Author: Higher Things

The 2014 Higher Things conference was my first ever conference and since I had such an amazing time then, I had very high expectations for this year. And I have to say, my expectations were exceeded!

I absolutely loved the services we had throughout the day! It was great to have a service in the morning and in the afternoon—they really helped me touch base with Christ amidst all of the learning sessions, games, and other various activities. The services flowed well and the music was absolutely beautiful. The pastors’ sermons were captivating and most importantly, they included both the Law and the Gospel.

The hardest part of this conference was picking which breakaway sessions to go to! There were so many opportunities to learn about the Word of God but unfortunately I could only attend a select few. Every session I attended was excellent and enlightening. You could tell the pastors really knew what they were talking about and backed up all of their facts with specific passages from the Bible. If I had to pick a favorite I would pick Pastor Riley’s “God’s Love for Unlovable People.” This session shed a whole new light on how I view various characters throughout the Bible. I only wish time permitted me to listen to all of the breakaway sessions.

After spending the day learning the Word of God it was nice to be able to relax, have fun, and socialize on the Colorado State campus. They had an activity for everyone! My personal favorite was the talent competition—talented youth entertained me with music, magic, and even a bit of dancing! I thought it was ingenious to have teams that you were able to win points for because it really introduced me to new people and added a great level of competition to the conference. Whether you are artistic, musical, or athletic, there was a way to contribute to your team.

I strongly encourage youth all around the country to attend this well-rounded conference. I didn’t think it was possible for the conference staff to top the Wisconsin conference I attended two years ago, but they truly have outdone themselves!

This article was written by “Natalie,” a member at Trinity Lutheran Church in New Haven, Missouri. Rev. Jacob Ehrhard serves as her pastor.

What is it like to be at a Higher Things Conference? In this article we hear from three members of St. Paul Lutheran Church in Winside, NE. They attended Bread of Life 2016 at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, CO.

Conference Reflections by Sadie Johanson

Higher Things is the one week I look forward to all year. It’s a place where we are joined together with more than 1,000 of our brothers and sisters in Christ to learn, worship, hear His word, and receive His Body and Blood.

Every year my favorite thing about this conference remains the same: the opening Divine Service, where nearly a thousand youth are gathered together in the church singing at the top of their lungs and confessing the same faith.

We had many breakout sessions in which I learned how our faith isn’t our job to somehow improve, for I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ my Lord, or come to Him, however in Christ God is already pleased with me. I also learned about individual confession and absolution and why it is so important, as well as why it is good to have art in the church and how it all points back to Christ and Him crucified for us. The evolution session taught me the difference between how the world looks at and treats people around them, compared to how Christians view the world.

Each day after learning and worshiping we would have a little fun. I particularly enjoyed the friendly competition this year between the tetramorphs, especially getting to meet other youth on the same team. I had fun searching for Walther, listening to performers in the talent show, participating in archery tag, and watching pastors and youth chant pop songs.

Even though I will not be able to return as a youth member to next year’s Higher Things conferences, I will cherish the memories and everything I have learned for the rest of my life.

Three Things That Pr. Harrison Goodman Loved About Bread of Life 2016

I love that my kids love it. Let me be more specific. All of them talk about coming back after graduation—to a “high school” event. They want to be CCVs. They want to be leaders. They want more. They could go other places to play games. They just seem to prefer worshipping multiple times a day in between Bible studies tackling real issues of doctrine and life, and then going to play games afterward. It doesn’t make sense. It doesn’t follow the “youth ministry” rules. It just equips our kids to be Lutherans in this world. It’s in-depth, and hard work comes before play, but it gives them the tools they need, and they love it.

I love that my kids sing. Not just for 4 days. I love that they’re the ones who sing out to carry my congregation through the tricky parts of Evening Prayer during Lent. Higher Things doesn’t promote conferences as a mountain top experience. They kind of shy away from it. However, this year we literally went 5,000 feet up a mountain and sang with 1,500 kids before an altar in front of a giant window that overlooked the Rocky Mountains. Whether or not you want to lean on the feeling that comes from hearing thousands of kids put seminary chapels to shame, it’s there. That feeling, whether we want it to or not, shapes our kids’ understanding of what church is supposed to look like as the line between heaven and earth is blurred by a Christ who makes Himself present for sinners. As it turns out, church is supposed to look a lot like what they get each week at home. We’re not teaching them that the pinnacle of church is something different from the Word and Sacraments they receive at home. Same church. It’s just a little louder up the mountain.

I love teaching. It’s not about the “atta-boys”, the attention, the free shirt, or even the chance to play with Power Point slides that prove I know how Google image search works. It’s because the kids don’t care about me at all. They just want Jesus. It sounds bad, but it’s incredible. So much of the adult dialogue about how to deal with kids is candy coating the assumption that you have to trick them into liking you, then trick them into liking Jesus. It still shocks me to see kids wander into a breakaway session knowing nothing about me at all, because they actually want to learn about Jesus. It’s a personal reminder that the stuff we teach on a daily basis really does matter to our people, young and old.

Reflections by Annika Johanson

I loved the experience of going to HT and knowing that there are other youth who love being Lutheran as well. I got to be with over 1,000 other Lutherans confessing and learning about Jesus.

During some of the breakaway sessions that I went to, I learned about different denominations, the minor prophets, the purpose of life, and confession and absolution and how to defend my faith. Plenary was a group Bible study where we learned about “The Bread of Life.”

I loved listening to the organist, the choir and everyone singing so loudly during all the services. I was thrilled to participate in orchestra which played during the last Divine Service. It was incredible and I look forward to going to another HT conference.

Paul Soulek

Serving as cantor (leader of the people’s song) for Higher Things in Nashville was great! I played the organ, directed the choir, and worked with the instrumentalists. The staff was superb, the participants were perky, and the liturgy was loud. But Higher Things is more than a momentary mountaintop of momentous musical moments.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer writes in his book Life Together: “It is the voice of the Church that is heard in singing together. It is not I who sing, but the Church. However, as a member of the Church, I may share in its song.”

The song of the Church is what we sing and teach at Higher Things. Jesus—for me and for you! As I traced the sign of the cross, I was reminded of my death and resurrection in Holy Baptism—and that there is nothing worth comparing to this life-long comfort sure. Together with youth and adults, pastors and laypeople, we joined with angels, archangels, and all the company of heaven in their continuous song of praise—a song that has no end. We ate and drank Christ’s Body and Blood—the festival to which the Lord invites us.

If it hasn’t sunk in yet: the music of the Church is all about Christ. It simply sings God’s gifts of forgiveness, life and salvation. We sing about Jesus because…well…we need the gifts only He can give. And we need them throughout our lives as saints and sinners. These gifts are poured on our head, preached in our ears, and placed on our lips. We leave His presence in His peace, renewed again. And again. And again.

So keep singing. You’re part of a great and awesome chorus filled with all believers in Christ across time and space. Blessing, honor, glory and might be to God and the Lamb forever—amen!

(Hymn quotations from LSB 594, 161, 458, 602, 155, respectively)

Paul Soulek serves as cantor at St. John Church and School, Seward, Nebraska.

Lindsey Casey

Imagine standing in a giant room with hundreds of other Lutherans belting Christ Jesus Lay in Death’s Strong Bands so powerfully that you get chills? That is the opening Divine Service. How about sitting in an auditorium shoulder to shoulder with those same Lutherans learning about the meaning of O Living Bread of Heaven? Well that is the second plenary session. Oh, and how about making the impossible decision of trying to pick only six of the sixty classes offered that are taught by our own LCMS pastors and church workers? Those are the breakaway sessions. All three of these events and more occur at Higher Things—the best experience I have ever been privileged to attend and participate in.

To me, Higher Things is a conference offered to high school students who want to grow more in their faith while learning about what it means to be a Lutheran, well, with hundreds of others who want to do the same. It is a wonderful feeling knowing that I myself, as well as my fellow brothers and sisters in the faith, know and are being exposed to similar teenagers who are trying to get through this part of life as best as we can, and have this blessed experience available to learn the truth and how to navigate the stormy waters of this life through a confessional Lutheran perspective. Higher Things gives the opportunity to meet new people, and get to know them in order to create a lifelong, inseparable bond. For example, my new friend Bonnie and I talk every couple of weeks, and we hope to reunite at a future Higher Things conference.

As I previously mentioned, you do learn…A LOT! The catechesis is broken into two main categories: plenary sessions and breakaway classes. First, the plenary is a lecture given once a day by one of the two selected pastors to teach about the theme of the conference. It is a superb lecture that helps us high school students understand a central part of the Christian faith. This year we learned how Jesus is the Bread of Life and a lot about The Lord’s Supper. It was great! I certainly learned a plethora of information that I can take home to my church and apply on Wednesdays and Sundays.

Second, the breakaway classes are a series of class periods that you get to choose which you want to attend. The classes offered include the big topics that teenagers want to know more about, such as vocation, marriage and dating, and the LGBT community and how to address these things as confessional Lutherans. However, in addition to these quintessential topics, there are many classes on a variety of interesting subjects. My favorite breakaways that I attended were explaining creation and the eighth day and the gift of time, and a synopsis of the book of Amos in an hour. They may sound boring, but they weren’t and I’m so glad I went to them. The way that the pastors teach make it easy to understand and possible to take away what you learned and live by it.

Another surprisingly wonderful experience was private confession and absolution. It was optional, but I did it in spite of initially feeling a little scared and worried about it. We come face to face with our sin, and see how fallen we are. But then we hear God’s merciful words through the pastor and we receive the gift of forgiveness and grace and love. It is recommended you confess with your pastor there at the conference, but if you are not comfortable with it, there are plenty of other pastors who will hear your confession.

If I had to pick only one favorite memory from the conference that would be nearly impossible, but if I had to choose, it would have to be the worship. Singing alongside so many other Lutherans is such an astonishing experience. We worship just like this back home, but at the conference, we unite across states and countries and come together as one! I have no words that can truly grasp how striking and remarkable it is. Each of the 36 hymns made me realize the magnificence of praising God with so many others, but totally together. As we sing that final hymn during the closing Divine Service, you feel like you never want to leave. You’re left imagining the choir of heavenly hosts before our Lord, and how mindboggling that is. What could be more beautiful than that?


This was my third Higher Things conference, and each one has its own place in my heart. This particular conference has truly been a blessing to me, and has changed my life. I not only grew closer to my youth group and pastor, but I also grew closer to God and learned His love for me and the forgiveness that He so freely bestows on us poor, miserable sinners.

Higher Things provides an incredible opportunity to learn about what it means to be a Lutheran through services and classes. We young confessional Lutherans aren’t alone. Attending a conference provides the chance to see and experience that, even for only four days, but the understanding and faith strengthening we acquire in invaluable. It is the highlight of each whole summer and I look forward to it and talk about it the remainder of the year. I strongly encourage every Lutheran youth to attend at least one Higher Things conference. I’m sure that it will profoundly affect you and you will remember those four days for the rest of your life.

Lindsey Casey is a member of Immanuel Lutheran Church of Pensacola, FL and president of the youth group. She enjoys playing volleyball and runs track as a sophomore at West Florida High School of Advanced Technology.

Emma Kovachevich

I attended the Bread of Life Conference in Cedar Falls, Iowa this year. My favorite part of the conference was the church services, especially Evening Prayer. The liturgy was absolutely beautiful. I greatly savored the fellowship experienced by singing the liturgy and hymnody with hundreds of other youth who “Dare to be Lutheran®.”

I also particularly enjoyed the breakaway on marriage and dating taught by Pastor Buetow. We learned that marriage is the union of man and woman, which is the picture of Christ being joined to His Bride, the Church. Pastor Buetow, like all of the other presenters, is informative and entertaining at the same time.

Finally, I thoroughly relished the free time activities such as knockerball, swimming, and, of course, the chant-off.

I am looking so forward to next year’s conference!

Emma Kovachevich is a member at Calvary Lutheran Church in Elgin, Illinois.

Monica Berndt

I really enjoy watching the Summer Olympic Games. Participating in several summers of competitive swimming has turned my family and I into full-time Olympic swimming watchers, but I also really enjoy gymnastics, diving, and track and field. The stories that come with every Olympic games are filled with hard work, dedication, and personal sacrifice and it is thrilling to watch these amazing athletes achieve their goals.

There is always something else that comes with the Olympics: Every year there is a scandal, a piece of drama that everyone is ready to sink their teeth into and parade around the whole world. No matter how much you try to ignore it, there always seems to be some type of black cloud hovering over the Olympic Games. Some years there is political drama within the host country, other years there is a scandal over environmental concerns, and some years there are charges of cheating. Unfortunately, since we live in a world that is perpetually tainted by sin, we can never escape scandals and drama, and this fact holds just as true for the Olympics as it does for everyday life.

This year, one of the larger scandals that appeared on the Olympics’ global stage was the entrance of over 150 Russian athletes who were originally suspended because of the mass use of performance-enhancing drugs. Several of these athletes had not passed drug tests just a few months prior to the games, and were only admitted to the games by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) a few days prior to the start of the games. As the Russian athletes entered the stadium in Rio de Janeiro, many members of the audience booed because they did not think it was fair for these athletes to be competing. Many of the athletes were angry and frustrated as well, saying it was not fair for the IOC to let the Russians compete while everyone else followed the rules.

God does not deal fairly either. It can be so tempting to look around on Sunday morning and wonder how certain people end up in church. “Oh look, the Martins are here. It must only be because their family is in town.” “I bet they’ll only show up until their kids are confirmed.” “I know that Mr. _____ goes drinking on the weekends.” We can spend our time pouting about why God lets certain people into His church and never spend a moment thinking about how we, the whining, pouting, and disagreeable sinners, also have no business being allowed into the presence of the Almighty God. God does not play fair, and it is a GOOD thing. If God dealt fairly with us and our sins, we would be damned to hell on the spot and never allowed even a glimpse of heaven.

Like the Russian athletes who should probably not have been allowed to compete, we, too, should not have been allowed access to God and His grace. We only do through the great sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who died on the cross for our sins. He is the reason we can enter church on Sunday morning. He is the reason we can come to the Lord’s Table and receive the forgiveness of sins by eating and drinking His very Body and Blood. We could never work hard enough to achieve this on our own—not even to achieve 0.000001% of our own salvation. It all comes from Christ and we have done nothing to deserve it. Thankfully, God has chosen mercy over fairness.

Monica Berndt is a member at Messiah Lutheran Church in Seattle, Washington. She attends the University of Washington where she studies choral music and history.