Devotion by: Prue WelshMatthew 9:35-10:8 35 Then Jesus went aboutall the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and curing every disease and every sickness. 36When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37Then he said to his disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few; 38therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers into his harvest.’ 10Then Jesus summoned his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to cure every disease and every sickness. 2These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon, also known as Peter, and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John; 3Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax-collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus;Simon the Cananaean, and Judas Iscariot, the one who betrayed him. 5 These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: ‘Go nowhere among the Gentiles, and enter no town of the Samaritans, 6but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. 7As you go, proclaim the good news, “The kingdom of heaven has come near.”8Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. You received without payment; give without payment.
Jesus said to his disciples in verses 37 and 38, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”
Just as Jesus called his disciples to tell others about God’s love, as Christians, it is our duty to continue Jesus’ work today. We too can harvest the fields of nonbelievers or those who have strayed from their faith.
Invite a family member, friend, neighbor or coworker to share Advent and Christmas worship with us. Reach out to those in need offering your time, talents and gifts. Helping others brings us closer to God and helps others see the power of Christ’s love for us.
Prayer: Lord, help us to have the courage to reach out to others in need, to help or share our lives as Jesus taught us to do. Amen.
Devotion by: Rudy ChatlosLuke 1:26-38
26In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, 27to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28And he came to her and said, ‘Greetings, favoured one! The Lord is with you. 29But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. 30The angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favour with God. 31And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. 32He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. 33He will reign over the house of Jacob for ever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.’ 34Mary said to the angel, ‘How can this be, since I am a virgin?’ 35The angel said to her, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God. 36And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. 37For nothing will be impossible with God.’ 38Then Mary said, ‘Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.’ Then the angel departed from her.
I feel mystery and wonder as I read this passage; I always have. We know this gospel was written by Luke, the Greek physician, who traveled with Paul. He used interviews and eyewitness accounts to write about the humanity and divinity of Jesus only 30 years after his death. Who could be more precise and factual than Luke? But it is still full of mystery.
And yet Luke reports of a virgin birth, one conceived by the Holy Spirit as if he were in the very room at the time. His whole gospel is filled with miracles. In this passage, the angel says to Mary, “you will be with child and give birth to a son…give him the name Jesus”. Mary, out of her humanity, comes back, “How will this be…since I am a virgin?” Gabriel says, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you…the power of the Most High will overshadow you...nothing is impossible with God.” Mary responds, “I am the Lord’s servant…may it be to me as you have said.”
Prayer: Even though I may not fully understand (just like Mary), may I also be willing to be God’s servant, touched by the Holy Spirit, filled with new life, and working to bring God’s great gift to the world through Jesus Christ. Amen.
Devotion by: Yvonne PowellMatthew 7:21, 24-27
21Not everyone who says to me, “Lord, Lord”, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only one who does the will of my Father in heaven. 24Everyone then who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. 25The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on rock. 26And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not act on them will be like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell—and great was its fall!
In these verses, Jesus talks about following in his footsteps and obeying his commands. A wise person follows Jesus and his house can not be shaken. I was driving to work one day and these words came into my mind. Deny thyself—pick up your cross and follow me. What wonderful words to meditate upon. When I do not focus my life on Jesus, I tend to slip on the sand like the foolish person in the text. But when I turn my whole attention to the voice of Jesus, he keeps me standing strong to face all adversity. He is my rock!
Prayer: Lord, I ask that you come into my heart and stand with me against all evil forces that shake my innermost being. Please be my strong rock. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.
Devotion by: Steve O’ConnorPsalm 23
The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside still waters;
3 he restores my soul.
He leads me in right paths
for his name’s sake.
4Even though I walk through the darkest valley,
I fear no evil;
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff—
they comfort me.
5You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
6Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord
my whole life long.
Here is a familiar passage of Scripture needing no introduction. “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul. . . .” These are calming, comforting, and peaceful words indeed.
For many, the holiday season is anything but peaceful. Preceded by Thanksgiving gatherings with family, and followed by New Year festivities, the Advent/Christmas season can become an endurance race for some. Events, such as parties at work and home, compete for limited free time with other obligations of the season: shopping for and wrapping gifts; mailing Christmas cards; buying a tree; decorating the tree and the home; planning, shopping for, and preparing meals for family and friends (to name a few). Sometimes it seems like there are always more things that need doing to prepare for Christmas than time will permit. It can be, in a word, hectic.
I felt this way most strongly six years ago. In that year, on the Thursday before the first Sunday of Advent, I had to leave my home and begin a new chapter in my life. Because I could not close on my new home until mid-December, my belongings went off to storage and I went off to live in a one room suite at a local hotel. Despite the abnormal circumstances, I was determined to make that first Christmas as normal as possible for me and my children. So while I struggled to adapt to my new existence, I also frantically rushed to and fro trying to find tree lights, ornaments and other trimmings, putting up the tree, buying and wrapping gifts, etc. It was not only hectic, but also stressful. Eventually, Christmas Eve day arrived. After enjoying dinner with the kids, we set out for church and the family service. Following a tumultuous 24 days, here at last was a chance to catch my breath. And as we sang along to Walt’s beautiful music the words of the familiar carols, I began to feel that sense of peace which is so wonderfully expressed through the psalmist’s words.
Thankfully, since that “first” Christmas six years ago the Advent season has not been quite so hectic for me. But when the stress of uncompleted holiday tasks begins to rise, I try to focus on that peaceful that comes with remembering what the Advent season is all about.
Prayer: Gracious God: lead us beside quiet waters during this Advent season. Bless us with your Spirit, and keep us mindful that the comfort and joy of Christmas does not originate within ourselves. It is your gift to us. Amen.
Devotion by: Greta RymalIsaiah 11:1-10
11A shoot shall come out from the stock of Jesse,
and a branch shall grow out of his roots.
2The spirit of the Lord shall rest on him,
the spirit of wisdom and understanding,
the spirit of counsel and might,
the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.
3His delight shall be in the fear of the Lord,
He shall not judge by what his eyes see,
or decide by what his ears hear;
4but with righteousness he shall judge the poor,
and decide with equity for the meek of the earth;
he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth,
and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked.
5Righteousness shall be the belt around his waist,
and faithfulness the belt around his loins.
6The wolf shall live with the lamb,
the leopard shall lie down with the kid,
the calf and the lion and the fatling together,
and a little child shall lead them.
7The cow and the bear shall graze,
their young shall lie down together;
and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
8The nursing child shall play over the hole of the asp,
and the weaned child shall put its hand on the adder’s den.
9They will not hurt or destroy
on all my holy mountain;
for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord
as the waters cover the sea.
10On that day the root of Jesse shall stand as a signal to the peoples; the nations shall inquire of him, and his dwelling shall be glorious.
There are so many messages in that passage that we can draw, so I hope you read the whole passage from your Bible. A part of our Baptismal liturgy is derived from verse 2 in which Isaiah tells us “the Spirit of the Lord will rest on him (the Messiah).” But what struck me the most this time in reading the passage are the images of justice (verses 3-4).
“He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes, or decide by what he hears with his ears; but with righteousness…”
I am prone to making snap judgments about people, about facts, and many other things. During the recent election campaign period we were bombarded with sound bites seeking to influence our judgment through our eyes and our ears. How comforting this passage is for me to know that the Messiah will judge by righteousness (v. 4) and faithfulness (v 5). No wonder we are excited about his coming!
Prayer: Lord, let me open my heart and mind to your always present Holy Spirit and let my judgments be led more by your will than by what my eyes think they see or my ears think they hear. Amen.
Devotion by: Gerald TeitmanMatthew 8:5-11
5When he entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, appealing to him 6and saying, ‘Lord, my servant is lying at home paralysed, in terrible distress.’ 7And he said to him, ‘I will come and cure him.’ 8The centurion answered, ‘Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof; but only speak the word, and my servant will be healed. 9For I also am a man under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to one, “Go”, and he goes, and to another, “Come”, and he comes, and to my slave, “Do this”, and the slave does it.’ 10When Jesus heard him, he was amazed and said to those who followed him, ‘Truly I tell you, in no one* in Israel have I found such faith. 11I tell you, many will come from east and west and will eat with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.
The Roman Centurion, a non-Jew, and the leader of a century (100 soldiers in a century; 60 centuries in a Legion) recognizes the religious authority of Jesus and displays a profound faith in Jesus’ authority over sickness and even death. This faith is rewarded. Jesus tells the centurion, “Go home. It shall be done because you trusted.” At that very moment the boy got better.
Most of us do not possess the faith of the centurion. Our faith is fragile, either awaiting the next sign or miracle in our life to reinforce that God still loves us. I have often felt that had I the experience of Paul or Thomas or the centurion, I, too, would have an unshakeable faith.
But, God did give us each a sign on which to base our faith, the Cross. The seed of faith that was sown and watered in Baptism, nourished by Word and Sacrament, can be rejuvenated by focusing on the Cross and the eternal life that it bought for each of us. A gift that only requires the faith to know it is so.
Prayer: Dear God, thank you for the gift of Your Son and His redemptive death on the cross. During the many times that my faith is less than that of the Centurion, give me the gift of remembering Your forgiveness of my sins, past, present and to come and Your promise of an eternal life with You. Amen.
Devotion by: Pastor Scott McAnallyLuke 21:25-28, 34-36
25There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, and on the earth distress among nations confused by the roaring of the sea and the waves. 26People will faint from fear and foreboding of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 27Then they will see “the Son of Man coming in a cloud” with power and great glory. 28Now when these things begin to take place, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near. 34Be on guard so that your hearts are not weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of this life, and that day does not catch you unexpectedly, 35like a trap. For it will come upon all who live on the face of the whole earth. 36Be alert at all times, praying that you may have the strength to escape all these things that will take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.
I can remember as a child going on long-awaited vacations and trips and constantly asking my parents, ‘Are we there yet?’ I knew what waited at the end of the journey was going to be exciting…so as each mile and minute passed, so did the anticipation for the experience to come.
Once again, we begin our journey to Bethlehem. Isaiah writes in the famous advent quotation, “the people in darkness have seen a great light!” We have seen and been told of a light…Jesus the light of the world…so like the wise men so very long ago we follow that light as it takes us on a journey…and with each passing moment anticipation builds as we get closer and closer. Our verses from Luke today remind us of that eager anticipation of what that moment of arrival could be (vs. 25-28). Luke also reminds us to ‘be on guard’ while on our journey because many times the journey’s darkness will try to draw us away from the light. Luke reminds us to continue towards the light…and upon our arrival at Bethlehem something totally unexpected will be waiting for us. “Are we there yet?” No. Not yet, but soon.
Prayer: God of light, give us strength, courage and patience as we begin our journey to Bethlehem. Enliven us with your Holy Spirit that we may live in your love anticipating the great high feast and celebration that you have planned for us in the gift of your Son, Baby Jesus. Amen.
Devotion by: Prue Welsh
Prayer: Lord, help us to have the courage to reach out to others in need, to help or share our lives as Jesus taught us to do. Amen.
