Website, faithalaska.com.907-563-3499.

Kaukauna, Wis.—St. John (150). Aug. 12.Website, stjohnkaukauna.com.

Waco, Neb.—Nebraska Evangelical LutheranHigh School (40). Aug. 12. All school re-union. Fellowship, 3 P.M.; opening serviceand picnic to follow. Website, nelhs.org.

Hutchinson, Minn.—Immanuel LutheranSchool (100). Aug. 25–26. Aug. 25. After-noon activities and food truck picnic;evening concert with e Divers. Aug. 26.

Worship, 10:30 A.M.; catered meal to follow.Tickets are $10 adult, $5 ten and under. 320-587-6138; pastor@immanuelhutch.com.

Jackson, Wis.—David’s Star (175). Aug. 26.Mission Festival service, 9:30 A.M.; meal tofollow. Oct. 14. Worship, 10:15 A.M. at Ket-tle Moraine Lutheran High School; mealto follow at David’s Star. 262-677-2412.Website, davidsstar.org.

Prior Lake, Minn.—Faith (50). Sept. 9.Worship, 3 P.M.; catered dinner, 4:30 P.M.RSVP requested. pastorschmiel@gmail.com.

St. Croix Falls, Wis.—Redeemer (75). Sept.9. Concert, 2:30 P.M.; worship service, 3 P.M.;program and dinner, 4 P.M. 715-483-3401.

Apacheland, Ariz.—Native Americanmission work (125). Oct. 26, self-guidedreservation tours. Oct. 27, 11 A.M.-4 P.M.,crafts, music history; 4 P.M., worship; 5P.M., dinner. Oct. 28, anniversary worshipthroughout Apache reservation. DebbieDietrich, NativeChristians1@gmail.com.Website, nativechristians.org. COMING EVENTSWELS Night at Miller Park—Aug. 3.Miller Park, Milwaukee, Wis. Brewers vs.Rockies. Order tickets at reduced rates atbrewers.com/wels.

Christian Educators for Special Educa-tion annual conference—Aug. 7. Coun-try Springs, Pewaukee, Wis. Website,wels.net/events.

Lutheran Girl Pioneer international con-vention—Oct. 6. St. Paul’s, Franklin, Wis.Karen Martinez, karen.martinez@wels.net.Website, welsrc.net/event/lutheran-girl-pioneer-international-convention/.

Women’s Ministry retreat—Oct. 6.eme: “Grace.” Peace, Loves Park, Ill.Website, peacelp.com/womens-retreat.

Organization of WELS Lutheran Seniorsconvention—Oct. 10–12. Osthoff Resort,Elkhart Lake, Wis. For all seniors, age 55and older. Register now. Website, wels.net/events.

Christian Life Resources’ Celebration ofLife event—Oct. 20. eme: “Transformed.”Kettle Moraine Lutheran High School,Jackson, Wis. Website, clrevents.com.

Lutheran Recovery Ministries recovery retreat—Oct. 26–28. Our Lady of Guada-lupe Monastery, Phoenix, Ariz. Website,wels.net/events.

WELS National Multi-Site conference—Nov. 12–14. Ingleside Hotel and Confer-ence Center, Pewaukee, Wis. Website,wels.net/multi-site-2018/.

Find additional community events and resourcesat welsrc.net. To place an announcement, call414-256-3210; bulletinboard@wels.net. Dead-line is eight weeks before publication date.

August 2018 19August 2018 19

20 August 2018

NEWS

Delegates gather for district conventionsEach of WELS’ 12 districts met in con-vention this June, considering localministry topics along with issues thatapply to the entire synod. 

Delegates of the Michigan and Min-nesota Districts elected new presidentsto replace retiring pastors John Seifertand Charles Degner, respectively. Snow-den (Gene) Sims is now leading theMichigan District, and Dennis Klatt ispresident of the Minnesota District.Both men will join the other districtpresidents as well as the synod presi-dent and two synod vice presidents toform WELS’ Conference of Presidents,which maintains the synod’s doctrineand practice and is responsible for fund-ing the synod budget.

“All the members of the Conference ofPresidents—not to mention the mem-bers of our synod—are grateful for thefaithful service and leadership of Pas-tor John Seifert and Pastor CharlesDegner,” says WELS President MarkSchroeder. “We also thank their wivesand families for sharing their husbandand father with us. We look forwardto working with Pastor Sims and Pas-tor Klatt. They have big shoes to fill,but we are confident that the Lord willequip them for their important work.”

Synod leaders presented ministry up-dates regarding WELS’ schools, com-mittees, and areas of ministry. Repre-sentatives from WELS CongregationalServices presented on the current state

of the synod and how WELS membersand congregations can serve their com-munities with the gospel. Delegates tothe Dakota-Montana and NorthernWisconsin District Conventions com-mented on Jonathan Hein’s presentationtitled “God’s country—a vision for 21st-century rural ministry in WELS” thatencouraged delegates to reach out withChrist’s love to their communitiesintentionally and strategically. JasonLiebenow, a pastor of a tri-parish nearFlorence, Wis., called the presentation“a life-changer.”

For more photos, visit flickr.com/photos/welslutherans. Choose “Albums” andthen “District Conventions 2018.”

MICHIGANThe Michigan Dis-trict experienced apower outage dur-ing its convention atMichigan LutheranSeminary, Saginaw,Mich. In darknessand with no micro-phones, the conven-tion continued asthe doors were opened to let in natural sunlight and a mega-phone was used to conduct business. Pictured from left: JacobBehnken, pastor at Good Shepherd, Midland, Mich.; JohnSeifert, retiring district president; Gene Sims, newly electeddistrict president.

WESTERN WISCONSIN

The Western Wisconsin District held its convention at LutherPreparatory School, Watertown, Wis. They held elections (pictured) for district officers, circuit pastors, and districtcommittee members.

SOUTHEASTERN WISCONSIN

Almost 450 pastors, teachers, staff ministers, and lay delegatesgathered at Wisconsin Lutheran College, Milwaukee, Wis., for theSoutheastern Wisconsin District Convention. Delegates celebratedthe 100th anniversary of the district with the theme “Looking back. . . at a century of God’s grace. Moving forward . . . with prayerand resolve.”

PACIFIC NORTHWESTThe Pacific North-west District cele-brated its 100thanniversary in a variety of ways, including a wor-ship service that included a sermonfrom the district’sformer president,Ted Lambert, and a program that in-cluded a perform-ance by AndrewSchwartz and JoelNitz (guitar).

August 2018 21

NEWS

NORTHERN WISCONSIN

Manitowoc Lutheran High School, Manitowoc, Wis., hosted theNorthern Wisconsin District Convention. The convention theme,“Not in vain,” was taken from 1 Corinthians 15:58, the sermontext used by WELS President G.E. Bergemann on Aug. 14, 1918,at the first convention of the Northern Wisconsin District.

DAKOTA-MONTANAMany delegates to theDakota-Montana DistrictConvention noted that thehighlight was a presentationgiven by Jon Hein (pictured),director of WELS Congrega-tional Services, on his paper,“God’s country—a vision for21st-century rural ministry inWELS.” Hein also providedministry updates from Congregational Services, including thelaunch of an online resource and training center aimed at help-ing congregational leaders carry out gospel ministry at the locallevel. Visit welscongregationalservices.net to learn more.

ARIZONA-CALIFORNIA

The Arizona-California District celebrated the 125th anniversaryof WELS world mission work. WELS’ first world mission was onthe Apache reservation, which is located in the district.

MINNESOTACharles Degner served aspresident of the MinnesotaDistrict for the past 10 years.Delegates honored him for his service and also cele-brated the 100th anniver-sary of the district at its con-vention, which was held atMartin Luther College, NewUlm, Minn.

SOUTH ATLANTICPaul Prange, administrator of WELS’Board for Ministerial Education, gavethe keynote address at the South At-lantic District Convention. The pres-entation was titled “Machine, family,jungle, theater: Biblical perspectiveson congregation and school.”

SOUTH CENTRAL

Delegates to the South Central District Convention elected thefollowing district officers (from left): Bradley Taylor, secretary;Donald Patterson, president; John Vieths, first vice president;and John Hering, second vice president.

NORTH ATLANTICJared Oldenburg, homemissionary at Eternal Rock,Castle Rock, Colo., wasthe mission speaker forthe North Atlantic DistrictConvention. His presen-tation emphasized howwe can use our uniquetalents to engage ourcommunities.

NEBRASKA

The opening service of the Nebraska District Convention washeld on June 4 at Bethel, York, Neb. The presiding minister wasPhilip Hirsch, president of the Nebraska District, and the preach-ing minister was James Huebner, first vice president of WELS.

Forward in Christ’s district reporters contributed to this coverage:AZ-CA—Michael Schroeder; D-M—Andrew Hussman; MI—JohnEich; MN—Jeffrey Bovee; NA—Philip Gurgel; NE—Timothy Kem-nitz; NW—Dennis Kleist; PNW—David Birsching; SC—AndrewRetberg; SEW—Scott Oelhafen; WW— Brett Brauer.�

NEWS

22 August 2018

DENNIS KLATTOn June 13, Dennis Klatt was elected to serve as the districtpresident of the Minnesota District. Klatt is pastor at HolyTrinity, New Hope, Minn.

Q: What was your upbringing like and how did youcome to be a pastor?

A: I was born and raised on a dairy farm west of Menomonie,Wis., the fourth of eight children. God planted the desire toserve in the pastoral ministry in my heart at the age of five—largely due to my respect for and admiration of Pastor MartinSchwartz who served St. Paul’s, Menomonie. My parentsprovided strong encouragement toward ministry as myschool years progressed.

Q: What ministry and service opportunities has Godplaced before you that helped prepare you to serveas district president?

A: For 30 years God has given me the privilege of servingas a parish pastor in both rural and suburban settings. Mycurrent congregation, Holy Trinity in New Hope, Minn.,is a diverse group of believers from European, Asian, African,and Hispanic backgrounds. I am currently involved with

coordinating and teach-ing two Pastoral Stud-ies Institute students.Also during my ministryI have had the joy ofserving the MinnesotaDistrict in a variety ofroles—Commission onEvangelism member,Commission on AdultDiscipleship chairman,circuit pastor, and dis-trict vice president.

Q: How would youdescribe the role ofthe district president?

A: The district president is a servant. He serves God andhis district by encouraging and fostering faithfulness to God’sWord in doctrine and practice along with making use ofevery opportunity to reach the lost and nurture the found.The president also assists congregations and schools inthe process of calling pastors, teachers, and staff ministersto carry out the ministry of the Word among them.

Getting to know your district presidents

Dennis Klatt and his wife, Cindy, havebeen married 30 years and have threechildren—(from left) Ryan, Caleb,and Megan. In his free time, Klattsays he enjoys “home and auto repairprojects, gardening, softball, and—in recent years—an occasional nap!”

SNOWDEN (GENE) SIMSGene Sims was elected to serve as the district president of the Michigan District on June 12. Sims is pastor at St. Paul’s, Columbus, Ohio.

Q: What was your upbringing like and how did youcome to be a pastor?

A: I was born in Lima, Ohio. My mother moved from Lima,taking me and an older brother, Gregory, to Milwaukee,Wis., when I was six. My first contact with a WisconsinEvangelical Lutheran church came through Sunday schoolat St. Marcus Lutheran Church. My brother and I wereenrolled in Jerusalem Lutheran School and baptized andconfirmed at Jerusalem. I spent my high school years atWisconsin Lutheran High School.

One day in my sophomore year, two teachers asked if Ihad ever thought about becoming a pastor. My answerwas “no” at the time. They continued to encourage me to think about it. I enjoyed reading the Word, living it,and sharing it. My junior year, our swing choir director,Pastor Mark Bitter, drove me six hours to meet my family in Ohio after a performance over a holiday. We talkedabout ministry most of that time.

Q: What ministry and service opportunities has Godplaced before you that helped prepare you to serveas district president?

A: After graduation, I served as a tutor,teacher, professor, anddean at NorthwesternPreparatory School/Luther PreparatorySchool in Watertown,Wis., over the courseof two different calls.My time there gave mevaluable insight intoaddressing differentsituations and dealingwith people in crisis,along with parents. Myrelational skills weredefinitely sharpened.Early in my career I also served at Salem, Milwaukee, withthree other pastors, one of whom was a retiring districtpresident. I also served as the vicar to a district president.

Q: How would you describe the role of the districtpresident?

A: I guess a way to sum it up is that the district presidentis in a position that assists in making the body of the dis-trict function as a member of the body of the synod, and,more important, as a member of the body of Christ.

Gene Sims with his wife, Melinda, andtheir daughter, Erika. Sims’ recent vicar,David Spaude, says, “Pastor Sims’ care-ful understanding of Scripture will helphim offer excellent oversight of doctrineand practice in the Michigan District.”

August 2018 23

NEWS

August 2018 23

Unprecedented opportunities in Vietnam“You have brought us the truth—andthat has changed our lives.”

Until a few short years ago, Chong-houa Vang, a pastor in the HmongFellowship Church (HFC) in Vietnam,lived by the law. And he taught thelaw. “I treated people with contempt.If I saw a member committing sin, Ihated them. If they had addictions, Ihated them. Now, as I look back, I seethat I was a Pharisee at that time.”

It was what he saw growing up as aChristian and what he was taught inhis studies as a pastor. “Looking back,I see that while we talked about Jesusas our Savior, we didn’t understand lawand gospel and we promoted a lot ofwork righteousness,” he says.

Vang began to understand grace whenhe started attending training sessionsconducted by Bounkeo Lor, HmongAsia ministry coordinator, in 2015.The church leadership had invitedLor to Vietnam in 2013 to train themafter they saw sermons he had postedonline. Lor and members of the Pas-toral Studies Institute have made morethan 24 training trips since then totrain 60 HFC leaders.

“Now I see Christ at the center of theBible and the center of everything thatis taught,” says Vang. “I truly believethat salvation comes through faithalone, through Christ alone, throughScripture alone. This foundation hasmade me confident as a Christian andconfident in my salvation.”

And this is something he shares withhis 140-member congregation and the12 additional congregations he oversees.“Before the training, so many otherswere just like me. My members werejust like me. But now we have compas-sion and love. And now we have joy.”

Members and leaders don’t only havejoy; they have unity. Tsavxwm Ham,HFC chairman, says that in the pastthe HFC pastors interpreted the Biblebased on their own ideas or from whatthey had learned from other churchbodies. “Now we have both physical

and spiritual unity. The Lutheran doc-trine has brought peace and harmonyto the people in the villages—and as aresult, our members are sharing theirfaith and our churches are multiplying.”In the years WELS has provided train-ing, the HFC has grown from 65,000to 100,000 members and formed 53new churches.

The changes are so visible that theCommunist government has noticed.And it likes what it is seeing, so muchso that it is offering WELS an oppor-tunity to build a permanent facility inHanoi for theological training.

“WELS is being given a priority thatother [foreign] church bodies don’thave,” says Larry Schlomer, adminis-trator of WELS World Missions. “It’san unprecedented, unique door thatGod is opening up for us.”

Schlomer and Sean Young, director ofWELS Missions Operations, traveledto Hanoi, Vietnam, in June to meetwith leaders of the HFC and the Viet-namese Fellowship Church (VFC) todiscuss the possibilities. The HFC is asubset of the Vietnamese FellowshipChurch, a Protestant church body thatis officially recognized by the govern-ment. WELS will need to work closelywith the VFC to build a training facil-ity because foreign church bodies can’tlegally own land in Vietnam.

While the VFC has its own govern-ment-approved training facility in Ho

Chi Minh City, the facility is not bigenough to train all the Hmong pas-tors. Lessons also are taught in Viet-namese, which many of the Hmongdo not understand. “They want us tobuild a training facility for the ethnicminorities, and there is a clear under-standing that we will teach Lutherandoctrine,” says Schlomer. Building a new facility will allow theHFC more autonomy to set its ownschedule for training; will give studentsfrom the hill country outside Hanoi aplace to stay when attending classes;and will provide worship space for localHmong to attend services.Schlomer and Young plan to returnto Vietnam in the fall to work outmore details.Says Young, “This opening in com-munist Vietnam is an incredible giftfrom God. There are tens of thousandsof Hmong people who are thirsty forthe Word, and this opportunity is readyto go.”

Learn more at wels.net/vietnamhmongoutreach.

(Top) Chonghoua Vang, a pastor in the Hmong Fellowship Church, at a training seminarin Hanoi. (Bottom) WELS Missions leaders (from left) Sean Young, Larry Schlomer, andBounkeo Lor met with leaders from the Hmong Fellowship Church and the VietnameseFellowship Church in Vietnam in June to discuss building a theological training facility.

24 August 2018

NEWS

Witnessing key feature to outreach filmWhen Mike Hintz, retired director ofWELS Commission on Evangelism,traveled to Ouarzazate, Morocco, ear-lier this year to supervise the filmingof the new WELS outreach film Tothe Ends of the Earth, he didn’t expectmany openings for witnessing.

But God had other ideas. “The moviedialogue was carefully written to pointto Jesus as the Savior of the world andthe only one through whom we have thegifts of forgiveness of sins and eternallife,” says Hintz. “As the actors and ac-tresses worked through their lines andthe production staff listened to them,it generated numerous opportunitiesfor me to speak to them about why wewrote it that way. People came up to meto ask questions, and the conversationregularly turned to an opportunity towitness about Christ.”

Encouraging witnessing is an impor-tant feature of the film, which tells thestory of the apostle Paul and his workin Philippi. Its title is taken directlyfrom Jesus’ command to his disciplesat his Ascension: “You will be my wit-nesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judeaand Samaria, and to the ends of theearth” (Acts 1:8). The film highlightsfour major events from the book ofActs—the conversion of Saul on theroad to Damascus, the conversion ofLydia, the casting out of a demonfrom the slave girl, and Paul and Silasin prison followed by the baptisms ofthe jailer and his household. “Since themovie focuses on mission activity, itreminds us of the important work thatwe have as we serve Christ—to reachout with the gospel to the ends of theearth,” says Hintz.

That’s why film resources—includingworship materials; adult, small group,teen, and children Bible studies; anAdvent by Candlelight program; andpersonal reflections—will discusshow to witness and share your faith.

Congregations can use the film andits accompanying materials for severaldifferent purposes:

• As an option for celebrating a synod-wide Mission and Ministry Sunday,

planned for Oct. 21. “It’s an opportu-nity to give thanks as we look at theways we in WELS, as congregationsand a synod, work to reach out withthe gospel, but also to look at oppor-tunities that are still around us andhow to make the most of them as wecontinue to preach the gospel to theends of the earth,” says Hintz.

• As a training resource for the upcomingsynodwide outreach campaign calledC18. “We want to reach one millionpeople with the gospel by Christmas Eve2018. That will only happen if all WELSmembers look for ways to share theirfaith,” says Jonathan Hein, coordinatorof WELS Congregational Services. “Weare hoping that this fall congregationswill use the witnessing training materi-als that work with this film to preparetheir members to talk about Jesus, theSavior of the world, this Christmas.”

• As a giveaway to congregation mem-bers and prospects. Hintz says thathis experiences while filming in Mo-rocco reminded him of the witness-ing opportunities this movie can pro-vide for all WELS members: “It canhelp them start a conversation withtheir friends and relatives about Jesusand how important he is for theirlives,” he says. “He is the one thatgives them the peace and joy of sal-vation.” A special bulk order pricewill be available until Sept. 7.

This movie is the final installment ina series of four outreach movies thatare a collaboration between WELSCommission on Evangelism, WELSCommission on Discipleship, North-western Publishing House, WELSMulti-Language Publications, andBoettcher+Trinklein Television, Inc.Funding from CM CARES, ChurchMutual Insurance Company Foun-dation; WELS Foundation’s SharedBlessings donor advised fund; WELSMulti-Language Publications; and giftsfrom groups, congregations, and indi-viduals helped make this film possible.

The film will be released Sept. 1. View a trailer and learn more at wels.net/totheendsoftheearth.

August 2018 25

NEWS

Eric Roecker has accepted the call to serve as the directorof the WELS Commission on Evangelism, a ministry ofWELS Congregational Services. He is replacing Mike Hintz,who has retired.

A 1998 graduate of Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary, Roeckerhas been serving as pastor at Pilgrim, Menomonee Falls,Wis., for five years. Prior to serving at Pilgrim, he servedResurrection, Chesapeake, Va.

“One of the things that affected my decision to accept thecall was that I had the opportunity to serve in an outlyingdistrict as well as the opportunity to serve here in the Mid-west in a congregation with a grade school,” says Roecker.“I thought that’s probably a good thing for this position, to have experienced both, because I’ve discovered there’ssome major differences in the area of outreach betweenthose two ministry settings.”

He says he’s looking forward to working with a broadersegment of WELS members and energizing and helpingthem share the good news of Jesus.

“Every WELS member wants to evangelize, and we knowthat because Christ lives in them and Christ wants us toevangelize. All of us want to tell others about Jesus, butthere are things that get in the way of that, whether it’s

our own sinful natures or our fear of not having answersor not knowing how to do it,” says Roecker. He continues, “The two things I’d like to encourage themembers of WELS to do are, first of all, just start reachingout. As you do it, you’ll learn how to do it better throughexperience. And second, prepare yourselves to do it. That’swhere we hope we can help by providing resources to helppeople prepare to evangelize.”Roecker will continue to reside in Menomonee Falls withhis wife and two children.

I think I know better. Too often my thoughts and actionssuggest that I think I even know better than God! I wishGod would see things my way. Shall I give advice to God?I am not the only one. Adam’s rebellion in the Garden ofEden, Jesus’ doubting disciples, our pride today—peoplehave consistently considered their foolishness greater thanGod’s wisdom. Such is the nature of our sinful wisdom,which only leads to destruction.That’s why we so desperately needGod’s Word and God’s wisdom. That’swhere Daniel Deutschlander takes us—to God’s Word—with his two-volumedevotional On Giving Advice to God.The first volume focuses on the life andwork of Christ for our salvation as itfollows the half of the church year fromAdvent, Christmas, and Epiphany toLent, Easter, and Jesus’ Ascension. Thesecond volume spans the Pentecost/Trinity half of the church year, with

emphasis on our maturing in the faith and sharing it with others. Valuable for Christians seeking dailyspiritual refreshment, each devotion highlights a Biblepassage, contrasting what amounts to our sinful opinionsand advice regarding life’s problems with God’s mercifuland gracious solutions. Reading each devotion, I was reminded how my ways and

my advice fall short of God’s perfec-tion. If I had my way, the result wouldbe a life of sorrow and disaster. Butthen, with fresh insights into familiarBible stories, Pastor Deutschlander di-rects me to the Bible where I see God’swisdom and perfect plan that rescuesme from myself, the devil, and eternaldeath. Pastor Deutschlander pointsme to Jesus and the cross, and I seeGod’s abounding grace.

Brian Heinitz, Henderson, NevadaPRICE: $39.18 for the set

Eric Roecker and his family: wife, Mary; son, Rees; and daughter,Riley.

New director for the Commission on Evangelism

26 August 2018

NEWS

WELS news briefsSPECIAL MINISTRIES

414-256-3241; specialministries@wels.net

Each year the Organization of WELSLutheran Seniors (OWLS) holds anannual convention that allows its mem-bers to gather together to worship, bespiritually enriched, see old friendsand meet new ones, and offer sup-port. is year, OWLS is inviting allseniors age 55 or older from WELSand the Evangelical Lutheran Synodto its convention, Oct. 10–12, at theOsthoff Resort, Elkhart Lake, Wis.“We are reaching out to seniors inboth synods since we believe thatthese conventions can assist all se-niors in their faith life through theChristian fellowship motivated bythe love of their Savior,” says WernerLemke, chair of the convention plan-ning committee. Under the theme“Finish your race,” the convention willfeature area tours, including the RoadAmerica racetrack, and offer work-shops and speakers that will helpChristian seniors run the race theLord has prepared for them. Find outmore and register at wels.net/events.

CONFERENCE OF PRESIDENTS

414-256-3201; mark.schroeder@wels.net

e Conference of Presidents (COP)has completed its review of the cur-rent Scouting organization to deter-mine whether Scouting has changedin a way that would remove its objec-tionable features. Several congregations

and called workers asked for this re-view to clarify the issues. e COPhas determined that in substance noth-ing has changed and Scouting stillcontains religious elements and es-pouses a religious philosophy thatcontradicts the Scriptures. e COP

has developed a new 12-lesson Biblestudy called “Devoted” that digs deeperinto Scouting and the doctrine offellowship. Find the study online atwelscongregationalservices.netunder “Timely topics.”

TECHNOLOGY

414-259-4357; martin.spriggs@wels.net

WELS has released a new version ofthe WELS mobile app. is versionreplaces WELS Mobile, which was re-tired in July. Now called WELS App,this progressive web app still offers a

quick and easy way to get WELS web-based devotional, news, and synodinformation from your mobile device.It also includes new features like fa-voriting, sharing, and expanded con-tent. As a progressive web app, WELSApp will give users all the features ofa store app, but it can be updated morefrequently and offer similar experienceson any device. It also gets progressive-ly better as users’ devices (and theirbrowsers) get more capabilities. Findthe app online at https://wels.app.

Nadine A. Krueger, 1952–2018

Nadine Krueger (née Wangler) wasborn June 7, 1952, in Milwaukee, Wis.She died March 9, 2018, in Waukesha,Wis. She taught at Wisconsin LutheranHigh School, Milwaukee, Wis. She is survived by her husband, David;one son; one daughter; three grand-children; and one sister. She is precededin death by her parents.

Laurence E. Clark, 1945–2018

Laurence Clark was born Sept. 25,1945, in Geneva, N.Y. He died March14, 2018, in La Crosse, Wis. He served at Mt. Calvary, La Crosse,Wis. He is survived by his wife, Martha; onedaughter; two sons; and five grandchil-dren. He is preceded in death by onesister and one brother.

Lynn L. Hartzell, 1952–2018

Lynn Hartzell (née Stuebs) was bornJuly 10, 1952, in Algoma, Wis. She diedMarch 29, 2018, in Lakeside, Ariz. A 1974 graduate of Dr. Martin LutherCollege, New Ulm, Minn., she taughtat East Fork, Whiteriver, Ariz., andEast Fork Lutheran High School,Whiteriver, Ariz.She is survived by her husband, Ralan;3 sons; 1 daughter; 11 grandchildren;1 brother; and 1 sister.

David A. Tetzlaff, 1933–2018

David Tetzlaff was born March 20,1933, in Cudahy, Wis. He died March31, 2018, in Fond du Lac, Wis.A 1958 graduate of WisconsinLutheran Seminary, Mequon, Wis.,he served St. John, Ixonia, Wis.; St.John, Whitewater, Wis.; Christus,Delavan, Wis.; St. Paul, South Haven,Mich.; Christ, Milwaukee, Wis.; andWisconsin Lutheran InstitutionalMinistries.He is survived by his wife, Donna;two daughters; three sons; nine grand-children; two great-grandchildren;and one sister. He is preceded in deathby one brother.

Obituaries

ILLUSTRATIONS: SHUTTERSTOCKAugust 2016 27

PHOTO: XXXPHOTO: XXXAugust 2018 27

NEWS

District newsSOUTHEASTERN WISCONSINSix youth from the Havenwoods cam-pus of Lighthouse Youth Center inMilwaukee, Wis., helped create andimplement an Easter for Kids outreachevent for its partner congregation,Redemption, Milwaukee.

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!AZ-CA—On June 10, St. Peter, Clo-vis, Calif., celebrated the 30th anniver-sary of its church building’s dedication.MN—On June 4, Peace, Marshfield,Mo., celebrated its 25th anniversary.Trinity, Nicollet, Minn., celebratedits 150th anniversary on June 17.On June 24, Petra, Sauk Rapids, Minn.,celebrated its 50th anniversary.SEW—On May 20, Resurrection,Aurora, Ill., celebrated the 40th an-

niversary in the pastoral ministry of Philip Schupmann. Illinois Lutheran Schools celebratedthe teaching ministry anniversariesof Joe Archer and Tim Rimpel (40years) and Scott Sievert and BethSchuppe (35 years), as well as the15th anniversary of Troy Swenson’sservice in the pastoral ministry.

The district reporters for this month are:AZ-CA—Michael Schroeder; MI—JohnEich; MN—Jeffrey Bovee; SC—AndrewRetberg; SEW—Scott Oelhafen.�

SOUTHEASTERN WISCONSIN

Students from the National Honor Societyof Kettle Moraine Lutheran High School,Jackson, Wis., raised funds to provideBibles for children in inner-city Milwau-kee. The original goal was to provide 126Bibles. On May 4, the high school stu-dents delivered 535 Bibles to two Chris-tian elementary schools in Milwaukee.

MICHIGAN

In May, more than two hundred students from seven WELS elementary schools in Michigan gathered to help clean up invasivespecies and water plants and to help make bird food at Bay City State Park. Participating schools included St. John, Bethel, andTrinity, Bay City; St. Bartholomew, Kawkawlin; St. Luke’s, Vassar; New Salem, Sebewaing; and St. John, Pigeon.

MINNESOTA

St. Mark, Mankato, Minn., held a SouthSudanese outreach event in June, whichwas aimed at sharing the gospel withSouth Sudanese children.

SOUTH CENTRAL

Five congregations sent a total of 33teen and 14 adult volunteers to serveWELS’ Apache mission field from June15-23. Volunteers came from HolyWord, Austin, Texas; Atonement, Plano,Texas; Christ the Rock, Round Rock,Texas; Eternal Rock, Castle Rock, Colo.;and Carbon Valley, Firestone, Colo.

NO!

NO!

NO!NO!NO!

NO!NO!

NO!

NO!

PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCK28 August 2018

A simple word can carrysuch negative energy,yet it also can bringgreat comfort.Sarah E. Proeber

“No.”It can be the worst word to hear.

“No, I’m sorry you are not able to haveyour own children.”“No, we aren’t able to offer you the job.”“No, I’m just not interested in havinga relationship right now.”We are told no more often than wewould like. Those two letters strungtogether to make one little word canhave such a negative impact on ourday, our week, or even our lives.But what if I told you that no is one of my favorite words?

I don’t enjoy it when my husband saysno to going out for ice cream or whenmy boss says, “No, you can’t have thatday off.” I surely didn’t like it when my pastortold me as a young eighth grader, “No,you cannot have Romans 8:38,39 asyour confirmation verse. It’s too long.”(What he didn’t know was that I actu-ally wanted verses 31-39. But I figuredeight verses was too much to ask for.) While his no was devastating to hear,it didn’t stop me from adoring thosetwo letters strung together to make onelittle word, no, within these verses: 

What, then, shall we say in responseto these things? If God is for us, whocan be against us? He who did notspare his own Son, but gave him upfor us all—how will he not also, alongwith him, graciously give us all things?

Who will bring any charge againstthose whom God has chosen? It isGod who justifies. Who then is theone who condemns? No one. ChristJesus who died—more than that, whowas raised to life—is at the righthand of God and is also intercedingfor us. Who shall separate us fromthe love of Christ? Shall trouble orhardship or persecution or famineor nakedness or danger or sword?As it is written: “For your sake weface death all day long; we are con-sidered as sheep to be slaughtered.”No, in all these things we are morethan conquerors through him wholoved us. For I am convinced thatneither death nor life, neither angelsnor demons, neither the present northe future, nor any powers, neitherheight nor depth, nor anything elsein all creation, will be able to sepa-

PHOTO: XXXAugust 2018 29

rate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Ro-mans 8:31-39)

There it is. No. Read it again. “Whoshall separate us from the love ofChrist? Shall trouble or hardship orpersecution or famine or nakednessor danger or sword? . . . No.”As an insecure, 13-year-old, middleschool girl, the word no unnervedme more than I’d like to admit. Asthat young girl, I heard no in varioussentences, such as: “No, we don’t want to be your friend.”“No, you can’t have a cell phone.”“No, you didn’t make the team.” All of these nos made my heart sinkand the tears come.But God, he knew. Yes, he knewthose two letters strung together tomake one little word could make myheart sing and my spirit soar whenhe showed me the meaning of themessage behind them. In these verses I found my love forthat one little word. He changed theconnotation of that little word for mewhen he said, “No, my sweet child.Nothing will be able to separate youfrom my love.”When my life seemed like it was overbecause I was the only kid in my classwho didn’t have a cell phone, God saidno. “Dear daughter, your cup overflows”(cf. Psalm 23:5).When a fellow classmate declared thatshe wouldn’t be my friend and I feltalone, like nobody cared, God said no.“Greater love has no one than this,that someone lay down his life for hisfriends. You are my friends if you dowhat I command” (cf. John 15:13,14). When the coach said I didn’t makethe team and I felt unwanted, like Iwouldn’t ever be good enough, Godsaid no. “Now you are the body ofChrist” (1 Corinthians 12:27).

Who would have thought that onelittle word could leave us with twovery different emotions? When aperson tells us no, we are left with anempty feeling. When God tells us no,we are filled with his peace, with hisjoy, with his love. He reminds us, “ ‘Formy thoughts are not your thoughts,neither are your ways my ways,’ de-clares the LORD. ‘As the heavens arehigher than the earth, so are my wayshigher than your ways and my thoughtsthan your thoughts’ ” (Isaiah 55:8,9).When there is a no in your life, Godis saying, “I have something better instore for you. You cannot understandmy plans. I am greater than you andgreater than all things of the world.Wait and see, my child. No, I am notgranting you your wish. I am givingyou something even greater.”

So, no! Those two letters strung to-gether to make one little word are notmeant to defeat us. They are meantto remind us that although not every-thing may go our way in this life, noth-ing can separate us from his love orhis plans.Maybe God says no to all your earthlyyearnings. Maybe you never get thechild you have prayed for as Hannahdid in the Old Testament. Maybe younever find “the one” who you will spendyour life with and raise a family. Pos-sibly you’re stuck in a job you wouldrather run from as Jonah did. But shall these things separate youfrom the love of Christ? No! 

Listen to the words of the apostle Paulin Romans 8:28: “We know that in allthings God works for the good of thosewho love him, who have been calledaccording to his purpose.” Ponder thefact that no means God is working inour lives. He is using us as integralparts of his perfect plan. The no fromGod doesn’t leave us empty. The nofrom God gives us purpose and peacein the truth that his ways are higherthan our ways and his thoughts thanour thoughts.So listen again to the words of mydesired confirmation passage fromRomans 8: “No, in all these things weare more than conquerors throughhim who loved us. For I am convincedthat neither death nor life, neither an-gels nor demons, neither the presentnor the future, nor any powers, nei-ther height nor depth, nor anythingelse in all creation, will be able to sep-arate us from the love of God that isin Christ Jesus our Lord.”Come what may in this short, little life,we are conquerors.No, nothing can take us away from thelove of God, and nothing can alter ourfuture home in God’s eternal kingdom.Our salvation has been won.Now here is my question: Are you leftfeeling empty?No.

Sarah Proeber is a member at St. Mark,Green Bay, Wisconsin.

This article is adapted and reprinted withpermission from holyhenhouse.com.

Ponder the fact that no means God is

working in our lives.

I knew Hue Thao and his story beforethe Lord took him home. I hope he willforgive me for putting words in his mouthso he can tell you his story in his ownwords. Hue Thao would tell you thefollowing: “The oceans belong to the fish; the skybelongs to the birds; the mountains be-long to the Hmong.” (Hmong saying)My story begins in the mountains ofLaos. That’s where the Lord gave me life,although I didn’t come to know him untilmany years later. I grew up and developeda love of learning. I was one of the fewfortunate enough to attend college. I be-came a school teacher in the village ofNammoung, Laos. Because of dangerous conditions in Laosfollowing the Vietnam War, I fled to Thai-land in 1988, and I stayed in the Ban Vinairefugee camp, not far from the MekongRiver, for many years. I studied medicineand became a physician’s assistant. I metBounkeo Lor, but he was just an acquain-tance at that time. Then I had the opportunity to come tothe United States. I settled in Fresno, Cali-fornia, and drove a truck, ran a laundro-mat, and did other things to earn a living.

SOMETHING MARVELOUSA few years later, I moved to Kansas City.That’s where something marvelous hap-pened. The Holy Spirit brought me to

Jesus. I had known a few Hmong Chris-tians over the years. I knew a little bitabout the religion, but nothing clicked.Then I met Bounkeo Lor again. Nowhe was the pastor of Grace HmongLutheran Church. A relative of mine is married to his sister,and we both happened to be at their houseone day. We got to talking, and he invitedme to his church. I attended a worshipservice, and he invited me to meet withhim later that week. We sat down, and hepresented the gospel of Jesus Christ. I hadnever really heard God’s grace explainedto me before. If I had heard this earlier, Imight have become a Christian years ago!But this was the time God chose to workin my heart and lead me to faith. My wife,Mai Vue, and I were baptized at Grace onJan. 5, 2012.

SOMETHING EXCITINGThe Holy Spirit kept up his work. I wasexcited to learn more about Jesus, to studyhis Word, and to bring the good news tomy people, who are still under the powerof Satan. The Lord gave me opportunitiesto do all this. I also started theologicalstudies in the Pastoral Studies Institute(PSI) run by professors from WisconsinLutheran Seminary.In the fall of 2016, I was called to be anevangelist at Grace Hmong LutheranChurch. I was excited to go and makecontacts with the Hmong community. I

30 August 2018BACKGROUND PHOTO: PIXABAY

The story of Hue Thao

mountainsto the skies:

from the

Bounkeo Lor

March 2016PHOTO: XXX

enjoy talking and building relationships. I also continued my studies with the PSI.It was a one-year call, and I was lookingforward to serving another one-year callas a pastoral vicar. I was hoping to hearin February if I would be asked to do this. I also started helping Pastor Lor with hiswork in various ways. I often served ashis much-needed chauffeur. On one oc-casion I drove him and two visitors fromVietnam to meet Synod President MarkSchroeder in Wisconsin. I also served as a driver when we met some contactsin Laos. Pastor Lor invited me to go with him toAsia on several trips. While I was notready to do any preaching or teachingmyself, except for parts of Luther’s SmallCatechism, I was part of his supportteam. I was hopeful that in the future Iwould be able to help with the preachingand teaching as well.The Lord gave me a love of music, and I wanted to use this talent in the Lord’sservice as well. My wife, Mai, is frequent-ly asked to sing at various events in theHmong community, and we have put to-gether several CDs with Hmong songs.Recently we were working on a CD withChristian music. I was hoping to use thisCD to bring the gospel to more Hmongpeople.

SOMETHING UNEXPECTEDThen something unexpected happened.Early in the morning of Feb. 18, 2018, theLord called me home. It was a bit of a sur-prise, because I was not suffering fromany major illness. And so my story ends, or should I say,begins in the skies. Could I have reachedmore souls if I had lived longer? Our lov-ing Lord in his wisdom had other plans,and his plans are always the best. Butthere are still many more souls to reach.Therefore, ask the Lord of the harvest tosend forth workers into the harvest field.

Bounkeo Lor is the Hmong Asia ministry coordinator for WELS.

Learn more about Hmong ministry opportunitiesin Vietnam on p. 23.

Hue Thao’sfuneralHue Thao’s funeral was aninteresting hybrid of Hmongcustoms and Christian doc-trine. Hmong funerals lastfor days, and many in theHmong community come tothe funeral, even if they do not know the deceased personally. The custom is to serve big meals for everyone who attends.

According to Hmong custom, the coffin is made out ofwood, not metal. Hmong traditional religion teachesthat after death the soul director guides the soul to itsbirthplace to retrieve the placenta with which it was bornbecause it is considered the person’s original clothes.Then the soul director sends the soul to hell. The Chris-tian teaching is much different. The Holy Spirit worksthrough Baptism to clothe the soul with Jesus. He has directed the soul to the one thing needful: faith in Jesus.In other words, the Soul Director guides the soul of thebeliever to heaven to be with Jesus.

Hue’s funeral started with a worship service on Saturday,April 14, followed, of course, by a meal. Another worshipservice followed on Sunday. This service lasted almostthree hours! There was a sermonette in English, followedby a full sermon in Hmong. Hmong choirs from GraceHmong Lutheran Church sang songs of comfort and hope.Then there was a meal with about 250 people in atten-dance. Many of these people were not Christian. Theworship service was a great opportunity to present thegospel of Jesus Christ and to invite the people to worshipat Grace. After the sermons on Sunday evening, a familyin Hue Thao’s relation brought two of their sons to meto ask for theological training. They wanted to followtheir Uncle Hue’s footsteps to serve the Lord.

One pastor chose the words of Jesus for his sermonette:“As long as it is day, we must do the works of him whosent me. Night is coming, when no one can work. WhileI am in the world, I am the light of the world” (John 9:4,5).Hue’s early death is a reminder that our time is short. Weneed to use it wisely, to get to know Jesus better throughhis Word, and to share him with others.

Hue Thao and his wife, Mai.

Above: Hue Thao (left) and Pastor Bounkeo Lor (right) visiting localHmong pastors in Vietnam. Facing page: Hue Thao presenting toHmong church leaders in Vietnam.

“I’ll keep you in my prayers,” a Christiansays upon hearing about the challengesan individual is facing. Occasionally, thewords come as a reflex, uttered withoutmuch thought. It feels like the perfect thingfor a Christian to say, and not only becausethe words roll easily off the tongue andencourage the person who’s hurting. Inaddition, since a Christian may offer aprayer anywhere at any time at no charge,it seems like an easy promise both to makeand to keep. But this needs to be said: Prayer is free,but expensive. A Christian doesn’t have to pay for an au-dience with the Lord. She’s not requiredto show herself deserving of God’s ear.But strangely, the cost of prayer may be aproblem. Some have suggested that peo-ple tend to take for granted that which isfree. If that’s the case, we need to look atprayer a little more closely. Prayer is ex-pensive. In fact, “expensive” doesn’t beginto express the reality. The highest pricewas paid to secure the privilege of prayerfor the children of God: God himself tookon flesh to shed his blood for sinners sothey might pray freely and often. That’s not the only reason to considerprayer expensive. While the Christiandoesn’t pay anything to pray, the Chris-tian does incur significant cost by pray-ing. The Christian who prays gives upthe cherished illusion that he can solvethe problems in his life all by himself.In approaching the Lord in prayer, heacknowledges what his sinful flesh hasno interest in confessing: “I’m powerlessto solve this problem. I’m not the onedirecting all things. God is, and he alone.”Given the pride of the sinful nature thatclings to Christians, prayer is expensive—an admission that we are powerless. A Christian who has listened to God’sWord knows the way God chooses tooperate. He typically works indirectly,through ordinary means, rather thanthrough miracles. Instead of droppingfood from the sky, for example, he gives

people the ability to work and earn themoney needed to purchase the food theyneed. The Lord who generally answersthe prayers of his people indirectly maydecide to use the Christian herself as theanswer to her own prayer. The Christian who prays that the Lordwould encourage her friend who lost herjob may see the Lord do so through herears and mouth, as she listens intently toher friend and speaks God’s promises toher. The Christian who asks God to havemercy on those whose homes were de-stroyed by a tornado may find the Lordanswering his prayer through the moneycurrently in his savings account. TheChristian who prays for godly people toserve in government might see the Lordgrant that request by leading her to runfor office. Prayer is indeed free, but it mayprove expensive. Might that be a reason we’re sometimesslow to pray? We’ve observed how theLord answers prayers, and we’re not con-vinced we can afford the answer. We seeunder-supplied bank accounts and over-flowing calendars, with scarcely an ounceof emotional energy remaining. Ratherthan looking for more people and situa-tions for which to pray, we withdraw intoour own lives. But we need not withdraw.The Lord promises to strengthen his peo-ple and to meet all their needs in Christ,freeing them up to serve others. So go ahead and pray for others. Thenwatch the Lord use you as an answer toprayer and marvel at the way he empowersyou to serve.

Contributing editor Earle Treptow, a pro-fessor at Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary,Mequon, Wisconsin, is a member at ChristAlone, Mequon.

Free, but expensiveEarle D. Treptow

While the Christian

doesn’t pay anything to

pray, the Christian does incur

significant cost by praying.

32 August 2018

EDITORIAL COMMENT

BIBLE STUDY

August 2018 33

Nahum means “comfort.” But Nahum’s prophecy begins: “The LORD isa jealous and avenging God; the LORD takesvengeance and is filled with wrath” (1:2). That’s . . . comfort? Let’s talk about it.

A MESSAGE OF WRATH The book of Nahum is directed primarilyagainst Nineveh, the capital city of the As-syrian empire. The Assyrians built their em-pire by ferociously attacking other nations,killing, pillaging, then exacting exorbitanttribute. Their cruelty was breathtaking;their warfare, brutal.Yet what did God do? In amazing grace, Godsent Jonah to prophesy to the Ninevites. Andamazingly, the people of Nineveh repented!Jonah’s book ends with a beautiful statementof God’s love even for Nineveh: “And shouldI not have concern for the great city of Nin-eveh?” (Jonah 4:11).But it wasn’t long until Nineveh was backat it. About 40 years later, they would con-quer the Northern Kingdom, killing or ex-iling most of its inhabitants. The Assyriansthen imported other captured peoples intothe conquered north, and the intermarriagebetween them and the remaining Israelitesresulted in the people called Samaritans.Later (about 701 B.C.) they would invadeJudah and decimate most of the country,but God miraculously intervened and pre-served Judah (cf. Isaiah 37:36,37).Now it was Nahum’s time, and God’s pa-tience with Nineveh had run out. Yes, Godis “slow to anger,” but he also “will not leavethe guilty unpunished” (Nahum 1:3). Al-though “the LORD is good, a refuge in timesof trouble” (1:7), it’s also true that “with anoverwhelming flood he will make an end of

Nineveh” (1:8). God had been incrediblygracious! He’d even sent a prophet to Nin-eveh. But Nineveh had abused his patientgrace. So now they would feel God’s severepunishment: “Many casualties, piles of dead,bodies without number, people stumblingover the corpses” (3:3).Jonah taught us that God graciouslycared for Nineveh; Nahum tells us thatthe Ninevites, who scorned God’s grace,would feel God’s wrath.

A MESSAGE OF COMFORT And this is comfort?For the people of God, yes, it’s comfort,for it reminds us of important truths: • God will not be mocked. Those who stand

against God will eventually feel his wrath. • God advanced his plan of salvation through

the Ninevites. Their judgment meant Godwas serious about disobedience and rebel-lion, and that judgment brought the South-ern Kingdom to its knees in repentance.

• Even in the middle of this judgment, the Lordheld out grace and mercy to his faithful.

And those comforts remain today. Thosewho stand against God will feel his wrath.God acts sometimes with brutal force tobring people to repentance. But we findcomfort because “the LORD is good, a refugein times of trouble. He cares for those whotrust in him” (1:7).And that’s a great comfort.

Contributing editor Thomas Kock, a pro-fessor at Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary,Mequon, Wisconsin, is a member at Atone-ment, Milwaukee.

This is the seventh article in a 12-part series onthe minor prophets.

Thomas D. Kock

NAHUM: A PROPHET OF . . . COMFORT?!? HOSEAJOELJONAHAMOSOBADIAHMICAHNAHUMHome: Elkosh. Maybe in southern Judah?

Dates: Sometime between 663(fall of Thebes) and 612 B.C. (fall of Nineveh).

Unique feature: Almost completelydirected against one nation—Assyria(and Nineveh, its capital).

Key verse: 2:13 and 3:5. “‘I amagainst you,’ declares the LORDAlmighty.”

HABAKKUKZEPHANIAHHAGGAIZECHARIAHMALACHI

34 August 2018

A THOUGHT

Unlocked by God’s power

Only one key can unlock a

human heart. . . . e gospel is the key.

C. S. Lewis wrote that he believed thedamned are “rebels to the end; thatthe doors of hell are locked on theinside” (“Hell” from The Problem ofPain). Jesus tells us in the parable ofthe beggar Lazarus (Luke chapter 16)that the rich man wanted to warn hisfive brothers so they would not “cometo this place of torment” (v. 28). Therich man was told that there was “agreat chasm” so that no one couldcross over from hell to heaven.I don’t think that C. S. Lewis would dis-agree with the description of hell byJesus, but Lewis makes a different point.He suggests that those who are in hellare rebels who have opposed God andalways oppose God. Satan is the primeexample. We don’t have to think toolong for other examples. We knowothers who, at least in this life, have op-posed Jesus, Christianity, and Chris-tians without remorse. Their hearts arelocked from the inside. The familiarpainting of Jesus knocking at the doorcomes to mind. For them, the door islocked to prevent Jesus from entering.Think about that a moment. David saysthat he was “sinful at birth” (Psalm 51:5).Paul describes us as “dead” (Ephesians2:1). But what we have by birth is notjust a passive defect. It’s an active op-position and rebellion against God.Paul also wrote, “The mind governed bythe flesh is hostile to God; it does notsubmit to God’s law, nor can it do so”(Romans 8:7). Hostile and rebellious. So,in reality, our hearts were locked fromthe inside too. All hearts are by nature.In the first chapter of Corinthians,Paul writes of those whose hearts arelocked. He suggests that the Gentilesthink that the gospel is so much fool-ishness and the Jews think it is a stum-bling block. His experiences remindus that culture does not matter. Hisexperiences reveal opposition, impris-onment, and beatings from Jews andGentiles. (See his summary in 2 Cor-inthians 11:24-26.)

Paul’s experiences are not just ancientoppositions to a new idea, oppositionsthat disappeared in the modern era.We also experience opposition. SomeChristians in the world we know todayhave been shunned, beaten, imprisoned,and killed. Hearts are still locked. Thereare rebels, hostile to the God who hasgraciously provided forgiveness andeternal life through his Son Jesus andwants all to be saved. But Paul was different, David was dif-ferent, and so are we. Why? What hap-pened to cause us to unlock our hearts?We have not decided to open our heartsto Jesus. By nature we, like everyoneelse, want the door to remain locked.Did we find some power within us toopen our hearts? No!Only one key can unlock a humanheart. Paul clearly identified that key: “I am not ashamed of the gospel be-cause it the power of God that bringssalvation” (Romans 1:16). The gospel is the key. It doesn’t come from insideany of our hearts. It comes from out-side, when we are baptized or when wehear and read about Christ crucified.Through the gospel, the Holy Spiritunbolts the lock of our rebellious andhostile hearts. His power, not ours,unlocks our hearts. Once our heartsare unlocked, we understand that themessage of Christ crucified is the wis-dom of God. Amazingly, God entrusts that key to us to trust it, live it, and share it. Inour experience, that key won’t openevery locked heart. Hostility will per-sist. But by his grace some hearts areopened by the gospel.

“DID YOU WASH YOUR HANDS?”(LUKE 11:37-54)Moms, how many times have you askedthe question, “Did you wash your hands?”And if your child says yes, what’s yourfollow-up question? “Did you use soap?” Washing hands before you touch food isa good routine. And yet, it’s somethingthat Jesus intentionally refused to doon occasion. Strange, isn’t it? Even a bituncivilized. Why did the Savior, whodeemed it necessary to wash his disci-ples’ feet before they ate his special meal,refuse to wash his hands when he wasa guest at another meal?It had nothing to do with hygiene. It hadeverything to do with hypocrisy. Jesuswas willing to risk some germs on hishands so he could address the sin ger-minating in the heart of his host. “Nowthen, you Pharisees clean the outside ofthe cup and dish, but inside you are fullof greed and wickedness” (Luke 11:39).Whoa! That’s pretty bold for Jesus to ad-dress the host in such a way. To call thehost out was a feather-ruffling, wave-making statement, especially when youconsider the host didn’t even voice hisdisapproval of Jesus’ dirty hands. Hesimply noticed it (v. 38). But Jesus wasn’tafraid to get his hands dirty and addressthe host’s sin straight on. For the manytimes that we dance around addressing

sin because we don’t want to “offendsomeone,” appreciate Jesus’ comments.Appreciate Jesus’ love and concern andhis willingness to do the dirty work. Hedidn’t care about whose toes he steppedon or about which tradition he broke.Even when others chimed in, “Hey, thathurts my feelings. You’re insulting us also”(cf. v. 45), Jesus didn’t let their feelingsget in the way about how he felt abouttheir spiritual condition. Six times Jesusscolded, “Woe to you.” Considering we live in a society that pro-motes so much tolerance, Jesus’ willing-ness to have tough conversations catchesour attention. His “woes” make us say,“Whoa!”But should we be surprised? Jesus wasalways willing to do the tough thing. Hedoesn’t just love people enough to ad-dress sin with his words. He was alsowilling to roll up his sleeves and get hishands dirty to address sin with his actions.As he went to the cross, he carried inhis hands our lack of love. His handswere stained with our pride, our poorleadership, our hypocrisy. For all thetimes we hid the gospel from someoneor unnecessarily burdened their con-sciences, Jesus took matters into hisown hands. Jesus got his hands dirty sohe could wash our hearts. As we seeJesus’ hands dirty on the outside, know

that it was because he wanted to makeus clean on the inside.And so, we pray, “Come, Lord Jesus, be our guest. Let these gifts”—yourwillingness to call sin a sin but alsoyour willingness to cleanse our hearts—“to us be blessed. Amen.”

FOOD FOR THOUGHT1. What traditions may get in the way of

the spiritual condition of our hearts?2. “The church is simply a bunch of

hypocrites!” How do you respond?3. Jesus calls out six particular sins of

the Pharisees and experts of the law.Which sins most apply to you? Toour culture?

Contributing editor Joel Heckendorf is pas-tor at Immanuel, Greenville, Wisconsin.

This is the ninth article in a 12-part seriesthat looks at Jesus as a mealtime guest andhow he blessed his fellow diners—and us—with his living presence. Find the article andanswers online after Aug. 5 at wels.net/forwardinchrist.

August 2018 35

BIBLE STUDY

NOURISHED BY MEALS WITH THE MESSIAHJoel S. Heckendorf

PHOTO: LIGHTSTOCK

For many, the end of August is an enchantingtime. Like a fireworks grand finale, summeroften saves the best for last. Parents and chil-dren prize these last summer days—the camp-fires, the fireflies, and the long weekends atthe lake—because they know the end is com-ing. Summer is a season to be savored.But in the Sonoran Desert, summer is a sea-son to survive. People from Phoenix knowthe drill. Keep in the shade. Drink plenty ofwater. Stay where it’s cool. Find places withfree air-conditioning.

HAVING A ROUGH DAYAll that can drive a mission planter stir crazy.At least, that’s how I was feeling late last Au-gust. So I packed up a backpack full of flyersand hit the streets shortly after sunup. Iwanted to get a couple hundred flyers hungbefore the temperature reached 100 degrees.Near the end of my route, a man stormed up to me with a scowl on his face. He had ahandful of my flyers and a mouthful of un-kind words. He shoved the flyers into mychest. I tried to muster up a smile, but I’msure it didn’t fool him.The Lord knows there will be days like this.Later that afternoon, a message popped up onour church’s Facebook page. I was excited . . .until I read it. Someone had taken great offenseto our flyer: “Rude!!! Even though my familyis looking for a church, this will ensure that Iwon’t be coming. Clearly there is no respect.” In my haste to hang as many flyers as possible, I had missed her sign about not wanting reli-gious pamphlets. I sent her an apology message.The Lord knows there will be days like this.

FINDING RELIEFThe next day, there was another Facebookmessage. Part of me didn’t want to click it at all. Ignorance can be a kind of temporarybliss . . . but I clicked it anyway.

This time, it was someone new, and the mes-sage was something entirely different: “I foundone of your flyers on my front step. . . . I lookedup your website and started listening to yourpodcast this morning. I feel like it’s water tomy thirsty, parched soul.”The Lord knows there will be days like this.He prepared this moment. For her. For me.For the advancement of his kingdom. “TheLORD watches over you—the LORD is yourshade” (Psalm 121:5).So many people living in the growing out-skirts of Phoenix are just trying to survive.They hope and dream of better days. Theyare looking for relief, but they don’t knowwhere to find it. They have no idea whatthey’re looking for . . . no idea how lost theyreally are.But the Lord knows there are people like this.His Word proclaims what no human mindcan conceive. He loves the lost, the weary,and the thirsty. God loves survival-modepeople so much that he sent his Son to savethem. In Christ crucified, God offers the relief we all crave.There will be days filled with people whodon’t want to hear the message of hope andcomfort. But there will also be days whenmaybe even a single thirsty soul is ready todrink of the living water. So we keep at it. The Lord knows there will be days like these.He watches over our coming and going. Heis our shade. That’s something special. That’ssomething to savor. Especially during sum-mertime in the Sonoran Desert.

Lincoln Albrecht is pastor at River of Life, a homemission in Goodyear, Arizona.

Read more stories from WELS Missions atwels.net/missions.

The Lord loves the lost, the weary, and the thirsty. In Christcrucified, he offers the relief we all crave. Lincoln A. Albrecht

PHOTO: iSTO

CK

for the soulWater