Looking for something from the old site? Check The Archive.

We spend so much time in seminary, personal study, and daily ministry researching and writing, it seems a shame to just put everything in cardboard boxes or our hard drives when other confessional pastors can benefit from it, so I decided to put this site together as a grand receptacle. You can add your stuff to this site, thus helping out your fellow pastors.

LCMSPastor.com is run by Rev. Dale Critchley.

LCMSPastor.com is not affiliated with any of the quasi-political organizations within Synod. If anything, I’m against them, as I believe that these organizations tend to draw artificial “lines in the sand,” label people, bully, and divide Synod instead of uniting. True unity comes from dialog and studying Scriptures and the confessions together as brothers, not enemies. Yes, we can argue, and we often should, but there’s no place in the church for lobbies. There’s a big difference between a lobby and a narthex, and in a church, we should gather in the latter.

About terminology: I use the term “Confessional Lutheran” in many places on this site. This expression is not meant to be devisive or sectarian, but rather to distinguish between those who see the Book of Concord as normative for doctrine and those who do not. If you are a member of the LCMS or in fellowship with us, I assume you are confessional unless you indicate otherwise to me. Under this definition, I would also include WELS, ELS, and the smaller confessional synods, as well as an increasingly fewer number within the ELCA who, in spite of decisions being made within their denomination, still hold to historical Lutheran doctrine and remain in the ELCA in hopes of reforming it. (You still must be a rostered minister (commissioned or ordained) of the LCMS or in fellowship with us to submit documents to this site, regardless of your beliefs and doctrinal position.)

This site has undergone major revisions over the years since its start in 2000, some intentionally, and some by necessity due to malicious attacks. Because of that, most of the old resources can be found in our Google Drive archive. That said, these resources do not have separate entries on this site. Sorry about that.

Newsletter Articles

English: Wilby & Brundish Church Newsletter May 2011 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

• west wing theology.rtf:
  From Rev. Rick Anderegg: “What makes this show and these people so inviting?
  What can you and I learn from them? Integrity! Honesty! Proper pride! Standing
  for something!”
• Pastor’s Corner 11-2002.rtf:
  A discussion of the Holiness of God by Rev. Richard Von Steinman “Anyone
  who might want to use it is free to do so and they don’t have to give me credit
  for it. I figure this should take care of any copyright issues.”
• Nov 02: A Christian response to gambling and casinos by Rev. Bob Weinhold

revez

• Newsletter-Bumper Sticker:
  As a bumper sticker announces the (sometimes passionate) views of its owner,
  a Christian’s life proclaims the work and passion of its Master, Jesus Christ.
• 42743-FIELDATTACHEDFILE: December
  article:Are You Ready?Advent calls us to be ready for Christ, not ready for
  Christmas. Is there a difference?
• 42659-FIELDATTACHEDFILE: Show
  the Gospel–Gentle & Genuine Care for Others 1 Thessalonians 2:6b-9 Paul
  tells how he and fellow missionaries brought the Gospel to that area. Gentleness
  was key.
• 43669-FIELDATTACHEDFILE: The
  answer to every “mystery” in the Bible is faith. Faith itself is a mystery,
  yet it is the means by which we are saved. We turn from what we believe is
  right to what God declares is right in his sight.
• 43506-FIELDATTACHEDFILE: What
  will our church be like when “pillars” (strong Christians) are laid to rest?
  Who will rise up to take their place? Paul used the word “pillar” to describe
  what is essential to the church. 1 Timothy 3:14-15
• 42849-FIELDATTACHEDFILE:
  Pledge your allegiance! In the heated debate against religion (and Christianity),
  atheists have often lobbed the charge that “the faithful” are merely “mindless
  sheep” who cannot think “outside the box” of sacred Scriptures. What is often
  confused for “mindlessness” is what we like to call “devotion.” Pledge your
  life–and your soul and your mind–to God–and serve him in peace and joy.
• 46064-FIELDATTACHEDFILE: The
  word is out! It is on the loose; it travels fast and is presumed dangerous.
  The Word? Jesus. It haunted Herod, frazzled Pharisees, puzzled Pilate; yet
  the word is loosed on the world to bring light and life. (John 1)
• 46591-FIELDATTACHEDFILE: Looking
  Forward in Christ (Jan 2002). The year behind may have been horrendous, but
  Paul advises looking forward in Christ. The Christian has this resolve: to
  know Christ and to tell others of Christ, and the salvation that comes through
  him.
• MessageoftheCross: The
  Message of the Cross: (Lenten season) Crosses come in many varieties: in every
  size and shape, crafted of many substances. Would that everyone who wore one
  confessed the Lord who was crucified. Leave it to God to change the message
  of terror to the message of love & life.
• 47547-FIELDATTACHEDFILE: “Run
  the race that is set before you!” (VBS theme)Runners need encouragement; w/o
  it we soon collapse. God helps his saints run their race so they may win the
  prize. Poem: God’s Racing Flags, by E.Zacharias
• 45030-FIELDATTACHEDFILE: How
  do you approach the celebration of Thanksgiving in a year when things have
  changed SO much? Paul says, “Don’t be anxious about anything, but in everything,
  by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God” —
  and the “peace of God” will rest on your soul. (Nov. 2001)
• 48397-FIELDATTACHEDFILE: Wake
  Up, Sleeper! (Easter season) God wakes us up from the slumber of our lives
  as he calls us to be alive in Christ! (Ephesians 5:14)
• 43113-FIELDATTACHEDFILE: Capital
  Punishment: confused when members of the “religious community” voice opposite
  opinions in capital punishment? The Bible makes it clear that the govt. has
  the right to make the decision. A Christian can voice opposition to the death
  penalty on “humanitarian grounds,” but he cannot insist that his position
  is absolute. The Christian has solid grounds to support the government’s right
  for death for capital crimes.
• As the Calendar Turns
  From Rev. Eric Zecharias: As the Calendar Turns OR Let the Lord Direct Your
  Life: Routine makes for a dull life; but on the plus side, God allows routine
  to provide for the blessings of life. As God redeems our life in Christ, he
  will also direct (and bless it) in his name. January is also “Pro-Life month.”
  A reminder to support life follows the lead article.

pastorjim

• ATP: a Christian response to “gay
  marriage”

pastordale

• 7-06 WORSHIP WARS: Traditional vs. Contemporary
• 6-06 Where Your Treasure Is: Treasure Cove introduction
• 5-06 News Got Complaints: (Matthew 18:15-17, NIV) gIf your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over. Included in this newsletter is an outline of a presentation that was given by Rev. Dr. Matthew Rueger, pastor of St. John Lutheran Church in Hubbard and first vice-president of the Iowa District East. Christians). (Matthew 25:40) When you attack a brother or sister, you are attacking Christ as well. The difference is that Christ willingly received our attacks and our sin.
• Newsletter 4-06.rtf: Last month, a man in Afghanistan faced the death sentence for becoming a Christian. Where is catechesis (Reviewing the basics of the Christian faith) on your list of priorities, both to yourself and the children in your life? Suddenly, we find Jesus very low on the list of what we’re willing to die for, or at least those we’re willing to live for. In Christ, we celebrate the resurrection, the new day of hope and new life. God sealed us in that new life in our Baptism with the promise of forgiveness, salvation, and eternal life.
• 3-06 News 1 Day Closer: Every day is one day closer to our Lord’s return.
• Newsletter 2-06What Is Love: Husbands, you are the head of the house. Wives, you are subordinate to your husband. The reality is that husbands are sinners and don’t always love as they do. Where you have failed to love others as you love yourself, God has loved you completely.
• 12-05 Newsletter Chrismuk: Hanukkah celebrates God saving His people from an atheist oppressor, but in Christmas, we celebrate God saving His people from the devil himself.
• 1-06 Newsletter: We also know that “Young Earth” scientists examine the same evidence as “Macro-Evolution” scientists but have drastically different interpretations. Why?
• 11-05 Come Fishing: Pick your bait and cast.
• 10-05Groundbreaking: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons) are moving in. Our response.
• 8-05
  Changed the World: Last month, two events occurred that made
  a major impact on our world. Those events also contradicted each other.
• Newsletter7-05Church
  Growth: If you want more people in church, bring someone with
  you!
• 6-05
  Newsletter-Anniversaries: This month, we celebrate two anniversaries,
  the 125th anniversary of our congregation and the 475th anniversary of the
  presentation of the “Augsburg Confession,” as well as this year
  being the 425th anniversary of the publishing of the entire Book of Concord.
• Newsletter
  5-05 Understand: A couple weeks ago, we received word that a friend
  of our family was facing a potentially dangerous situation. We were deeply
  concerned and kept asking, “Why?” The more we talked about it,
  the less sense it made. We just couldn’t understand.
• 4-05 Life
  and Death: “Choose life” isn’t just a slogan for
  anti-abortion commercials. It’s a mandate from God. Even though we
  have the promise of paradise because of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross,
  life is still an invaluable gift from our Creator, and no matter what your
  “quality of life,” any life is better than no life at all.
• 3-02 Why matter:
  Of course, to understand why it’s important, we need to understand how the
  New Testament is different from the Old Testament. They are more alike than
  you might think. In both Old and New Testaments, you will find the same
  God saving His people the same way: by grace through faith in the Savior.
  The difference, of course, is that in the Old Testament, the people
  looked to the One Who would come to pay for their sins, and we, the New Testament
  people of God, look to the One Who came already. But if someone asked you,
  “Why is the New Testament important to Christians,” or even, “Who
  is Jesus?,” would you be ready to answer? The key to any question
  like this is found in the upcoming season: Easter. Jesus is the One
  Who came to pay for our sin on the cross and rise to eternal life.
• Newsletter
  1-05 Word Stands: France moved December 10 towards the creation
  of a new law which would make sexist or “homophobic” comments
  illegal. Canada is also moving in this direction. Given the power of the
  media and lobby groups in the United States, the day may well come when
  Christian churches like ours are forbidden to preach and teach that homosexuality
  is sin. The immediate effect would probably be fines and possible imprisonment
  for me, as well as the church losing its non-profit status.
• 2-05
  Newsletter-2 days to salvation: Roughly 1/3 of the world at least
  claims Christianity as their religious affiliation. The number who actually
  believe that Jesus earned the right for them to go to heaven by His death
  on the cross is unknowable, but we can be sure that it is many fewer. So
  what would happen if you and every other Christian todaytold someone about
  Jesus, that He paid for their sins so they could live forever?
• 11-04 Stem Cell:
  A discussion on stem cell research with emphasis on Embryonic Stem Cell
  Research
• 12-04
  Christian parents: Guns and “Bunker Busters” won’t help
  your children fight against the devil. For that, you need God’s Word and
  its training manual, the catechism.
• Newsletter
  8-04 All One: Our district and synod are having special offerings
  to support their mission projects. We face the reality that ministry costs
  money. Many of our missions began suffering when mission giving went from
  giving via the offering plate (a portion of which was then given to the
  district, district to synod and various district missions, and finally synod
  to the various synod-supported missions). If one part suffers, we all suffer.
• 10-04 Three
  Solas: In the foundation of Reformation teachings rest the “Three
  Solas,” Sola Gratia (Grace Alone: We are saved solely by God’s grace,
  not anything we do.), Sola Fide (We are saved solely through faith that
  Jesus died to take away all of our sin–and incidentally, that faith is
  also a gift of God, not a human work), and Sola Scriptura (All we know about
  God is found in Scripture, not human opinion, since opinion is prone to
  error.)
• Newsletter
  7-04 as a child: Should we take the stories of Jonah, Creation,
  etc. literally?
• Newsletter 6-04:
  “What happens to the soul of a baby who is aborted or dies before Baptism?”
• 4-04
  Newsletter-gaymarriage: A response to the recent gay marriage discussions
• 3-04
  Newsletter-Sword Pract: The teachings in the Catechism contain the
  teachings upon which all other teachings of Scripture are based, as well
  as being the most practical “real life” teachings to be used daily. Recognize
  your responsibility to your children, godchildren, grandchildren, family,
  friends, and neighbor. Don’t wait for Confirmation Class to teach your children—teach
  them from infancy of God’s love.
• 2-04Newsletter-ApplyLawGosp:
  Applying Law & Gospel in daily life
• 1-04
  Newsletter-Drummer Boy: We daily turn on Him and seek our own selfish
  goals and desires, and when we do seek to serve Him, our motivation is often
  selfish as well or not to the best of our ability, doing “enough,”
  but not “fit to give a king.”…The Lord does smile at our efforts,
  not because “we tried,” but because of Christ acting through us.
• 12-03
  Newsletter;Amid wrapp: This time of year, everywhere you look, you
  see red, white, and green, sleigh bells, reindeer, and a big guy in a red
  suit, and somewhere, between the Animatronic Hula-Dancing Santas and the
  30½ inflatable Rudolph, complete with 500-watt flashing red nose, you’ll
  find a few small boxes with dolls, one of which is a baby laying in a bed
  of straw. As a Christian, it’s frustrating to see the attention that
  Santa gets compared to Jesus, and many Christians have boycotted Santa altogether.
• 11-03
  Newsletter-GOvs.GAIN: Our Evangelism Board has been very busy, and
  as we look into various ways to get the Word out, it’s tempting to turn
  our efforts into a “membership drive,” seeking to add to our numbers
  for selfish reasons like increasing the weekly offering or big numbers to
  point to, but while it would be nice to grow our membership so that more
  peopel will be hearing God’s Word and growing in faith each week, we
  cannot make numbers our goal….
• 10-03
  Newsletter-memorizing: I was about to go back to the office when
  the doorbell rang…Now, I just talked about the cults a couple newsletters
  ago, so I’m not going to spend a lot of time on their beliefs, but what
  struck me after they left (Still sadly clinging to their works for the time
  being), was that the key to sharing your faith and standing up for what
  you believe in is memorization….
• 9-03
  Newsletter-how long: They called out in a loud voice, “How long,
  Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth
  and avenge our blood?” Then each of them was given a white robe, and they
  were told to wait a little longer, until the number of their fellow-servants
  and brothers who were to be killed as they had been was completed. (Revelation
  6:9-11, NIV)
• 8-03
  Newsletter-Answer Cult: Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses have strange
  beliefs, notably that both reject the Trinity, but the central problem with
  them is the answer to the question, “How are you saved?”
• 7-03
  newsletter-same old: Why we keep talking about the cross.
• 6-03
  Newsletter-afraid of: But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail
  marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand
  into his side, I will not believe it.”…Not until things get better, when
  we see for ourselves, do we believe that God is able to handle our financial
  struggles, that the same Jesus who drew money out of the mouths of fish
  is able to handle our financial burdens. “My health is failing&emdash;there’s
  no hope.” Not until we feel for ourselves our bodies healing do we believe
  that the same Jesus Who raised Lazarus from the dead can bring healing.
• 5-03
  Newsletter-Faith Fill: Are you running on fumes?
• 4-03
  Newsletter-Catechesis: What is catechesis and when does it end?
• 3-03 Newsletter-Lent:
  About fasting & penitence
• 2-03
  Newsletter-Broom or Sh: How do you approach Scripture–with a broom
  or a shovel?
• 1-03Newsletter-cleanorhost:
  Can we host guests if our house isn’t clean?
• Immanuel-Law
  or Gospel
• Dec
  02 Newspaper Devos: Written for our local Newspaper–short devotionals
• streetsofgoldhavenocurbs:
  Benke Situation, Part 3
• Golden Rule:
  Benke Situation, Part 2
• What’s Syncretism?:
  About the Benke Situation
• The
  Secret to Absolute Contentment
• 6th commandment
• 9-11 wtc extra
• advent
• anthrax
• are you gifted
• assurance
  of heaven
• big brother
• blunt as a
  2×4
• catechesis
• communion
  of saints
• don’t
  make ’em like
• fathers day
• garbage disposal
• happy epiphany
• is
  the reformation dead
• lent ugh
• new year
• newspaper
  devo 3/12/02
• parousia
• sabbath
  on a stick
• vacation time
• violence
• what’s
  the difference
• why
  do you want to know
• 2 kingdoms

The Mustard House Project

Available Resources

Games

(Here’s my idea: Shockwave games for play on websites. I have a few ideas, like a “Carmen Sandiego”-style game that teaches the geography of Israel and other prominent locations; also a “Click on the book of the Bible that comes first” game or a Pac-Man-style “Eat the words to the memory verse in order” game. I’m open to other suggestions.)

Music

Music files are all available for download at the Mustard House YahooGroups files page. Included there are sheet music and MIDI files for about half the catechism and several Bible verses, all put to TV themes, commercial jingles, and hymns.

Skits

Software

Video

How do I get involved?

If you would like to contribute to the project and/or have ideas to share, simply register for the Mustard House Discussion list. More information is available at YahooGroups.

–Rev. Dale Critchley, LCMSPastor.com
Webmaster & Mustard House Project Director