it is marvelous in our eyes.” Psalm 118.23
Prayer for the week: Almighty God, draw our hearts to you, guide our minds, fill our
imaginations, control our wills, so that we may be wholly yours. Use us as you
will, always to your glory and the welfare of our neighbor; through Jesus
Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.
Bible reading for the day: Genesis 11.1-9 (Our
natural, sinful inclination is to make a name for ourselves. Here is what the
Lord does to such attempts of our will.)
Now the whole earth had
one language and the same words. 2 And as people
migrated from the east, they found a plain in the land of Shinar and
settled there. 3 And they said to one another,
“Come, let us make bricks, and burn them thoroughly.” And they had brick for
stone, and bitumen for mortar. 4 Then they
said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the
heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be dispersed over the
face of the whole earth.” 5 And the Lord came
down to see the city and the tower, which the children of man had built. 6 And
the Lord said, “Behold, they are one people, and they have all one
language, and this is only the beginning of what they will do. And nothing that
they propose to do will now be impossible for them. 7 Come, let
us go down and there confuse their language, so that they may not understand
one another's speech.” 8 So the Lord dispersed
them from there over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the
city. 9 Therefore its name was called Babel,
because there the Lord confused the language of all the earth.
And from there the Lord dispersed them over the face of all the
earth.
Prayer of the Day: Gracious Lord God, thank you for condescending… for coming down to earth
in Jesus to become our sin that we might become your witnesses. Daily deliver
me and your whole church from all the self-glorifying projects of our will. Set
us on our only true starting place and foundation: Christ crucified for the
salvation of sinners. In Jesus’ name I ask this. Amen.
Hymn: follow this link to a beloved classic that gives
further voice to today’s conversation with the Lord: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1YBYrJ8Hzg&ab_channel=MartijndeGroot
I believe in God the Father, creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord. He was
conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He suffered under
Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended into hell. On
the third day he rose again. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right
hand of the Father. He will come again to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Christian church, the
communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and
the life everlasting. Amen.
Benediction: For the Lord takes pleasure
in his people;
he adorns the humble with salvation. Psalm 149.4
*This is now
our congregation’s 99th year in the Word. In 2025, we are reading
from Genesis to Revelation, with a few interludes along the way.
