How great Thou art...

Verse for the week: “I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn.” Zechariah 12.10

Prayer for the week: God, our heavenly Father, through your Son you have promised us the Holy Spirit.  Send down upon us that Spirit, that he may teach us to show forth your praise, not only here on earth in weakness, since we know your power and glory only from afar, but also in power and glory on that day when, united with the choir of angels, we shall see you face to face; through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord.  Amen. (K.B. Ritter, Gebete fur das jahr der Kirche,2^nd ed. Kassel: Johannes Stauda-Verlag, 1948, p.150)

Bible reading for the day: Psalm 66.8-20 (note: this song begins with the hymn of the great congregation who has been liberated by the Lord and the hymn concludes with the vows of praise by an individual in that congregation. “Our” and “I”, congregation and individual, are coordinated under and in the Lord’s praise)

⁸ Bless our God, O peoples;
    let the sound of his praise be heard,
⁹ who has kept our soul among the living
    and has not let our feet slip.
¹⁰ For you, O God, have tested us;
    you have tried us as silver is tried.
¹¹ You brought us into the net;
    you laid a crushing burden on our backs;
¹² you let men ride over our heads;
    we went through fire and through water;
yet you have brought us out to a place of abundance.

¹³ I will come into your house with burnt offerings;
    I will perform my vows to you,
¹⁴ that which my lips uttered
    and my mouth promised when I was in trouble.
¹⁵ I will offer to you burnt offerings of fattened animals,
    with the smoke of the sacrifice of rams;
I will make an offering of bulls and goats. 

¹⁶ Come and hear, all you who fear God,
    and I will tell what he has done for my soul.
¹⁷ I cried to him with my mouth,
    and high praise was on my tongue.
¹⁸ If I had cherished iniquity in my heart,
    the Lord would not have listened.
¹⁹ But truly God has listened;
    he has attended to the voice of my prayer.

²⁰ Blessed be God,
    because he has not rejected my prayer
    or removed his steadfast love from me!

Prayer (based on T.R.I.P. method**): Gracious and almighty Father, thank you: like silver that is tried, purified; like wheat that is crushed, milled for new use, you bring us not around hardship but right through it to the place of your abundant grace… where life inside of Christ is bigger than it appeared from the outside… where the lungs of our souls can breathe deeply and expand. Keep it up Lord, for my congregation and for me… that with my own mouth, my own voice, I will tell what you have done for my soul. Bless you indeed, O Lord; 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=Cc0QVWzCv9k

“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, even 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 ©Reclaim Resources, Sola Publishing, 2011)

Benediction:  The peace of God which surpasses all understanding keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.  Phil 4.7

*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.