Mental Health
Posted on February 28, 2024
by Rev. Jonathan Conner
Nobody enjoys bad days, but everybody has them. Sometimes it’s only one. Sometimes it’s several in a row. Other times they pile up. So when bad days come (not if!), what do we do? Because you are going to have bad days, you need a plan for them.
Adoption
Posted on February 27, 2024
Meet Halen! This curly-haired beauty is overwhelmingly loved by her adoptive parents and big sister. Her adoptive parents got the privilege to be present for her birth and didn’t leave her side until they took her home from the hospital ten days later.
Mental Health
Posted on February 13, 2024
by Virginia Strubbe, MSW, CSW-PIP
1 in every 3 deaths in the US is related to cardiovascular disease. There is a documented connection between heart health and mental health. Daily stressors, social isolation and loneliness, anxiety, and depression are linked to increased risk of heart disease, heart attack, and stroke. Maybe you or someone you love could be the “1” in 3.
Godly Living
Posted on January 26, 2024
by Rev. Jonathan Conner
Rev. Jonathan Conner leads an in-depth conversation about the struggle to capture the weighty truth and significance of the image we bear. There is a necessity to seeing yourself differently in the mirror, and seeing your neighbors differently as well. It is a heavy thing, a sacred burden, this divine image that we must bear up under.
Life Advocacy
Posted on January 18, 2024
EVERY life is precious! Please join the Iowa Coalition of Pro-Life Leaders at the Iowa State Capitol to help save babies, help mothers and Iowa families in crisis, mourn the little ones lost to abortion, celebrate the future, and become a LIFE advocate at the 2024 Iowa Prayer Rally for Life on Monday, January 22 at 11:00AM.
Adoption
Posted on January 8, 2024
by Mitch & Angela Carey
This story, “Our Journey To An Open Adoption,” was written by Mitch & Angela Carey, an adoptive couple sharing the personal account of their open adoption experience through Lutheran Family Service. Mitch & Angela’s account serves as a strong testimony in the discussion of an open vs. closed adoption.
Lutheran Family Service News
Posted on January 4, 2024
As we close the door on another great year of God’s blessings here at Lutheran Family Service, we thought it would be fun to look back at some of our top blog articles from 2023. These are articles you clicked on, liked, and shared the most during the past 12 months, all of which were written by Lutheran Family Service team members. Did your favorites articles make the cut?
Mental Health
Posted on January 2, 2024
by Meghan Baldridge, LISW
As we begin a new year, many of us may be participating in the tradition of setting New Year’s resolutions with the hopes of rejuvenation, self-improvement or personal growth. While these goals can offer a sense of purpose and motivation, we may question the potential mental health pros and cons.
Godly Living
Posted on December 28, 2023
by Rev. Jonathan Conner
Headstones are sobering. I know some of the stories represented by the dash between the dates. But, many I do not. In a generation or two, fewer and fewer will know the stories that lie behind those dashes. If we had not a loving God, this could be incredibly discouraging. Lives lived, love shared, triumph, defeat, celebrations, laments – all reduced to the dash between the dates.
Mental Health
Posted on December 11, 2023
by Mark Vande Braak, Ph.D, FT, MT-BC
You have permission to grieve. Do not let anyone tell you something different. However, it is essential to be gentle with yourself. The anxiety and build-up to the holiday is very stressful and real. It is alright to spend time remembering your loved one and the gifts that they gave you in life.
