Verse for the week:
11“I am the good shepherd… 27My sheep hear my
voice. I know them, and they follow me. 28I give them eternal life,
and they will never perish. No one will snatch them out of my hand.” John
10.11, 27-28
Prayer for the week:
O Savior Christ, you lead to immortal happiness those who entrust
themselves to you. Grant that we, being
weak, presume not to trust in ourselves, but may always have your voice, Good
Shepherd, in our ears; that you, who alone knows the way, may lead us to our
heavenly fold. To you with the Father
and the Holy Spirit be glory forever.
Amen. (Primer, 1545, adapted)
Bible reading for the day: John 10.1-11
1
“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door
but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber. 2 But
he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. 3 To
him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep
by name and leads them out. 4 When he has brought
out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know
his voice. 5 A stranger they will not follow, but
they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.” 6 This
figure of speech Jesus used with them, but they did not understand
what he was saying to them.
7 So
Jesus again said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door
of the sheep. 8 All who came before me are thieves
and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. 9 I
am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and
out and find pasture. 10 The thief comes only
to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it
abundantly. 11 I am the good shepherd. The good
shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.
Prayer
(based on the TRIP** method): Gracious
and almighty Father, thank you for coming in Christ Jesus to be our true
shepherd and for leading us into your kingdom through him. There are robbers…thieves…attractive voices
within us and around us that would steal us away from you, Lord. Repent us of listening to them…for they come
only to kill & destroy me and my family… the alluring, false pasture they
offer is a death trap. Tune our ears & hearts to your clear, quiet, strong
voice, O Lord, for in you alone we and our families and our neighbors indeed
have life and have it to the full. I ask
this in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Hymn: follow this
link to a beloved classic which gives further voice to today’s conversation
with the Lord: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LF2M8nvKK9k
“Lead us not into temptation…”
What does this mean?
God indeed tempts no one to sin, but we pray in this
petition that God would guard and protect us from this, that the devil, the
world, and our sinful nature may not deceive us or lead us into false belief,
despair, and other great and shameful sins, but pray that when we are tempted
in these ways, we may finally prevail and gain the victory. (from The Small Catechism, by Martin
Luther ©Reclaim Resources, Sola Publishing, 2011)
Benediction: The
God of hope fill us with all joy and peace in believing, that we may abound in
hope, in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Amen. (Romans 15.13)
*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
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.
No comments:
Post a Comment