SHEPHERD OF THE VALLEY LUTHERAN CHURCH

READINGS, PRAYERS and DEVOTION

FRIDAY, APRIL 29

 NEWS: No new reports as of this writing. A blessed Friday to all.

 PRAYERS: Today we especially pray for Theodora Elias. Theodora asks prayers for stress and the stressful situations she is dealing with in life. Also, for her brothers family as her brother passed away recently.

 READINGS: Psalm 92; Exodus 31:1-18; Luke 6:1-19

 DEVOTION:

Daily Devotions from Lutheran Hour Ministries

“Three C’s of Christian Witness”

Daniel 1:1, 3a, 4 – In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it … Then the king commanded Ashpenaz, his chief eunuch, to bring some of the people of Israel … youths without blemish, of good appearance and skillful in all wisdom … and competent to stand in the king’s palace …. “

This devotion pairs with this weekend’s Lutheran Hour sermon, which can be found at lutheranhour.org.

There we were, somewhere in Kansas, on I-70, headed west. And my dad told me, “Michael, promise me you’ll read the book of Daniel.” It was just me, my mom, and my dad in the car. My parents were dropping me off to start basic military training. And of all the last-minute bits of advice he could give me, this is what my dad said: “Read the book of Daniel.”

My dad wanted me to read Daniel because he knew it would help me be a better witness for Jesus. Now, at the tender age of 18, I pretty much “knew” everything already, and I knew that Christians were supposed to be witnesses for Jesus. And I knew that I didn’t want to be a witness. I didn’t even know if I believed in Jesus at the time. Nonetheless, I did read the book of Daniel during basic training-or most of it. Since then, I’ve read it many times. As I read it, three truths pertinent to witnessing arise for me. I call these the “Three C’s of Christian Witness.” They are (1) COMPETENCE; (2) CONVERSATION; and (3) CARE.

To discover these truths, I encourage you to read the book of Daniel—or most of it. As you read it, be on the look-out for those three C’s. First, there’s COMPETENCE. Competence commends your confession of faith. When we meet Daniel and his friends, they are prisoners of war. They’ve been taken captive to serve the evil king of Babylon. But even there, God made them His witnesses. And the first thing they did was to become competent. They learned their jobs and did their jobs well. And when you and I do the same in our callings, that competence commends our confession of faith in Jesus.

The second C is CONVERSATION. Think of your words like a key. When you’re at the right door but have the wrong key, what happens? You can’t get in. So, also with words of witness. When Daniel and his friends were in Babylon, they keyed their words to that context. And those words unlocked conversations. And many Babylonians were brought a step closer to faith in the One True God.

The third C is CARE. Daniel and his friends sometimes resisted the influence of Babylon. They did so, not just to keep their consciences clean. They did it because they cared for their pagan neighbors, because they know the One True God, who cares for them. And when we care for our conversation partners, that care reflects Christ’s own compassion for them, and for us.

When I went into the military, I wasn’t ready to be a witness. So, you know what Jesus did for me? He sent me witnesses! And, if you listen to The Lutheran Hour this weekend, I’ll tell you about them.

In the meantime, pray with me.

WE PRAY: Jesus, make us Your witnesses, competent, conversational, and caring, like You. Amen.

This Daily Devotion was written by Rev. Dr. Michael Zeigler, Speaker of The Lutheran Hour.

Reflection Questions:

1. What are your most important “callings”? How would you describe their duties and privileges?

2. What does it look like for you to grow more competent in one or more of those callings?

3. How have you seen someone express care for another person through a conversation? (For more information on expressing care in conversation, check out LHM’s spiritual conversation resources at www.lhm.org/conversations.)

Today’s Bible Readings: 1 Samuel 17-18    Luke 20:27-47

To Download Devotion MP3 to your computer, right click here and select “Save Link As” or “Save Target As” or “Download Linked File As”

 Luther’s Morning Prayer

In the morning, as soon as you get out of bed, you are to make the Sign of the Cross and say:

“God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit watch over me. Amen.”

Then, kneeling or standing, say the Apostles’ Creed and the Lord’s Prayer. In addition recite this prayer as well:

“I give thanks to you, my heavenly Father through Jesus Christ your dear son, that you have protected me this night from all harm and danger, and I ask you that you would also protect me today from sin and all evil, so that my life and actions may please you completely. For into your hands I commend myself: my body, my soul, and all that is mine. Let your holy angel be with me, so that the wicked foe may have no power over me. Amen.”

After singing a hymn or whatever else may serve your devotion, you can go about your day joyfully!

 Luther’s Evening Prayer

In the evening, when you go to bed, you are to make the Sign of the Cross and say:

“God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit watch over me. Amen.”

Then, kneeling or standing, say the Apostles’ Creed and the Lord’s Prayer. In addition recite this prayer as well:

“I give thanks to you, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ your dear Son, that you have graciously protected me today, and I ask you to forgive me all my sins, where I have done wrong, and graciously to protect me tonight. For into your hands I commend myself: my body, my soul, and all that is mine. Let your holy angel be with me, so that the wicked foe may have no power over me. Amen.”

You can now go to bed quickly and cheerfully.

 OTHER RESOURCES:

 www.svlchurch.org

www.facebook.com/shepherdofthevalleyoceanside

 Here is the website for Lutheran Hour Ministries: https://www.lhm.org/

 Lutheran Public Radio is listener supported and has two channels, one for sacred music and the other for talk, including news, current issues, politics and spiritual matters from a Lutheran perspective. Hosted by Pastor Todd Wilken, Issues, Etc. airs live Monday thru Friday from 1 to 3 pm Pacific, with the “Best Of” running at other hours: https://lutheranpublicradio.org/

KFUO is the listener supported radio station owned and operated by the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod. Based in St. Louis, their format consists of teaching, preaching, ministry and sacred music: https://www.kfuo.org/

 A very blessed Friday to everyone! For any needs or prayer requests, please contact us.