Unexpected Grace
After graduating high school in 1997, I planned to attend a four-year college and pursue a communication art and design degree. It just so happened that my mother’s cousin was the owner of a successful graphic design firm a few hours from us, and she arranged for me...
The Humility of Christ
The humblest man… Who was the humblest person to ever live? If you’ve read Numbers 12:3, then you may recall that Moses was “more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth.” (And yes, I smile when I read that, because you know who wrote it? Moses!) Moses was...
Freedom and Submission
It can be a nagging question: if we all have the same Holy Spirit in us, shouldn’t we have the exact same convictions on everything? If we are all reading the same Bible, and we all have been baptized into the same Spirit, then why don’t we agree about things more...
The Death to Self
My dad is a career blood donor. I’ve lost count of the number of gallons of his blood he’s donated, one pint at a time, to help others in crisis. It costs him time, and each donation takes about a tenth of his blood out of his body. My dad needs his blood, but by...
Humility
People are often known primarily for what they have done. In fact, we tend to define who people are by what they have accomplished in life. Someone may be described as a pro football player, a scratch golfer, the CEO of a large company, a doctor, a pastor, a teacher,...
New WMCLB Co-Director
Hi! My name is Karen Stenberg. I have been on the WMCLB Leadership team as the Secretary and am now excited to move into the role of Co-Director of Women’s Ministries with Barbara Heggland! I just want to share with you a little bit about myself and my heart for...
Presidential Candidates: Interview Part 1
President Paul Larson President Paul Larson was raised in the faith at Elim Lutheran Brethren Church in Clearbrook, MN. He has served CLB congregations in MT, CO, CA, and WI in youth ministry, church planting, and as pastor. He is blessed to be husband to Bee; and...
The Joy of the Journey Down
Drew seemed to have it all. A degree in finance. A job in the business world that could make him wealthy. But one day he walked away from that world and enrolled in Lutheran Brethren Seminary to prepare for ministry. What happened? What happened is this: Drew was...
In Appreciation of Dr. Mathiesen
Dr. Gaylan Mathiesen is Professor of Mission and Evangelism at Lutheran Brethren Seminary. He has served in this capacity since the summer of 2005. This summer Gaylan will be retiring, as he completes seventeen years of teaching at LBS. During these years, he has not...
Introduction of New LBS Faculty
In Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, we find Solomon’s “poem for the seasons.” It reminds us that “for everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven” (3:1). Although it’s not stated explicitly in that poem, one of the seasons the Lord leads us through is...
We Will See the Glory of the Lord
Recently I have been studying the story of Elijah, the Old Testament prophet. I often preorder English Bible study materials according to the mood of the day. I like the author of the material. Or… this looks like an interesting topic. Months later, when I actually...
Small… Yet Significant
On April 20, 2010, an explosion occurred on the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform in the Gulf of Mexico. The explosion, which killed eleven men, eventually resulted in five million gallons of oil leaking into the gulf waters. Carl-Henric Svanberg, the British...
Peace for Your Soul
Before entering the ministry, I was a salesman. I worked for a company that sold home décor to little “mom and pop” shops across the Midwest. We sold figurines, clocks, and Christmas ornaments. I continued in that job part-time while at Seminary. I would travel the...
Peace that Divides
On Christmas Day 1863, poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, sitting before a table in Cambridge, Massachusetts, took up his pen and paper. His heart was filled with despair. A few years earlier, his wife of eighteen years had tragically died in an accidental fire, and he...
Light in the World
Let me tell you about Derrick Hayes. While in the Oakland-San Francisco area on a youth mission trip with Atonement Lutheran Church of Fargo, North Dakota, our group decided to go out for ice cream after a long day of helping the homeless. Little did we know that a...