Category: Life Issues

Rev. Mark Buetow

“Pastor, I’m gay.” “No, you’re baptized.” “What do you mean? I know I’m baptized but I’m telling you I’m attracted to the same sex.” “Yes, and you’re baptized.” “What does that have to do with being gay?” “Because what defines you is not your sexual orientation or your addictions or anything else like that. What defines you is not your sins. What defines you is what Christ has done for you and given to you. So, you are baptized.”

The trouble with talking about “homosexuality” or any other sexual “orientation” is that when we define people by whom they are attracted to, we’ve already given into the world’s lie that you can be and do whatever you want. The world’s underlying assumption that “anything is okay, provided it doesn’t hurt someone else” is a powerful and compelling argument that is tough to refute. Maybe you’re defined by whom you sleep with. Same sex? That makes you gay. Maybe it’s by what you’re addicted to or recovering from, such as alcohol—so then you’re an alcoholic or recovering alcoholic. We love our labels and it is precisely those labels that allow us to excuse our sins and at the same time demand that people recognize us and give us consideration based on our sins!

St. Paul pulls no punches with the Corinthian Christians. He declares: “Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.” (1 Corinthians 6:9-10). The simple fact is, sin harms our neighbor and separates us from God. It draws His wrath and judgment. And it isn’t just this sin or that sin, it’s all of them. No one is excluded from that list. If you lust after the same sex, then this judgment falls upon you. If you lust after the opposite sex, well, same judgment. If you steal, drink too much or are straight but sleep around, you’re under this judgment as well.

But St. Paul is not done there. We completely miss the point if we ignore the next verse: “And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God.” (1 Corinthians 6:11). Here St. Paul takes all those sins and drowns them in the waters of holy baptism. Just as your Old Adam was drowned in holy baptism, a new man came forth in Christ, to live before God in righteousness and purity forever. And there it is: the answer to all of our lusts and others’ sin. It is the truth that our Old Adam pursues his selfish pleasures while the new man is free in Christ from the chains of sin. You are baptized. Therefore what does it all have to do with “homosexuality”?

For those who are gay or struggle with some gender issue. You are baptized! God has not abandoned you. You are not less in His sight because of your struggles against sin. He has beaten sin for you. All of the guilt, doubt and despair you may feel has been answered for on Calvary. The struggle you face to live a “sexually pure and decent life” is the Spirit’s work in you. Your failings to do so are covered by Jesus’ blood and left buried in His tomb. Your victory over these very real and very bitter struggles is the baptism which the sign of the cross remembers, the absolution your pastor speaks, and the Body and Blood of Jesus He gives you.

For parents or friends or family of someone who is gay. You are baptized! Every struggle you have, every tear, every harsh word, every uncertain reaction, every bit of mockery or derision from others—all of that, too, has been nailed to Jesus and His cross. The very real conflict between shame and support, between loathing and love, is bound up with the God who became flesh for you and washed you to make you His child. And that water and Word have washed away every sin you’ve done dealing with all of this, too.

The simple fact is that the Christ loves His Church and gave Himself for her. He has washed her and made her His spotless bride. She was born from His side in water and blood and she is washed and nurtured by that same water and blood. The church is the Bride of Christ, bought with His suffering and death, purified by His Word, and prepared for her Lord for an eternal wedding celebration.

Homosexuality, promiscuity, divorce, adultery, fornication—anything that is against marriage or denies marriage—denies the truth of Jesus and His church. But it is precisely in the truth of what Christ has done for His church that all sins are forgiven. 
All of them. Without exception. None greater or less than another. All of them are covered by Christ’s blood. And every struggle, and every failing, and every transgression, is covered by the promise of your baptism. This is why the whole Christian life, whatever you struggle with, is nothing other than a life in the Divine Service, hearing over and over the promise that Christ does not abandon us in our sins but forgives and gives us life.

The church does not accept the world’s view that “anything goes.” But neither does it seek to judge certain sins more than others. Rather, the church lives by Christ’s gifts. By His forgiveness. By His Word, water, body and blood. There is nothing else by which the Spirit works in us to rescue us from the world’s way of thinking and the darkness of sin. And that is why, when it comes down to it, the question isn’t “Are you gay or straight?” It’s “Are you baptized?” And if you are baptized, you are the Lord’s. Your Old Adam is a dead man and in Christ, you are righteous, innocent, and pure, now and forever.

Author’s note: The reality of genders struggles, often driven by the influence of the permissive world around us, means that much confusion can arise. Readers facing these sorts of issues and struggles are encouraged to speak with their pastor, whom the Lord has given to bring forgiveness and the comfort of Christ to them.

Rev. Mark Buetow is pastor of Bethel Lutheran Church in DuQuoin, Illinois and serves as the deputy and media services executive for Higher Things. He can be reached at buetowmt@gmail.com.

Bob and Cyndi Myers

BOB

Looking back on more than three decades of marriage gives us pause to reflect on God’s gift of marriage. I confess that as a young man there were many times when I wished that I could see into the future and know just what lay ahead for me. I guessing that sometimes you might think that, too.

We know couples who are happy in marriage, couples who are unhappy in marriage, singles who are happily single, and singles who are discontented in their single state.

So, would it be a good thing to be able to see decades into the future? Would it lead to a sense of peace or a sense of despair?

The popular culture will always try to describe norms of behavior or shape your view of what is important in dating or in marriage. Very often these influences on behavior simply boil down to personal appearance, popularity and social status.

Each person, each couple, is unique in many ways, and yet each are the same in that they are given to live out the vocation that the Lord has given them.

CYNDI

As a young woman I dreamed of someday meeting that one person whom I could love and be loved by “til death do us part.” Not yet understanding my vocation as daughter, sister, student, co-worker and friend, it seemed there was something more I wanted. I was not content with what I had and with whom God had made me to be.  I thought I would be happier if I were smarter, prettier, and thinner, had a more prestigious job, a handsome and popular boyfriend, etc.  The Lord tells us to be content in Him and trust that God will provide all that we need. Amazingly, God’s love is so great that He also gives us 
gifts we don’t even ask for.

In 1980, I was very content with my life and being single. I did what I wanted, when I wanted, which included going to church (or not), visiting my parents (or not), serving my neighbor (or not). One day a friend and co-worker approached me and began telling me about a guy her spouse worked with. She said, “You guys would be perfect for each other” so she asked my permission to set us up on a blind date to meet at their home for dinner. We all laughed, talked, ate, and just had a great time. That evening, my blind date asked to see me again, and we dated for several months. All the while, I never thought: This is the one.

BOB

Thanks be to God for the gift of His Holy Word! His Word points us to what it is that we should consider important. We can see that it is considered important to be equally yoked, and by that I mean man and woman alike under the yoke of Jesus. Christ is the one who said, “My yoke is easy and my burden is light.” But I would further advise you to consider what that means within the world of believers. It can be quite difficult if one person is from a church body that joyfully receives the Sacraments and the other person is from a tradition that disregards the Sacraments and even goes so far as to deny the effective work of God in them. For these reasons it is important that you consider these things when you choose a person to date and even more so when you consider the possibility of marriage.

The Lord has promised to give us everything we need (2 Peter 1:3). We do not necessarily receive everything we want. We daily sin much, and often are not content with what we have been given, yet we have a Father in heaven who delights in giving good things to those who ask Him (Matthew 7:11).

God alone supplies all that we need to sustain this body and life. He has provided a perfectly created order, and a picture of this relationship is described in Ephesians 5. Read the Table of Duties in Luther’s Small Catechesis and hear what it says to husbands, wives, youth, parents, and children.

So while you haven’t been promised, and you’re most likely not going to get a sign from above in the form of a halo of shimmering light over “Mr. or Miss Right,” you have been given the promise of eternal life, the assurance that He cares for us, and the historical fact that He gave Himself up for us.

In Christ we are never alone. God has promised “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”

CYNDI

God chose this man to give to me through the gift of holy matrimony and on April 7, 1981 we were joined by God at His altar. I could not have imagined all that He would bless us with. Throughout 33 years of marriage, we have been through good times and bad but looking back, the hardest times were the ones that made our marriage stronger. Keeping Christ as our focus helped us to grow in our faith and in our marriage.

God has blessed us in more ways than we could have ever thought to ask for, two children, two grandchildren, steady employment, a home, a faithful church and pastor, opportunities to serve our neighbors, good health and so much more.

God gave me the perfect spouse—the one He created for me!

But we are chosen by Him and made perfect through His son Jesus Christ and THAT is the greatest gift of all!

Bob and Cyndi Myers live in Milton, Florida and worship at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Pensacola. When they are not busy being parents and grandparents, Bob, a retired Navy Mustang, is a truck driver and Cyndi is a travel agent for the military. Both greatly enjoy working with youth at church, particularly in catechesis. They can be reached at myers.w.robert@gmail.com (Bob) and navwif@gmail.com (Cyndi).

Rev. Joel Fritsche

Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, the fruit of the womb a reward. 
Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one’s youth. Blessed 
is the man who fills his quiver with them! He shall not be put to shame 
when he speaks with his enemies in the gate. (Psalm 127:3-5 ESV)

My wife and I have three sons. I’d say my quiver is quite full, even though I don’t have seven or eight children. Arrows in the hand of a warrior? Yes, I’d say so, but I suppose I mean that a bit differently than the Psalmist. Of course, I agree with the Psalmist, too. Don’t get me wrong. My gates will be well-defended with my three Russian-born adopted sons and their genetic body-building physiques. Did you see Rocky IV? Enemies beware! You will lose! But sometimes the arrows are aimed right back at me. That’s what I was getting at. Honestly, I struggle as a father. It’s a weighty vocation with increasing demands, not just on my time, but on my patience, too. It’s tough raising three boys! Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them? It’s true. In spite of the struggles and challenges of parenthood, there are many blessings.

As a pastor, I officiate at about five or six weddings per year. In premarital instruction I talk with couples about children: the blessings and challenges. Each time at the wedding service, I read those words in the opening sentences about marriage and the blessings that God gives along with it. The one that comes toward the end is this: “God also established marriage for the procreation of children who are to be brought up in the fear and instruction of the Lord so that they may offer Him their praise” (Holy Matrimony, LSB 275).

Children are only one of the many blessings of marriage. I always wanted to have children and I always thought I would have children. But I wasn’t devastated when my wife revealed before our engagement that she had known since childhood that she would not likely ever conceive and bear children. If children are a blessing from the Lord, then is being unable to have children a kind of punishment? The Gospel says no! Jesus bore the punishment of her sins, as well as yours and mine.

Seeing that my wife had a peace about her circumstances was comforting to me. Anticipating the other blessings God gives in marriage, like mutual companionship, help and support, and the delight husbands and wives are privileged to have for one another moved us forward into marriage. And it wasn’t long after our wedding that we started looking into the possibility of adoption. Five years later we were on a plane flying across Russia with two little boys. Three years after that, we were bringing home their brother from the same region in Russia—from the same birth mother even.

I can’t say that I never wonder what it might have been like for my wife and I to have had biological children. I know she wonders, too. Childbirth is an incredible miracle. Every birth is a living reminder of our Savior’s birth. But adoption certainly has its picture, too. It carries that image of new birth—our adoption by God’s grace in Christ (Galatians 4:5; Ephesians 1:5; Romans 8:15). My sons will always be a living reminder to me of that blessed truth. I pray that the reality of their adoption will hold that image of Divine grace before them throughout their lives also.

Speaking of images and pictures, I find that through my children, there’s a unique blessing to be received. A family of five living together under the same roof presents a picture of its own. As I recognize and confess my sins within my vocation of father, as I struggle with my lack of patience, as my anger sometimes gets the better of me, I see a brighter reflection of a heavenly Father who poured out His anger over my sin—not on me, but on Jesus. There’s hope for me, despite my failures and sins as a father, because I have a compassionate heavenly Father who loves me in Christ. As a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him (Psalm 103:13).

By God’s grace, the Holy Spirit increases my desire to be patient with my children and to show them the same compassion that God the Father shows me. It encourages me to be a faithful father, to bring these boys up in the fear and instruction of the Lord. And despite the challenge of that part of my vocation in the 21st century, the blessing of children abounds and overflows even into the lives of others. I see it as I look out into the pew and see my sons singing the Gloria or confessing the Creed. I see it when my parishioners tell me the joy that they experience when they hear my sons singing and praying. It’s yet another picture, a living testimony of childlike faith in Jesus.

A heritage from the Lord? Indeed! The fruit of the womb a reward? Definitely. My quiver is filled with the Lord’s blessing for my wife, for me, and for my neighbor, too!

Rev. Joel Fritsche is an adopted child of God, pastor of Zion Lutheran Church in Staunton, Illinois, and a member of the board of directors of Higher Things.

Sandra Ostapowich

“I want you to be free from anxieties. The unmarried man is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to please the Lord. But the married man is anxious about worldly things, how to please his wife, and his interests are divided. And the unmarried or betrothed woman is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to be holy in body and spirit. But the married woman is anxious about worldly things, how to please her husband.” (1 Corinthians 7:32-34)

Unless your family is rather unusual, being unmarried is pretty much the default for American teenagers these days. A lot of your friends are probably dating, and thinking and dreaming about marriage to their “special person” one day. Maybe you are, too!

Or maybe not.

It can be difficult when it seems like everyone else is dating and has a special someone with whom to hang out and rehash the day’s drama. When the winter semi-formal or spring prom comes up, you can cover your lack of a date by collecting a group of friends to all go together. Or you just don’t go at all. Maybe it’s just too awkward. Who likes being lonely in a crowd…of couples?

Being single, especially once you’re out on your own, can be really hard. It’s so, SO easy to give in to the temptation to despise the vocation you’ve been given. Family (even strangers) will pat you on the shoulder and encourage you to do just that! “Don’t worry dear, it’ll be your turn soon. Someone as wonderful as you is just too good not to be snatched up yet!” they say, consolingly.

I get it. It weighs on us when so many things in society revolve around couples and families. Ironically, it’s often worse in the church, where the ideal man is a husband and father and the ideal woman is a wife and mother. And then there’s you: none of the above. Less than ideal. Maybe not even a real man or woman.

Everyone says it’ll get better…but what if it doesn’t? What if you end up watching your friends and (younger) relatives check off those significant milestones of engagements, weddings, and births, never getting to experience them yourself? What if that person never walks into your life and you’re stuck alone, forever?

[Cue the Accuser’s whispers in the back of your mind, “You’re alone because there’s something wrong with you. You don’t deserve to be loved. You’re so pathetic. You really are going to be alone for the rest of your life.”]

But singleness isn’t a curse. It’s not the anti-vocation to the real vocation of being a husband or wife. And it’s definitely not a prison sentence to a life of solitary confinement, as you wait (oh-so-impatiently) for some romanticized, idealized, significant-other to swoop in and save you from this miserable existence so you can finally start living a real life. A married life.

Repent of this kind of thinking! You already have a Savior—One who has loved you to death, and has raised you to new life again.

The reality is that being single is a perfectly good, God-given, God-pleasing, genuine vocation. St. Paul even says it’s better than marriage (1 Corinthians 7:8, 38)! The very fact that you are not married is an actual vocation all its own. It’s not even the “not-married” vocation, it’s just you! Not alone—but you, as a unique, individual child of God; you, set apart in Christ, for the Lord to serve your neighbor through you; you, holy by virtue of your baptism.

Regardless of how you feel, you’re not alone. You just aren’t married. That’s a huge difference. When you’re not oriented around a spouse, you are free to take advantage of a whole world of opportunities around you! Not for sexual relationships, mind you, but for all sorts of relationships in which you can invest your time and energy and love, with all that you have been given in Christ—and without worrying that you’re neglecting a spouse and children as you do. What a gift your singleness is to your neighbors!

So when you’re feeling lonely, fight against the swirling vortex of self-pity. Go visit someone stuck in a nursing home, whose friends have all died and who hasn’t seen a relative in weeks. When you want someone to hold your hand and tell you everything is going to be okay, go sit at the bedside of a hospitalized member of your church for a while. Hold her hand and remind her of her baptism. When you long for someone to tell you you’re wonderful and matter to him or her, volunteer to mentor a kid who has probably never heard another person telling him that he’s good for anything.

And if the day comes when He gives you a spouse, then that’ll be a gift for you. Each day that He doesn’t is another day for you to turn your attention toward serving Him in the place where He has put you, caring for the neighbors that He has put in your world.

And so your singleness can never be a curse; it is a gift. After all, the curse of sin was already borne by Jesus. He has no curses for you. The One who was truly alone is the One who suffered and died for the sins of the world. In Him, you are never alone. He is with you always, each day, in the Word which forgives you, in the baptism that washes you, and in the Sacrament that feeds you.

Sandra Ostapowich is the conference executive for Higher Things and served for 9 years on the Higher Things Board of Directors. She lives with her son in Ft. Wayne, Indiana, where she is also studying for her Ph.D. in Missiology at Concordia Theological Seminary.

With Rev. Mark Jasa’s recent article in The Lutheran Witness, we wanted to highlight his work again with this article from our Apologetics Issue of Higher Things Magazine.

Katie Hill

For 47 years the University Lutheran Chapel has faithfully ministered to students at UCLA—from those who need their faith nourished to those who have no faith at all. And since August 2005, Rev. Mark Jasa has served as pastor there, bringing his unique life experience and apologetics skills to the table, sometimes literally.

In the beginning
Pastor Jasa was born into a Lutheran household and has fond memories of going through Little Visits With God with his parents. However, he was a skeptic at a young age. He recalls believing that everything was finite, that there was no infinite God and he feared, therefore, that perhaps he himself didn’t even truly exist.

In junior high Jasa came to the conclusion that all religions were basically the same, or as he put it, “You need to be good to get the good stuff.” He reasoned, why choose one? So, he chose nothing. By the time high school rolled around, he had developed a keen interest in biology. He felt his teachers clearly cared for him and invested time in him, so he had no reason to doubt what they said. Jasa operated under the assumption that evolution was true and God really wasn’t necessary.

In the back of his mind he recalled hearing a sermon wherein the pastor said, “God loves you in spite of yourself.” And he remembered the words in the liturgy, “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves…” (1 John 1:8). But he shoved those things aside and left the church for a time. No one seemed to have any good answers. It wasn’t personal. Not yet.

The turning point
In college at UCLA, this thinking was reinforced. Evolution=fact. Bible=lie. But a fear of death had begun to creep in and take hold. One day he was asked a question by a man named Cliff Knechtle, a Christian apologist who travels from college campus to college campus conversing with skeptics. “Is Hitler bad?” The question haunted Jasa. It dawned on him that of course he would have to say yes, but then that meant, logically, that there had to be a standard—a law. It was a watershed moment for Jasa, who vividly recalls that day when he said aloud, “I believe in God.”

However, it would be some time before the full impact of that truth settled in. He continued to grapple with these matters. There are things that are true. Right and wrong do exist. But how could he prove it? He was on a quest for truth, but not salvation yet.

During his investigations he began to see that Jesus as a Savior was unique. Reading through Isaiah 53, he saw that claim of the Bible began to take shape. Another benchmark: Jesus is God, but not necessarily my savior. In fact, for Jasa it all boiled down to: “Jesus is the one sending me to hell.” Clearly it was not good news yet.

Now it’s personal
Two Lutheran friends of Jasa would often take the time to engage him in many discussions and while he loved the interaction he was not personally convinced. His fear of death had continued to grow over the years. So one fateful day, these two friends took him to Holy Trinity Lutheran Church in Hacienda Heights, California, where Jasa heard the words that he says changed the course of his life: “The good news is outrageous forgiveness for undeserving sinners.” Jesus’ promises were coming from the mouth of Rev. William Cwirla. “He has an amazing way of telling you that the Gospel is for you,” Jasa explains. Now it was personal. Now it was for Mark Jasa.

At this point Jasa knew that he wanted to be a pastor but he still lacked direction. At the urging of Rev. Cwirla and another pastor, he spent time as a missionary in Japan. He started putting more apologetics pieces together, reading Francis Pieper’s Christian Dogmatics and Josh McDowell’s Evidence that Demands a Verdict. He wanted to know how to be an effective apologist. He wanted to get to the heart of the matter.

What he began to notice was that in all of the world’s religions, there aren’t promises—only demands. Joseph Smith doesn’t make promises. Mary Eddy Baker doesn’t make promises. Mohammed definitely doesn’t make promises. But Jesus does…over and over and over again.

After Japan, Jasa went to Concordia seminary in St. Louis and served his vicarage at Humboldt State University in California. He recalls an incident after working with a student there, who claimed, “Mark Jasa has convinced me that God exists.” Jasa could only think, “I have failed!” Of course it was gratifying to lead someone to that point but he wanted to be able to clearly communicate the truth of the Good News—the promises. Lutheran attorney Craig Parton explained to him that the Lutheran doctrine of Law and Gospel, as well as Christ’s resurrection, are the keys to effective apologetics. Jasa took this and ran with it.

The harvest is ripe
In August of 2005, Jasa was installed as the pastor at the University Lutheran Chapel at UCLA. It was here where all of those pieces he had been gathering together formed a wonderful portfolio that would be utilized and tested in the most satisfying ways. His ministry there involves two worship services a week, Bible studies, fellowship and three days of evangelism on campus. He also gives lectures on various apologetic-oriented topics. Jasa has gained a reputation for posting unique and sometimes provocative signs, e.g. “Religion is for the weak,” in plain view on his ministry table that prompt people to stop and ask questions…all part of the plan, of course.

Jasa says that his preferred apologetics methods are ones anyone can use. He explains that, for the most part, we can approach apologetics with intellectual arguments or existential arguments (someone’s experiences). He likes to employ either or both, on a case by case basis. For example, talking to someone who feels guilty (existential) may drive that person to know the truth (intellectual). Jasa says we often try to include information/facts that aren’t necessary. He makes it a point to ask himself, “What does he or she need?” Then he leads them to the truth. This is an application of God’s Law and Gospel. He encourages anyone defending the faith not to focus on the existence of God, although it is okay to talk about that with someone if they bring it up. Also, he advises you not to spend hours trying to prove evolution is false. This will take you away from the heart of the matter. Instead, make sure you have your facts straight on the resurrection. He notes that the Josh McDowell book mentioned earlier, as well as John Warwick Montgomery’s book History, Law and Christianity are must reads in this regard.

Jasa says to keep in mind that there are certain things nearly everyone can accept. One of them is, “I have chosen to hurt others and have contributed to the way the world is.” Also, most people are afraid of death, so it is important to bring them back to that point. Finally, it’s okay to concede a point with someone, particularly if it is taking you away from the truth you are leading them toward. For example, if someone tells you the Trinity is a crazy idea, tell them they’re right, but on judgment day what do they think will happen?

“It’s a delight to be able to do what I do—whether I’m in the pulpit proclaiming Christ to our members or talking to atheists and telling them that Jesus is really free. Being a Lutheran is the easiest thing in the whole world because all you have to do is tell people what is true.”

Rev. Mark Jasa can be reached at markjasa@gmail.com You can read more about the LCMS ministry at UCLA at www.ulcbruins.org.

Katie Hill is the editor of Higher Things Magazine and the mother of two active teens in Gilbert, Arizona. In her spare time she is an elementary teacher. She can be reached at katie.hill@higherthings.org

Bethany Lange

It comes as no surprise that Christian students are facing theological challenges in the classroom. I witnessed this firsthand when I entered college for the first time in 2011. As I read the first chapter of my book in geology class I found anti-Christian statements, which I expected. However, when I took the first exam, I found three questions I had not anticipated-questions that referred to “absolute truths” when these “truths” were unproven. I discovered that, in good conscience, I could not say “the age of the Earth is 4.5 billion years old,” even though this was what the textbook said. I simply could not say that this was true, especially when I have seen and heard so much evidence to the contrary-including in the teacher’s very own lectures.

My difficulty was that false or unproven information, specifically about the distant past, was stated as fact. I had expected wording such as “according to the textbook, -” or “according to the theory of -.” I was completely unprepared for a multiple-choice online test. Given the questions, I decided to get the answers as right as I could get them-but according to research I trusted. I lost some points for my answers, but I realized that if I decided that grades were more valuable than truth, I would be compromising what is most important.

In the past year especially, Christians around the world have watched in horror as the Muslim Brotherhood has violently attacked Christians in various countries. Thousands of Christians have been brutally persecuted and martyred, and these attacks have prompted me to ask myself, What would I do if I were in this situation? Deep down, I fear I might compromise. Which type of Christian is more devout-someone who renounces his faith with his fingers crossed, or one who refuses to renounce his faith no matter what the cost? It is good to remember that ultimately, faithfulness is not something I can achieve on my own. Only by the Holy Spirit and the gifts of Jesus do I have any confidence that I will have the words to say or the courage to resist even if I am persecuted for my being a Christian.

While the persecution in science classes is clearly far less of a threat than martyrdom, the school system’s way of persuading youth to leave Christianity is still quite effective. Students are pressured to scorn Christianity and Christian principles by classmates, teachers, textbooks, school rules, and federal laws. Many of those who leave home for college lose their faith. In my church alone, ten out of fifteen youth have left the faith after high school. If we, as students, cannot even stand firm in school, how can we expect to be able to testify to Christ when it’s a matter of life and death?

The current scientific trend is to separate faith and fact entirely, in keeping with the separation between church and state. However, the Christian faith is based on facts-not just murky “truths.” The world asserts that religion is about morals and good deeds, not the reality around us, and therefore has no relevance to the real world and science. Our responsibility, however, is to understand how matters such as science point to God’s creation and laws. There is comfort in knowing that the Christian faith is not about proving science wrong but about God’s grace and forgiveness in Jesus. There is nothing that can overturn what Jesus has accomplished for us by His death on the cross and His resurrection!

I have often been told that I should just repeat what the teachers want me to say, but not believe it in my heart. How would the Apostles have responded to this philosophy? I cannot imagine St. Paul saying mildly, “I don’t believe that evolution is right, but I’ll say whatever you want me to say – for now.” Is it right to say and do nothing to defend the faith that Christ has given? I know that I can personally do nothing to stay in the faith, but I do know that Satan is constantly throwing out that old question, “Did God really say?” He wants me to question God’s Word. The Lord’s promise to never leave us or forsake us is a good defense when that worry comes.

What, then, is the solution? There are several options for Christian students to follow, and they don’t have to threaten your success in school. First of all, work hard in class, be respectful, and, when theological points cause conflicts, do not deliberately incite more conflict. Martin Luther explains the 4th Commandment in the Small Catechism by saying, “We should fear and love God so that we do not despise or anger our parents and other authorities, but honor them, serve and obey them, love and cherish them.” When in doubt, consult with a pastor and find a Christian support network to help you when you get discouraged or overwhelmed. Pray constantly for discernment and strength, for we cannot prevail against our own doubts and fears without the Armor of God. Most importantly, remember that we are not fighting “against flesh and blood, but against principalities … [and] powers” (Ephesians 6:12). Federal laws, teachers, classmates-they are not our enemies. Look to Christ for wisdom and faith! Your pastor is the Lord’s gift to help you answer questions that your classes might bring about your faith. He is also there to comfort you with the promises of Jesus that He is always faithful.

Even in the face of open challenges to Christianity within school, many students today are becoming more and more used to doing what is expected of them without thinking about or questioning their reactions. All Christians who see this type of attack in their lives should assess what is happening, what is true or false, and what their reactions are. Christians should not attack their teachers, but school should not be excluded from the areas in which we should be Christians. Our duty as Christian students should be clear: work hard, be respectful, and do not act or speak contrary to God’s Word. But above all, recognize that when the world brings you trouble, Jesus has overcome the world (John 16:33) and He has made you a part of His kingdom forever.

Bethany Lange is a lifelong Lutheran and the oldest daughter of nine children. She is a junior studying English Teaching at Utah State University. She lives in Wyoming and likes to spend her time reading, teaching violin, knitting, and crocheting. She can be contacted at prestissimo93@yahoo.com.

Rev. James Hageman

“Be still and know that I am God (Psalm 46:10).

“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).

So there we were, in a room full of mostly young Christians. We were listening to a presenter talk about ambition and the pressure to succeed in our world. He said youth today live in an age of self-promotion. They brand themselves on Facebook and Twitter and on their college admission applications, all in the name of securing for themselves the best lives possible. They are ambitious, and their ambition is for things and success, and ultimately, for self-meaning and self-validation.

Our speaker told us to realize that our identity is found not in things and success, but in Jesus. He died for us and shed His blood for our sins, including materialism and self-idolatry. We are baptized into Christ and inherit eternal life through Him. The speaker said we will find peace, not in our ambition, but in God’s word. With this revelation comes the end of the pressures of our material world, the end of the pretense of acting like something we are not. The engine of uncertainty and insecurity is shut down, and we rest in the grace of God.

I liked this presentation. The speaker accurately depicted the world’s sinful condition and identified how young adults are trapped in it. He offered as a remedy the security and certainty of Christ and the eternal life His sacrifice guarantees. All this was thoughtful, true, and comforting.

But is there a conflict between ambition and faith in Christ? My wife and I have three ambitious, driven kids. They openly and aggressively pursue the best life, the best jobs, and the best educations. But they also know they find their identities and self-worth, not in their own accomplishments, but in the forgiveness of sins and in Christ alone.

I believe that there is no conflict here and that there is room for ambition in the life of a Christian. Ambition can be directed toward our own ends, but it can be used for God’s ends, too.

Scripture tells us that God has put us in our situations in life (our vocations) to do our best with the gifts He has given us. Open your Small Catechism and read the “Table of Duties.” You’ll find scripture that instructs us on how to handle ourselves in our various positions in life. These verses are a guide, not for how to get ahead in the workplace or classroom, but how to use our lives for service to God and our neighbor. Part of the final instruction is “The commandments . . . are summed up in this one rule: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself” (Romans 13:9).

This love shows itself in practical ways. If I play the flute in the band, I should strive to be the best flute player I can be-the band will sound better for it. If I play baseball, I should work hard to hit well-the team will win more games. If I run for office, I should be interested, articulate, intelligent and honest-my constituency will benefit from it. In these places we Christians serve our neighbors, be they a listening audience, the fans in the stands, or the citizens of our community. This kind of ambition is not sinful, but God-pleasing, and even imperative to life as a Christian.

A warning, though. Every vocation has its temptations, and every human ambition has them, too. In that Table of Duties, under “Youth,” the apostle Peter writes, “Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that He may lift you up in due time” (I Peter 5:6). He would not have warned the young to humble themselves if arrogance were not a threat. We all want to excuse and justify ourselves, and to serve ourselves rather than our neighbors. When the fastest runner thinks the race is all about her, when the winner thinks it’s all his doing, things have gone too far. We are all too ready to accept credit for what is not ours to claim. Humility can be tough for the gifted and talented, but even they must confess their sinful motives to their heavenly Father.

The good news is that Christ is for all of us. You may succeed or fail in the world’s eyes. But the key is to know that since you are washed, justified and anctified, in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God (1 Corinthians 6:11), your identity and worth come from Him. Everything else proceeds from this. And so we live, our selfishness from the Old Adam put to death by our baptism and the forgiveness of sins and the New Man daring to excel and be the best, for the good of those around us.

Be ambitious! Use your talents and remember who gave them to you. Find what you love and where your talents lie, and give it all you’ve got. You have nothing to lose, for Christ has given you everything.

Rev. James Hageman is the pastor at Our Savior Lutheran Church in Glendive, Montana, and Grace Lutheran Church in Fallon, Montana. His two sons, Eric and Josef, greatly assisted in editing this article. His wife, Stephanie, and daughter, Jenna, also contributed, and lent moral support and humor. Pastor Hageman can be reached at cuisapiunt@gmail.com.

by Jon Kohlmeier

Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it. – Proverbs 22:11 NKJV

Throughout your lifetime, there will be moments that are considered “life-changing.” You get your first job. You meet your future spouse for the first time. A friend and classmate is killed in a car accident. Graduation days, bad breakups, relocation, and illnesses all change your life in some way.

In the same way, you will attend events that create a mountaintop experience that could very well impact your life. If you attended one of the From Above conferences, it will probably be an experience that you remember for the rest of your life. You might even look back on those four days and say that they were life changing for you.

But those moments fade. The emotional charge that came with the mountaintop experience gives way to the mundane, the routine, the boring. Some would give almost anything to feel something that strongly again. You want to feel something–good or bad–as intense as the sadness that accompanies the loss of a friend or a family member. You long for that unparalleled excitement caused by being surrounded by hundreds or thousands of people your own age who believe the same things that you do; to hear their voices joined with yours as you sing. You just want something that you can feel in your heart and your mind, something that you can remember, something that will break this boring routine in which you seem to be perpetually stuck.

Strangely enough such life-changing, mountaintop experiences aren’t the important things. The important things happen in between those moments and during those not-so-dynamic times.

Proverbs 22 says, “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.” The important things are in your training! A concert choir spends many hours rehearsing a piece that will take them five minutes to perform in concert. A cross country runner will run countless miles in preparation for their 20-minute 5K race. The important time is spent in his training, where things become so second nature that they don’t have to exert much thought when those big moments come.

Your training as a Lutheran is in your baptism: the daily drowning of your Old Adam and your being raised to new life in Christ. The Catechism shows you what that looks like. Upon waking up in the morning, you make the sign of the cross, “In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” You repeat the Creed, the Lord’s Prayer, Luther’s Morning Prayer, and go joyfully to your school or work singing a hymn. Before meals you ask a blessing and say the Lord’s Prayer. Afterwards, you repeat the Lord’s Prayer and return thanks for the gifts that God has given to you. At the end of the day you again make the sign of the cross, “In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” You repeat the Creed, the Lord’s Prayer, and Luther’s Evening Prayer before going to sleep in good cheer.

You begin and end each day with the sign of the cross as you remember your baptism. That is your training in Christ’s death and resurrection. You are trained some more as you regularly receive the gifts God gives to you in the Lord’s Supper. The body and blood of Christ, under bread and wine, are placed into your mouth for the forgiveness of sins, life and salvation.

When those those negative life-changing moments happen, you remember your training. You remember your baptism. You remember Jesus. When you are afflicted by death, sadness, depression and anxiety, you are baptized! In that baptism, Jesus remembers you. In baptism, Christ has given you life, joy, contentedness and peace. When it feels like absolutely nothing is going your way, you remember your baptism. In that baptism, Christ works all things out for your good.

And when those more positive life-changing moments happen, we still remember our baptismal training. When you get the job you really wanted, when she says “Yes!” and when your hard work pays off and you ace the exam, you are baptized! When you reach that mountaintop experience, you stay grounded in your baptism. When things go back to normal, in baptism, you receive all things as gifts from the Lord.

You will experience moments that you will look back on and say that they were life changing. Those aren’t the important moments. The important things happen regularly. They train you so that when those life-changing moments try to shake you to the core and turn your life upside down, you know how to respond as one who is born from above because Christ has called you by name and made you His own. When the life-changing moments come, this is most certainly true: In baptism, Christ has given you life from above. You are baptized!

Jon Kohlmeier is the Webmaster for Higher Things.

by Katie Hill

A futuristic novel? No…your freshman year in college. Perhaps you’re just about ready to launch this fall, or maybe you’re looking to finish your senior year in high school with this transition in your sights. Be of good cheer. There are ways you can successfully navigate through the adventurous waters of that first year of college.

If you decide to scour websites for advice, you will encounter all kinds of interesting suggestions. I encourage you to be discerning. For example, I came across this little nugget of wisdom on a random “college help” website:

“Remember that college life is not really that difficult. All you need is to be an optimist. The correct attitude would make a lot of difference. You will definitely succeed if you have a good plan and the will and determination to achieve your goals!”

Suuuure. If it were only that simple!
So here is some basic heartfelt advice, as one who successfully made it through her freshman year out of state many years ago and now as one who has just experienced her firstborn’s freshman year and lived to tell the tale.

As you read through this column, remember one unchanging truth: You are Christ’s and no matter what highs or lows you experience this next year, He is always there for you, in Word and Sacrament. Whatever your struggle is, He has taken care of your biggest challenge ever—having conquered sin, death and the devil on your behalf.

Realistic expectations and goals
Regularly seek out the counsel of those whom you trust. This includes peers/friends who’ve been there, done that, your high school guidance counselor, your pastor, but especially your parents. Take to heart what they say because trust me, they know (Proverbs 15:22).

You may go into your first year thinking you know what you want to do with your life, and you may complete it having changed your major…perhaps even more than once. It is okay to start the journey without having your life perfectly mapped out.

Whether you plan to live at home during college or relocate halfway across the country, that first year will be an adjustment. If you choose to live at home you will have the pressure of a new schedule, budgeting your time, etc.

However, if you live on campus, whether in your hometown or out of town, one of the things that you will contend with is homesickness to some degree. This is absolutely normal. It will fade in time and before you know it, you’ll have adapted to your new surroundings. This will happen more smoothly if you take some proactive steps with the help of those who know and love you.

And of course through it all, remember who you are in Christ.

Finding Your Niche and Building Support
The French word niche (pronounced nitch or neesh) describes that “perfect fit” you can find for yourself, whether it’s your studies, your job or other activities. No matter how large or small your college is, seek to find a niche as quickly as possible. Get to know your professors personally. Even in a large lecture class you can introduce yourself to the professor after class and sit near the front. Join a campus club of some sort. Make it a point to get involved in dorm activities. Some of the friendships you forge in college will be lifelong ones.

Above all, and I cannot stress this enough: Find an LCMS church or campus group to become a part of (Christ on Campus, LCMS U or some other LCMS-affiliated group is ideal). In my daughter’s particular situation, the previously existing LCMS campus group no longer existed and so we compensated by picking her up whenever possible to get her to our home church. She also, on her own initiative, purchased a Lutheran Book of Prayer to help sustain her, as well as had time in the Scriptures. There may be an LCMS church near your campus that would be thrilled to help you get to Divine Service on Sundays. Feel free to contact the church and find out what your options are. The more you can have mapped out before you move onto campus, the better. If there isn’t an LCMS church in the nearby area, you will want to talk to your home pastor and parents about how to handle this. College, like any part of life, is still a daily struggle with sin and the Old Adam. Having a faithful pastor to care for you while in college means being strengthened in the forgivness of sins as you study and grow into your chosen vocation.

And while you it’s important to establish a good support network on campus, keep lines of communication open to your folks and other important people in your life. We have so many ways of keeping in touch nowadays. Use all of those ways and use them often.

Time management
How you budget your time will make all the difference. There is not enough space here to include every helpful tip that would make this first year less stressful but here are some general ideas.

Make a list. Yes, a list. Perhaps you hate lists. I recommend you learn to love them. I don’t care if you handwrite the list on a post-it note or in type it into your iPad or smart phone. Just keep a list. Regularly look at this list and reevaluate and reprioritize. A weekly schedule is essential. I had one semester with 18 credit hours, two part-time jobs and active involvement in a Christian ministry. To keep everything straight I had things scheduled down to the hour. That ended up being one of my most satisfying semesters ever.

As the more demanding times come upon you, you might take to heart one of my favorite quotes, which comes from author and humorist Mark Twain: “The secret of getting ahead is getting started. The secret of getting started is breaking your complex overwhelming tasks into small manageable tasks, and then starting on the first one.” I applied it way back in college and I still try to today.

Don’t allow yourself to procrastinate, as tempting as that is. Look at the syllabus for each course you take and map out your study plans for the semester to the best of your ability. You will get better and better at this.

Take advantage of study groups. Not only does this help hold you accountable to get your study time in, you end up having a lot more fun along the way.

There will be those days when your schedule seems overwhelming and finals week is creeping up and you want to panic. Using time management tips is a great practice, but more importantly know that God will make perfect what concerns you today (Psalm 138:8).

Now what happens when you have all this great advice and fail to follow it? When you’re overwhelmed, have put things off, and are not prepared? Well even that was carried to the cross by Jesus. Yes, He died even for stressed-out college freshmen!

Hang in there as you head down this exciting and life-changing road, lean on good counsel, but most of all, remember who you are in Christ: beloved, cherished and forgiven, all for His sake.

Katie Hill (formerly Micilcavage), is the very recently and happily remarried editor of Higher Things Magazine and is mom to two active teens in Gilbert, Arizona and stepmom to three energetic kiddos in Holbrook, Arizona. She is an elementary teacher in her spare time. And yes, she relies heavily on lists.

by Rev. Philip Young

“The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned” (1 Corinthians 2:14).

Talking to your unbelieving friends can be difficult. The passage above seems to present a problem that makes it harder. How can I get my unbelieving friends to believe when they can’t understand what I am saying? How do they get the Holy Spirit in order to understand the truth, so that I can speak the truth to them?

My framing of the problem is really the problem. There is no sequence of the Holy Spirit coming and then the truth. It does not happen that the Holy Spirit is received and then the truth of God’s Word is received. Rather, Christ gives us his Holy Spirit with his Word. Our Lord’s words are Spirit-filled. Jesus said that his words are “Spirit and life” (John 6:63). Therefore, the Holy Spirit is received with the truth, with God’s Word. In fact, we cannot expect to receive the Holy Spirit apart from God’s Word and the Sacraments, which are God’s “visible” Word. Luther wrote, “We should and must insist that God does not want to deal with us human beings, except by means of his external Word and sacrament” (SA III VIII:10).

When it comes to an unbeliever, God prepares that person for conversion through His law—His commandments. All people have an innate knowledge of God’s law through having a conscience. This is called the natural knowledge of God. However, people deny this knowledge and pervert it. But when God’s law as revealed in Holy Scripture is proclaimed, the Holy Spirit convicts and allows no denial of what is good, right, and holy. It says in our Lutheran Confessions, “The Spirit of Christ must not only comfort but through the function of the law must also ‘convict the world of sin’ [John 16:8]. Thus, in the New Testament the Holy Spirit must perform (as the prophet says in Isaiah 28:2) “alien” work—which is to convict—until he comes to his “proper” work—which is to comfort and to proclaim grace. For this reason, Christ obtained the Spirit for us and sent him to us” (FC SD V:11).

First the law is proclaimed, and then the Gospel. It is through the Gospel that God works conversion, or brings people to faith and life in Christ. Conversion also occurs through Holy Baptism, which is Gospel, as is the case with infants. But for the unbelieving adult, the spoken Word will be the means by which the Holy Spirit penetrates the stony heart. Through the Gospel, sinners who are blind, dead, and enemies of God are given sight, made alive, and turned to love God. This happens by the Holy Spirit acting upon people, for unbelievers cannot understand and cannot help themselves. It says in the Small Catechism’s explanation to the Third Article of the Creed: “I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to him; but the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with his gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith . . .”

This reminds us that you can’t reason someone into the kingdom of grace. It didn’t happen for us that way. Why would we then try to argue our unbelieving friends into a confession of true faith?

So the answer to reaching your unbelieving, undiscerning friends is God’s Word. Speak God’s law and Gospel to them. The Holy Spirit works through the Spirit-filled Word. Bring God’s Word to bear on their lives, and the Holy Spirit will act upon them. The Apostle Paul wrote, “Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ” (Romans 10:17). Faith does not come from reason, from the best argument, or from the most knowledge. You don’t have to win anyone with your skills. In fact, you can’t.

Let me offer two other important points. First, the Holy Spirit can be resisted (Acts 7:51). Therefore, we are never to judge our confession of the truth by “results.” Second, the Word of God does not return empty (Isaiah 55:11). Therefore, as God gives you the opportunity, continue to speak the Word to your unbelieving friends and bring them to the public proclamation in the Church. There may come a time later in their lives when God brings to mind that Word you spoke.

Finally, rejoice in the Gospel of your own forgiveness as you receive absolution and are reminded of your baptism, hear the Word of Christ preached and partake of His body and blood in the divine service. Then by the Holy Spirit you continue to receive for certain the complete forgiveness from the Father for the sake of Christ, which you then declare to others.

Rev. Philip Young is pastor of Redeemer Lutheran Church in Nashville, Tennessee, and he serves as the pastoral advisor to the Lutheran Student Fellowship group at Vanderbilt University.