Reflections

Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 14:1-27; John 15:1-11 " Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing." (John 15:5b) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Elisha, son of Shaphat of the tribe of Issachar, was the prophet of God to the Northern Kingdom of Israel around 849–786 BC. Elisha assumed the prophetic office after his predecessor and teacher Elija...

Today's Reading: Isaiah 6:1-7 Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 13:1-25; John 14:18-31 Woe IS me! (Isaiah 6:5) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. You've heard it before, you've said it before . . . woe is me! Thanks be to God that the prophet Isaiah gives us a fuller understanding of that phrase: "I AM woe. It's what I've known and all it seems that I'll ever know." Isaiah had witnessed something unbelievable...

Today's Reading: John 3:1-17 Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 10:1-23; John 14:1-17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him. (John 3:17) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Back in the day, I was told that in order to know something you must sometimes understand what that thing is not. John does just that  in our reading for toda...

Today's Reading: Mark 6:7-13 Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 9:1-18; John 13:21-28 So they (the apostles) went out and proclaimed that people should repent. And they cast out many demons and anointed with oil many who were sick and healed them. (Mark 6:12-13) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Barnabas, which means "the son of encouragement," was a contemporary of Paul's and was originally from Cyprus. Thro...

Today's Reading: Genesis 11:1-9 Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 8:22-36; John 13:1-20 So the Lord dispersed them from there over the face of the whole earth. (Genesis 11:8) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Tower of Babel has it all! Hardworking people trying to build a tower to God, and God's saying that now "nothing that they propose to do will be impossible for them" (Genesis 11:6). God's confoundin...

Today's Reading: Acts 2:1-21 Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 8:1-21; John 12:36b-50 And they were bewildered. (Acts 2:6) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Bewilderment . . . what a fun word! Just rolls off the tongue. But if you've ever lived a day of life here on earth, you know that  bewilderment in reality isn't much fun at all. To be bewildered, according to the Oxford English Dictionary , simply means...

Today's Reading:   Small Catechism: Apostles' Creed, Second Article part 1 Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 5:1-23; John 12:20-36a 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. ( Small Catechism:  Second Article) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. "Jesus has become my Lord." That means that there was a time when Jesus was...

Today's Reading:   John 10:1-10 Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 4:1-27; John 12:1-19 " The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out." (John 10:3b) " He does all things well!" (Mark 7:37) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. A wise man I know once rejected the idea that we are sheep. "Sheep are dumb animals," he said. "I just can't stand the idea that God would talk about us...

Today's Reading: John 3:16-20 Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 3:5-24; John 11:38-57 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him. (John 3:17) In the Name of Jesus + Amen. Ours is a dog-eat-dog world. Selfishness, greed, lust, envy, and strife pervade our world and our own lives. It's every man, woman, and child for himself. Who...

Today's Reading: John 14:23-31 Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 1:8-33; John 11:17-37 " But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you." (John 14:26) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. We all need a little help in life, with changing a flat tire, or that pesky calculus homework, but when it comes to...

Today's Reading: John 14:15-21 Daily Lectionary: Numbers 20:22-21:9; Luke 20:45-21:19  "Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him." (John 14:21) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Do you love Jesus? It seems like a silly question to ask a Christian, and yet it was just asked of you. H...

Daily Lectionary: Numbers 20:1-21; Luke 20:19-44  So they watched him and sent spies, who pretended to be sincere, that they might catch him in something he said, so as to deliver him up to the authority and jurisdiction of the governor. (Luke 20:20) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. You have to hand it to the scribes and the chief priests for staying true to themselves. They pretend to be sincere whe...

Today's Reading:   Small Catechism:  Apostle's Creed, First Article part 3 Daily Lectionary: Numbers 16:41-17:13; Luke 20:1-18  All this He does only out of fatherly, divine goodness and mercy, without any merit or worthiness in me. ( Small Catechism:  Apostle's Creed, First Article) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. When you read the Explanation to the First Article, it's amazing how much God does fo...

Daily Lectionary: Numbers 16:23-40; Luke 19:29-48  "For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation." (Luke 19:43-44) In the Name + of Jesus....

Today's Reading: 1 Peter 4:7-14 Daily Lectionary: Numbers 16:1-22; Luke 19:11-28  Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins. (1 Peter 4:8)  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Peter sure has a lofty goal for us, that we love one another earnestly. Clearly Peter never had any enemies and he certainly hasn't met our enemies before, those people who are unworthy of...

Today's Reading: Ezekiel 36:22-28 Daily Lectionary:  Numbers 14:25-45; Luke 18:35-19:10  "You shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers, and you shall be my people, and I will be your God." (Ezekiel 36:28)  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. There are advantages when you belong to something. Belonging to something often means that there are perks. If you're really fortunate, you get rewarded...

Today's Reading: John 15:26-16:4 Daily Lectionary: Numbers 14:1-25; Luke 18:18-34  "I have said all these things to you to keep you from falling away." (John 16:1)  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Have you wondered why Jesus spends so much time with His disciples? If He wanted to get His message out to the mass population, you would think that He would devote more time to being amongst the people, t...

Today's Reading:   Introit for the Seventh Sunday of Easter         (Psalm 27:1, 11a, 12; antiphon: v.7a, 8b, 9a) Daily Lectionary: Numbers 13:1-3, 17-33; Luke 18:1-17  The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is my stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? (From the Introit for the Seventh Sunday of Easter)  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Children tend to be fearf...

Today's Reading: Acts 1:1-11 Daily Lectionary: Numbers 11:24-29; 12:1-16; Luke 17:20-37  And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, "You heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now." (Acts 1:4-5) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Baptism. Bapti...

Today's Reading:   Luke 24:44-53 Daily Lectionary: Numbers 11:1-23, 31-35; Luke 17:1-19  While he blessed them, he parted from them and was carried up into heaven. (Luke 24:51)  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. We all are familiar with the saying, "Here today, gone tomorrow." Whether we like it or not, what is today will not be tomorrow. This same thought applies to Jesus as well, whether you like it...

Today's Reading:   Small Catechism:  Apostles' Creed, First Article part 2 Daily Lectionary: Numbers 10:11-36; Luke 16:19-31  He richly and daily provides me with all that I need to support this body and life. ( Small Catechism:  Apostles' Creed, First Article)  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Did you know that you are rich? It doesn't matter if you don't have a dime in your pocket. You are rich, bu...

Today's Reading: James 1:22-27 Daily Lectionary: Numbers 9:1-23; Luke 16:1-18   But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. (James 1:22)  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. How do you "do" the Word of God? Martin Luther tells us that we "hold it sacred and gladly hear and learn it" (Explanation to the Third Commandment ). That's the hearing which James speaks of, but what abou...

Today's Reading: Numbers 21:4-9 Daily Lectionary: Numbers 8:5-26; Luke 15:11-32  From Mount Hor they set out by the way to the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom. And the people became impatient on the way. (Numbers 21:4)  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. "I don't want to!" "No!" "You can't make me!" Does this sound familiar to you? Do you remember ever saying those words yourself? I don't know a...

Today's Reading: John 16:23-33 Daily Lectionary: Numbers 3:1-16, 39-48; Luke 14:25-15:10  "I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world." (John 16:33)  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Many will say that life changed in March 2020 and has not returned to normal. Instead, we are learning what the "new...

Today's Reading: Introit for the Sixth Sunday of Easter      (Psalm 66:1-2a, 17, 19-20; antiphon: Isaiah 48:20b) Daily Lectionary: Leviticus 26:21-33, 39-44; Luke 14:1-24   Send it out to the end of the earth; say, "The Lord has redeemed his servant Jacob!" (Isaiah 48:20b)   In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. You can almost taste it! Freedom is right around the corner. Summer is coming and the chains o...