The Lutheran Ladies' Lounge from KFUO Radio

Can math and computer science be creative pursuits?  

While many people associate creativity with artistic pursuits like painting, writing, and making music, God’s gift of human ingenuity extends to all corners of the human experience — as the Ladies find out when they interview Meghan Hopfer, a former math major currently working in the field of computer science and data management.  

How does math intersect with creativity — or even art and beauty?  Why do so many women dislike math and other STEM subjects? How can math, computer science, and creativity come together to seat 20,000 people at the LCMS Youth Gathering — and save a week of painstaking human labor? And how does someone working in the field view the rapid rise of AI? 

Meghan Hopfer is a computer science professional currently serving with the LCMS Foundation. A graduate of Concordia University, Nebraska, she has also worked on staff for the LCMS Youth Gathering, where she was integral in automating key parts of the planning process.  

Connect with the Lutheran Ladies on social media in The Lutheran Ladies’ Lounge Facebook discussion group (facebook.com/groups/LutheranLadiesLounge) and on Instagram @lutheranladieslounge. Follow Sarah (@hymnnerd), Rachel (@rachbomberger), and Erin (@erinaltered) on Instagram!

Sign up for the Lutheran Ladies' Lounge monthly e-newsletter here, and email the Ladies at [email protected].

Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows. 
     He was wounded for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities. 

Good Friday marks both the low and high point of the Easter Triduum, as Christians remember with sorrow the suffering of our Lord and rejoice in His great mercy to us on the cross.  

In this Adventures in Lutheranism episode, Sarah, Erin, and Rachel discuss the various Good Friday traditions they’ve cherished throughout the years, unpacking as they go the three key liturgies used for this day in Lutheran churches — Tre Ore, Tenebrae, and Chief — along with several notable liturgical features: the stripped altar, the darkened sanctuary, the reproaches, and the strepitus, among others.  

However your church chooses to mark the occasion, we pray that God would bless your worship throughout this blessed Holy Week.  

Connect with the Lutheran Ladies on social media in The Lutheran Ladies’ Lounge Facebook discussion group (facebook.com/groups/LutheranLadiesLounge) and on Instagram @lutheranladieslounge. Follow Sarah (@hymnnerd), Rachel (@rachbomberger), and Erin (@erinaltered) on Instagram!

Sign up for the Lutheran Ladies' Lounge monthly e-newsletter here, and email the Ladies at [email protected].

Although Lounge-alum Bri Gerzevske is known and loved by listeners for her zany sense of humor and oddball comedy, what many may not know is that she is also a seasoned advancement professional known and loved by her colleagues for her “oddball leadership” philosophy.  

What exactly is “oddball leadership”? In this episode, Bri (while sporting a giant foam cowboy hat over her headphones) breaks down the concept for Sarah, Erin, and Rachel, encouraging them to embrace a leadership style marked by belonging, gratitude, joy — and a higher-than-usual tolerance for chaos and creativity.  

Whether you’re a leader in the workplace, the church, the community, or the home, Bri’s insights will help you imagine a different paradigm for leadership, one marked by compassion and curiosity and punctuated by crazy good fun.  

Click here to learn more from Bri at Oddball Leadership.

Connect with the Lutheran Ladies on social media in The Lutheran Ladies’ Lounge Facebook discussion group (facebook.com/groups/LutheranLadiesLounge) and on Instagram @lutheranladieslounge. Follow Sarah (@hymnnerd), Rachel (@rachbomberger), and Erin (@erinaltered) on Instagram!

Sign up for the Lutheran Ladies' Lounge monthly e-newsletter here, and email the Ladies at [email protected].

Although Scripture is never trivial, Bible trivia games can be an effective and motivational teaching tool — as the Ladies discover once again in this week’s episode.    

Following up on her New Testament Trivia Challenge last fall, Rachel’s back with a new slew of tricksy brain benders, this time drawn from the Old Testament canon.  

Covering plagues and prayers and promises — and everything in between — Rachel’s questions will help you test your own biblical literacy, even as they train you to trace the glorious thread of God’s plan for our salvation in Jesus Christ throughout the entire corpus of Scripture. 

Extraneous sources mentioned in this episode include ... 

Joseph and Asenath.pdf 
What is the longest book of the Bible? | GotQuestions.org 
The Longest Books of the Bible (By Chapters, Verses, Words) - Christianity FAQ 
What Are The Top 50 Read Chapters In The Bible? - Bible Study Ministry 

Connect with the Lutheran Ladies on social media in The Lutheran Ladies’ Lounge Facebook discussion group (facebook.com/groups/LutheranLadiesLounge) and on Instagram @lutheranladieslounge. Follow Sarah (@hymnnerd), Rachel (@rachbomberger), and Erin (@erinaltered) on Instagram!

Sign up for the Lutheran Ladies' Lounge monthly e-newsletter here, and email the Ladies at [email protected].

Class is back in session, Ladies, as Sarah continues her diaconal studies at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis!  

In this episode, Sarah invites listeners to look over her shoulder as she reviews notes from her first intensive: Intro to Spiritual Care and condenses 20 hours of class material into five key takeaways useful for the “Everyday Lutheran Lady™.” 

Covering core concepts like the four directions of worship, the different levels and layers of tradition, theologies of glory and the cross, the theology and practice of prayer, principles of spiritual caregiving and visitation, and the art of active listening, Sarah offers a crash course survey that’s as edifying as it is educational.  

Resources referenced include the following: 

Gathered Guests: A Guide to Worship in the Lutheran Church by Timothy H. Maschke 
Is God Listening? Making Prayer a Part of Your Life by Andrew E. Steinman 

Connect with the Lutheran Ladies on social media in The Lutheran Ladies’ Lounge Facebook discussion group (facebook.com/groups/LutheranLadiesLounge) and on Instagram @lutheranladieslounge. Follow Sarah (@hymnnerd), Rachel (@rachbomberger), and Erin (@erinaltered) on Instagram!

Sign up for the Lutheran Ladies' Lounge monthly e-newsletter here, and email the Ladies at [email protected].