Verse for the week:
Lo, your king comes to you; triumphant and victorious is he,
humble and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a
donkey. Zech 9.9
Prayer for the 1st week of Advent: “Almighty God and
Lord, come to us with all your power and help us who are anxious and
troubled. Send us the Savior, that he
may enter our hearts, and with your light illumine our night, through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen.” (K.B. Ritter, Gebete fur das Jahr der Kirche, 1st
ed. Kassel: Barenreiter Verlag, 1933,
p.35.)
Bible reading for the day: Mark 13.24-37
24“But in those days, after that
tribulation, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its
light, 25 and the stars will be falling from
heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken. 26 And
then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power
and glory.27 And then he will send out the angels
and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of
the earth to the ends of heaven.
28 “From the fig tree learn
its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you
know that summer is near. 29 So also, when you see
these things taking place, you know that he is near, at the very
gates. 30 Truly, I say to you, this generation will
not pass away until all these things take place. 31 Heaven
and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
32 “But concerning that day
or that hour, no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the
Son, but only the Father. 33 Be on
guard, keep awake. For you do not know when the time will come. 34 It
is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his
servants in charge, each with his work, and commands the
doorkeeper to stay awake. 35 Therefore stay
awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the
evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or in
the morning— 36 lest he come suddenly
and find you asleep. 37 And what I say to you
I say to all: Stay awake.”
Prayer (based on T.R.I.P. method**): Gracious and
almighty Father, thank you that you are the elector, the chooser… and that you
have chosen me among your elect. Repent my proud will of going shopping for a
god of my own choosing. While together with your whole church I wait in this
decaying world for Jesus’ return, put your everlasting word in my ears again
and again… be my sentinel because I can get sleepy too easily. I ask this in
Jesus’ name, amen.
Music: follow
this link to an excerpt from Handel’s “Messiah” which gives further voice to
today’s conversation with the Lord: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b6nhAA_lg_o
Benediction: And after you have suffered for a
little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in
Christ, will himself restore, support, strengthen, and establish you this
day. To him be the power forever and
ever. Amen. (1 Pet 5:10)
*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.
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