God's Tamper-proof Word

“…thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” Matthew 6.10

Prayer for the week:  Eternal Lord, your kingdom has broken into our troubled world through the life, death, and resurrection of your Son. Help us to hear your Word and obey it, so that we become instruments of your redeeming love; through your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen. (Lutheran Book of Worship)

Bible reading for the day:  Deuteronomy 4.1-4 (note: Deuteronomy means “second law.” A subsequent generation after the Exile is claiming the faith as their own and testifying to the crucial importance of submitting to the Word of God rather than tampering with it.)

“And now, O Israel, listen to the statutes and the rules that I am teaching you, and do them, that you may live, and go in and take possession of the land that the Lord, the God of your fathers, is giving you. ² You shall not add to the word that I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God that I command you. ³ Your eyes have seen what the Lord did at Baal-peor, for the Lord your God destroyed from among you all the men who followed the Baal of Peor. ⁴ But you who held fast to the Lord your God are all alive today.

Prayer (based on T.R.I.P. method*):  Gracious and almighty Father, your word, your living voice is the way of life for us: your law speaks and our sin and pride are condemned to death; Christ speaks the better word of your forgiveness for us sinners and our trust in you is given life. Thank you! Repent me and your whole church of tampering with your Word. When we would talk over you, shut us up and let your Word work for us… that we may hold fast to you. In Jesus’ name I pray, 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=X2bhHosLHmI 

“Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”

What does this mean? The good and gracious will of God is done indeed without our prayer, but we ask in this petition that it may be done also among us.

When does this happen? God’s will is done when he hinders and defeats every evil scheme and purpose of the devil, the world, and our sinful self which would prevent keeping God’s name holy and would oppose the coming of his kingdom. And God’s will is done when he strengthens our faith and keeps us firm in his word as long as we live. This is his gracious and good will. (from “The Small Catechism” by Martin Luther)

Benediction: “Make me to know your ways, O Lord;
    teach me your paths.
⁵ Lead me in your truth and teach me,
    for you are the God of my salvation;
    for you I wait all the day long.”  Psalm 25.4-5

 

*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).  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. 

 

What corrupt ones like us need

“…thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” Matthew 6.10

Prayer for the week:  Eternal Lord, your kingdom has broken into our troubled world through the life, death, and resurrection of your Son. Help us to hear your Word and obey it, so that we become instruments of your redeeming love; through your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen. (Lutheran Book of Worship)

Bible reading for the day:  Psalm 14 

The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.”
    They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds;
    there is none who does good.

² The Lord looks down from heaven on the children of man,
    to see if there are any who understand,
    who seek after God.

³ They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt;
    there is none who does good,
    not even one.

⁴ Have they no knowledge, all the evildoers
    who eat up my people as they eat bread
    and do not call upon the Lord?

⁵ There they are in great terror,
    for God is with the generation of the righteous.
⁶ You would shame the plans of the poor,
    for the Lord is his refuge.

⁷ Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion!
    When the Lord restores the fortunes of his people,
    let Jacob rejoice, let Israel be glad.

Prayer (based on T.R.I.P. method*):  Gracious and almighty Father, we are all corrupt… none of us do good. Thank you for sending salvation for us out from your very self in Christ Jesus. He alone is our refuge and strength; so restore me and my congregation in him again today… that your will may be done among us and we may rejoice. 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=YIHD40CZY34

“Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”

What does this mean? The good and gracious will of God is done indeed without our prayer, but we ask in this petition that it may be done also among us.

When does this happen? God’s will is done when he hinders and defeats every evil scheme and purpose of the devil, the world, and our sinful self which would prevent us from keeping God’s name holy and would oppose the coming of his kingdom. And God’s will is done when he strengthens our faith and keeps us firm in his word as long as we live. This is his gracious and good will. (from “The Small Catechism” by Martin Luther)

Benediction: “Make me to know your ways, O Lord;
    teach me your paths.
⁵ Lead me in your truth and teach me,
    for you are the God of my salvation;
    for you I wait all the day long.”  Psalm 25.4-5

 

*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).  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.  

When you pray...

Invitatory:     Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters;
                                           and you that have no money, come, buy and eat!  Is 55.1

Morning prayer:  Lord Jesus Christ, you walked the way of the cross as the obedient servant of God.  Open our ears and teach us by your Spirit, that we may not rebel but walk in the obedience of disciples who have learned from you, who with the Father and the Holy Spirit live and reign, one God, now and forever.  Amen. [John W. Doberstein, Minister’s Prayer Book, Fortress Press, Philadelphia, 1986  p.82]

Bible reading for the day:  Luke 11.1-4

Now Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.” ² And he said to them, “When you pray, say:

“Father, hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come.
³ Give us each day our daily bread,
⁴ and forgive us our sins,
for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us.
And lead us not into temptation.”

Prayer (based on TRIP* method):  Gracious and almighty Father, thank you for sending Jesus to redeem us and to redeem our praying.  Repent me and your whole church of praying to ourselves or to any other than YOU.  Teach us each to call on you just as children speak to their loving father…for you are our beginning, our end, and our life in between, in Jesus’ name. 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=26rq0spuLao

“Our Father who art in heaven…”

What does this mean for us?

God encourages us to believe that he is truly our Father, and that we are truly his children, so we may boldly and confidently pray to him, just as beloved children speak to their dear father. (from The Small Catechism, by Martin Luther, ©Reclaim Resources, Sola Publishing, 2011)

Benediction:  Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and through grace gave us eternal comfort and good hope, comfort your hearts and strengthen them in every good work and word.  Amen.  II Thess 2.16-17

 

*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).  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.  

To whom shall we pray?

Invitatory:  Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters;
                             and you that have no money, come, buy and eat!  Is 55.1

Morning prayer:  Lord Jesus Christ, you walked the way of the cross as the obedient servant of God.  Open our ears and teach us by your Spirit, that we may not rebel but walk in the obedience of disciples who have learned from you, who with the Father and the Holy Spirit live and reign, one God, now and forever.  Amen. [John W. Doberstein, Minister’s Prayer Book, Fortress Press, Philadelphia, 1986  p.82]

Bible reading for the day: Acts 17.22-31

So Paul, standing in the midst of the Areopagus, said: “Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious. ²³ For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription: ‘To the unknown god.’ What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you. ²⁴ The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, ²⁵ nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything. ²⁶ And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, ²⁷ that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us, ²⁸ for

“‘In him we live and move and have our being’;

as even some of your own poets have said,

“‘For we are indeed his offspring.’

²⁹ Being then God's offspring, we ought not to think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of man. ³⁰ The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, ³¹ because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.”

Prayer (based on TRIP* method):  Gracious and almighty Father, you are not an unknown… not a fabrication of our religious ideas. You are the Lord who made the world and everything in it, you give life and breath and everything to all mankind… and you revealed yourself fully in Christ crucified and raised for us and for our salvation. Thank you!  Hold me and your whole church fast to yourself in Jesus Christ and give us to our neighbor in his name. 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=26rq0spuLao

“Our Father, who art in heaven…

What does this mean?

God encourages us to believe that he is truly our Father, and that we are truly his children, so we may boldly and confidently pray to him, just as beloved children speak to their dear father. (from The Small Catechism, by Martin Luther ©Reclaim Resources, Sola Publishing, 2011)

Benediction:  Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and through grace gave us eternal comfort and good hope, comfort your hearts and strengthen them in every good work and word.  Amen.  II Thess 2.16-17

 

 

* 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).  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. 

Praying against ourselves...

...is what Jesus teaches.

“You are dust, and to dust you shall return.” Genesis 3.19c

Prayer for the week:  Dear Lord, the sacrifice acceptable to you is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.  Now teach me this Lord, for I cannot learn it on my own. I ask this in Jesus’ name.  Amen.

Bible reading for the day:  Matthew 6.7-15  (note: During one of his more famous sermons, Jesus gives us the gold standard, the model, for how he wants us to pray to our heavenly Father.)

 “And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. ⁸ Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. ⁹ Pray then like this:

“Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.
¹⁰ Your kingdom come,
your will be done,
    on earth as it is in heaven.
¹¹ Give us this day our daily bread,
¹² and forgive us our debts[1],
    as we also have forgiven our debtors.
¹³ And lead us not into temptation,
    but deliver us from evil.

¹⁴ For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, ¹⁵ but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

Prayer (based on T.R.I.P. method*):  Gracious and almighty Father, thank you for teaching us to call on you in prayer. You are the reliable one, not me. So, deliver me constantly from the empty phrases of my self and place me squarely in your loving care… for you already know exactly what I truly need; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. 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=26rq0spuLao

“Our Father who art in heaven”

What does this mean? Here God encourages to believe that he is truly our Father, and that we are truly his children, so we may boldly and confidently pray to him, just as beloved children speak to their dear loving father. (from “The Small Catechism” by Martin Luther)

Benediction: “May the Lord have mercy on you, according to his steadfast love; according to his abundant mercy may he blot out your transgressions.”  Psalm 51.1

 

*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).  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. 

---

[1] The Greek word here (opheilemata) implies legal obligation, a sense of being under the demand of the law.

Ash Wednesday: your broken heart

“You are dust, and to dust you shall return.” Genesis 3.19c

Prayer for the week:  Dear Lord, the sacrifice acceptable to you is a broken spirit. A broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.  Now teach me this Lord, for I cannot learn it on my own. I ask this in Jesus’ name.  Amen.

Bible reading for the day:  Psalm 51 (note: written by King David after his sin is exposed to him by the Lord’s preacher, Nathan)

 ¹ Have mercy on me, O God,
according to your steadfast love;
according to your abundant mercy
blot out my transgressions.
² Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,
and cleanse me from my sin!

³ For I know my transgressions,
and my sin is ever before me.
⁴ Against you, you only, have I sinned
and done what is evil in your sight,
so that you may be justified in your words
and blameless in your judgment.
⁵ Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity,
and in sin did my mother conceive me.
⁶ Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being,
and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart.

⁷ Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
⁸ Let me hear joy and gladness;
let the bones that you have broken rejoice.
⁹ Hide your face from my sins,
and blot out all my iniquities.
¹⁰ Create in me a clean heart, O God,
and renew a right spirit within me.
¹¹ Cast me not away from your presence,
and take not your Holy Spirit from me.
¹² Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
and uphold me with a willing spirit.

¹³ Then I will teach transgressors your ways,
and sinners will return to you.
¹⁴ Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God,
O God of my salvation,
and my tongue will sing aloud of your righteousness.
¹⁵ O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth will declare your praise.
¹⁶ For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it;
you will not be pleased with a burnt offering.

¹⁷ The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;
a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.

¹⁸ Do good to Zion in your good pleasure;
build up the walls of Jerusalem;
¹⁹ then will you delight in right sacrifices,
in burnt offerings and whole burnt offerings;
then bulls will be offered on your altar.

Prayer (based on T.R.I.P. method*):  Gracious and almighty Father, thank you for your steadfast love and mercy that judges my sin… and creates in me a clean heart. Keep it up Lord, rend and mend me all the way to the heart, and return me to you… today and for eternity, through your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord. 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=waWQUOgwNGs

Benediction: “May the Lord have mercy on you, according to his steadfast love; according to his abundant mercy may he blot out your transgressions.”  Psalm 51.1

 

*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).  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.  

Non-fat Tuesday

Verse for the week:“The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil”  I John 3.8

Prayer for the week:  O God, by whose Spirit we are led into the wilderness of trial, grant that, standing in your strength against the powers of darkness, we may so win the victory over all evil suggestions that with singleness of heart we may ever serve you and you alone; through him who was in all points tempted as we are, your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen. (John Wallace Suter, Prayers of the Spirit  New York: Harper & Bros. 1943, p.22.)

Bible reading for the day:  Joel 2.1-3,12-13

¹Blow a trumpet in Zion;
    sound an alarm on my holy mountain!
Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble,
    for the day of the Lord is coming; it is near,
² a day of darkness and gloom,
    a day of clouds and thick darkness!
Like blackness there is spread upon the mountains
    a great and powerful people;
their like has never been before,
    nor will be again after them
    through the years of all generations.

³ Fire devours before them,
    and behind them a flame burns.
The land is like the garden of Eden before them,
    but behind them a desolate wilderness,
    and nothing escapes them.

 

¹²“Yet even now,” declares the Lord,
    “return to me with all your heart,
with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning;
¹³     and rend your hearts and not your garments.”
Return to the Lord your God,
    for he is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love;
    and he relents over disaster.

Prayer (based on TRIP* method):  Gracious and almighty Father, thank you for your steadfast love that sounds the alarm of your judgment on our sin, and best of all, returns us to you through your Son, Jesus Christ! Thank you. Deliver me and your church from superficial, fat religious repentance. Rend me and my brothers & sisters all the way to the heart Lord, and then mend us with the perfect sutures of your great and tender mercy… that by your grace we may fear, love and trust you above all else. I ask this in Jesus’ name, amen.

Hymn:  follow this link to a beloved hymn that gives further voice to today’s conversation with the Lord:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ah6xIq4mL0I

“I believe in Jesus Christ…”

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, just 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)

Benediction:  May the God of peace himself grow you in his will entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be kept sound and blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.  The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do this.  Amen.  I Thess 5.23

*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).  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.