Recently, a brother shared with me a book to help me better understand the Great Commission, Clarifying the Great Commission by Rev. Daniel Voth. I am grateful he did. Let me say that plainly at the start. Voth is not careless. He is not lazy. He is not treating Scripture lightly. In fact, one of the things I appreciate most about the book is that he takes time, chapter by chapter, to lay out his case. He uses Scripture. He uses context. He shows his work. In a time when too

Thanks in a large part to the effort of Jack Kalleberg, the ULC has been at the forefront of bringing attention to the important role of Executive Director in churches, along with faith-based non-profits, schools, and businesses. Concordia University, Texas, is developing an MBA designed for business-minded leaders with a calling or vocation to combine their faith and business knowledge to make a positive impact on the world. What is my primary calling? This, along with W

Jesus didn’t just talk about fulfilling the Law and the Prophets. Jesus perfectly walked in step with God’s Law for all of us who can’t. Jesus didn’t just talk about going to the cross. Jesus walked to the cross. Jesus didn’t just talk about rising from the dead. Jesus walked out of the grave. Jesus didn’t just talk about sending the Holy Spirit. Jesus walked up into heaven and sent the Holy Spirit upon the apostles. The early church didn’t just talk about following Jesus

A Clearer View Than Ever Before For years, conversations about pastoral shortages have been shaped by anecdotes and local experience. Recently, tools like AI have made it possible to quickly gather and analyze publicly available data from LCMS reports and related sources. We are especially grateful to Pastor Rob Bailey, whose initiative in leveraging these tools helped bring greater clarity to the conversation. His work has made it easier to see patterns that were previously

What’s your favorite season? For me, it’s always been spring. There’s something about it, hope seems to rise with the temperature. Even here in the desert, where life can feel dry and hidden, spring surprises you. Wildflowers bloom along the roadside. Yellow and purple burst out of the ground near towering saguaros. It’s stunning. Like the desert is whispering, life was here all along. Those wildflowers feel like a glimpse back to the first garden and maybe even a glimpse of

Holy Week is here. Palm branches wave hosanna come to save, misunderstood Messiah turned tables move by ya, cursing the fruitless fig authority questioned big. Be the son who obeys not the tenants who destroy divide and kill the Master’s servants and Son. Holy week is here. Nothing is more important than the Wedding Feast, come and celebrate dressed appropriately. Give to Caesar Caesar’s, give to God God’s. The resurrection is coming, all relationships changed for good, with

What the numbers seem to be telling us There are moments when numbers tell a story we would rather not hear. Not because numbers are everything. They are not. The Church is built by Jesus Christ, not by spreadsheets, dashboards, or annual reports. But numbers can help reveal where pressures are building, where assumptions no longer fit reality, and where faithful stewardship needs to become more honest. That is what rises to the surface when ChatGPT looks across publicly avai

I keep being amazed by The Patient Ferment of the Early Church: The Improbable Rise of Christianity in the Roman Empire by Alan Kreider. I am learning (or maybe remembering) so much about how the Christians in the early church embodied the faith. They loved not just with words—they loved through action. The Roman Empire in the second and third centuries was remarkably pagan. Pagan people sacrificed to “the gods.” When plagues came it was because “the gods” were angry with

What does the word “lent” actually mean? Isn’t that funny? I’ve been “lenting” (yes, I made up a word) for almost 45 years, and I have no idea the origin of the word “lent.” My curiosity led me to ask Google. (It’s crazy how quickly we can find answers today.) Let me share what I discovered. The original meaning of the word “lent” comes from the Old English word lencten , which means “springtime” or “lengthening,” referring to the time of year when days begin to get longer.

Alan Kreider wrote a marvelous history of the early church titled The Patient Ferment of the Early Church: The Improbable Rise of Christianity in the Roman Empire , released in 2016. In the book, Kreider documents how patience, possibly unlike any other virtue, shaped the rise of Christianity. It is a thick but accessible read. I highly commend it for those who would like to delve deeper into how the early church exploded in growth. Kreider documents four “angles” for explai

This day should not be. What should be is air in lungs for eternity walking and talking with the Author of days for eternity in what should be but ceased to be when we usurped the Author to linger and listen to the Liar what could be no—what should be broken by a bite. And dusty days began. Dusty days between dusty days leads to this day the dustiest of days. I’m one preaching prophet telling anyone with ears to hear, “Your animated spirit will cease your animated breath wi

Every once in a while, you read a book that resonates deeply, because it names something you’ve seen in the human heart. The Courage to Be Dislike d by Ichiro Kishimi is one of those books. Its ideas about personal responsibility, freedom from people-pleasing, and letting go of control over others’ opinions speak directly to the struggles many people carry. Many of the people I counsel struggle deeply with feeling responsible for everyone’s emotions. They fear disappointi

How do people master a skill? I once thought someone had to “put in 10,000 hours” to master a skill. I once thought people primarily learn through reward reinforcement. I once thought rote memorization and repetitive practice would produce the best results in skill improvement. New research from the “Beyond Reward-Based Learning” study out of UC Berkeley reveals a slightly different reality. I learn something new everyday, and this may be something new for you. Learning

There’s a chart making the rounds that shows membership trends across major U.S. denominations since 2000. It’s not a pretty picture. Most churches are shrinking, some rapidly. But three denominations stand out in green: the PCA, the ACNA, and the Assemblies of God. They’re not just surviving. They’re growing. Meanwhile, the LCMS is down roughly 34%. So the questions are obvious: What do those growing churches have in common? & What might the LCMS be missing? What the Growing

I know better. I really do. I’ve read Luther. I’ve taught Romans. I’ve wrestled with Law and Gospel. I’m still learning how to apply theology in real life, not just talk about it. And somehow… I still managed to get myself completely stuck in the Law. What made it worse is that I couldn’t even see it. I knew the theology. It just wasn’t applying to me. Somewhere along the way, I swam too far out into the deep water of theology and didn’t have a life vest. I was reading Paulso

“Great and amazing are your deeds, O Lord God the Almighty! Just and true are your ways, O King of the nations ! Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship you, for your righteous acts have been revealed.” (Rev. 15:34) January 6 marks the 12th Day of Christmas and the beginning of the season that we call Epiphany. Epiphany marks the journey of the Magi, or Wise Men (almost certainly not Kings or only three), f

On November 12, 2025, the Pastor Formation Committee of the LCMS released new Policy Requirements for the SMP (Specific Ministry Pastor) program. These new requirements have created a bit of a stir as the LCMS continues to address the challenges facing both a shortage of pastors and a variety of approaches on how to best move forward. Having gone through SMP myself, but also having completed both Masters and Doctor of Ministry degrees, I believe that I may offer some unique p

A Demographic Moment We Cannot Ignore Over the next one to two decades, the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod is likely to experience a significant, but temporary, surge in estate and bequest giving. The reason is straightforward: the LCMS is older than the U.S. population as a whole, with a large concentration of Baby Boomers entering the final chapters of life. When people age, estates are settled. Giving rises, and then inevitably, it falls. What matters most in this moment i

The New Year has a way of stirring something deep in us. There’s something about turning the calendar that invites reflection—sometimes hopeful, sometimes heavy. New workout plans, new healthy diet plans, new resolutions that this time we will stick to! We talk about fresh starts and clean slates, but for many, January also brings a quiet inventory. Goals we didn’t meet. Conversations we wish had gone differently. Decisions we second-guess. People we hoped to serve better.

Isaiah 9:6 6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Who is this child? He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through hi