Resources

Your family, friends, and faith matter!

That is why we believe it is essential for you to have easy access to resources to support faith nourishment in your home. Dueteronomy 6:4-9 tells us:

"Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates."

In other words, every part of your life is an important opportunity to share your faith with those around you: in the car, while watching TV, at the dinner table, on vacation, etc. Research has shown that parents have the biggest impact on their child's faith, so we have put together the following resources to help you feel more confident in your role as a spiritual leader for your family and friends!

Apps

Adventures in Odyssey- These award winning audio dramas bring biblical principles to life using characters who learn from their life experiences in the town of Whits End. They balance fun, faith, and imagination in these adventure packed stories everyone will enjoy!

The Bible App for Kids- makes exploring the Bible fun with interactive video narratives summarizing stories in the Bible.

Bible Lens - This app recognizes objects in your picture and pairs it with potential Bible Verses for your social media! What a fun way to share Christ!

Bible Songs For Kids (Offline) This app helps families teach kids fun Christian songs like "He's Got The Whole World In His Hands," "I Am A C-H-R-I-S-T-I-A-N," and 30+ others. It's a great way to include God in your daily routine/evening prayers.

Echo Prayers- Echo helps you keep track of prayers, reminds you to pray, offers tips and tricks for focusing during your prayer time, and allows you to share your prayers with others.

Lifeway Kids Family App - Sometimes it can be intimidate to do Bible Studies with our kids. Where do we even begin? This app takes Bible stories and breaks them down into simple concepts, activities, and lessons that you can cover during your dinner table discussion.

PureFlix- You care about what your kids watch and see and that is why PureFlix is dedicated to wholesome shows will be something you can confidently sit down and enjoy together! Consider it a Christian Netflix.

YouVersion - This Bible App lets you have Scripture in your hands 24/7, has daily devotions, and turns favorite verses into Instagram worthy pictures!

Bible Studies

Kids of Integrity - Kids of Integrity offers family resources to have fun and engaging conversations with your children about the importance of these Godly characteristics. They offer a thorough look at different Bible Stories to reinforce the lesson, guided conversation starters, crafts and activities, etc. that will help your child think before they act.

Good Book Guides: If you are looking for Bible Studies that really dig into what Scripture says and how it applies to your lives, this is a great place to start. The material is user friendly, it filled with deep engaging questions, and they offer multiple studies covering several topics and Books of the Bible.

Seeds Family Worship Box - The mission of Seeds Family Worship is to get God's Word through Seeds into as many hearts (& homes) as possible. Each month they mail your family a box full of resources (DVD"S, coloring books, Worship CD's, games, and more) to bring God's Word to life.

Shepherd On The Search- Embark on a family journey and find Christ in Christmas! During the Advent season, hide your shepherd and your children find him in a new place along the search! The shepherd's journey begins anew every Christmas season and ends on Christmas day as your shepherd finds his way to the manger. Similar to Elf on the Shelf, but with Christian principles.

Books

Brainstorm - The Power & Purpose of the Teenage Brain - Teens ups and downs can be maddening, but Dan Siegel dives into these teen transitions by looking at the brain and helps parents and teens talk about these transitions, their loneliness, etc. and make it a positive time of exploration and understanding.

Grandparenting Matters, A Series - The author challenges Grandparents to look at the Biblical view of grandparent, the challenges they face in passing down their faith legacy, how to overcome grandparent barriers, how to disciple from long-distance, and so much more! Will you be a voice that influences your grandchildren's world view?

Jesus Calling - Jesus' Calling and other devotionals by Sarah Young encourages readers to connect not only with Jesus, the living Word, but also with the Bible-the only infallible, inerrant Word of God. These truths are spoken through her app, books, and ebooks for adults, teens, and kids!

Joining Jesus On His Mission - This book gives you simple, powerful and applicable insights into how to be on mission and recognize where Jesus is already at work in your neighborhoods, workplaces and schools. It empowers you to be an everyday missionary!

Love & Respect - Based upon Ephesians 5:33 and extensive biblical and psychological research, Dr. Emerson Eggerichs reveals the power of unconditional love and unconditional respect and how husbands and wives can reap the benefits of marriage that God intended.

Single, Dating, Engaged, Married - This book walks through the different stages of relationships: singleness (devotion), dating (evaluation), engagement (unification), and marriage (mission). He uses fun stories to help you grasp how the world & God encourage different methods of dating. He also uses stories of Paul, Isaac, & Solomon as Biblical examples of healthy relationships.

Sticky Faith Guide For Your Family - This book arises from Fuller Youth Institute's research with over 500 young people, 100 churches, and 50 families to create a book designed to equip parents with insights and ideas for nurturing long-term faith in children and young people. It offers more than 100 ideas from other parents they can try today, this week, or this month to nurture a "Sticky Faith."

365 Days of Creative Devotions - takes you through the Scripture and gives you the opportunity to apply your talents in over 115 different ways with more than 175 topics. Each day you are prompted to reflect on God’s Word through activities including baking & drawing, working out & listening to music, designing video games & creating one act plays, having conversations with friends and mentors, going on coffee dates with God, and so much more! This book is written by Sarah Rethwisch under the pen name Eliza Rich.

Financial

Every Dollar App - Create a budget, manage money, and track spending on the go with an app created by Dave Ramsey. We also encourage you to get involved with Financial Peace by Dave Ramsey.

Lutheran Church Extension Fund - is a religious non-profit organization that helps individuals & organizations invest, barrow, and grow their funds while simultaneously supporting the LCMS. Funds help support the services and future of the church allowing them to share the Gospel of Jesus.

Mental/ Physical Health

Grief Share - is for people grieving the loss of a family member or a friend. Groups meet weekly to face these challenges and rebuild your life through video seminars, group discussions,and personal study.

Her Health - Located in Sioux City, Her Health offers confidential services to women fearful of an unplanned pregnancy or STD. They walk you through the potential options for response and they also offer online resources educating men how to respond if they share in these concerns.

Lutheran Family Services of Iowa- provides a variety of services including pregnancy support, marriage and mental health counseling, and adoption services. They walk alongside individuals to prevent crisis and help individuals focus on Christ's healing & forgiving love.

Suicide Prevention Hotline - is a national network of local crisis centers that provides free and confidential emotional support to people in suicidal crisis or emotional distress 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Missions/Travel

LCMS Missions -Missionaries are individuals who serve as electricians, web developers, work with kids, beautify parks, tell stories, serve on medical teams, etc. Whether you're interested in doing missions for a few days or for a lifetime, the LCMS has opportunities around the globe!

Music

K-LOVE Radio - is a Christian Radio station that creates compelling media that inspires and encourages people to have a meaningful relationship with Christ. Listen to K-LOVE with their in-app player, explore artists bios and songs, get the Verse of the Day, enter contests, and more!

Parenting

Axis - Axis empowers parents to transfer their legacy to their teens as they face today's questions and challenges. Axis offers parents guides, culture translators, podcasts, updates about the latest teen trends, and other ideas about how to stay up to date while also talking about Jesus!

Parents Cue - As parents you have 936 weeks to instill Christian values into your children before they graduate. This app shares age appropriate Bible verses, topics, and dinner discussions to help you with each week of the journey. We'd recommend downloading it ASAP!

Podcasts

Boundless - challenges young adults to maximize these years — to embrace new responsibilities, own your faith, date with purpose, prepare for marriage and, above all, honor God in everything you do. They offer articles and podcast to engage you in your faith journey.

Christian Travelers' Network - Where travel stories, community and Scripture combine! This podcast, founded by Sarah Rethwisch, helps people think through what God says about travel and how they can keep Christ at the center of their travel experiences. Whether traveling to work or around the globe - we have the opportunity to travel for Christ.

More Than A Song Podcast- Michelle Nezat is passionate about Christian Music and God's Word. Each week her podcasts covers a popular Christian song and dives into God's Word to uncover it's deeper meaning. It's a great place to start your devotions every week!

The Coffee Hour at KFUO Radio Podcast- As you grab your morning coffee (and pastry, let’s be honest), join hosts Andy Bates and Sarah Gulseth as they bring you stories of the intersection of Lutheran life and a secular world. Catch real-life stories of mercy work of the LCMS and partners, updates from missionaries across the ocean, behind the scenes encounters from the International Center, and practical talk about how to live boldly Lutheran.

Retreats/Workshops

Camp Okoboji - their mission is to offer sanctuary which connects God and His Creation. Through camps and retreats for kids - grandparents focusing on a wide range of topics they engage individuals in God's Word in fun and creative ways. Check out some of their upcoming events!

Christian Grandparenting Network -engages, equips, and empowers grandparents to wholeheartedly embrace their biblical roles so the next generation would know love, and serve Christ. They offer a variety of resources including seminars, GrandCamps, and free articles helping grandparents pass on their faith legacy.

Service Projects/ Community

Youth For Christ - aims to grow our ministry to unchurched students— to those in desperate need of the restorative love of Christ. Every day at thousands of community centers, high schools, middle schools, juvenile institutions, coffee shops, and local hangouts, YFC staff and volunteers meet with young people who need Jesus.The Sioux City/ Le Mars locations are looking for dedicated volunteers to come help and are inviting students to attend!

Spiritual Formations

Spiritual Gifts Discovery - Curious what spiritual gifts God has equipped you with? Curious how you are using them at work, home, church, etc? Or how you could improve upon them? Take this brief survey for more information!