Responding to Violence

Too many times in the past few weeks, we and the children we teach have witnessed sudden, violent attacks on ordinary people, people going about their daily lives with every expectation of peace and safety. It may cause us and the children we teach to be afraid for ourselves and for those we love.

It may be that conversations and questions about such events will be raised by the students you teach. You may wonder, how should I respond?

Your response, of course, will be your own, but I would encourage you to include these three things.

• Lead your students in prayer for the victims of violence, their families, and their attackers. Yes, I believe that prayer is a valid response to fear. It acknowledges that, though we may feel powerless and vulnerable, we have a God who is powerful, who loves us so much that He gave His own Son into the hands of violent men to save us. Pray that God will calm our fears, comfort those who are injured or grieving, that He will protect us from all evil, and that He will turn the hearts of those who would seek to hurt us to love---for us and for Him.
• Remind your students of God's love and power. The God who protected Abraham as he traveled, David as he defended Israel from enemies, and Daniel when he was threatened for his faith, is able also to protect us and will do so according to His will.
• Encourage your students to be strong in faith and bold in witness. Teach God's Word, the good news of salvation, each week to nourish and sustain your students.

God would not have us cower in fear. Instead He calls us to trust in Him.

 God, you have called your servants to ventures of which we cannot see the ending, by paths as yet untrodden, through perils unknown. Give us faith to go out with good courage, not knowing where we go, but only that your hand is leading us and your love supporting us; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
God bless you as you teach His children His Word!

The Way, the Truth, and the Life

“Without the Way,

there is no going.

Without the Truth,

there is no knowing.

Without the Life,

there is no living.”

 

Thomas à Kempis

 

Jesus said . . ., “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. John 14:6 ESV

 

Thanks for teaching God's children His Word!

Teaching Values?

A local radio station plays a set of ad spots for a foundation that promotes "values" (compassion, friendship, overcoming, soul); in the ads we are encouraged to "pass it on." As I listen on my daily commute, I am moved to wonder how those who sponsor the ads and those who hear them imagine that we are able to pass on these values.

We know, of course, that it is possible to coerce actions that are in accord with God's Law, acts that demonstrate "values," though threats or external rewards. While such forced holiness is of some benefit to our neighbor, they are not good works since they are not the fruit of faith. Such works are flawed by resentment against the authority that requires them or selfish motives; they may lead to rebellion or self-righteousness.

Good works are those that God works in us as a joyful response to the Gospel. They are not generated by threat or reward, but by the proclamation of the Good News of God's love for us in Christ. They are truly fruit of the Spirit. They result from teaching God's children His Word.

Thanks for teaching God's children His Word!

It's Good to Be Lutheran!

There is a reason why your church identifies itself as Lutheran.

There is a reason you've decided to be a part of that congregation.

For many, though I suppose not for all, that reason is the distinctive flavor of the theology taught in a

Lutheran church: right distinction between Law and Gospel, emphasis on vocation, and adherence to a theology of the cross.

How can you be sure that those things are taught consistently in your Sunday School?

• Careful selection of teachers who know Lutheran doctrine and are "apt to teach" is a great start.
• Regular and frequent training for Sunday School teachers would be helpful.
• Choosing a solid Lutheran curriculum for use in all classes is an important first step.

I do not claim to be unbiased, far from it. But it strikes me as foolish, dangerous even, to place even the finest non-Lutheran (that is, un-Lutheran) material into the hands of teachers and students in your Sunday School. In the best case, assuming that your teachers are highly skilled, able to edit out the material contrary to the Lutheran faith and edit in the essence of Lutheran Christian teachings, and willing to take time to do so each week, the material that goes home with the student is not likely to support what your church professes. In worst case, you will be training both students and teachers in things that are contrary to the Lutheran Confessions.

Thanks for teaching God's children His Word!

Are You Ready for Christmas?

Those who use Concordia Publishing House Sunday School material will notice that in our first undated New Testament unit, we now have six lessons ramping up to the Nativity. Previous editions of these materials usually had only four. Taught in sequence starting from the first Sunday in December, the "Christmas" lesson will land in the middle of January. I can hear you already: "What were they thinking?!"

Here's the scoop! New Testament 1, God Sends His Son to Save Us, is the only unit of our material that teaches about this early portion of Jesus' life. Teaching the whole narrative involves these six distinct events, each of which we want our children to study and know. In other Decembers, other portions of Jesus' life and ministry will be studied. (Free Christmas lessons will be provided online for churches that decide to interrupt the chronological series of lessons to insert a Christmas lesson.)

How can congregations accommodate this unusually long series of pre-Christmas and Christmas lessons? Here are some options:

• Teach the lessons in order. When the church celebrates Christmas in worship, remind the students that in Sunday School we will get there eventually, but let them know there is important stuff to learn before they study the Nativity itself.
• Skip two or three lessons among those before Christmas. Return to them after studying the Christmas lesson, or not.
• Skip two or three lessons from the Old Testament 2 unit in November. Save them to be taught at the end of the spring quarter or at the end of the summer before beginning the Old Testament 3 unit.

Our undated Sunday School lessons give congregations lots of options and, over time, may save congregations money as they stretch each unit over a couple more weeks or reuse saved material.

God's blessings as you teach His children His Word!

Church Year Connections, Year C

The first of three annual volumes of Church Year Connections is now available. This product includes a full year of resources, in print and on CD, that allow a Sunday School teacher, director, or pastor, to connect the children they lead and teach to each Sunday of the Church Year through seasonal songs and hymns, object lessons, collects, and teaching points. In some Sunday Schools, this resource can replace the Directors Guide they currently purchase.

Though our CPH Sunday School materials no longer have specific Sundays on which they need to be taught, your church does not need to give up teaching students about the liturgical calendar and the Sundays of the Church Year.

God's blessings as you teach God's children His Word!

As the Twig Is Bent, So Grows the Tree

A question for the parents in your congregation: "Where do you want your children to be, spiritually speaking, when they are young adults?"

• Worshiping regularly in an orthodox church?
• Growing in God's Word?
• Having daily devoted time?
• Serving others regularly and joyfully?

The follow-up question is obvious: "What are you doing now to fulfill those dreams for your children?"

• Are you bringing them to worship every Sunday? (This is where they will learn to worship.)
• Are you attending Sunday School as a family? (The parents' example is paramount.)
• Do you lead them in devotions daily?
• Does your family serve together to benefit others in your church, neighborhood, and larger community?

Yes, there is a certain amount of Law here, for God's Word shows us how to live our lives in a way that keeps us free from sin and temptation and close to the Means of Grace, God's Word and Sacraments.

As the twig is bent, so grows the tree! Too many parents begin to show concern for their children in the teenage years, as the child begins to grow more independent (as children must) and the parents' influence wanes. Now is the time to build life-long habits of worship, study, and daily devotion.

God bless you as you teach His children His Word!