Put not your trust in...

Verse for the week: “Behold, I send my messenger and he will prepare the way before me.” Malachi 3.1

Prayer for the 3^rd week of Advent: “Lord Jesus, our Light and our Salvation, you alone are the one who was to come to save us.  We thank you for your coming and for your will to perform in us again your saving work.  Rule us by your Holy Spirit, that henceforth we may wait for none other and put our trust in nothing in heaven or earth except you alone, our Lord.  Amen.” (Martin Moller, Thesaurus precationum, 1603; text in Gerhard Molwitz, Lutherisches Gebetbuch, p.41.)

Bible reading for the day: Psalm 146

Praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord, O my soul!
² I will praise the Lord as long as I live;
    I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.

³ Put not your trust in princes,
    in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation.
⁴ When his breath departs, he returns to the earth;
    on that very day his plans perish.

⁵ Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob,
    whose hope is in the Lord his God,
⁶ who made heaven and earth,
    the sea, and all that is in them,
who keeps faith forever;
⁷     who executes justice for the oppressed,
    who gives food to the hungry.

The Lord sets the prisoners free;
⁸     the Lord opens the eyes of the blind.
The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down;
    the Lord loves the righteous.
⁹ The Lord watches over the sojourners;
    he upholds the widow and the fatherless,
    but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.

¹⁰ The Lord will reign forever,
    your God, O Zion, to all generations.
Praise the Lord!

Prayer (based on T.R.I.P. method**): Gracious and almighty Father, thank you for sending Jesus, the only one who can get the job done to free a prisoner of sin like me. Kings, celebrities, presidents… no son of man is salvation for me or anyone. By your great faithfulness Lord, I will praise you as long as I live; in Jesus’ name, amen.

Hymn: follow this link to a portion of Handel’s “Messiah” that gives perfect voice to today’s conversation with the Lord (put your ear buds in, turn it up, and enjoyJ:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUZEtVbJT5c

Benediction: “the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”  Philippians 4.7

*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.