Lutheran Woman's Quarterly
Winter 2021 "For the Joy"
Editor's Note
The white frame church seen in this photo is the oldest LCMS church in southwest Missouri. During the weekend of our annual sisters/ cousins’ trip, we decided to go back to our roots — to where our grandparents had nurtured life, physical and spiritual, in their daughter and son.
As I sat with my family, waiting for the service to begin, I thought of all the family history that occurred in and around this church — a great-great-grandfather who’d traveled from over-crowded Perry County to western Missouri during the post-Civil War era to find farm land; a great-grandfather who diligently worked to provide farms for each of his seven children; the altar where my grandparents, like generations of grandparents, aunts and uncles, and cousins, were married; the font where my mother, like her mother and grandmother before her, were baptized; and my cousin, now an elder, like his father, and our several grandfathers.
Then, there was the church itself — ever the same, but changed: stained glass windows now glow in the sun where the original, clear glass once shone; padded pews replaced old wooden ones; the organ no longer needed a young boy to pump it; little girls no longer brought their offering coins tied in a corner of a laundered handkerchief as I once did; and the pastor was not like the one from my youth (the one who was there for years; the one with LOTS of children — some who went to school with my mother and some who had married into our family), but a young man with a fresh face and a young wife and child.
Although times change, things remain the same. What a gift those previous generations have passed on to us! What fullness of heart there is when memories flood and knowledge of blessings are brought to light! What a responsibility and joy it is to keep the blessings going as I share them with generations that come after me! Family is so important. Visiting the “old home place” is heart-warming. But … the closing words of the sermon that day spoke about celebrating what we know and believe — sharing the faith Jesus died to give us all, from generation to generation: “Here is your God. He has come to save you!”
This issue has been written for the JOY we have found with our Lord, so … enjoy the stories, devotions, and Bible studies which share blessings — from generation to generation.
Sheila Lutz, Editor-in-Chief
Features
1 | The Sacrifice
7 | Jesus Loves Me This I Know
In Every Issue
| Editor’s Note
14 | Grants at Work: Hope and Healing Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch or read it online here
22 | The INK Spot: LWML materials for those who are sight-impaired
28 | Shop LWML
29 | President’s Page: For the Joy
| About the 2022 LWML Prayer Service
Bible Studies
available to download and print
16 | Noel (English) — Bible Study
| Noel (English) — Leader Guide
17 | Noel (Spanish) — Bible Study
18 | His Faithfulness to All Generations — Bible Study
| His Faithfulness to All Generations — Leader Guide
20 | Setting Our Focus — Bible Study
20 | Setting Our Focus — Leader Guide
Upcoming Issues
Share your stories with us at editor@lwml.org; to share news items, please see page 27.
SUMMER 2022:
Hope: No Shame in God’s Love (Romans 5:5)
FALL 2022:
Lord Teach Us to Pray (Romans 8:26–27)
