Questions and Answers on Euthanasia
QUESTION: What’s the difference between voluntary euthanasia and non-voluntary euthanasia? ANSWER: Voluntary euthanasia involves a competent and stated desire for someone to have his or her life terminated. Non-voluntary euthanasia pertains to the termination of someone’s life by another without…
A Practical Approach to End-of-Life Issues: Practical Matters in Counseling on Death
A Practical Approach to End-of-Life Issues Presented by Rev. Robert R. Fleischmann IX. Practical Matters In Counseling on Death I have outlined for you some of the basic principles that have helped me address death with fellow Christians. I believe…
A Practical Approach to End-of-Life Issues: Begin with Faith
A Practical Approach to End-of-Life Issues Presented by Rev. Robert R. Fleischmann II. Begin with Faith The challenge of training fellow Christians in the way they should go is a life-long endeavor to create the Christian mindset. This mindset includes…
A Practical Approach to End-of-Life Issues
Rev. Robert R. Fleischmann, National Director, Christian Life Resources Introduction The Christian Foundation for Life Decision-Making Begin with Faith Establish God’s Authority Over Life and Death Facing the Changed Quality of Life Understanding the Purpose of Life Facing the Fear…
The Whole Picture Needs the Full Gospel
By Rev. Forrest Bivens In early 2007 I was in Rio de Janeiro during a visit to our son and his family, while he served as a WELS missionary in Brazil. The view from Sugarloaf Mountain gave me a panorama…
Are You Ready? – A Look at Preparing for Death
Rev. Robert Fleischmann, National Director of Christian Life Resources A seminary professor once told his students, “Sometimes I can hardly wait to die, and sometimes I am scared to death to die.” This tension between the old and new man…
Bible Study: Compassion
Pastor Aaron Mueller My wife and I just wanted to get home. Being gone for several days, suitcases, then a delayed flight on our already-late return made us long for our normal surroundings again. But the drive home was anything…
The Compassionate Father
Mr. Tim Snyder A widower struggles to raise two young children in a small southern town during the 1930s. The town’s racist attitudes come to light as this man, who is a lawyer, faces the daunting challenge of defending a…
Q&A on Salvation and Heaven
QUESTION: My 93-year-old mother has been strong and healthy her entire life. I am afraid that she has a false confidence about going to heaven. She says that God must be happy with her, because he has given her a…
A Time of Testing
Dr. Mark Braun, Wisconsin Lutheran College, Milwaukee, WI Some [seed] fell on rock, and when it came up, the plants withered because they had no moisture. . . . Those on the rock are the ones who receive the word…
Bible Study: Biblical Directives, Examples, and Applications of Burden Sharing
1. Understanding the Terms Burden: Something perceived to be beyond the ability to cope, not related to a desire to carry. Sharing: To willingly and happily assist others by giving from God’s blessings or helping them lighten their load. Love:…
Burden Sharing // Bible Study (6-Part Series)
Bible Study: Burden Sharing – Part 1 (Student’s Guide) This is the first of a 6-part Bible Study on Burden Sharing. The first 3 parts will define the critical terms of burden, sharing, and love. Read the Following Passages: Numbers 11:14 – I…
Institutional Devotions
DEVOTION #1: “They’ve Taken Away My Identity!” John 13:23 – One of them, the disciple whom Jesus loved, was reclining next to him. Jesus nicknamed John the apostle, along with his brother James, “Sons of Thunder,” and for good reason….
How Are Your Priorities?
While Jesus was in Bethany in the home of a man known as Simon the Leper, a woman came to him with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, which she poured on his head as he was reclining at…
A Culture of Caring | A Look at Teaching Children to Care for Others
Tim Snyder, Media Services Coordinator, Wisconsin Lutheran College It’s been more than one year since “Mrs. Marge” sold her home and moved in with her son. “Mrs. Marge,” an elderly widow who lived alone, used to be our next-door neighbor….
What’s So New About Love? A Look at Christian Caregiving and Burden Sharing
Rev. Robert Fleischmann, Christian Life Resources National Director “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you…
CDACP – Ways to Care for Others
Rev. Robert Fleischmann, National Director, Christian Life Resources How equipped are you to help care for Mom or Dad as they age or when one or the other dies? Caring is more than emotion and good intentions. Careful forethought greatly…
Congregational Versus Institutional Parish Nurses
An ever-increasing number of hospitals are hiring RNs to serve as institution-based parish nurses. These programs usually offer quality services that provide wonderful benefits to the community through local congregations. Since this is a growing trend in our country, why…
Where Do You Cast? – A Look at Anxiety and Worries
Kimberly M. Chastain, MS, LMFT Cast all your anxiety on Him for He cares for you (1 Peter 5:7). I dont know if you have ever been fly-fishing or maybe you have seen it on TV. When you go fly…
Love by Proxy is Not Enough Anymore!
Rev. Robert Fleischmann, National Director, Christian Life Resources I suppose well-meaning Christians can differ with this title by arguing “love by proxy” is never enough. Be that as it may, the reality is that our society has steadily migrated to…
Burdens and Christian Optimism
Rev. Robert Fleischmann, CLR National Director Despairing elders may come to the conclusion to terminate their own lives. Their acts of self-killing are often shrouded in euphemisms about wishing to “die with dignity” and “ceasing to be a burden” on…
Q&A on Suffering
QUESTION: My mother has multiple sclerosis and has been given only a few years to live. Our family is concerned about Mom spending the last few years of her life suffering. What can we do? ANSWER: The fear of…
Hospital Devotions
HOSPITAL DEVOTIONS: A compilation of 27 devotions for use in the hospital or related setting from the Health and Wellness Committee, WELS Commission on Special Ministries. Devotion #1 Luke 2:29-31 – Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you now dismiss…
The Great Physician at My Bed // Devotions
Devotions: The Great Physician at My Bed On Entry “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28) We go to doctors because we need help. Our bodies hurt. In our…
Carrying Burdens and Euthanasia // Bible Study
Rock of Ages Lutheran Branch, Madison, TN Importance of This Bible Study 1) Life issues are broadening or shifting to each end of the life spectrum: beginning of life through end of life. 2) Personally we are not victims of…
Tips to Prevent Elder Financial Abuse
Here are several important tips to help avoid becoming a victim of financial abuse: Involve people you trust in making important financial decisions. Use direct deposit for Social Security and other payments to prevent mail theft. Sign all of your…
Q&A on DNR and Feeding Tube
QUESTION: My husband has had Parkinson’s for 25 years, severe Alzheimer’s, and other issues. He has taken a severe setback with a recent hospitalization. He is presently very weak, minimally mobile, with very low function cognition. He is now in…
Q&A on Euthanasia
QUESTION: What’s the difference between voluntary euthanasia and non-voluntary euthanasia? ANSWER: Voluntary euthanasia involves a competent and stated desire for someone to have his or her life terminated. Non-voluntary euthanasia pertains to the termination of someone’s life by another without…
Nothing to Fear
By Rev. Robert Fleischmann, National Director, Christian Life Resources “I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far.” (Philippians 1:23) The Apostle Paul struggles with two desires when writing the…
When God Is Calling
By Rev. Robert Fleischmann, National Director, Christian Life Resources Margaret entered the intensive care unit by way of the hospital’s emergency room. For over two decades, Margaret, or “Maggie” as her friends call her, wrestled with cancer. It began as…
A Practical Approach to End-of-Life Issues: Introduction
Presented by Rev. Robert F. Fleischmann, National Director, Christian Life Resources In the early 1980s, I ran across an editorial cartoon depicting a minister standing in the pulpit of the Church of the Lukewarm. The caption read, “There is no the Christian position,…
A Practical Approach to End-of-Life Issues: The Christian Foundation for Life Decision-Making
A Practical Approach to End-of-Life Issues Presented by Rev. Robert R. Fleischmann I. The Christian Foundation for Life Decision-Making When we pastors are called upon to guide a family in making critical medical decisions, we must not desert our own…
A Practical Approach to End-of-Life Issues: Establish God’s Authority Over Life and Death
A Practical Approach to End-of-Life Issues Presented by Rev. Robert R. Fleischmann III. Establish God’s Authority Over Life and Death In Deuteronomy 32:39 God says this about himself: “See now that I myself am He! There is no god besides…
A Practical Approach to End-of-Life Issues: Facing the Changed Quality of Life
A Practical Approach to End-of-Life Issues Presented by Rev. Robert R. Fleischmann IV. Facing the Changed Quality of Life Perhaps the most challenging issue to face when counseling on end-of-life issues is the changed quality of life. It seems characteristic…
A Practical Approach to End-of-Life Issues: Understanding the Purpose of Life
A Practical Approach to End-of-Life Issues Presented by Rev. Robert R. Fleischmann V. Understanding the Purpose of Life When counseling a family at a time of crisis a certain amount of spiritual building takes place. A challenge I face in…
A Practical Approach to End-of-Life Issues: Facing the Fear of Death
A Practical Approach to End-of-Life Issues Presented by Rev. Robert R. Fleischmann VI. Facing the Fear of Death It is a reality that as death near, fear increases for many people. When Barbara Walters hosted that edition of Nightline I…
A Practical Approach to End-of-Life Issues: Facing the Challenge of Suffering
A Practical Approach to End-of-Life Issues Presented by Rev. Robert R. Fleischmann VII. Facing the Challenge of Suffering Suffering, or the fear of suffering, is one important reason people have advocated the early termination of life. When I speak of…
A Practical Approach to End-of-Life Issues: Anxious for Death
A Practical Approach to End-of-Life Issues Presented by Rev. Robert R. Fleischmann VIII. Anxious for Death We live in a time where society seems almost anxious to terminate the life of anyone who does not seem valuable or needed. In…
The Practical Approach to End-of-Life Issues: Conclusion
A Practical Approach to End-of-Life Issues Presented by Rev. Robert R. Fleischmann X. Conclusion End-of-life issues are complex in that they often call for the application of many different biblical principles complicated by the addition of strong and sentimental emotions….
Q&A on Caregiving and Diminished Quality of Life
QUESTION: My dad was recently diagnosed with ALS. We are all pretty devastated. He knows that his quality of life will diminish, and he will become totally reliant on us kids. The other night he asked, “Why is God doing…
God’s Life and Death Principle
Rev. Wayne D. Mueller May a Christian couple consider in vitro fertilization a God-pleasing way to relieve their childlessness? Is it ever ethical to pull the plug on respiratory equipment attached to a lifetime faithful spouse? To what lengths must…
Do Not Resuscitate Orders (DNR Orders)
Rev. Robert Fleischmann, National Director, Christian Life Resources A number of years ago a woman for whom I was a legal guardian was placed in a nursing home. Among the many questions I was asked, one caught me unprepared. Specifically,…
How Can I Say I Care?
Rev. Robert Fleischmann, National Director, Christian Life Resources The feisty side of me hates the phrase, “I care.” Don’t misunderstand. I am not against saying it. But I object to its use without meaning. It sounds more like a catchy…
Q&A on Life Support
QUESTION: My father had respiratory arrest. The doctors asked if my siblings and I wanted the doctors to put my dad on life support. My father is a very ill man. He already had cancer and suffers from extreme pain. Is it…
Caregiving: Christian Helping and Coping
When you pass through the waters I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set…
Whose Pain Is It Anyway? – A Look at Pain Management
Rev. Robert Fleischmann, National Director, Christian Life Resources A while back I attended an ethics seminar in which the speaker said that 50% of pain medication requests come from family members, not the patient. In another survey, nurses estimate that…
The Hospice Care Option
Mrs. Susan Fink, Volunteer Coordinator at Holy Family Memorial Hospice, Manitowoc, WI “When is he going to get to it? Someone has to talk to Mom about dying!” Such was a part of a conversation I recently had with a…