Building the Church, One Child of God at a Time

Home devotions, Holy Communion, and the (sometimes humorous) birth of a child—three ways that God builds up His church for this world and the next.

Building the Church, One Child of God at a Time

The Hausvater Project presents:

Dr. Ryan MacPherson will be speaking in southern Minnesota on September 17: Rebuilding the Church from the Family Up, Rebuilding the Family from the Elders Down.
Pastor Lyle Luchterhand offers a humorous look at life in the parish as the people at All Sports Lutheran Church react to the news that Pastor Willie B. Goodenough’s wife is having a ... baby!
Pastor Jonathan Conner’s continuing series on the Divine Service discusses the Lord’s Prayer, the Words of Institution, and the Pax Domini.

Rebuilding the Church from the Family Up, Rebuilding the Family from the Elders Down

Ryan MacPherson will present a two-part workshop in southern Minnesota on September 17, 2016.

Where Are You in Titus 2? Discover God’s design for linking the congregation to the home in Titus 2:1–8. Consider your distinct calling as a pastor, an older man, an older woman, a younger man, a younger woman, or a child. Learn how each of these members of the Body of Christ serve the good of one another to the glory of God. Ponder real-life applications for your congregation and family.

Establishing the Family Altar From the Old Testament (Deuteronomy 6:4–9) to the New Testament (Ephesians 6:4), to the Reformation (the Prefaces to Luther’s Small and Large Catechisms), recognize a consistent encouragement to have home devotions. Review the blessings that God attaches to His Word and the calling that parents have for serving their children’s spiritual needs. Learn practical tips for conducting home devotions.

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Pastor Goodenough and the New Baby

By Lyle L. Luchterhand

Little does young Pastor Willie B. Goodenough expect the challenges awaiting him at his first call: All Sports Lutheran Church in Cadaver, Wisconsin. There he meets Betty May, the gossip; Erv Klipstein, the treasurer who is determined not to spend people’s offerings on the Lord’s work; and I. C. Coldshoulder, the greeter who makes sure church visitors never return. Countless other curmudgeons take turns whisking away their unsuspecting pastor on a whirlwind of unforeseeable, unforgettable, and nearly unforgivable antics. Again and again we’re reminded that scoundrels never get past God—or the minister’s wife. In this humorous parody of a pastor’s life, real-life Pastor Lyle Luchterhand leads his readers from one laugh to another, while Willie’s faithful wife Missy reminds us that no matter how crazy the ministry gets, no congregation is ever quite so God-forsaken as it may seem.

The news that Missy Goodenough was expecting a baby hit the people of All Sports like a lit match in a dynamite patch. ...

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The Divine Service, Part 8: The Lord’s Prayer, Words of Institution, and the Peace

By Jonathan Conner

Upon singing the final chord of the Sanctus’ the congregation unites its voice in the prayer Jesus taught us to pray. The early church placed it here in The Service of the Sacrament to mark it as the prayer of the faithful. As explained in Part 6 of this series, “In ancient times [The Service of the Sacrament] marked an entirely separate service as the catechumens (individuals whose instruction in the faith was not yet complete) were dismissed and the ‘faithful’ were invited to share the body and blood of Christ.”

After the unified “Amen,” The Service of the Sacrament continues with The Words of Institution. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and Paul record these words of Jesus:

Our Lord Jesus Christ, on the night when He was betrayed, took bread, and when He had given thanks, He broke it and gave it to the disciples and said: “Take, eat; this is My body, which is given for you. This do in remembrance of Me.”

In the same way also He took the cup after supper, and when He had given thanks, He gave it to them, saying: “Drink of it, all of you; this cup is the new testament in My blood, which is shed for you for the forgiveness of sins. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.”

These are great and powerful words, words we must rightly regard and receive.

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Forgiveness in Christ: it’s for you and your children. (Acts 2:38-29)

The Hausvater Project seeks to equip Christian men and women for distinctive and complementary vocations in family, church, and society, by fostering research and education in light of Holy Scripture as proclaimed by the Lutheran Confessions.

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