Weekly Devotions

Inspiration Heartburn!
By Mark Schoepp, Church Relations Representative, Wheat Ridge Ministries

I’m feeling inspired these days. Inspiration is one of the three words Wheat Ridge Ministries is highlighting about its work and the work of the ministries it supports: INSPIRATION, Service and Impact. I’m thinking specifically about the people who have inspired me over the years.

I was recently inspired by a visit to the Church Health Center in Memphis, Tennessee, where...

Thanks for the Memories!
By Margaret R. Hinchey, Englewood, Colorado

Today is Memorial Day on calendars in the United States. This federal holiday is observed on the last Monday of May and originated after the Civil War to commemorate the fallen Union soldiers of the Civil War. By the 20th century, Memorial Day had been extended to honor all Americans who have died in all wars. When I was growing up, my grandparents called it “Decoration Day.” As a child, I would respectfully...

Blue Birds Need a Helping Hand
By Rev. Tom Zehnder, Baileys Harbor, WI

We gathered at the Ridges Sanctuary in Baileys Harbor, Wisconsin. There, I was the oldest one in the room, with the little kids and a smattering of accompanying parents. We were there to learn the art of constructing nesting boxes for the Eastern Blue Bird.

These fabled birds had been teetering toward extinction, for one of their most frequent nests – wooden fence poles (who knew?) – were rotting away.

Mr....

A Lesson Plan for Life
Sharolyn Sander, Teacher Emeritus, Trinity Lutheran Church and School, Roselle, IL

I wrote my share of lesson plans as an educator for many years. This one is intended to develop the “Whole Child” of God, in any “classroom,” at any age. Colossians 2: 6-7 gives us this encouragement: “Just go ahead with what you’ve been given. You received Christ Jesus, the Master; now live in Him. You’re deeply rooted in Him. You’re...

Toonie Bug Toot
Rev. Kelly Chatman, Redeemer Lutheran Church, Minneapolis, MN; Wheat Ridge Ministries Board Member

“Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?” Luke 24: 32

I had just graduated from college, enrolled in graduate school and started my professional career. I was living in the nation’s capital when I first encountered a young man who was known as Toonie Bug Toot.

This was...