TUESDAY, OCTOBER 27
PSALM 20
DEUTERONOMY 29:1-29
MATTHEW 18:21-35
Sorry folks, I haven’t posted since last Friday. I had a crazy, crazy, weekend. Friday morning I was up at Froedert and in the evening I had a wedding rehearsal. Saturday morning I was back at Froedert and then had the wedding at 1pm and church at 5pm. Then Sunday, we had our Stewardship emphasis and Reformation Services and a wonderful potluck and a funeral Sunday evening. Oh, did I mention that we had a Baptism at the last service Sunday? So, if we could have thrown in a confirmation, we would have covered ALL the rites in one weekend.
So, we are back for a few days.
I should have been reading the Psalm over and over again over that busy weekend. “May the Lord answer you in the day of trouble.” Actually, I was in prayer most of the weekend. And the Lord did hear all of my prayers. He didn’t answer them all, but He heard them all. He got me through the weekend and everything went smoothly. Our Lord is very faithful. He wants what is best for us. Rather than trusting in armies and money or smarts or whatever, we place our trust in God to help us in times of trouble.
Are you getting excited? The people of Israel are getting ready to enter the Promised Land. Moses is reminding them of the sins of the Egyptians in following false gods. He reminds them of the way He took care of them as they traveled in the wilderness, “Your clothes have not worn out on you, and your sandals have not worn off your feet. You have not eaten bread, and you have not drunk wine or strong drink.” The Lord took care of them for 40 years. He takes care of us too. We may not be entering the Promised Land, but He watches over us and cares for us and listens to our prayers.
In Matthew, we read the story of the Unforgiving Servant. I cannot imagine someone being as unforgiving as this person. I know if I am blessed, I try to share that blessing on those around me, I’m not going to go out and be harsh and mean to the next person I meet. The Lord forgives us so many sins in the course of the day. Our job is to turn around and bless the people around us so that they see the love of God through us.
Anyway, have a great day. Stay safe and warm and make sure to hug your kids and tell them you love them. Actually, that goes for all your loved ones around you. You never know when they won’t be around you any more.
Pastor -
What a wonderful message at the end of todays comments. It’s so true that you just never know when you will say the last I love you. Have a wonderful trip, enjoy some rest and relaxation with your family, and come home safely to us at Trinity.
Lou Ann
Thanks Lou Ann … I appreciate the comment. It is SO true. And yes, looking forward to a little time away. A little relaxation. But it will be nice to get back home to Trinity. It always is.
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 28
PSALM 127
DEUTERONOMY 30:1-20
MATTHEW 19:1-15
If you asked me who I respected most in my life, the first person who comes to mind is my grandfather. He was tall, 6’ 3”, a hard working man, in good shape, and he could fix anything. He built “the cabin” up north and his home in Detroit. He sang in the choir every single week with an amazing Bing Crosby type voice that I always wished I had. So when I read this Psalm, “Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain.” I think again of my grandfather. The Lord was certainly very much part of his life. He didn’t do anything without the Lord. And that is what the passage is all about, whether we are building a house, washing the car, putting together a deal at work, cleaning the house, taking a trip, in everything we do, we do it with the Lord.
And that’s what Moses is telling the Israelites as they plan to enter the Promised Land. “See, I set before you today life and good, death and evil.” All they have to do is avoid following false gods and life for them will be fine. Worship the Lord and life will be fine.
One thing that’s been on my mind lately and I don’t have an answer for it. I know that we are not saved by our works. I know that the only way to heaven if via faith in Jesus Christ who died for our sins. But if I’m reading the Bible every day, and I’m doing my best to keep the commandments, and I am trying to avoid sin, will my day go better than if I don’t read the Bible and if I let a few little sins come my way? That seems to be the message God sends to the Israelites. Does it still apply to us today? Like I said, I don’t have an answer. But it does give us a little more motivation for our devotion to God and obedience to the Lord. I just know that I’m going to keep reading and keep doing my best. Christ died for me. It’s the least I can do.
Our Lord created Adam and Eve to be husband and wife for their entire lives. And Adam lived 930 years, so that was no small accomplishment. Can you imagine being married 930 years? Unfortunately, sometimes our hearts get hard and we stop being forgiving. St. Paul tells us in Ephesians, “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” That should be our guide each day. Christ forgave us and so we should forgive each other. Because of our hardness of heart, the Old Testament allowed divorce for adultery. That is a hard one to forgive. But it is not an excuse to immediately send the offending spouse away. With Christ, there can be healing and forgiveness, easy for me to say since I’ve never had to go through it.
Well, enjoy the day. Our Lord has given us this day to use for Him and our neighbors. “This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.”
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 29
PSALM 56
DEUTERONOMY 31:1-29
MATTHEW 19:16-30
Please note, I will do my best to keep on task this weekend. But we are traveling to Ocala, Florida where I will be preaching for the 25th anniversary of Our Redeemer Lutheran Church. When I was on Vicarage, my internship, at St. John’s Lutheran, they were starting a mission congregation and loaned me out to preach there every Sunday. So, I was their first preacher even though I wasn’t Called there. This is going to be an exciting weekend. Please pray for safe travel.
Have you ever felt trampled on? There comes a time when we all feel that way, that people are trampling on us all day and that people are attacking us day and night. So, we become afraid. We lose sleep. We worry. But in times like that, we put our trust in God. After all, like David says, “what can flesh do to me?” So what if my plane goes down this weekend, I’ll get to heaven before you! That’s not a bad thing. It would be nice if we were around for our kids for a couple more years, but they could fend for themselves. The Lord always takes care of us. He has a plan. Thanks be to God!
This section from Deuteronomy is pretty long this week. We only have three chapters to go. One recurring theme we see here over and over is, “Be strong and courageous.” As Christians, armed with God’s word and prayer, we can be strong and courageous every day. Even in the midst of trials.
What I really find interesting about this text is that God knows the people are going to stop following Him and follow other gods. He knows this. He even tells them that this is going to happen. We read about it later. And yet, out of His love, He gives them the Promised Land anyway. He does everything He can and He gives them everything He can to prevent it from happening, but He knows it’s going to happen, and He gives them the Promised Land anyway. That’s love.
We see more love in Matthew. The rich young man comes to Jesus, focusing on his works rather than God’s works. “What good deed must I do to have eternal life?” Obviously, we are not saved by works. We are saved by faith. Jesus knows what to say. When He says or does something it is said to bring them to saving faith. Jesus knew that his guys priorities were messed up, so He tells him to sell all he has and give it to the poor. We are told that this guy goes away sorrowful. But I’ll bet that he got straightened around and will be with us in heaven.
It’s all about priorities. What’s important in our lives? What is our first priority? As Christians we struggle to put God first in our lives each day and we can only do that with God’s help.
So we serve the Lord with gladness each day. Have a great day blessed by the Lord.
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 30, 2009
PSALM 90:7-17
DEUTERONOMY 31:30-32:27
MATTHEW 20:1-16
Rain, rain, go away, come again another day. We don’t need any more rain. How about some nice sunny weather?
Anyway, our Psalm reminds us of two things, our sin and the shortness of our lives. “You have set our iniquities before you … The years of our life are seventy, or even by reason of strength eighty.” Well, I was in the ER with a wonderful lady who was 99. She passed away just three months short of her 100th birthday. But she was ready to go. She had great faith in her Lord. It was her time.
So, the Lord teaches “us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.” Part of wisdom knows that we are not invincible. We are finite and the Lord directs our days. We just use each day to serve the Lord and our neighbors. We flee from sin and focus on God.
In Deuteronomy we see the Song of Moses. Our Lord, Moses and Martin Luther all knew the same thing that people remember things set to music. They didn’t have lots of paper then. They didn’t have newspapers. So, if they were to remember this lesson, it was good for Moses to set this to music.
Again, God knew that the people of Israel were going to sin, He wanted to give them every opportunity to succeed, so He sets this warning, this history of their sin to music for the people to sing as a warning so that they would live long in the Promised Land.
Our Lord is a generous God. He gives and gives and gives. Mostly, He gives us faith. That’s what the parable of the vineyard is all about: God’s generosity. According to human standards, if we are hired first, we would expect to receive more than the people hired last. But God doesn’t work according to human standards. He is God. Everything belongs to Him. So He gives as He wants. He rewards us all with the same thing, faith and eternal life in heaven with Him. It is going to be great and wonderful. We get to be with God forever and ever. That is going to be amazing.
Have a wonderful and blessed day. Make it a good one for the Lord. Oh, and don’t forget, ask God to stop the rain for a while.
AND … don’t forget to set your alarms for 2am Sunday and get up to turn your clock back to 1am. But only do that once. Don’t get up at 2am again and set the clock back again.
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 27
PSALM 20
DEUTERONOMY 29:1-29
MATTHEW 18:21-35
Sorry folks, I haven’t posted since last Friday. I had a crazy, crazy, weekend. Friday morning I was up at Froedert and in the evening I had a wedding rehearsal. Saturday morning I was back at Froedert and then had the wedding at 1pm and church at 5pm. Then Sunday, we had our Stewardship emphasis and Reformation Services and a wonderful potluck and a funeral Sunday evening. Oh, did I mention that we had a Baptism at the last service Sunday? So, if we could have thrown in a confirmation, we would have covered ALL the rites in one weekend.
So, we are back for a few days.
I should have been reading the Psalm over and over again over that busy weekend. “May the Lord answer you in the day of trouble.” Actually, I was in prayer most of the weekend. And the Lord did hear all of my prayers. He didn’t answer them all, but He heard them all. He got me through the weekend and everything went smoothly. Our Lord is very faithful. He wants what is best for us. Rather than trusting in armies and money or smarts or whatever, we place our trust in God to help us in times of trouble.
Are you getting excited? The people of Israel are getting ready to enter the Promised Land. Moses is reminding them of the sins of the Egyptians in following false gods. He reminds them of the way He took care of them as they traveled in the wilderness, “Your clothes have not worn out on you, and your sandals have not worn off your feet. You have not eaten bread, and you have not drunk wine or strong drink.” The Lord took care of them for 40 years. He takes care of us too. We may not be entering the Promised Land, but He watches over us and cares for us and listens to our prayers.
In Matthew, we read the story of the Unforgiving Servant. I cannot imagine someone being as unforgiving as this person. I know if I am blessed, I try to share that blessing on those around me, I’m not going to go out and be harsh and mean to the next person I meet. The Lord forgives us so many sins in the course of the day. Our job is to turn around and bless the people around us so that they see the love of God through us.
Anyway, have a great day. Stay safe and warm and make sure to hug your kids and tell them you love them. Actually, that goes for all your loved ones around you. You never know when they won’t be around you any more.
Pastor -
What a wonderful message at the end of todays comments. It’s so true that you just never know when you will say the last I love you. Have a wonderful trip, enjoy some rest and relaxation with your family, and come home safely to us at Trinity.
Lou Ann
Thanks Lou Ann … I appreciate the comment. It is SO true. And yes, looking forward to a little time away. A little relaxation. But it will be nice to get back home to Trinity. It always is.
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 28
PSALM 127
DEUTERONOMY 30:1-20
MATTHEW 19:1-15
If you asked me who I respected most in my life, the first person who comes to mind is my grandfather. He was tall, 6’ 3”, a hard working man, in good shape, and he could fix anything. He built “the cabin” up north and his home in Detroit. He sang in the choir every single week with an amazing Bing Crosby type voice that I always wished I had. So when I read this Psalm, “Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain.” I think again of my grandfather. The Lord was certainly very much part of his life. He didn’t do anything without the Lord. And that is what the passage is all about, whether we are building a house, washing the car, putting together a deal at work, cleaning the house, taking a trip, in everything we do, we do it with the Lord.
And that’s what Moses is telling the Israelites as they plan to enter the Promised Land. “See, I set before you today life and good, death and evil.” All they have to do is avoid following false gods and life for them will be fine. Worship the Lord and life will be fine.
One thing that’s been on my mind lately and I don’t have an answer for it. I know that we are not saved by our works. I know that the only way to heaven if via faith in Jesus Christ who died for our sins. But if I’m reading the Bible every day, and I’m doing my best to keep the commandments, and I am trying to avoid sin, will my day go better than if I don’t read the Bible and if I let a few little sins come my way? That seems to be the message God sends to the Israelites. Does it still apply to us today? Like I said, I don’t have an answer. But it does give us a little more motivation for our devotion to God and obedience to the Lord. I just know that I’m going to keep reading and keep doing my best. Christ died for me. It’s the least I can do.
Our Lord created Adam and Eve to be husband and wife for their entire lives. And Adam lived 930 years, so that was no small accomplishment. Can you imagine being married 930 years? Unfortunately, sometimes our hearts get hard and we stop being forgiving. St. Paul tells us in Ephesians, “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” That should be our guide each day. Christ forgave us and so we should forgive each other. Because of our hardness of heart, the Old Testament allowed divorce for adultery. That is a hard one to forgive. But it is not an excuse to immediately send the offending spouse away. With Christ, there can be healing and forgiveness, easy for me to say since I’ve never had to go through it.
Well, enjoy the day. Our Lord has given us this day to use for Him and our neighbors. “This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.”
Hello PJ,
I have enjoyed reading your posts.
Yes, I understand that we should consider forgiveness if someone is willing to repent. But must we still forgive if someone does not want to repent?
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 29
PSALM 56
DEUTERONOMY 31:1-29
MATTHEW 19:16-30
Please note, I will do my best to keep on task this weekend. But we are traveling to Ocala, Florida where I will be preaching for the 25th anniversary of Our Redeemer Lutheran Church. When I was on Vicarage, my internship, at St. John’s Lutheran, they were starting a mission congregation and loaned me out to preach there every Sunday. So, I was their first preacher even though I wasn’t Called there. This is going to be an exciting weekend. Please pray for safe travel.
Have you ever felt trampled on? There comes a time when we all feel that way, that people are trampling on us all day and that people are attacking us day and night. So, we become afraid. We lose sleep. We worry. But in times like that, we put our trust in God. After all, like David says, “what can flesh do to me?” So what if my plane goes down this weekend, I’ll get to heaven before you! That’s not a bad thing. It would be nice if we were around for our kids for a couple more years, but they could fend for themselves. The Lord always takes care of us. He has a plan. Thanks be to God!
This section from Deuteronomy is pretty long this week. We only have three chapters to go. One recurring theme we see here over and over is, “Be strong and courageous.” As Christians, armed with God’s word and prayer, we can be strong and courageous every day. Even in the midst of trials.
What I really find interesting about this text is that God knows the people are going to stop following Him and follow other gods. He knows this. He even tells them that this is going to happen. We read about it later. And yet, out of His love, He gives them the Promised Land anyway. He does everything He can and He gives them everything He can to prevent it from happening, but He knows it’s going to happen, and He gives them the Promised Land anyway. That’s love.
We see more love in Matthew. The rich young man comes to Jesus, focusing on his works rather than God’s works. “What good deed must I do to have eternal life?” Obviously, we are not saved by works. We are saved by faith. Jesus knows what to say. When He says or does something it is said to bring them to saving faith. Jesus knew that his guys priorities were messed up, so He tells him to sell all he has and give it to the poor. We are told that this guy goes away sorrowful. But I’ll bet that he got straightened around and will be with us in heaven.
It’s all about priorities. What’s important in our lives? What is our first priority? As Christians we struggle to put God first in our lives each day and we can only do that with God’s help.
So we serve the Lord with gladness each day. Have a great day blessed by the Lord.
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 30, 2009
PSALM 90:7-17
DEUTERONOMY 31:30-32:27
MATTHEW 20:1-16
Rain, rain, go away, come again another day. We don’t need any more rain. How about some nice sunny weather?
Anyway, our Psalm reminds us of two things, our sin and the shortness of our lives. “You have set our iniquities before you … The years of our life are seventy, or even by reason of strength eighty.” Well, I was in the ER with a wonderful lady who was 99. She passed away just three months short of her 100th birthday. But she was ready to go. She had great faith in her Lord. It was her time.
So, the Lord teaches “us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.” Part of wisdom knows that we are not invincible. We are finite and the Lord directs our days. We just use each day to serve the Lord and our neighbors. We flee from sin and focus on God.
In Deuteronomy we see the Song of Moses. Our Lord, Moses and Martin Luther all knew the same thing that people remember things set to music. They didn’t have lots of paper then. They didn’t have newspapers. So, if they were to remember this lesson, it was good for Moses to set this to music.
Again, God knew that the people of Israel were going to sin, He wanted to give them every opportunity to succeed, so He sets this warning, this history of their sin to music for the people to sing as a warning so that they would live long in the Promised Land.
Our Lord is a generous God. He gives and gives and gives. Mostly, He gives us faith. That’s what the parable of the vineyard is all about: God’s generosity. According to human standards, if we are hired first, we would expect to receive more than the people hired last. But God doesn’t work according to human standards. He is God. Everything belongs to Him. So He gives as He wants. He rewards us all with the same thing, faith and eternal life in heaven with Him. It is going to be great and wonderful. We get to be with God forever and ever. That is going to be amazing.
Have a wonderful and blessed day. Make it a good one for the Lord. Oh, and don’t forget, ask God to stop the rain for a while.
AND … don’t forget to set your alarms for 2am Sunday and get up to turn your clock back to 1am. But only do that once. Don’t get up at 2am again and set the clock back again.
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 31, 2009
REFORMATION DAY
PSALM 46
DEUTERONOMY 32:8-52
MATTHEW 20:17-34