Lutheran alliance for faith, science and technology

The Lutheran Alliance for Faith, Science, and Technology is dedicated to expanding awareness and promoting conversation about the implications of science and technology for Christian faith and life. (Prior to becoming the Alliance for Faith, Science and Technology in 2002, the effort was known as the Working Group for Faith, Science and Technology.)

In 1987, 45 young scientists, technologists, and theologians from 5 continents and 17 countries gathered in Larnaca, Cyprus in for a consultation entitled, “The New Scientific/Technological World: What Differences Does It Make for the Church?” The meeting, sponsored by the Lutheran Church in America (LCA) in cooperation from the Lutheran World Federation, was organized by the Rev. John Mangum, director for planning, LCA Division for World Mission and Ecumenism.  This meeting was the genesis of the Lutheran Alliance for Faith, Science, and Technology, as well as similar groups in other denominations.

Since 1991, the Alliance has been an independent Lutheran organization recognized by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) with liaison through the Theological Discernment Team in the Office of the Presiding Bishop.  The membership includes scientists, science teachers, rostered leaders (clergy and lay), and other interested lay people.

The site includes:
Covalence Magazine
News
Faith and Science Resources

Faith and Science Youth Curriculums

To discover more visit http://luthscitech.org 

Movie: Tortured for Christ

The Voice of the Martyrs presents the inspiring new movie Tortured for Christ, a cinematic retelling of the testimony of VOM founder Pastor Richard Wurmbrand as written in his international bestseller Tortured for Christ. This movie was produced to honor the 50th anniversary of the book’s 1967 release.

Filmed entirely in Romania, including in the very prison where Pastor Wurmbrand endured torture and solitary confinement, this powerful film uniquely presents the story with live action rather than interviews. The dialogue is presented in English, Romanian and Russian (with English subtitles) to hold to the authenticity of this true story.

Tortured for Christ - Trailer #1 from The Voice of the Martyrs on Vimeo.

The story of Pastor Richard Wurmbrand (1909 – 2001)

“He stood in the midst of lions, but they could not devour him.” – Philadelphia Herald

Richard Wurmbrand was born the youngest of four boys in a Jewish family on March 24, 1909, in Bucharest, Romania. Gifted intellectually and fluent in nine languages, Richard was active in leftist politics and worked as a stockbroker. On Oct. 26, 1936, Richard married Sabina Oster, who was also Jewish. They placed their faith in Jesus Christ in 1938 as a result of the influence of a German carpenter named Christian Wölfkes. Richard was ordained as an Anglican, and later Lutheran, minister.

During World War II, Richard and Sabina saw opportunities for evangelism among the occupying German forces. They preached in bomb shelters and rescued Jewish children out of the ghettos. Richard and Sabina were repeatedly arrested and beaten and, at least once, nearly executed. Sabina lost her Jewish family in Nazi concentration camps.

In 1945, Romanian Communists seized power and a million Russian troops poured into the country. Pastor Wurmbrand ministered to his oppressed countrymen while engaging in bold evangelism to the Russian soldiers.

That same year, Richard and Sabina attended the Congress of Cults, organized by the Romanian Communist government. Many religious leaders came forward to praise Communism and to swear loyalty to the new regime. Richard walked up to the podium and declared to the delegates, whose speeches were broadcast to the whole nation, that their duty was to glorify God and Christ alone.

Between 1945 and 1947, Richard distributed 1 million Gospels to Russian troops, often disguising the books as Communist propaganda. Richard also helped arrange the smuggling of Gospels into Russia.

On Feb. 29, 1948, the secret police kidnapped Richard as he traveled to church and took him to their headquarters. He was locked in a solitary cell and labeled “Prisoner Number 1.” In 1950, his wife, Sabina, was also imprisoned. She was forced to serve as a laborer on the Danube Canal project, leaving their 9-year-old son, Mihai, alone and homeless. He was then taken in by Christian friends, who risked imprisonment to care for the child of a political prisoner. Sabina was released after three years, and Richard was also later released, only to be re-arrested and then released in an amnesty in 1964.

In December 1965, two organizations paid a $10,000 ransom to allow the Wurmbrand family to leave Romania. Reluctant to leave his homeland, Richard was convinced by other underground church leaders to leave and become a “voice” to the world for the underground church. Richard, Sabina and their son, Mihai, left Romania for Norway and then traveled on to England.

Richard began his ministry of being a voice for persecuted Christians in the West, where he also wrote his testimony of persecution, Tortured for Christ. Later, Richard moved to the United States, and in 1967 the Wurmbrands officially began a ministry committed to serving our persecuted Christian family called Jesus to the Communist World (later renamed The Voice of the Martyrs). This work continues today in more than 60 countries where Christians are persecuted.

Book: From Surviving to Thriving: A Practical Guide to Revitalize Your Church by John H Krahn

For years, Rev. Dr. John H. Krahn has been one of his denomination's most successful interim pastors whom God has used to save many dying churches. He shares his proven methods for helping churches which are barely surviving to once again thrive. Whether your church is on life support or is doing quite well, this book shares ways and insights which will strengthen your church and its ministry. Unlike other books on church growth, From Surviving to Thriving -- A Practical Guide to Revitalize Your Church, is a hands-on approach that will assist you and your church greatly. Dr. Krahn believes that no church should fail. He has written this book to help your church once again thrive.


Inside you will find a good measure of practical advice, pressed down, shaken together and running over with experience and good sense. There are not many suggestions that cannot immediately be put into practice by pastors and members of congregations alike. Pastor Krahn has done what he recommends and seen the results of intentional missional ministry in more than one context. The book is overflowing with good stories and examples of excellent ministry. He draws richly from the pastoral imagination of other settings. We all know that the current culture does not necessarily support our congregational revitalization, but rather than simply analyze the situation and describe the problem, the author proposes concrete and effective practices in worship, finances, and programs that he has seen work. There are no silver bullets to address our challenges but a comprehensive approach including, among others, getting the church's financial house in order, practicing good stewardship, developing a strategic plan and vision, marketing the church in new and old ways, and developing an evangelism program. 

Here is a book by a veteran pastor who knows how to revitalize a congregation that is long on hope and short on excuses.

Some chapters included: 

• Stop Making Excuses and Start Doing Something 
• Get Your Church's Financial House in Order 
• Reclaim Your Inactive Members 
• Reach the Unchurched in Your Community 
• Remove the Roadblocks That Impede Thriving 
• Expect God's Miracles 

Rev Dr. John H. Krahn has been in the pastoral ministry for forty-eight years. He was pastor of the largest Lutheran church in New York for twelve years with a staff of fifty people.  Dr. Krahn earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from Concordia Senior College (Fort Wayne, Indiana), and his Master of Divinity degree from Concordia Seminary (St. Louis, Missouri). He earned his Masters in Education and Theological Studies from Union Theological Seminary, his Masters in Curriculum and Teaching from Columbia University, and his Doctor of Ministry from New York Theological Seminary (all in New York, New York). He has been the Executive Director of the United Lutheran Appeal, the Director of Recruitment at Long Island Lutheran High School, an Army Chaplain, owned a Christian group travel business and traveled all over the world. Krahn is a professional fund raiser, has been a lecturer, taught high school, served as interim pastor at five floundering Lutheran churches, and continues to work as a paid church consultant. He is the go-to-guy in his synod to turn around dying churches, and sometimes refers to himself as the "pastor of lost causes". Dr. Krahn is also a much sought after speaker. In 2016, he will be conducting seminars throughout the church on the subject matter contained in this book. He has been married for forty-nine years, and has two daughters and three grandchildren.

New Song: We believe (creed song) Keith and Kristyn Getty

Pictures from Christianphotoshops

Christian photoshops offers quality pictures which are suitable for powerpoints, web pages and other presentations.  
The mission of this website is to provide high quality imagery that accurately represents Christian principles found in the Bible. Theystrive to use their talents to create images in a creative, unique, and powerful way that both honors our Creator and gives Him all the glory. They hope that you are blessed by their artwork found here, and that you are encouraged in your Christian walk. 

To view their work visit:   http://www.christianphotoshops.com  

Some examples:

Picture: Valentine - Lent

2018 Ash Wednesday - lent reflection

video: What should the church do?

Where Are We Today: What Should The Church Do? from Chris Croghan on Vimeo.

Hymn of the month: Christ the life of all the living

"Christ, the Life of All the Living"
by Ernst C. Homburg, 1605-1681
Translated by Catherine Winkworth, 1829-1878

1. Christ, the Life of all the living,
Christ, the Death of death, our foe,
Who, Thyself for me once giving
To the darkest depths of woe,--
Through thy sufferings, death, and merit
I eternal life inherit:
Thousand, thousand thanks shall be,
Dearest Jesus, unto Thee.

2. Thou, ah! Thou, hast taken on Thee
Bonds and stripes, a cruel rod;
Pain and scorn were heaped upon Thee,
0 Thou sinless Son of God!
Thus didst Thou my soul deliver
From the bonds of sin forever.
Thousand, thousand thanks shall be,
Dearest Jesus, unto Thee.

3. Thou hast borne the smiting only
That my wounds might all be whole;
Thou hast suffered, sad and lonely,
Rest to give my weary soul;
Yea, the curse of God enduring,
Blessing unto me securing.
Thousand, thousand thanks shall be,
Dearest Jesus, unto Thee.

4. Heartless scoffers did surround Thee,
Treating Thee with shameful scorn,
And with piercing thorns they crowned Thee.
All disgrace Thou, Lord, hast borne
That as Thine Thou mightest own me
And with heavenly glory crown me.
Thousand, thousand thanks shall be,
Dearest Jesus, unto Thee.

5. Thou hast suffered men to bruise Thee
That from pain I might be free;
Falsely did Thy foes accuse Thee,--
Thence I gain security;
Comfortless Thy soul did languish
Me to comfort in my anguish.
Thousand, thousand thanks shall be,
Dearest Jesus, unto Thee.

6. Thou hast suffered great affliction
And hast borne it patiently,
Even death by crucifixion,
Fully to atone for me;
Thou didst choose to be tormented
That my doom should be prevented.
Thousand, thousand thanks shall be,
Dearest Jesus, unto Thee.

7. Then, for all that wrought my pardon,
For Thy sorrows deep and sore,
For Thine anguish in the Garden,
I will thank Thee evermore,
Thank Thee for Thy groaning, sighing,
For Thy bleeding and Thy dying,
For that last triumphant cry,
And shall praise Thee, Lord, on high.

The Lutheran Hymnal
Hymn #151
Text: Matt. 26:64-67
Author: Ernst C. Homburg, 1659, ab.
Translated by: Catherine Winkworth, 1863, alt.
Titled: "Jesu, meines Lebens Leben"
Tune: "Jesu, meines Lebens Leben"
1st Published in: _KirchengesangbuchTown: Darmstadt, 1687

Song of the month: Rescuer

Rescuer

2018 Lenten Resources

In 2018 Lent begins on Ash Wednesday on 14 February 2018(St Valentines Day) and East Sunday falls on 1 April 2018 (April Fools Day) this occurence gives rise to a number of creative suggestions for Lent and Easter themes, including Foolish Love, Loving Foolishly, Out of the ashes comes love for fools.....

Following are some resources that may assist you and the people you serve in their Lenten and Easter journey

Worship Resources
Lutheran Church of Australia - Midweek Lent worship 
LCMS Lenten Worship resources
Lutheran World Relief 2018 Lent seasons of hope homilies
For the love of the world worship and study ideas 

Lent devotions and studies
Lenten Study 2018 - We are Lutheran (ELCA Nebraskan synod)
Luther Seminary Lenten Study 2018 - through the night of doubt and sorrow

Lutheran Church of Australia - International Mission's Lent prayer guide

Lutheran Hour Ministries - 2018 Lenten devotion 
North American Lutheran Church 2018 Lenten Devotions

Publishers Lent Resources

Concordia Publishing House Lent and Easter Resources
Augsburg Fortress Lent Resources
Solapublishing Lenten Resources

Individual resources
2018 devotional - Lovers and Fools
Online Lenten devotion - When love looks like ashes
Dethroning Mammon: Making Money Serve Grace: The Archbishop of Canterbury’s Lent Book
A place for God Lenten Devotional
The Glory of the Cross Lent Devotional
The crucified is my love
In the shaddow of the cross
Journey to calvery
The art of Lent
Word made art 

Book/Study: Joining Jesus on His mission

Joining Jesus on His Mission - being an everyday missionary will alter the way you see your life as a follower of Jesus and take you beyond living your life for Jesus to living life with Jesus. 
Simple, powerful and applicable insights show you how to be on mission and recognize where Jesus is already at work in your neighborhoods, workplaces and schools. You will feel both relief and hope. You may even hear yourself say, “I can do this!” as you start responding to the everyday opportunities Jesus is placing in your path.

Contents
What's Jesus up to?
Joining Jesus
The River moved
Are you stalling?
Could it be this simple?
An inefficiently effective strategy
Seeking what's already happening.
The kingdom of God
What does the Kingdom of God look like?
The Mission of God
Getting into position every day
Seeking the Kingdom
Hearing from Jesus
Talking with people
Doing good
Ministering through prayer
The missional party
What will your story be?
With a little help from my friends.

Further resources relating to this book are available at https://dwelling114.org/book/ 

About the author
Rev. Greg Finke is LCMS pastor,  the founder and Executive Director of Dwelling 1:14, a non-profit ministry which seeks to help Jesus-followers connect in their neighborhoods, workplaces and schools for discipling and missional living (www.dwelling114.org). 

Before founding Dwelling 1:14, Greg had been the senior pastor of Messiah Lutheran in Midland, Michigan for 18 years and Gloria Dei Lutheran in Houston, Texas for three years. Greg and his wife, Susan, have three daughters and enjoy life as neighborhood missionaries in League City, Texas.  

Lutheran Children's Sermons for Year B

The Lutheran Church of Australia and it's Grow Ministries have compiled Children Sermons for Year B, which are available here

New Lutheran Bible Translation: The Evangelical Heritage Version

The Evangelical Heritage Version, is a translation of the bible that has been translated by Lutheran pastors and scholars.   
The version is the result of the Wartburg Project, which is a parasynodical organisation, which is in fellowship with two USA Lutheran synods; the Evangelical Lutheran Synod and the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod.

Background to the name - Evangelical Heritage Version
It is called Evangelical because its highest goal is to proclaim the good news of the gospel of salvation through faith in the atoning work of Jesus Christ, God’s eternal Son.  Though there are many topics in the Bible, all of them are there to serve the gospel of Christ. All of our work in producing and distributing this translation is directed to the glory of God and to the eternal salvation of people’s souls.

The translation is called Heritage because this word looks to the past, the present, and the future.

Heritage expresses our respect for the generations of Christians and for the faithful translators who have passed the Bible down to us. We are aware that we in the present are building on the foundation which they have laid. As the old saying goes: We can see so far because we are standing on the shoulders of giants.

The term Heritage also looks to the future. The gospel is a precious inheritance that is to be passed from generation to generation until Christ returns. It is our prayer that this translation will have a part in that great mission which the Lord has left for his church. Our goal and motto is expressed in the hymn verse:
God’s Word is our great heritage
and shall be ours forever.
To spread its light from age to age
shall be our chief endeavor.
Through life it guides our way.
In death it is our stay.
Lord, grant, while worlds endure,
we keep its teaching pure
throughout all generations.


To this end, our goal is to produce a balanced translation, suitable for all-purpose use in the church.

We seek a balance between the old and the new. We debated whether our translation should be called new or revised. Neither term tells the whole story. Our translation can be called revised or traditional insofar as it builds on the tradition of Bible translation that goes back to the King James Version, to Martin Luther, and beyond. It is new in that it is not based on any one template, and it introduces new terms in those places where the traditional terms no longer communicate clearly.

We seek a balance between the poles of so-called literal and dynamic equivalent theories of translation. A translator should not adhere too closely to any one theory of translation because literalistic, word-for-word translations sometimes convey the wrong meaning, or they do not communicate clearly in the receiving language. Overly free translations deprive the reader of some of the expressions, imagery, and style of the original.

We seek a balance between formality and informality. The Bible contains many types of literature and different levels of language, from the very simple to the very difficult. For this reason, the translator should not be too committed to producing one level of language but should try to reproduce the tone or “flavor” of the original.

The Evangelical Heritage Version is designed for learning and teaching. Our translators assume that their readers have the ability and the desire to learn new biblical words and to deepen their understanding of important biblical terms and concepts. Translators should not be condescending or patronizing toward their readers but should be dedicated to helping them grow. The Bible was written for ordinary people, but it is a literary work with many figures of speech and many rare words. The Bible is a book to be read, but it is also a book to be studied. Our footnotes are designed to assist in the process of learning and teaching. Our translation is in that sense a textbook.

The Evangelical Heritage Version is not an interpretative translation. On one level, every act of translation involves interpretation, but when we say that the Evangelical Heritage Version strives to avoid importing interpretation into the translation, we mean that our duty and goal is to understand and to reproduce as closely as possible what the original text says and to say no more and no less than what the text says.

We offer this translation to the church as a balanced translation, suitable for all-purpose use in the church.

For more information and to read the Evangelical Heritage Version visit here