Verse for the week:
Let your loins be girded and your lamps burning. Luke 12.35
Prayer: “Almighty,
everlasting God, you have promised us a new heaven and a new earth in which
righteousness dwells. Direct us by your
Spirit, that we may wait watchfully for the coming of your Son, and with holy
lives go forth to meet him, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen” (K.B. Ritter, Gebete für das jahr der Kirche,
2nd ed. Kassel: Barenreiter Verlag,
1948, p.235).
Bible reading for the day: Mark 12.38-44
38 And in his teaching he said, “Beware
of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes and like greetings in the
marketplaces 39 and have the best seats in the synagogues and the
places of honor at feasts, 40 who devour widows' houses and for a
pretense make long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.”
41 And he sat down opposite the treasury and
watched the people putting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in
large sums. 42 And a poor widow came and put in two small copper
coins, which make a penny. 43 And he called his disciples to him and
said to them, “Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all
those who are contributing to the offering box. 44 For they all
contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything
she had, all she had to live on.”
Prayer (based on
T.R.I.P. method**): Gracious and almighty Father, thank you for
respecting neither our religious pedigrees and projects, nor our pretentious
prayers. Thank you for this widow who is all-in with you. Holding on to the
wrong thing or person, to anything or anyone other than you only leads to our
condemnation, Lord… so free us so that we cling to you alone the way she does.
I ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Hymn: follow this
link to a beloved classic hymn that gives further voice to today’s conversation
with the Lord: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P5DXzz-eECI
I believe in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord…
What does this mean?
I believe that Jesus Christ — true God, begotten of the
Father from eternity, and also true man, born of the Virgin Mary — is my Lord.
He has redeemed me, a lost and condemned creature, and has freed me from sin,
death, and the power of the devil, not with silver and gold, but with his holy
and precious blood and his innocent suffering and death. He has done all this
in order that I might be his own, live under him in his kingdom, and serve him
in everlasting righteousness, innocence, and blessedness, even as he is risen
from the dead and lives and reigns for all eternity. This is most certainly
true! (from The Small Catechism, by Martin
Luther ©Reclaim Resources, Sola Publishing, 2011)
Benediction: The
grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the
Holy Spirit be with us all. Amen. II Cor 13.14
*There are many patterns for devotions. This pattern has been followed by God’s
people for centuries.
**The T.R.I.P. approach to
prayer is based on the way Martin Luther prayed and taught others to pray. It was later developed by Walter and Ingrid
Trobisch and then adapted by Mount Carmel Ministries (Alexandria , MN
www.dailytext.com). The method is founded on scripture and easy
to remember:
T:
thanksgiving
R: regret (repentance)
I:
intercession (asking God to take a specific action)
P:
plan or purpose
Reading a biblical text and
then applying this method gives one a sound, simple way to form one’s
prayers...not to mention that it helps one learn how to faithfully reflect on
God’s Word and talk to God.
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