Last week I met with a small task force in Hamburg to see how we can continue to provide help to church members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Ukraine, suffering mightily from the effects of the war. All their men between 18 and 60 have left to fight the Russian attackers (as have all … Continue reading Courage
“We have some 70 Persians in our congregation,” explained the pastor, “but I don’t speak a word of Farsi. I’ve heard that many other SELK congregations are blessed with Iranian and Afghan members too. Is there any way we could coordinate Persian resources so we can share the Gospel with them in their own language … Continue reading Reaching People whose Homeland Forbids the Gospel
In Early Christianity, amid the rampant persecution of believers, Jesus’ followers had a secret way of identifying one another. They traced a little curve in the dirt. If the other person was a Christian, he or she would make another curve—with the two lines forming a “fish” symbol. The Greek word for “fish” is IXTHYS, … Continue reading IXTHYS
Today I returned to Hamburg from Islamabad, Pakistan, where I spent the last ten days with my friend and colleague Rev. Dr. John Bombaro. My assignment there was to preach at local churches (see picture) and to teach a ten-hour class on “Law and Gospel.” While the key to understanding Holy Scripture is Jesus Christ, … Continue reading Law and Gospel in Pakistan
I am currently in a Central Asian country, teaching local seminarians one of the fundamental tenets of Christianity: the proper distinction of Law and Gospel. Things have come full circle because twelve years ago Concordia Publishing House asked me to translate from German into English C.F.W. Walther’s seminal work, “Law & Gospel—How to Read and … Continue reading Law and Gospel around the World
A project to reach Farsi speakers energizes experts from both sides of the Atlantic. Have you ever noticed how a red-hot charcoal briquette will lose its heat quickly if separated from the other coals? But if it’s surrounded by a pile of other briquettes, it will stay hot for a long time. After serving as … Continue reading Keeping the ‘Missionary Briquette’ Hot
I had a small procedure done today, which took all of five minutes. They sent me back to the waiting room and said they would call me up again in ten minutes to check for any bleeding. Sure enough, they soon led me to a small room, where two med techs assisted me. As I … Continue reading Life is Change
Today is exactly one year since I touched down at Frankfurt/Main, Germany, kicking off my five years (God willing) of missionary service for the Lutheran—Church Missouri Synod. This is my boarding pass from back then, along with a beautiful reminder of God’s protection, given to me by a dear church member in my last stateside … Continue reading The Lord’s Church
This Lenten season especially, we were reminded that sin and evil in this world are real. We repent of the sin in our own hearts and are so grateful that our Lord Jesus Christ took not only our sins upon Himself but also the grief, sorrow, and fear that has spread across much of Europe, … Continue reading Lent and Easter 2022
What can be finer than getting up at 3:20 AM to catch a 6:00 AM flight? Well, that’s exactly what I got to do recently, flying from Hamburg, Germany, to Riga, Latvia, to attend a one-week in-person Intensive with our international seminary students at Luther Academy. So, I climbed into my taxi. At that wee … Continue reading Just Tell the Good News
The Tiews in Germany 