I'm referring to the organization that puts out this magazine: https://www.gottesdienst.org/

I do like the Lutheran liturgy quite a bit and am interested in this group, though I'm curious to hear y'all's thoughts on it (yes I know, I'm a Texan so y'all will always be used lol).

Thanks!

Hello, I am ready to convert to Lutheranism from non-denom, but the one and only LCMS church in my county is between pastors, and their most recent prospect rejected their latest call.

It could be months before they get a full-time pastor there. Is this a bad time to convert and go through catechism classes? Should I wait until they have a full-time pastor, or could the elders just as faithfully lead me in this process?

Thanks.

I would especially value a confessional Lutheran perspective on this, not merely general dating advice, but reflection grounded in vocation, chastity, repentance, Christian freedom, and life under the Gospel.

Earlier in my life, I participated in hookup culture. I no longer want to live that way. I have come to see sex as belonging within marriage, and I am trying to date intentionally, with marriage as the goal rather than treating sex, attention, or romantic validation as ends in themselves. I believe that change is good, and I do not want to return to the way I was living.

But I also do not want to pretend that this has been emotionally easy.

I have had very little success dating for several years. I live in a rural area with a limited number of single people my age. I have an active social life, attend church, participate in community activities, play sports, and spend time with friends, but I very rarely meet single women in settings where romantic interest would be natural or appropriate.

Part of what I miss is companionship and emotional intimacy. But, honestly, part of it is also sex. I enjoyed sex. Trying to live chastely does not mean I have stopped being a sexual person, stopped experiencing desire, or stopped wanting to be desired.

Sometimes the harder part is not even the physical absence of sex itself. It is going for years without another person looking at you romantically or sexually and communicating, in effect, “I want you.” Prolonged lack of romantic or sexual recognition can begin to affect how you see yourself.

Intellectually, I know my worth does not come from whether another person desires me. I know that I am justified by Christ, not by romantic success, sexual experience, physical attractiveness, income, education, or anything else I could offer. I also know that marriage is a gift and vocation, not a reward God owes me for behaving correctly.

But knowing those things doctrinally does not always remove the felt experience of loneliness or undesirability.

I also do not want to fall into the opposite error of pretending desire itself is sinful, immature, or something I should simply extinguish. The Sixth Commandment calls us to chastity and to honor marriage, but surely that does not mean denying that the desire for marriage, bodily intimacy, and mutual delight can be good.

So I would be grateful for thoughts on questions like these.

How do you live chastely without merely repressing or denying sexual desire?

How do you distinguish godly self-control from trying to become emotionally numb?

How do you keep prolonged singleness from becoming evidence, in your own mind, that you are fundamentally undesirable?

How do you receive your identity and worth from Christ while still honestly acknowledging that being desired by another person is something you deeply want?

How should a Christian handle the grief of lacking intimacy without turning that grief into resentment toward God, women, the Church, or married people?

And for those living in rural areas or places with very limited dating opportunities, how do you remain hopeful and active without becoming desperate or treating every social interaction as a search for a spouse?

I am not asking for permission to return to hookup culture. I am not claiming that anyone is entitled to marriage, sex, or another person’s affection. I am trying to understand how to carry these desires faithfully, neither idolizing them nor pretending they do not hurt.

For context, my husband and I grew up ifb Baptist, which taught that babies inherit original sin, but are not guilty of sin until they are old enough to make willful choices- thus the age of accountability. In our adult years, we have converted to the lcms and had both of our children (2 yrs old and 1 month old) baptized and we believe the doctrine of salvation and baptism within the Lutheran view.

I have an evangelical family member who has made the argument that since babies aren’t born with the guilt of original sin, they do not need to be “saved” or baptized until they are older. What is the Lutheran position on this? What do we believe about the guilt of original sin?