Reflections

January 31, 2024  Today's Reading:  Daily Lectionary: Zechariah 10:1-11:3 ; 2 Timothy 3:1-17 Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted,while evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. (2 Timothy 3:12-13) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The way the reading from 2 Timothy 3 starts sounds like a cross between mayhem and you...

January 30, 2024  Today's Reading: 1 Corinthians 8:1-13 Daily Lectionary: Zechariah 9:1-17 ; 2 Timothy 2:1-26 But if anyone loves God, he is known by God. (1 Corinthians 8:3) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. When St Paul writes about food, his concern isn’t about nutritional value or about a diet program or about balancing enough protein to build muscle.  Paul’s concern is spiritual. When he talks ab...

January 29, 2024  Today's Reading: Deuteronomy 18:15-20 Daily Lectionary: Zechariah 8:1-23 ; 2 Timothy 1:1-18 “The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your brothers—it is to him you shall listen— just as you desired of the Lord your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly, when you said, ‘Let me not hear again the voice of the Lord my God or see this great fi...

January 28, 2024   Today's Reading: Mark 1:21-28 Daily Lectionary: Zechariah. 6:1-7:14 ; Romans 16:17-27 And immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit. And he cried out, “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God.”  (Mark 1:23-24) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The man possessed by an unclean spiri...

January 27, 2024  Today's Reading: Introit for Epiphany 4 Daily Lectionary: Zechariah 4:1-5:11 ; Romans 15:14-33 Many are the sorrows of the wicked,  but steadfast love surrounds the one who trusts in the Lord. Blessèd is the one whose transgression is forgiven,  whose sin is covered. Blessèd is the man against whom the Lord counts no iniquity,  and in whose spirit there is no deceit. I acknowledg...

January 26, 2024  Today's Reading: Luke 10:1-9 Daily Lectionary: Zechariah 2:1-3:10 ; Romans 15:1-13 And [Jesus] said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” (Luke 10:2) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Today is another festival. Much like Wednesday, this festival commemorates a pastor wh...

January 25, 2024  Today's Reading: Acts 9:1-22 Daily Lectionary: Zechariah 1:1-21 ; Romans 14:1-23 And immediately [Paul] proclaimed Jesus in the synagogues, saying, “He is the Son of God.” And all who heard him were amazed and said, “Is not this the man who made havoc in Jerusalem of those who called upon this name? And has he not come here for this purpose, to bring them bound before the chief p...

January 24, 2024  Today's Reading: Matthew 24:42-47 Daily Lectionary: Joel 3:1-21 ; Romans 12:14-13:14 “Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his master has set over his household, to give them their food at the proper time? Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. Truly, I say to you, he will set him over all his possessions.” (Matthew 24:45-47) In the N...

January 23, 2024  Today's Reading: 1 Corinthians 7:29-35 Daily Lectionary: Joel 2:18-32 ; Romans 11:25-12:13 This is what I mean, brothers: the appointed time has grown very short. From now on, let those who have wives live as though they had none, and those who mourn as though they were not mourning, and those who rejoice as though they were not rejoicing, and those who buy as though they had no...

January 22, 2024  Today's Reading: Jonah 3:1-5, 10 Daily Lectionary: Joel 2:1-17 ; Romans 11:1-24 When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them, and he did not do it. (Jonah 3:10) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. “Is that a threat or a promise?” is an appropriate response to the message the Lord sent to Nineveh throu...

January 21, 2024  Today's Reading: Mark 1:14-20 Daily Lectionary: Joel 1:1-20 ; Romans 10:1-21 And Jesus said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men.” (Mark 1:17) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. What does it mean to be a “fisher of men?” Certainly, Jesus doesn’t call Simon (later called Peter) and Andrew to wrap people up in nets or to put hooks in anyone’s mouth. This figure...

January 20, 2024  Today's Reading: Introit for Epiphany 3: Psalm 66:1-5, 20 , antiphon: Psalm 66:4, 92:1 Daily Lectionary: Ezekiel 47:1-14, 21-23 ; Romans 9:19-33 Come and see what God has done: he is awesome in his deeds toward the children of man…Blessed be God, because he has not rejected my prayer or removed his steadfast love from me! (Psalm 66:5, 20) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Come and se...

January 19, 2024  Today's Reading: 10 Commandments, 5th Commandment Daily Lectionary: Ezekiel 44:1-16, 23-29 ; Romans 9:1-18 You shall not murder. What does this mean? We should fear and love God so that we may not hurt or harm our neighbor in his body but help and befriend him in every bodily need. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. At first, this commandment seems rather simple: don’t kill people. Fo...

January 18, 2024  Today's Reading: Mark 8:27-9:1 Daily Lectionary: Ezekiel 40:1-4; 43:1-12 ; Romans 8:18-39 And [Jesus] asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, “You are the Christ.” And he strictly charged them to tell no one about him. (Mark 8:29–30) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Peter gets the answer right. Jesus asks the big question and Peter aces the quiz. Who is Jesus...

January 17, 2024  Today's Reading: Romans 7:21-8:17 Daily Lectionary: Ezekiel 39:1-10, 17-29 ; Romans 7:21-8:17 Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin. (Romans 7:24–25) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Your life, dear Christian, is...

January 16, 2024  Today's Reading: 1 Corinthians 6:12-20 Daily Lectionary: Ezekiel 38:1-23 ; Romans 7:1-20 Flee sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside of the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body. Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a pri...

January 15, 2024  Today's Reading: 1 Samuel 3:1-20 Daily Lectionary: Ezekiel 37:15-28 ; Romans 6:1-23 And Eli said, “What was it that he told you? Do not hide it from me. May God do so to you and more also if you hide anything from me of all that he told you.” So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. And he said, “It is the LORD. Let him do what seems good to him.” (1 Samuel 3:17–18...

January 14, 2024  Today's Reading: John 1:43-51 Daily Lectionary: Ezekiel 36:33-37:14 ; Romans 5:1-21 Jesus answered him, “Because I said to you, ‘I saw you under the fig tree,’ do you believe? You will see greater things than these.” And he said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.” (John 1:50–51) In the...

January 13, 2024  Today's Reading: Introit for Epiphany 2 Daily Lectionary: Ezekiel 36:13-28 ; Romans 4:1-25 Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer. (Psalm 19:14) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Words matter. Our universe was created with words. Words are the building blocks of our communication with one another, they’re...

January 12, 2024  Today's Reading:  Daily Lectionary: Ezekiel 34:1-24 ; Romans 3:19-31 For thus says the Lord God, “Behold, I, I myself will search for my sheep and will seek them out. As a shepherd seeks out his flock when he is among his sheep that have been scattered, so will I seek out my sheep, and I will rescue them from all places where they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick...

January 11, 2024  Today's Reading: 10 Commandments, 4th Commandment Daily Lectionary: Ezekiel 33:1-20 ; Romans 3:1-18 Honor your father and your mother. What does this mean? We should fear and love God so that we do not despise or anger our parents and other authorities, but honor them, serve and obey them, love and cherish them.  (Luther’s Small Catechism: The Fourth Commandment) In the Name + of...

January 10, 2024  Today's Reading: Ezekiel 18:25-29 Daily Lectionary: Ezekiel 18:1-4, 19-32 ; Romans 2:17-29 Yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ Hear now, O house of Israel: Is my way not just? Is it not your ways that are not just?  When a righteous person turns away from his righteousness and does injustice, he shall die for it; for the injustice that he has done he shall die. Again,...

January 9, 2024  Today's Reading: Romans 6:1-11 Daily Lectionary: Ezekiel 3:12-27 ; Romans 2:1-16 What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order tha...

January 8, 2024  Today's Reading: Genesis 1:1-5 Daily Lectionary: Ezekiel 2:1-3:11 ; Romans 1:18-32 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. And God saw that the light was good. And...

January 7, 2024  Today's Reading: Mark 1:4-11 Daily Lectionary: Ezekiel 1:1-14, 22-28 ; Romans 1:1-17 Now John was clothed with camel's hair and wore a leather belt around his waist and ate locusts and wild honey. And he preached, saying, “After me comes he who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie.   I have baptized you with water, but he will bapt...