How’s Your Heart?

Happy Valentine’s Day! Wherever we look, we see hearts reminding us of love: heart-shaped candy, hearts on greeting cards, heart décor, and heart accents in floral arrangements.

No greater love has ever been known than the love our Savior, Jesus, has shown us. How’s your heart’s response to His amazing love? Is it receptive and grateful? Or does it need some “heart-cleaning?”

Within sixteen months of each other my mother and mother-in-law passed away, so as family members we had to do a complete “housecleaning” of their beloved treasurers (and some “I wonder why she kept this?” items). Cleaning became a time of remembering and reflecting. One of the Lutheran Women in Mission’s treasure trove of devotions fit our circumstances. I read "Housecleaning — Heart-Cleaning" and found it so applicable to our labor-of-love cleaning task. Grab a hymnal and sing or pray the wonderfully rich songs to fill your heart with beautiful reminders of God’s grace and His eternal love for us!

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16).

Happy Heart-Cleaning!

Brenda Piester

Recording Secretary
Lutheran Women’s Missionary League

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Showing Love

February is the month of ‘love’. How do we show love as Lutheran Women in Mission?

By serving in our homes, in our churches, and in our communities. Lifting others in prayer. Supporting mission and ministry work locally, in our zones, in our districts, and nationally. They (the world) will know we are Christians by our love.

The Mission Grant highlights for this month are, MG#5 Disaster Response Teams, Trinity Lutheran Church, Tyler, Texas, and MG#6 Mobile Kitchen, Forged by Fire Services, Gulf Coast Region, U.S.

The resource sets for each are available on the LWML website. Take time to read about each of these worthy mission grant recipients. Pray for their ministry work as they continue to share the Gospel of our Lord by being the hands and feet of Jesus when the opportunities arise. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:35). Then go and do likewise.

Karen Morrison

Vice President of Gospel Outreach 
Lutheran Women’s Missionary League

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Sing the Glory of His Name

Shout for joy to God, all the earth; sing the glory of his name; give to him glorious praise! (Psalm 66:1–2).

God’s whole creation sings of the glory of His name. Whether it is with the sway of palm trees in the warm wind or the peaceful quiet of a landscape covered with snow, we — and all of creation — can join in singing of the glory of our Lord.

LWML has made singing even easier for your next event. Your favorite LWML song lyrics have been available in ready-to-print or large print format, and now they are also available on PowerPoint slides. Next time you have a group meeting, zone rally, or district event, download free PowerPoint slides of the lyrics here.

Songs included:

“Serve the Lord with Gladness”
“Lutheran Women, One and All”
“In League with Our Lord”
“Praise, Love, Serve”
“In Joy We Come Together”

Susan Brunkow

Vice President of Christian Life
Lutheran Women’s Missionary League

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January Beach

Right after Abraham obeyed God while offering Isaac as a sacrifice, God promised Abraham, “I will surely multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore” (Genesis 22:17).

If you use a high magnification microscope and examine grains of sand, you will see that each grain looks like a shell, a crystal, or a piece of coral. Think of that! On a beach — sand dunes made of all those grains of sand and each grain is different. Sound familiar? Like grains of sand, God has made each person different and each one is loved by God.

The goal of Lutheran Woman in Mission is for each unique person to know of God’s great love and sacrifice. Telling others about how God came down to earth as a man, lived a pure life, suffered by taking our sins on Himself, and dying and rising again so that by faith we may live with Him eternally. The LWML Bible Study “Discovering Yourself” may increase your appreciation and understanding of your uniqueness as a beloved child of God.

Next time you see a grain of sand, say a prayer of thanksgiving, and be reminded to tell others of God’s love. Wishing you warm January thoughts!

Cheryl Mattil

Strategic Plan Facilitator
Lutheran Women’s Missionary League

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Shining Lights

Have you started to take down your Christmas decorations? Sadly, I have. But living in cold New England, the outside lights will remain for quite some time. I love this excuse to leave them up longer. I love seeing the shining lights on these long cold dark nights.

The lights remind me of the true light in the darkness that I never have to worry about being without.

Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life” (John 8:12).

We have much to do as we serve our Savior — “Light of the World” — in this brand-new year! He has plans for us. There are district conventions, mission grants to fund, prayer services, Bible studies to plan, and, and …

Seeing His light, let it remind us,

Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven (Matthew 5:16).

Leslie Colligan

Meeting Manager
Lutheran Women’s Missionary League

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The Light of Christ Shines for all the World

“Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him” (Matthew 2:2).

Are you a star gazer? During our family reunion this summer, we sat outside miles away from any city lights and saw the Milky Way and several meteors falling from the sky. Amazing! The wise men observed the stars and knew His star had risen in the sky and the King had been born. They traveled miles and months to worship the King. This week we celebrate Epiphany, the Gentile’s Christmas. Stars shine for all to see – Christ came for the saving of all mankind.

No Stranger in the Manger is a four-session Bible study available on the LWML website. From this study, you will gain insights into the magi and the importance of worshiping Jesus the King. I strongly encourage you to take the time to use this study. Stars might not always be visible. The light of Christ is always visible and it shines for all the world. Even more amazing! Enjoy Epiphany each and every day.

Arlene Naasz

Vice President of Organizational Resources
Lutheran Women’s Missionary League

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Be Still

He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth (Psalm 46:10).

The rush is on! Is everything just so for Christmas? Did I get something for everyone on my list? Is the meal going to taste good? Will the family appreciate what I have put together?

Christmas is such a wondrous, joyous time. Yet it also proves to be hectic – and headache filled – as we focus so much on the details. Details that, at times, take the mind off of the Christ who has come to bring to us such a wondrous, awe-filled gift.

LWML in its resources has numerous studies, both individual and multi-session ones, to bring the focus back to Christ in the midst of the hectic days. Just type “Christmas” in the search bar and find a resource that might give you a moment to “Be still” and recall why you are gathering together as family. You are here because Christ has come to you.

So, take a moment, grab that cup of coffee or hot chocolate, sit down on the couch. and reflect with an LWML study and breathe. God has come to you. Merry Christmas!

“Be still, and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10).

Rev. Mark J. Maas

Junior Pastoral Counselor
Lutheran Women’s Missionary League

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