“Take no gold, or silver, or copper in your belts, no bag for your journey, or two tunics, or sandals, or a staff; for laborers deserve their food” (Matthew 10:9-10).

Money may be a part of this age, but why do we worry about money? Does not everything belong to the Lord? Whether it is outright gambling, working all the time, or merely wishful thinking, why do we spend so much time and energy on things that are fleeting? Above all things, trust the Lord. He knows what we need even before we ask. He provides for all.

Lord, this world has us scrambling all the time. Earn more, give more, try to stay afloat. Yes, the daily struggle is a part of this life, but it is not all of life. Redirect my efforts so that I do my part, but do so by doing what is right according to Your direction. You know what I need to do and all the things that You will do through me. Prepare me to live the life of a disciple and then teach me to trust You in all circumstances.

Lord Jesus, You left this world with nothing, but by grace gave us more than all the wealth of this world. You laid all things down before giving up Your Spirit. Guide me in the way of living faith so that I too leave it all behind and come to You in grace. Take from me the undue worry and cares of this world, not to be irresponsible, but to live fully for the truth of the Gospel which You have given to all who believe. You will provide for all my needs as I do Your will. Help me to trust in Your provision. Amen.

“As you go, proclaim the good news, ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. You received without payment; give without payment” (Matthew 10:7-8).

The Good News is that the kingdom of heaven has come near. Jesus is always close by. Will you take His hand and walk with Him? You have received freely, now freely give. If the Lord so leads, bring healing where He directs. He is the One with all power, but He grants all of us authority to go out in His name. As you have been called, so also, you are sent to share the good news of salvation which is in Christ.

Lord, why do I make this so complex? You are the Lord of life and You have given me Your life. If I am willing, You can ask me to say to a mountain, “Be moved,” and it will move. I need no power, for I have none, You can do all things through me. Bring me to the place where I am willing to be Your servant, going into the world, doing what You give me to do. These things are only possible because all things are possible with You, Lord of all.

Holy Spirit, I wrestle inwardly with my own abilities. Take away this focus upon myself so that I may humbly walk by Your guidance. Lead me in Your goodness to simply follow Your instructions. Help me today to share the truth that the kingdom of God is near with all that I say and do. Help me to be bold in faith, knowing that You will direct me in those ways which will see the Father’s will being done in me.  Amen.

“These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Go nowhere among the Gentiles, and enter no town of the Samaritans, but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel” (Matthew 10:5-6).

Jesus needed to teach them how to reach out before the Holy Spirit would lead them out into the world. First, learn how to love those in your community, then learn how to love the stranger. First look for those who are looking, then go into all the world. Jesus teaches us to be focused on the direction He gives. You are not in charge, He is. Learn to follow the Lord in all His ways.

Everything You do has purpose, Lord. Help me to overcome my self-direction and follow Your leading. You will remove my self-interest as You lead me forward. You will guide me to walk humbly with You always. You will strip down the barriers to my submission and teach me that You have come to save all who believe. Lead me through my faith to come to the place where I serve all others by serving You.

Lord Jesus, You began with the House of Israel, but Your redeeming grace reaches out to all who will come to You. Guide me in Your goodness, Lord, so that I too will go where You send me. The Lord’s sheep are everywhere. By Your Spirit, help me to connect with those with whom You will connect me and help me to speak Your words of comfort to them. Send me where You know I need to go. Amen.

“These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon, also known as Peter, and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; Simon the Cananaean, and Judas Iscariot, the one who betrayed him” (Matthew 10:2-4).

The twelve are named.  A hodgepodge of mostly fishermen who were the least likely candidates to lead a church.  But is that not the way of your local church?  A hodgepodge of folk from all walks of life are called together to be the body of Christ in that place?  Yes, the Lord does what He does because He is the Lord of all.  He has called you to be amongst those who are sent into the world. So go in peace to serve the Lord!

Lord, I like to think in terms of us and them.  You have called me to think in terms of You alone.  You will do what You will do, and the Father’s will shall be done on earth as it is in heaven.  Lead me to look to You, the author and finisher of my faith, and humbly walk with You, going where You send me, doing what You give me to do and knowing that all things are in Your hands.

Lord Jesus, I have difficulty with the third part of Your Great Commission.  You have asked that I learn to obey all that You command.  This includes instructions to be an evangelist.  You have given me the Good News and You have asked that I share that Good News with others.  Lead me so that I am willing to live a life that shares the truth of the Good News of salvation which You have given for all who will believe.  Amen.

“Then Jesus summoned his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to cure every disease and every sickness” (Matthew 10:1).

Not power, but authority was given.  This remains true to this day.  None of us has any power, but all who follow Christ are given authority in His name to do these things.  In prayer, seeking to be obedient, we can speak the power, which belongs to Christ, and a metaphorical mountain can be cast into the sea.  Confront wickedness, speak the healing truth of the love of Christ, and see the healing of sin-sick souls.

Lord, when we come through faith by the grace You give to live the relationship You call us to, You bid us to share, through the living of our lives, the faith which is living in us.  It is not a special assignment; it is the common assignment.  Send me into the world, which is damned, to bear the truth of Your redeeming word.  All power is Yours and anything I can do is only by and under Your authority.

Lord Jesus, I hear these words and I look for someone else to do what You are asking me to do.  You know what is needed and You have called me.  Send me where You will so that I may learn how to be obedient in all things.  Guide me according to the Father’s will to do that which is good, right and salutary in all places and at all times.  Thank You for calling me into Your goodness and mercy.  Help me to be faithful today.  Amen.

“Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest” (Matthew 9:37-38).

When you ask, He may well choose you to go into the field.  In our heathen world, which believes itself filled with specialists, we tend to think Jesus will send someone else.  You have been called to labor in the vineyard of Christ.  The need is great, for many need what you know.  Share with others what has been shared with you.

Lord, do I need to go for special schooling to be able to share the Good News?  But whom amongst the Apostles went to a special school run by teachers of the Law?  They simply followed You and You made them fishers of men.  How difficult I make these things when it is really a matter of living the life You have given me and doing so publicly.  Guide me, Lord, to humbly walk with You and obey all Your commandments. Maybe I can show others the way.

Holy Spirit, I like to think of myself as alone and singular, but You have placed in my heart a right spirit which loves my neighbor.  Empower me to be bold in the faith You have given me.  You have called me and are sending me into a world, damned by sin, to hear the redeeming message of love poured out from the cross.  Send me into this day with the only message of hope – the hope of Christ.  Amen.

“When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd” (Matthew 9:36).  

Because they were harassed and helpless, Jesus compassionately helped the crowds.  You and I are in the same crowd.  Are we arrogant and judgmental, or do we realize that we are helpless?  This describes the two groups of people in this world. We are one or the other.  Either we come to Jesus and tell Him what we think, or else we come to Jesus and look to Him to do what is needed.  Sometimes we are both.

Lord, help me to come to You just as I am.  I am a bundle of self-centered nerves.  I have all the foibles which I have.  You alone know what it takes to guide me out of the rebellious mess within me to transform me into a child of God that You create by grace through faith.  I want to follow You, Jesus, but so many things get in the way.  Lead me through the messiness of my life to always look to You for guidance and help.

Lord Jesus, You have come to heal those who look to You from the terminal disease of rebellion against God.  You, Trinity alone, are God.  You have come that we may have life and have it abundantly.  Help me to understand that You are Lord, and that I must follow You alone.  Open my heart to receive Your heavenly instruction so that I may humbly walk with You all the days of my life.  May I no longer be harassed but realize that I am simply Your disciple, knowing that the wicked one hates that and will be like a mosquito on a warm summer day.  Help me endure to the end.  Amen.

Scripture 

John 6:1-21 

Script 

Props: A basket with five loaves of bread and two fish. You can use real bread and two real fish (you can get fish filets wrapped up), or you can use paper or plastic versions of the real thing. Use what you have and what is easiest for you. You will need a plastic bag and with ¾ cup of rice in it (that’s about 5,000 grains). You will also need a pack of goldfish for each child. Optional coloring page to print, one for each child: Click here. 

These props are suggestions. Feel free to modify as you see fit or to suit your needs as a congregation. If you include all of these items for your children’s sermon, store in one large basket. A picnic basket with a lid would be perfect, as you can reveal a few items at a time. 

Pastor: Good morning boys and girls! Welcome! Let’s say good morning to our friend Sammy and see if she is there. Ready? One, two, three: Good morning, Sammy! 

Sammy: Good morning, everyone! What’s in the basket, Pastor?  

Pastor: This basket contains something very special, Sammy.  

Sammy: I love special things. What is it? Tell me! Tell me!  

Pastor: [Opens the basket and shows everyone the items.] I have five loaves of bread and two fish.  

Sammy: Ooooo!  

Pastor: Boys and girls, why do you think I have five loaves of bread and two fish with me today?  

[Allow time for responses]  

Sammy: These answers are all excellent. Jesus talks about how a boy in a large crowd had five loaves and two fish.  

Pastor: Yes! Five thousand people gathered to see Jesus. And they witnessed a miracle: Jesus used these five loaves and two fish to feed all five thousand of them.   

Sammy: Is five thousand more people than we have in our church?  

Pastor: Yes—five thousand is more people than we have for worship today.

 Sammy: How many more?  

Pastor: I have a bag of rice here to show everyone. This bag contains about five thousand grains of rice. Each grain of rice is like a person that Jesus fed. [Show the rice—may let children pass around.] 

 Sammy: But Pastor, I don’t think those two little fish and those five loaves of bread are going to even feed all of the people here today in church. How could they possibly feed five thousand people? 

 Pastor: Jesus can do all things. He is God. He takes the little we give him in faith and he multiples what we give for the glory of God. All we have to do is believe in him and trust him. 

 Sammy: I think sometimes trusting in God is hard, especially when you are hungry. 

 Pastor: Yes, Sammy. Eating is one of our most basic needs, but look at how Jesus provides for us.  

 Sammy: Amen! Let’s pray. Can everyone fold their hands and bow their heads please? Dear Jesus, Thank you for miracles. Thank you for the food we eat each day. Thank you for five loaves, and two fish. Amen. 

 Pastor: Before you go, I have a treat to remind you of Jesus feeding the five thousand. [Give everyone a pack of goldfish.] 

 Sammy: I love snacks! Bye, everyone! 

 Pastor: Bye, Sammy! 

Summer 2024

Dear Friends –

In the March 2024 issue of our newsletter, CORE Voice, I wrote about the DEIA (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Accessibility) audit which the ELCA had commissioned a law firm to do of its governing documents. I listed several examples of the audit’s Recommended Minimum DEIA Standards for Congregations. There are also Recommended Minimum DEIA Standards for Synods and Churchwide. I asked the question, What will be the consequences for congregations if and when these recommendations become requirements? If congregations that are DEIA-compliant are rewarded with such things as having extra voting members at synod assemblies and greater access to grants and other financial resources, how will congregations that are not DEIA-compliant be punished? For example, will they not be given any names of possible candidates for call if the congregation is looking for a pastor?

Since then several friends of Lutheran CORE have shared with me how their synodical bishops are trying to “calm them down.” Bishops have said, “You do not need to worry. These recommendations will never become requirements.” One bishop even said, “We in the ELCA do not do things that way.”

Therefore I read with great interest – but no surprise – a posting on the Facebook page for the ELCA Youth Gathering this summer which said, “Reminder! All Adult Leaders attending the #elcayg2024 are required to complete two trainings on gLearn: ‘Anti-Racism’ and ‘Leading Well.’. . . Please note that adult leaders will not receive a wristband or access to any venues if these courses are not complete upon check-in.”

So much for “DEIA compliance recommendations will never become requirements.” But did anyone ever believe that anyway?

We of Lutheran CORE are committed to keeping you informed of ways in which the ELCA will continue to rush headlong to the extreme far left. In addition to monitoring ways in which the ELCA will enforce DEIA compliance, we will alert you to the following –

• The content delivered by the keynote speakers at the Youth Gathering in July. The last time – in 2018 – keynote speakers included a transgender activist and her pre-adolescent, transgender child and the ELCA’s first “Public Theologian,” who led 31,000 young people in a chant rejecting traditional views as a lie from Satan.
• The work of the Commission for a Renewed Lutheran Church, which, as we have written, are developing a plan for a church based not upon Scripture but upon critical race theory and DEIA ideology.
• The work of the Task Force that is reviewing the 2009 human sexuality social statement, including a possible reconsideration of the four positions of bound conscience. I have written about how I have had two zoom conversations with two Churchwide staff members who will be working with the task force. They asked me what hopes I have for the process. I told them that I have no hopes for the process. Instead I am certain that sooner or later – under relentless pressure from powerful and preferred voices – the ELCA will eliminate the provision for bound conscience. In doing so the ELCA will be saying that there is no longer a place of dignity and respect for traditional views and those who hold them. The ELCA will also be showing that it cannot be trusted.

I am often asked, “How do you have the strength and stamina to be able to continue this work?” I answer, I feel a calling from God, I find a great sense of personal fulfillment, and I receive so many expressions of support and appreciation. Thank you for your kind and encouraging words, your fervent prayers, and your faithful and generous financial support that enable us to continue to do our work of being a Voice for Biblical Truth and a Network for Confessing Lutherans.

In addition to the above, we will continue to provide the following –

• Resources on our website, including daily devotions, worship aids, Bible studies, and videos on books and topics of interest and importance. A new resource on our website are weekly, lectionary based children’s messages.
• Support to orthodox seminarians, young adults planning on attending seminary, and the NEXUS program of Grand View University – a week of Bible study, theological reflection, fellowship, and vocational discernment for high schoolers.
• Sponsorship of local and cross-country, intergenerational and multi-denominational mission trips organized and held by River’s Edge Ministries in Mt. Airy, Maryland.
• Support and guidance for congregations that are between pastors or will soon be losing their pastor, as well as for smaller and/or more remote congregations that are facing the real possibility that there might not be a seminary-trained pastor available for them.

Please find below a link to a form which you can use to give a gift towards our regular operating expenses. Please also let us know how we can be praying for you. Thank you for your partnership in the Gospel, as we seek to do what the apostle Paul urged his young friend Timothy to do. “Fight the good fight of the faith” and “Guard what has been entrusted to you” (1 Timothy 6: 12, 20).

Seeking to be faithful,

Dennis D. Nelson
Executive Director of Lutheran CORE
P.O. Box 1741
Wausau WI 54402-1741
dennisnelsonaz@yahoo.com

“Then Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and curing every disease and every sickness” (Matthew 9:35).

Jesus turns His back on the liars and goes about the business of the Father.  We too are called to turn our backs on wickedness and go about the Father’s business.  We are to continue in the life that we have been given by grace so that we follow Jesus in all His ways.  The Lord knows what He has in mind for you.  He will lead you for all your days if you put your trust in Him.  Do not follow the voices of hatred and lies, but the voice of Truth.

Lord, I hear these words and it is not easy, for the liars of this world make me angry.  Lead me from anger, for I cannot handle it, to the place where I look to You for all things.  You know what needs to happen and You know the difficulties I will face.  Lead me through all difficulties so that I would learn from Your example how to live this life.  In You alone is all hope and eternity.

Holy Spirit, grant me awareness to know that there is nothing I can do about others except to show truthfulness by my example.  I too seldom keep a reign on my own tongue.  Help me to be a dutiful servant who does what You have commanded.  Lead me through all circumstances to go out into the world seeking to bring the healing that only grace can bring.  Guide me to be faithful to all that You have commanded.  Amen.