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Confirmation

Welcome to Zion’s Confirmation Program!

Confirmation is a vital element of any Christian faith community’s growth and development. Recently.some changes were made in how we are continuing this very important work.. We have been evaluating the success and failures of the past. Just as any living organism must be continually fed and nourished to grow, we must recognize that our faith in Jesus Christ must also be fed and nourished if it is to grow and remain strong in the ups and downs of life.

To begin, as we look at Scripture, we find that God’s intent was for the parents to be the primary faith educators (While education is a part of the job given to parents  in this process, we believe the real task is to FEED and NOURISH our children’s life of faith in Jesus, which requires so much more than mere education. It requires a consistent and faith example of building the faith through worship, knowledge how God has worked in the past and the gifts He has given for our life now.) for their children. Martin Luther felt so strongly about this that he wrote the Small Catechism.

We believe that the ministry of the church in this context is to prepare, encourage, and support our parents to fulfill this God ordained commission. We recognize the challenges that are continually faced by parents and the church in providing the best foundation of faith in Christ for our youth.. We continue to seek the very best resources for this is critical area of our overall ministry as we hope to significantly improve on this year and in the years ahead. It is a work in progress and we ask for your patience and your creativity.

The challenge we face as a congregation is finding the best time and place to gather students, parents, other adult mentors and the pastor together, in the face of athletic, dance and other schedules which also require our young people’s attention. God has given us some guidance in Deuteronomy 11:18-19 where He says,Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds, tie them as a sign on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. 19 Teach them to your children,speaking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.”

We have scheduled Tuesday evenings, from 6:30 to 7:30 P.M. for youth Confirmation. During this time we will be exploring Luther’s Small Catechism, The Bible and other resources that will help us “fix God’s Word in our hearts and minds.” Youth (and their parents) in grades 5 and up are invited to attend. Actually any member, including students who attend Zion Lutheran School, who wishes to get involved in this process can also attend. In addition to the Tuesday evening, there will be games and internet resources posted below under the Resource List to help you retain and connect God’s Word to your life.

Help is always available to parents and children who find particular topics to be a bit more challenging via phone or email. Feedback on how the confirmation process is going is always welcomed and encouraged. If you have any questions or need further assistance contact the Church office. We look forward to working with you and walking with you on this journey of faith.

A Message from Pastor Steve about Confirmation

For this year while I am here as your Intentional Interim Pastor, this is how we will handle Confirmation. In the spring, there will be a formal Rite of Confirmation when all the students will be confirmed together.

There are different ways for students to receive their training and each way can be continued. The Zion day-school, the public school on Tuesday evenings and the individuals being taught by parents are all acceptable ways for students to receive their education.

During this year, if there are individual students that are ready for early communion there is a way for this to happen.

I ask every student before they take communion to do the following:

  1. Choose their Confirmation verse.
  2. Type a one-page paper with normal margins, not larger than 11 font and double spaced.
  3. The paper should include
    • Their Confirmation verse
    • Explain why it was chosen
    • What the verse means to the student
    • How they would use it in their future life
  4. If parents say their student is ready for participating in the Lord’s Supper, we will have a 20-30 minute meeting where we will discuss the paper and what they believe about grace, salvation, baptism, communion and other topics. When that happens, I will approve early communion, but still have the student participate in the formal Rite of Confirmation. Click here if you would like to download the 2018-2019 Confirmation Instructions

Confirmation Interactive Games and Exercises for Fun

Potential Confirmation Verses

These games have been developed to play with family members to help learn various aspects of Martin Luther’s Small Catechism and the Six Chief Parts. As new games are developed they will be added to this page. Please note that there is a variety of games; a Tic-Tac-Toe, and Alien Band-Build game and others, check them out and learn the basics.

Luther’s Small Catechism   Game #1, Game #2, Game #3,  Game #4

The Ten Commandments    Game #1, Game #2, Game #3, Game #4, Game #5

The Creed    Game #1,  Game #2

The Lord’s Prayer Game #1

The Sacrament of Baptism Game #1, Game #2

Confession (Office of the Keys and Confession)

The Sacrament of the Altar (The Lord’s Supper)

Acolyte Training Video  Lighting Candles at Church

Game #4

Zion Lutheran Church and School