The Coffee Hour from KFUO Radio

This issue of the Lutheran Witness focuses on the Christian church as a confessing community. 1 Peter 4:7–19 teaches how we confess our faith through words, works and, perhaps surprisingly, through suffering as Christians (1 Peter 4:16). Jesus had promised this would happen to His followers: “If the world hates you, know that it has hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will also keep yours” (John 15:18–20). But for some reason, we are shocked when His promise comes true in our own lives. Peter helpfully reminds us not to “be surprised” (1 Peter 4:12) when sufferings come but, rather, to “rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings” (1 Peter 4:13).Rev. Carl Roth, pastor of Grace Lutheran Church in Elgin, TX, joins Andy and Sarah to talk about the “Searching Scripture” feature in the October 2024 issue of the Lutheran Witness titled “A Suffering Community” on 1 Peter 4:7–19. This year, “Searching Scripture” is themed “Elect Exiles” and will walk through the First Epistle of St. Peter. Follow along every month and search Scripture with us!Find online exclusives of the Lutheran Witness at witness.lcms.org and subscribe to the Lutheran Witness at cph.org/witness.

How did the Rev. Dr. Andrew Melendez become the first speaker of the Spanish Lutheran Hour, and what is that legacy today? Prof. Lori Siekmann, Professor and Theatre Department Chair at Concordia University Irvine, and granddaughter of the Rev. Dr. Andrew Melendez, joins Andy and Sarah during our Hispanic Heritage Month series to share her stories of Grandpa Melendez, including her memories of visits with her grandparents, how her grandparents met and how that meeting shaped their future, the challenges that a Spanish-speaking Puerto Rican Lutheran pastor might have faced in the 1930s and 40s, how his ministry was affected by WWII, and how his ministry shaped her family. Find Spanish-language Lutheran Hour resources at paraelcamino.com.Learn more about LCMS Hispanic Ministry at lcms.org/how-we-serve/national/hispanic-ministry.

How does Project 24 care for children with the love of Christ? John Kissinger Nyang'au, Director of Project 24, and Zach Schnare, LCMS Mission Advocate and Liaison to Kenya, join Andy to talk about the struggles that many children face in Kenya, how the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Kenya (ELCK) and the LCMS are meeting the needs of these children through Project 24, stories about the children served by Project 24, and what the future holds for Project 24 and the children it serves. Learn more at lcms.org/ccck and facebook.com/Project24Kenya. You can also financially support Project 24 at lcms.org/make-a-gift/christs-care-for-children-kenya.

How has the Center for Hispanic Studies formed men and women for church work vocations over the years? The Rev. Dr. Ely Prieto (Associate Professor of Practical Theology and Director of the Center for Hispanic Studies at Concordia Seminary) and the Rev. Paul Flo (Assistant to the Director of the Center for Hispanic Studies at Concordia Seminary) join Andy and Sarah during our Set Apart to Serve series in Hispanic Heritage Month to talk about their own journeys into pastoral and Hispanic ministry, the need that led to the creation of the Center for Hispanic Studies (CHS) at Concordia Seminary, the students at CHS and how students are equipped to serve upon completion of the program, and the vision for the future of the Center for Hispanic Studies at Concordia Seminary. Learn more about the Center for Hispanic Studies at csl.edu/academics/programs/center-hispanic-studies.Christ’s church will continue until He returns, and that church will continue to need church workers.Set Apart to Serve (SAS) is an initiative of the LCMS to recruit church workers. Together, we pray for workers for the Kingdom of God and encourage children to consider church work vocations.Here are three easy ways you can participate in SAS:1. Pray with your children for God to provide church workers.2. Talk to your children about becoming church workers.3. Thank God for the people who work in your congregation.To learn more about Set Apart to Serve, visit lcms.org/set-apart-to-serve.

We’re celebrating 100 years of God’s blessings on KFUO Radio with a special series featuring guests from KFUO’s long history! In Episode 11, we are joined by Dr. Gerald Perschbacher, who served as editor of The Lutheran Layman (a bimonthly publication of Lutheran Hour Ministries) for 35 years, is the Founder of The Lutheran Laymen’s League Research Center, and is also the author of "A Voice for the Gospel: KFUO Radio in Retrospect" in the September issue of The Lutheran Witness. Dr. Perschbacher joins Andy, Sarah, and guest co-host Joanie Harwell to talk about how the idea for KFUO got off the ground and who initiated it, KFUO's programs in the early years, how the “rush to radio” of the mid-1920s impacted KFUO's programming, and how KFUO continued the legacy of "Keeping Forward, Upward, and Onward." Read Dr. Perschbacher's article in the Lutheran Witness at witness.lcms.org/2024/a-voice-for-the-gospel-kfuo-radio-in-retrospect.Learn more about KFUO’s 100th Anniversary Celebration at kfuo.org/100.

How is Bible translation done today? The Rev. Dr. Rich Rudowske (Executive Director of Lutheran Bible Translators) joins Andy and Sarah to talk about how many translations of the Bible exist today, current Biblical literacy across the globe, how early Bible translations into the vernacular paved the way for Bible translation today, where Lutheran Bible Translators is working, and the process of Bible translation— from discovery of a need to a published Bible put in the hands of new readers. Learn more about Lutheran Bible Translators at lbt.org.

What does Hispanic Ministry look like in the Indianapolis area? The Rev. Daniel Fickenscher, Associate Pastor at St. Paul Lutheran/Iglesia Luterana San Pablo (Columbus, IN) and Missionary Pastor at Trinity Lutheran/Iglesia Luterana La Trinidad (Indianapolis, IN), joins Andy and Sarah during our Hispanic Heritage Month series to talk about how he became involved in Hispanic ministry, the communities where he serves, how the churches serve the Hispanic population in these areas, how he has seen God at work in these ministries, and how Hispanic heritage and culture are valued and preserved.Learn more about LCMS Hispanic Ministry at lcms.org/how-we-serve/national/hispanic-ministry.

Earlier this year, southern Brazil suffered historic flooding, affecting many Lutheran churches and members of our sister church, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Brazil (IELB). The Rev. Dr. Ross Johnson, Director of LCMS Disaster Response, and the Rev. Airton Schroeder, Vice President of the Igreja Evangélica Luterana do Brasil (Evangelical Lutheran Church of Brazil) working in the Mercy Area, join Sarah to share how LCMS Disaster Response works with international church partners after disasters, the extent of the historic flooding in the Rio Grande do Sul state, how Lutherans were affected by the flooding, how the IELB has responded and how the LCMS is walking alongside the IELB in this disaster response effort. Read more about this disaster and the response from both the LCMS and IELB:https://international.lcms.org/unprecedented-floods-the-church-responds/https://reporter.lcms.org/2024/brazil-flood-response-continues/https://engage.lcms.org/disasters-fall-2024/

The Rev. Peter Deberny (Pastor of Grace Lutheran Church in Mastic Beach, NY) joins Andy and Sarah for our Set Apart to Serve series to talk about his journey into pastoral ministry, who influenced him to consider becoming a pastor, what gives him joy in his vocation of pastor, how he has experienced the community around him in New York, how he is sustained when the vocation becomes challenging, and how he stays sharp in God's Word.Christ’s church will continue until He returns, and that church will continue to need church workers.Set Apart to Serve (SAS) is an initiative of the LCMS to recruit church workers. Together, we pray for workers for the Kingdom of God and encourage children to consider church work vocations.Here are three easy ways you can participate in SAS:1. Pray with your children for God to provide church workers.2. Talk to your children about becoming church workers.3. Thank God for the people who work in your congregation.To learn more about Set Apart to Serve, visit lcms.org/set-apart-to-serve.

We’re celebrating 100 years of God’s blessings on KFUO Radio with a special series featuring guests from KFUO’s long history! In Episode 10, Mrs. Norma Schroll (wife of the late George Schroll, former KFUO On-Air Host and Engineer) joins Andy, Sarah, and guest co-host Joanie Harwell to talk about how she and George met, his career plans when they met, his interest in broadcast journalism and how joining the staff at KFUO fulfilled that dream, the programs he produced and hosted on KFUO, how she was involved in his programs, and why it was important to her family to help carry out this work of proclaiming the Good News of Christ on KFUO.Learn more about KFUO’s 100th Anniversary Celebration at kfuo.org/100.