DR. ED KRUSE

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Born in the interior of Brazil to missionary parents, Ed Kruse came to the United States when he was nine years old. He spent most of his adult life in ministry. He was a pastor in West Virginia and Iowa where both congregations doubled in membership. He has worked as a Diaconal Minister in Missouri, Kansas and Illinois, including a national position as Director for Stewardship in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. He owned and operated a successful healthcare franchise for 20 years and most recently has developed his own company to work with congregations in the areas of stewardship, spiritual gifts and conflict management.

Ed earned a B.A. in Sociology and Psychology from Upper Iowa University, an M. Div. from Concordia Theological Seminary in Springfield, Illinois, and a D. Min. from the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago.

He has written numerous articles and four previous books:

• How to Have a Happy Home
• A doctoral thesis, Peaceforming: A Narrative Approach to Conflict
• Unwrap Your Gifts and Use Them, An Introduction to Spiritual Gifts Ministry
• Wake Up, Church, Opening Your Eyes to Transformational Ministry, which he co-authored with Dr. Bill Steadman.

Ed is retired and lives in Minnesota with his wife, Barbara. They have been blessed with six children, 20 grandchildren and 26 great-grandchildren.

ABOUT THE BOOK

Baptism Is Making a Difference: A 366 Day Devotional

But Jesus was quick to comfort them. “Courage, it’s me. Don’t be afraid.”
—Matthew 14:27 (MSG)

One of the first biblical paintings that I experienced in a beautiful way was the picture of Jesus blessing children. I was one of Jesus’s children, and I knew it. I could just hear Jesus saying, “Courage, it’s me. Don’t be afraid.” Surely that must be one of the most powerfully comforting messages that we could possibly hear. Sadly, many people have not experienced what’s so precious to you and me.

I confess to you that sometimes I have a questionable attitude. Sometimes it’s not simply questionable; it’s a down and dirty bad attitude! What I’ve learned in life is that I only get a bad attitude when I’m thinking about myself! At those times, I’m not exercising a habit that leads to healthy courage.

There have also been a couple of times in my life when I got out of the habit of worshiping on Sunday. And it wasn’t because I was reading the Bible too long and couldn’t get there on time. I had a job that I had to work almost every Sunday. I discovered that once you start not going to worship, it becomes easier and easier to get out of the habit. The habit you set becomes a trend which either leads or doesn’t lead to a courageous life.

Regarding the courage that comes through baptism. Jesus says, “Courage, it’s me. Don’t be afraid!”

Jesus says that we belong to him, and nothing can rip us out of his hands and arms. That’s comforting. It’s also a reason for courage.

Being with Christ gives me courage, right now. Not in a day or a week or a year from now. Today I will celebrate my baptism and the power it gives me to be courageous and unafraid of danger or risk or anything else. “Don’t be afraid” must be important to God. It’s in the Bible dozens of times.

ORDER A COPY NOW!

EXCERPT

CONTACT

Comments? Questions? To connect with the author, please enter your name, contact information, and message. Thank you for your feedback!