Ann was hard to love. The confirmation class outcast, she suffered with a whole host of behavioral disorders. She fluctuated between making precocious and endearing observations, and having an outburst…
Being a compassionate person, you usually respond to the pleas of the needy around you with a generous heart. But are you and others somehow missing the obvious? Chances are,…
“Hermeneutics” is one of those words that you might have heard your pastor use. The English word comes from the Greek ermēneuein, meaning simply to translate or interpret. In short,…
If you were to Google the references to infant baptism in the New Testament, you would perhaps be disappointed, maybe even a little shocked. Though Jesus took children in his…
“I’m a Lutheran” is a monthly profile featuring ELCA members around the world. The profiles showcase ELCA members in all their diversity, connecting one another through individual faith stories as…
We in the church often depict Epiphany as the season of light—a thunderous congratulations to the divine revelation of the Son (or Sun) of Righteousness. The entire journey of Christmastide,…
Remember the last time you lost your way? Writer Natalie Angier told this story in an article she wrote for The New York Times, perhaps one we can all relate…
It had been a rugged December day at church. We were writing the 2016 budget. A charter member had died unexpectedly. And, in the span of 15 minutes, two of…
A variation of the phrase “Last night a vicious attack …” began many of my congregational letters in 2016. I was in the habit of writing a pastoral letter after…
Finding a photo for our family Christmas card should have been easy this year, after all, we are living, walking and breathing in the place where it all began—where Jesus…
Our toddler has a new routine this Christmas season. First thing in the morning, we hear the pitter-patter of her small feet running down the hall to the living room….
Hi there. I know this letter won’t mean much to you now, because words are not as meaningful as they used to be, but maybe in 30 years or so when…
You have attempted to access a feature of this website that is only available to members of livinglutheran.org.
A free membership gives you a customized dashboard for curated content based on your interest, the ability to like and save articles, an optional subscription to a weekly email digest “LL Stories”, and more.
Already have an account? log in
If you are a subscriber to the LL Stories email digest from before the introduction of the new website in December 2025, your account is intact, but your password will need to be reset unless you have a login for another ELCA website.
If you have a login for another ELCA website like community.elca.org, directory.elca.org or others you can use the password associated with that login.
Logout
