Great Questions, Great Conversations

Reflections on Memorial Day and Ending WellMemorial Day is thought of many different ways. A national holiday. The start of summer vacation. Family gatherings and cookouts. A day that honors those in the armed forces (That's actually Veterans Day in November). And then there is the actual intention - honoring those who have given their lives in military service to this country.On t

Our Guest this week is Jim Buske of Lighthouse Youth Ministry and he relayed a story he asked a man in the predominantly African American Garden Homes neighborhood of Milwaukee about the challenges the city and the neighborhood faces. His friends answer was informative, not just for minority communities, but speaks to an increasingly important need for all people groups.The respons

Voting is a significant topic in American culture, especially in an election year. But what does the "right to vote" really mean? While it seems straightforward, the reality of that vote changes in different contexts and today we want to talk about what voting is and means in the church specifically. The podcast today gives important context to the why of voting and how voices with

Have you ever wondered if God seems to care more about how we behave than who we are? It's honestly not fair of us to see the God of the Bible, the God of the cross and empty tomb this way, but in our world we tend to feel the constant judgements all around us. Whether it's at work, at home, in relationships, at church... we have opinions of others and we feel the opinions others h

Why Lutherans Use Creeds in ChurchCreeds are a statement of belief that help Christians express the basic truths that they believe, as both an individual or as a corporate church. Perhaps you already know this, but there is not a uniform agreement in the larger Christian church about the importance of validity of the Creeds. So why, in the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod, do o

Understanding Jesus Descent into HellThe Apostles Creed is a simple summary of the Biblical, Christian faith through the use of several statements that have rich theological depth to them. The second article, (or second paragraph of the creed) has to do with Jesus, who he is, what happened to him and what he does. As part of this creed, there is a line that says "He descended into

Three Thoughts on what God Has Already Given YouIn a sermon from a few weeks earlier, Pastor Pete shared an illustration that involved $80 as he helped the congregation wrestle with our guild driven anxiety that fuels the "TRY HARDER" voice we all wrestle with from time to time. With the illustration comes a great conversation on what it means to have access to all the blessings of

Biblical Observations from the Passion Story. One of the benefits of reading the Bible over and over is that we all mature through experiences. Wisdom comes from the combination of knowledge and experience and as we read the scriptures and become more familiar with the word of God in the Bible, we see more and more of God's truth and the application to our lives. This week, we want

How different does this sound?"Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me."and“If anyone wants to follow me, let a person deny themself, take up their cross, and follow me.Did you see it? "Must" vs. "Let a person" One is more direct and to the point, but has an edge that may go beyond the original language, the other is a bit more l

In Luke 9:23 Jesus makes this comment "23 Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. "For many of us we consider suffering to be the crosses that we bear. It makes a lot of sense, Jesus suffered on the cross, so he must be talking about learning how to deal with bad things and suffering well. But th