Engaging Truth

Listen as host Bill Prewitt welcomes Pastor Dave Welch, the founder and CEO of the U.S. Pastor Council, as he describes his organization's AMERICA plan to help pastors energize their congregations to carry the Gospel beyond the church doors and take an active Christian role in civic affairs.

With the start of each new year, many people take stock of their life and its direction. What is it about a new year that makes us want to start over or be better? What can we do to strengthen our relationships in the new year? Giving us some important new year encouragement is the Rev. Joshua Knippa, pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Nederland, TX, and the new program director for this ELM Houston radio program, "Engaging Truth" (elmhouston.org). Interviewer is Pastor John Cain.

When you are a nurse in a facility with mostly indigent people, how are you to consider treating them? Many have not been shown love, compassion and simple care in much of their adult lives. Yet, it is imperative for their nurse to treat them as any other. Join us to hear Nurse Danielle Talent describe her care for them and why. Host is Dave Schultz.

Join host Bill Prewitt as he welcomes spiritual counselor Kathy Baker to discuss ways to recharge your spiritual discipline in the new year. From finding a new Bible study to revitalizing church attendance, there are many ways to enhance your spiritual life.

The Christmas season often brings back sweet memories, reminders of Christmases past. Because of the memories, Christmas can hit some people hard with a sense of loss when loved ones are not together. There is, however, a healthy way to face a seemingly empty space. The Rev. Benjamin Meyer (Hope Lutheran, Sunbury, Ohio) will talk about how he worked with many people the year that he had 6 funerals between Thanksgiving and Christmas. God has granted forgiveness and a future for every Christian, helping to highlight the necessary reason Jesus was born, to be the answer to our need. Pastor John Cain hosts.

God intends the Christmas Gospel to be a blessing to all who hear it. However, consumerism, strained time management, and financial restraints can keep Christians from enjoying the Lord’s loving intention. In addition, the Christmas season, at times, triggers individuals who are grieving. Once triggered, individuals may become unsettled when their loved one is not sitting with the rest of the family around the Christmas tree. Pastor Christopher Paavola provides listeners with sensitive and sensible pastoral care that can assist Christians in reorienting themselves to the presence of Christ during this Christmas season. Put down those Christmas lights, leave wrapping paper on its tube, and take in Christ’s good counsel as presented by Pastor Paavola. Rev. Dr. Douglas Krengel hosts.

Join us as host Bill Prewitt welcomes Rachel Potts, Director of Ministry Relations and Strategic Partnerships for Lutheran Braille Workers. The organization's mission is to provide Braille and large-print Bibles and devotional materials for the blind and visually impaired. It currently produces products distributed free of charge in 40 languages to more than 160 countries. Listen in for the passion this ministry has for spreading the love of Christ.

One of the most heartfelt issues to deal with is the unwillingness to forgive. Some folks have been hurt so long and so often that they finally say, “I will never forgive.” But how do you reconcile that with what Jesus says in Mark 11:25, where he says “if you have anything against anyone, forgive him so that your Father in Heaven may forgive you your trespasses.” Join our conversation on forgiveness as host Jonathan Schultz queries his father, Pastor David, on this issue.

At the site of a tragedy, when the first responders are gone, who arrives to help the hurting? The nationally famous LCC Comfort Dogs! The highly trained Golden Retrievers have a gift for empathy and serve as a bridge between the hurting and human counselors. There are also “Hearts of Mercy,” crosses that people write on with personal messages, again at the site of a tragedy and as part of a path to healing. These are the first two of several opportunities to help, offering "Hope for the Hurting."

Join us as we welcome back to the program the Rev. Chris Singer, President and CEO of Lutheran Church Charities (lutheranchurchcharities.org) , about these and the larger picture of Christian disaster and crisis response. Pastor John Cain hosts.

Pastor Tim Ahlman entered the Office of the Holy Ministry through a traditional path: his great-grandfather, his grandfather and his father were LCMS pastors. However, through formal study, and through years of experience serving as a congregational pastor, Pastor Ahlman has discovered that there are many ways in which the risen Lord Jesus calls workers into his harvest field. In this interview, Pastor Ahlman describes some of the new ways leaders in the church are being raised up at Christ Greenfield Lutheran Church and School in Gilbert, AZ. Men, women, full-time workers, part-time workers, pastors, teachers, Directors of Christian Education, early childhood educators, and missionaries, are just a few examples of such workers. The life of the church at Christ Lutheran is also considered within its denominational context. While there are many types of church leaders engaged in the ministry at Christ Lutheran, the denomination it is affiliated with (i.e., the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod) is finding the formation of new church leaders to be quite challenging. Join Pastor Ahlman as he prays for the Lord to send more workers into the harvest field. Rev. Dr. Douglas Krengel hosts.