Prayer for the week: “Almighty, everlasting God,
mercifully behold us who have been made your children through baptism and,
according to your grace, grant that your promises may be fulfilled in us;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.” (K.B. Ritter, Gebete fur das jahr der
Kirche, 2nd ed. Kassel:
Barenreiter Verlag, 1948, p. 183).
Bible reading for the day: Matthew 16.21-28 (Jesus has just
promised to found his church on the confession of his name alone as Lord and
God; and he has committed to his disciples the duty to bind and forgive sin.)
16 From that time Jesus began to show his
disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from
the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third
day be raised. 22 And Peter took him aside and
began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never
happen to you.” 23 But he turned and said to
Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me.
For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things
of man.”
24 Then Jesus told his
disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself
and take up his cross and follow me. 25 For whoever
would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake
will find it. 26 For what will it profit a man
if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man
give in return for his soul? 27 For the Son of Man
is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then
he will repay each person according to what he has done. 28 Truly,
I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste
death until they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”
Prayer (based on the TRIP* method): Gracious
and almighty Father, thank you for speaking your mind, your love for us, in
Christ crucified for our rescue. To Satan and to my pride, the way of the
cross, of self-loss, is scandal… and by your sheer grace it is the coming of
your kingdom to us. Keep it coming Lord… daily… that I may find myself lost and
saved in Christ alone. In his name I pray, amen.
Hymn: follow this link to a beloved, classic hymn
that gives further voice to today’s conversation with the Lord: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSrfJ9WUQik&ab_channel=ChetValleyChurches
What does baptism mean for daily life?
It means that our sinful self, with all its evil deeds and
desires, should be drown through daily repentance; and that day after day a new
self should arise to live with God in righteousness and purity forever.
St. Paul writes in Romans 6: “Do you not know that all of
us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his
death? 4 We were buried therefore with him by
baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead
by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.” (from The Small Catechism, by Martin Luther)
Benediction: Now
to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far
more than all we can ask or imagine, to him be glory in the church and in
Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. (Eph 3:20-21)
*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.
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