4“Hear, O
Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 5 You shall
love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and
with all your might. 6 And these words that I
command you today shall be on your heart. 7 You
shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you
sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and
when you rise. 8 You shall bind them as a sign on
your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 9 You
shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. Deut 6.4-9
Malachi 4.5-6 “Behold,
I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day
of the Lord comes. 6 And he
will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of
children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree
of utter destruction.” (these are
the final words of the Old Testament).
Luke 1.16-17 And
he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, 17 and he
will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the
hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom
of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.”
Ephesians 5.20-24,25,6.4
“…giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name
of our Lord Jesus Christ, 21submitting to one another out of
reverence for Christ; 22wives, submit to your own husbands, as to
the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ
is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior… 25
Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for
her… 6.4Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring
them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.
Prayer:
Gracious and almighty Father, in your Son Jesus you
freely give forgiveness, life and salvation to me and to all those with ears to
hear. Thank you! Your blueprint, your design for redeeming the world and making
disciples starts with the family, even with my family. Give men and women ears
to hear this calling; give me ears to hear it. Establish and strengthen husband
and wife under Christ. Guide parents as the key teachers for their children.
Inspire fathers and mothers to read the Bible, teach the catechism, and pray
with one another at home and when away. For persons who are single, sustain
them in faith in you and in purity. Lead me and our congregation to engage
people wherever they are with the love truth of Jesus Christ. Keep the leaders
of our congregation disciplined and focused on our vision to help more families
follow you; in your name I pray. Amen[i]
Hymn: for this
link to a beloved hymn that gives further voice to today’s conversation with
the Lord: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMY3ivdNzwE
“Hallowed be thy name…”
What does this mean?
God's name is indeed holy in itself, but we pray in this
petition that it may be kept holy also among us.
How is this done?
God's name is hallowed when his Word is taught in its
truth and purity and we, as God's children, lead holy lives in harmony with it.
Grant this to us, dear Father in heaven! But whoever teaches and lives in ways
other than what God's Word teaches dishonors the name of God among us. Prevent
us from doing this, heavenly Father! (from The Small Catechism, by Martin
Luther ©Reclaim Resources, Sola Publishing, 2011)
benediction:
The Lord will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life.
The
Lord will keep your going out and your coming in
From
this time on and forevermore. Ps 121.7-8
[i]
This prayer is based on the Bible readings and St. Paul Lutheran Church, New
Braunfels, vision to be a congregation that engages people in order to help
more families follow Jesus. What vision has the Lord given your congregation
for ministry? How well do you know it and support it?
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