Mission at Home Vicar Ben

Every month the Mission at Home article provides tips on teaching the faith in our homes.

June 2020

They will know we are Christians by our Love
The Mission of Jesus has always been tightly linked with acts of mercy and love to those who are hurting and in need. Jesus fed 5,000 hungry people. Jesus healed the sick. Jesus raised the dead. Jesus helped people when they
could not help themselves. It is easy to tell the story of Jesus (birth, death, and resurrection) and to gloss over these events of his ministry, but we must not forget them. These physical acts of mercy are by no means some foot note to his ministry. In fact, they are the part and parcel of the mission of his birth, death, and resurrection. Jesus is in the business of making the world new and whole and the way that it is supposed to be. When he comes on the last day, he will continue that ministry of healing and providing for us his needy children. He will raise us from the dead, fix any imperfection, take away any sorrow, and set everything right.

Do not forget this part of Jesus’ mission. For when we do, it can become easy for us to be comfortable in our own successes and wealth that we have amassed. We can become cold hearted, promising those in worse conditions
than us eternal life with Jesus, but offering nothing for their present suffering. But as it was for Jesus, acts of mercy ought also be part and parcel of our ministry. For if we believe that Jesus will come one day to restore his creation and uplift the poor and needy, shouldn’t we participate in that mission, however imperfectly, until the Last Day? The answer is, yes, we should. We should put our money and our actions where our mouth is and say, “Come quickly, Lord Jesus.” And so by our word AND actions and alms giving, we have a share in Jesus’ Mission, and we can even do it from home, in our local community.

With the closing of businesses and schools, and other mandated social distancing, the needs faced by us and those around us, will increase. Families who live paycheck to paycheck will quickly find themselves overwhelmed with bills they cannot pay, and families who are already in difficult financial situations will be pushed over the edge into complete hopelessness, even with the assistance of government programs. Seniors, especially the home-bound, will find themselves more isolated than usual, families trying to work while schooling children at home may find themselves physically, mentally and emotionally overwhelmed, and children who are used to seeing their friends every day may be less likely to handle the stress of this “new normal”. As Christians, we are called to help where we can. During this time, there are several ways you can do this.

1. Provide physical, emotional and/or financial assistance to those in your immediate area – friends, family, neighbors, co-workers, Zion members, etc. Pick up groceries and other necessities for your elderly neighbor or the mom with a new baby. Regularly call or write letters to seniors or have children draw pictures for them. Help
   your kids/grandkids bake cookies and drop them off on the porches of your neighbors or members of the congregation. Surprise your laid off neighbor with a Visa gift card so they can buy groceries or pay a bill online. Bring a meal to a family whose young children are suddenly home all day. Get takeout from a neighborhood restaurant. See a need and do what you can to fill it. The possibilities are endless.
2. Drop off donations of non-perishable food items, formula, diapers, and other essentials at the local food bank.
3. Donate your time to the Twigs Program. Twigs is an organization that Zion partners with whose goal is to serve lunches to children who usually get free or reduced cost government subsidized lunches from their schools. These children may not have access to regular meals, so we bring meals to them. Volunteers for this program meet at Zion, prep the lunches, and deliver them at a nearby park. The children come out to receive the lunches, so you have the opportunity to interact directly with those you are serving. This is not difficult work, and it is a great opportunity to be a part of the mission. If you are interested in volunteering or finding more information,
   contact Sandra Balsters at 618-978-7642.

May 2020

In the midst of this Coronavirus outbreak, sharing the message of Christ with others may seem like a difficult thing to do. A central aspect of mission work is social interaction between two people. The Gospel must be communicated. Social distancing can make that a difficult thing to do. Chance encounters with people at work, the coffee shop, or tap house do not happen anymore. They are all closed. So the question is: How do we continue to share the news of Christ, how do we continue to be missionaries in our places amid social distancing? I want to offer you two answers.

Be a Witness in Your Own Home
All year I have been harping on this idea that the primary place that we have all been called to share the good news of Jesus is in our own homes. He has placed spouses and children in our lives for us to build up in his Gospel. Parents especially have an important duty in raising their children in the Christian faith. If there were ever a person that God specifically commanded you to share the faith with, it was your child. So, even in this pandemic, the mission field is not closed. Those closest to you need to hear about Jesus, and constantly. One of our favorite phrases in the office during this pandemic has been, “What else do we all have to do?” We use this phrase when talking about you guys, to justify giving you guys Bible studies that go over an hour and sermons longer than twenty minutes. Because of this virus we have had to come to grips with having way more time on our hands than we could possibly want or need. And yet, it is possible that we could use this extra time to our advantage. How often we fail at cultivating a love for the Word of God in our families because we are “too busy.” Sure, this is a poor excuse, but because of the shelter-in-place order, it has been stripped away. There is no time like the present to start good habits of being in the word in your house. If you are looking for somewhere to start, try the Gospel of Luke. Just read a chapter a day. It could be a bedtime story or something the family does at dinner time. There is no time to start like now. What else do you have to do?

Be a Witness Online
Now this is a little different than what I usually think about in Mission at Home, but consider the opportunity for witness that each Christian has on the internet. Social Distancing has led to an increase in social networking
online. If we cannot meet people outside our homes, we go for the next best thing, the internet. I would argue that this is an opportunity for you to share the Gospel with those who you are linked with online. I know that not
all of us are “social influencers.” We may not have thousands or even hundreds of friends on Facebook, but someone, maybe even many people, see what you post online. The opportunity is there. And here is the cool thing, Churches are having to make use of online tools too. If you wanted to share your faith online, you do not even have to come up with the words to say on your own. You could simply share a link of your pastor’s latest sermon and say, “This was the word of Jesus I needed to hear, maybe you need it too.” There are so many options at our fingertips, even in this time of trial, the Gospel will not be stopped.

So remember this, you may not be a missionary, but you do have a mission.

April 2020

In this time of fear over the coronavirus, everything is shut down and many people and all children have to stay home from school and work. We have a lot of time on our hands, time to get chores done, maybe fix things around the house, and other things that we don’t really want to do. But there is a silver lining in all of this for those who are seeking to pass on the faith to their kids. All of a sudden there is time for it! We are stuck with our families in isolation. Who knows how long our kids will be out of school? This is the perfect time to commit ourselves to nurturing, educating, and devoting our children in and to the Christian faith. After all, he is our only source of true comfort in these times of strife. Why not pass the comfort that we have to our children?

So what can you do at home with all of this extra time?

We’ve got some time on our hands here. Let’s use some of it on one of the things that matters the most, being a missionary in our own homes.

March 2020

Mission at Home is all about recognizing the mission field in our homes. It’s about passing the faith to the next generation. Yet faith is not something that can be laid hold of, packaged, and gift wrapped for our children. So, what is our part? As Lutheran parents we know the importance of bringing our children to the font for Holy Baptism where God claims them as His own, but we sometimes view this as the end rather than the beginning, which it truly is.

Towards the end of the rite of Holy Baptism the pastor joyfully announces to the congregation, “In Holy Baptism God the Father has made [them members] of His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, and heirs with us of all the treasures of heaven in the one holy Christian and apostolic Church. We receive [them] in Jesus’ name as our brothers and sisters in Christ, that together we might hear His Word, receive His gifts and proclaim the praises of Him who called us out of darkness into His marvelous light” (Lutheran Service Book, 271).

But how? What can we do to make sure that our children will never be lost? We strive for the perfect technique or the latest strategy perhaps accidentally placing our hope in the method rather than in the gifts of God. If we know that “we cannot by our own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, our Lord, or come to Him; but that the Holy Spirit has called us by the Gospel, enlightened us with His gifts, sanctified and kept us in the true faith (SC, 3rd Article of the Creed), then we ought to know that the same is true for our children. Their faith is a gracious gift of God and it comes to them in the same way it came to us. “Faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ” (Rm 10:17).

Reflect on the baptismal words again. We—parents, grandparents, in fact the whole congregation—WE receive these children in Jesus’ name. Why? That together we might hear His Word, receive His gifts and proclaim the praises of Him who called us out of darkness into His marvelous light. But what can you do? Well, together is a crucial word here, and there is no easy button for this. It takes the repeated sacrifice of your time and your energy and even your own desires. It is a lifelong labor of love. What can you do?

You can be together with your children hearing God’s Word and receiving His gifts both in His house and in your house. And you can trust that God will deliver on His promises. After all, your hope is in Him! Tips to practice together this month:

• Intentionally plan one night as family night each week. Together with your children spend some time on Bible stories allowing the children to ask questions and talk about the text. Finish devotion time with prayer. Afterward, spend some family time with games, ice cream, or outdoor fun.
• Intentionally plan Sunday mornings as time together in the word. Start with Sunday school for the children and Bible study for the adults. Worship together. After church talk together as a family about what each of you learned today.
• Throughout the weeks when things get rough take time to apologize when tempers flare and offer each other forgiveness. Practice forgiving one another and let your goal in each conflict – tiny or giant – be reconciliation. Pray together seeking God’s forgiveness too and thanking Him for the gift of reconciliation. This is the life of faith together.
• Baptism is the starting point and entry into the Kingdom of God. If you or your child are not yet baptized, talk to Pastor Kale. We look forward to welcoming you in the name of Christ!

Let us know how it goes this month and share what works for you!

February 2020

Parents, you’re the missionaries teaching the faith, and your mission filed is at home.  The Mission at Home emphasis is equipping parents and grandparents with proven practices, ideas, and practical helps for your Mission at Home.  

This month we will focus on perhaps the greatest faith teaching tool in our arsenal – the Apostles’ Creed.  This simple creed testifies to the Christian faith in only 45 seconds.  That’s right!  Less than a minute summary of the entire Christian faith!  Grounding your children in the faith expressed in the Apostles’ Creed begins as soon as they can talk.  Use the most basic teaching tool known to man: repetition, repetition, repetition.  Add the Apostles’ Creed to your bedtime prayers routine or to another routine that works best for you.  Over time, work together to memorize the creed.  

Once memorization is mastered, teach the meaning of each article (paragraph) of the creed.  Use the creed to teach about our triune God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit and what He has done for us.  Tie together the Bible stories to each article of the creed.  For example, when learning the first article, “I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth,” teach your children about the biblical account of creation.  Teach them that each time we say the creed we are confessing God as Creator.  As appropriate to your child’s ability, introduce the What does this mean? Explanations as found in Luther’s Small Catechism.  Children as young as first grade are ready to talk about these explanations from the Small Catechism.  And children in high school are not finished learning the faith.  They need to be reminded of what they learned in confirmation so that God’s Word is daily shaping their hearts and minds.  Further, high school children need to go deeper and be ready to give an answer for the hope that they have.  The Small Catechism (especially the new 2017 edition) is full of relevant questions your teenagers will face and answers to those questions from the Bible.  This resource can easily facilitate countless dinner time discussions with your older children.  

As a parent or grandparent you have a huge responsibility to teach your children the faith, and this responsibility is given by God.  If you do not know these basics of the faith yet yourself, don’t be discouraged.  Even an Adult convert to Christianity can know woefully little and still have faith.  But here’s the thing, faith wants to know more. Faith wants to dig deeper, and those in the faith want their kids to have the same faith. We might have to do some learning ourselves in order to teach them.  Faith in the one true God is not something that is iffy or maybe or kind-of or ignorant.  Faith in the one true God impacts and shapes our entire  being, and we want that for our children. It’s not expensive. It’s not difficult. It just takes a commitment and maybe a little help. If you want to learn more about the basics of the faith so that you can    teach your children or if you need some tools for your Lutheran   home library, talk to Pastor Kale, DCE Kristen, or me.  Any one of us would be thrilled to help you get started! 

January 2020

It’s January! Happy New Year!! Now, quickly out with the old and in with the new. New plans, new goals, new resolutions, new hopes, new dreams, new bills, new diets, new, new, new, the latest and the greatest…in with the new and out with the old. And so goes the new year cycle.

This year, for 2020, let’s do something different. Let’s embrace the old. Stay with me here, this is a radical idea in the new year, but a very important idea too. What is the oldest thing you have? You might look around and consider a family heirloom, something passed down from your parents or grandparents. Consider this: What memories, stories, values, ideas – what history is captured by that object? If you don’t have a physical object, what family story did grandpa or grandma used to tell? What shenanigans did you and your sibling get into as a child? Tell these stories to your children and connect them to the generations that came before them. Explain to your children the significance of being a part of a family. Help your children to see that they are a part of something bigger than themselves.

Here’s a simple idea: use your last name and explain how last names are family names and everyone who has that last name is part of the family. (Tailor this example for your use as some families have two last names and some have hyphenated last names, etc. Still, all of these versions of last names work when explaining the concept of being part of a larger family). Help children to see their place in a bigger unit – the family.

What else can we do to give our children an anchor in an ever changing world of new, new, new? Arguably the greatest thing we can do is teach them that they are a part of God’s family. To this end, embrace the oldest and most treasured family heirloom you have: The Holy Bible. Here God wrote his family story. Read the Bible stories with your children and teach them that they are a part of God’s family and that this is their family story.

Make a commitment in 2020 to spend more time remembering your old family stories. Remember that you weren’t there when great grandma was flying out of control on her bicycle down that red clay road and went right up and over that car, but you love to hear the story, and it is a family story that gives you a sense of knowing to whom you belong. Likewise, retelling the stories of the saints of the past written for us in Holy Scripture gives us a sense of belonging to the family of God. The Holy Spirit dwells in the Holy Scriptures. When we share these stories with our children the Holy Spirit is active and alive shaping their little hearts and minds and anchoring them in the family of God.

Good resources for sharing these family stories are The Story Bible and 120 Bible Stories. Both of these books can be purchased from Concordia Publishing House, the publisher of the LCMS. To be successful you’ll need to pick a time, a place, and a plan. So think about it now. What time? Where? How? Here’s an example: Every week night before bed; With children in their beds; One story from The Story Bible. This is just an example; pick a time, place, and plan that works for your family and embrace the old in 2020!

December 2019

Do you have a best friend? A confidant? A spouse? What do you suppose would happen if you stopped talking to him or her? If you just ended the communication? Neither good nor bad, just no communication at all. What would result? What if you never called your mother? What if you never heard from your children? How do you suppose your relationship would be affected?

 We know that stopping communication to those we love is a bad idea. Most of us have experienced the negative impact that a lack of communication has had on a relationship with someone important to us. But have we ever stopped to consider what a lack of communication is doing to our relationship with God?

 As Christians we know that God speaks to us through his Word, the Holy Scriptures, and that we speak to God through our prayers. Pause for a moment and think about this: How much time do you intentionally spend speaking to God? If it is true that we are people of the Living God, then why do we so often fail to avail ourselves of the privilege of communicating with him?

 God commands us in the second commandment: You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God. What does this mean? We should fear and love God so that we do not curse, swear, use satanic arts, lie, or deceive by his name, but call upon it in every trouble, pray, praise, and give thanks (Luther’s Small Catechism).

 When we pray, we acknowledge that God is alive, that he hears us, and that from him we expect all good. We place our confidence in him both through our prayers for help and rescue in times of need and through our prayers of praise and thanksgiving in times of abundance. It is a very silly and incongruent thing indeed to say that we believe in the one true Living God and yet to never ask for his aid or thank him for his faithfulness.

 Prayer, or the lack thereof, reveals to your children and grandchildren what you believe. In whom or what do you place your trust? Where does your help come from? As we learned last month, children will copy you; they will become imitators of your habits. Prayer is and exercise of faith and a habit we must weave into our lives. Some of these ideas may help you begin or strengthen prayer in your family:

1. Pray at mealtimes: There are some common table prayers in the small catechism to help you with this. Prayer before meals trains our hearts to look to God with thanksgiving for providing our daily needs.
2. Pray at bedtime: Use the Lord’s Prayer and Luther’s Evening Prayer. This is a good time also to pray God’s blessing and care on people in your life.
3. Make a family prayer list: Record people in your family or circle of friends who have specific prayer requests. Pray for healing, jobs, reconciliation, worries, fears, joys, sorrows —anything and everything! Train children to respond to life circumstances by running to God in prayer.
4. Pray frequently: When you wake up; mid-morning; lunch time; midafternoon; dinner time; and before bed. Praying for only ten minutes each time for six times spread throughout the day can add up to an hour of communication with God every day. Whichever times you choose, make a plan that works for you. 3
5. Pray for your enemies: When your children complain about others, take the opportunity to stop and pray for that person and pray for a changed heart toward that person too.
6. Start with reading prayers: It can be difficult to begin the habit of prayer. Using the Lutheran Prayer Book, the Lutheran Service Book, or the Treasury of Daily Prayer will help you to build your prayer vocabulary while expanding your knowledge of all the things for which you can pray. If you have a hymnal, check out pages 305-318. There are so many prewritten prayers for all situation. Reading a prayer still counts as prayer!
7. Pray out loud with your children and be creative: Pick what works for you. When I was a kid my parents would pray with us on the drive to school, just for the beginning of the ride. Every morning we spent the commute to school praying. Each day a different person was responsible for beginning the prayer and saying the bulk of it; then we rotated around the vehicle with “adders” as we call them—these were prayers we wanted to add on to what the others already prayed. This method allows young children to hear adults pray out loud and to practice praying out loud themselves. It also makes for a very, very pleasant commute!!

 I encourage you to give one or two of these ideas a try. Different families will need to employ different strategies. Weave prayer into your everyday life so that speaking to God becomes a natural and reflexive thing to do. Prayer is an exercise of faith and a great part of your Mission at Home! Feel free to contact me if you’d like some help getting started.

November 2019

Our children are our Mission at Home. Parents and grandparents are real, live, walking, and talking missionaries. This cannot be stated too boldly – it is a truth that must be shouted for all to understand. Although there are many tips and tools for this mission work, there is also a simple, basic, timeless strategy, which the apostle Paul teaches us in his letter to the Philippians. He says, in effect, “Copy me.” Look at what I am doing and copy me for the sake of your salvation. Woah! Can you imagine that? Our twenty-first century minds tend to shun this idea, and we often awkwardly skip over this scripture explaining away Paul’s words. We don’t want to tell anyone what to do or say or believe, and we certainly don’t want to hold ourselves up as an example of how others should be. That just sounds conceited to our ears. How the devil’s lies have corrupted our thoughts! Paul could say, imitate me, because he himself was imitating Christ. It’s like saying, imitate me and by so doing you are imitating Christ. He’s using his very life to point to Christ: Watch me and you’ll see Christ. The greatest tool in your Mission at Home arsenal is your life. You are being watched. And you will be imitated. How you spend your time, talent, and treasure will be observed by your little ones, and most likely, they will reflect your priorities when they grow up. What you say and how you behave point to something. Here are two examples: If you never miss a Blues game on television and attend as many as you can afford in person; if you buy your child a Blues jersey just like yours and the both of you dress and cheer for the Blues; you’ve taught your child that being a Blues fan is an important part of life. Should you be surprised that they grow up to be lifelong diehard Blues fans? If you come to receive the gifts of Word and Sacrament that God gives us in his Church only a few times a year or only when you’re not too tired or don’t have something else scheduled, you will have taught your child that receiving the gifts of God is not an important part of life. Should you be surprised if they fall away from the faith? Paul said imitate me and imitate all of those who walk according to the example of Christ. Now is the time! Be imitators of Christ for your little ones. If this article hits close to home, remember that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ. All Saints Day this month reminds us that God is making all things new – continuously and one day, forever! Old and broken thoughts, ideas, and habits do not rule us. We are made new by the washing of the Holy Spirit in our baptisms and His dwelling in us every day. Repent, and be healed, and walk in the newness of life in Christ. Your little ones will see the difference. To God be the Glory! Vicar Ben 3 At Zion, God’s Love works In and Through His people. At Zion, we are disciples of Christ. People in whom and through whom God’s love works. People who eagerly await the next chance to hear their God’s voice and sing His praise. People who look forward to spending time with other disciples. People who enjoy those who God has placed in our lives. People who are energized by serving neighbors next door and across the world, meeting worldly and spiritual needs. People who walk together and who are together formed in the image of Christ. People who eat, sleep and breathe mission. People who are excited to meet the people God brings through our doors. We are Zion. From us, God shines forth. (Psalm 50:2)