I'm sure you remember the 9/11 terrorist attacks. If your church was like ours, we responded to many people who were looking for peace amidst the storms of life. We held special prayer services in the weeks which followed these attacks. Our website was embedded with key words, meta tags, and phrases designed to draw seekers into special material created in the aftermath of this catastrophic event. While the emotional intensity of this event ebbed over time, it is clear that tragedy opened doors to minister to people in new ways and share the foundation of Jesus Christ as never before. Times of economic crisis have the potential to do the same.

How can Lutheran schools and churches be ready to minister during difficult economic times? Here is a list of some thoughts on this topic:

• Prepare to reach out to those who are struggling financially. Don't wait until a crisis appears or until a student pulls out of your school because of finances to work to meet the needs of families. Be proactive!
• An economic recession is an opportunity to re-visit tuition and financial aid policies. How do these policies serve the larger mission of your school and church.
• Engage your PTL or PTA to create ministry liaisons for each classroom. Engage parents to help monitor family needs, whether they be financial, spiritual, medical, etc. Arranging for hot dishes, car pool rides, and other such activities can go a long way to providing servant ministry to individuals and families, and help relieve some stress from daily living, sharing Jesus with these folks in very tangible ways.
• Build a school theme connecting to the ultimate security we all have in Jesus Christ, and revisit that theme intentionally throughout the year.
• Model sacrificial giving whenever possible. The answer to weathering a financial rollercoaster is not to turn inward, but rather to continue to reach out and trust the Lord. What an opportunity this might be to share this ministry principle with others!
• Return to the words of Jesus in chapel services and Christian learning lessons again and again. "Do not worry" and "Lo, I am with you always" are such simple phrases, yet so comforting. Continuously remind children and families of the Lord's care and provision.

What ideas do you have to take advantage of the ministry opportunities which a soft economy might bring? Feel free to share those thoughts as a comment to this post.

May God bless each of us with the courage to embrace the ministry opportunities which the current state of our nation provides each of us.