DEVOTION THEME OF THE WEEK : 
THE HEARING AND SPEAKING WROUGHT BY THE SPIRIT:
This week, we will focus on the hearing of the Word.
We see how God works through His Word for our benefit and for His own glory.
This is begun by the Spirit, but it is lived out in our midst through the Office of the Holy Ministry.
Through the Word and Sacrament ministry that happens in our midst,
we find that our spiritual life and blessings are directly connected with and flow from Christ.


​​​BLESS YOURSELF WITH THE HOLY CROSS AND SAY : 
In the name of the Father
and of the Son
​and of the Holy Spirit.

​
SAY THE APOSTLES’ CREED :
I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
Maker of heaven and earth.

And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died and was buried.
He descended into hell.
The third day He rose again from the dead.
He ascended into heaven
and sits at the right hand of God,
the Father Almighty.
From thence He will come to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy Christian church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting.
Amen.


PRAY THE LORD’S PRAYER : 
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be Thy name,
Thy kingdom come,
Thy will be done
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive u s our trespasses
as we forgive those who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For Thine is the kingdom
and the power and the glory
forever and ever.
Amen.


PRAY THE MORNING OR EVENING PRAYER :​
Morning :
I thank You, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, that You have kept me this night from all harm and danger;
and I pray that You would keep me this day also from sin and every evil, that all my doings and life may please You.
For into Your hands I commend myself, my body and soul, and all things.
Let Your holy angel be with me, that the evil foe may have no power over me.
Amen.
Evening :
​I thank you, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, that You have graciously kept me this day;
and I pray that You would forgive me all my sins where I have done wrong, and graciously keep me this night.
For into Your hands, I commend myself, my body and soul, and all things.
Let Your holy angel be with me, that the evil foe may have no power over me.
Amen. 


PRAY THE PSALM OF THE WEEK :
PSALM 70 : 1 - 2 , 4 , 5
Make haste, O God, to de- / liver me!*        
Make haste to help / me, O Lord!
Let them be ashamed and con- / founded*
who / seek my life.                          
Let them be turned back / and confused*  
who de- / sire my hurt.                   
Let all those who seek / You rejoice*           
and be / glad in You.                      
But I am poor and / needy;*                          
make haste to / me, O God!         
You are my help and my de- / liverer;*       
O Lord, do / not delay.                  


SAY TOGETHER THE VERSE OF THE WEEK :
ISAIAH 29 : 18
“In that day the deaf will hear the words of the scroll,
and out of gloom and darkness the eyes of the blind will see.”


SUNDAY AUGUST 27, 2023
SCRIPTURE : JOYFUL RESPONSE
MARK 7 : 31 - 37
“Word of mouth” advertising is powerful.
If you have a good experience somewhere,
you tell others to go to that place.
But if you have a bad experience,
you share with others how bad the experience was.
Think of how often you see negative reviews of products
or places compared to positive ones.
Yet in our text today, we see that our Lord Jesus
performed such an incredible act by restoring the deaf man,
that people couldn’t help but tell others.
We have received from the Lord something greater
than mere hearing or speaking
– we have received faith!
This faith hears the Word of God,
leads us to speak of Christ to others who will listen,
and saves our souls from death.
Almighty God, I thank and praise You
for the gift of faith that You have given to me.
Bless me that I may share this joy with others.
Amen.


MONDAY AUGUST 28, 2023
SCRIPTURE : LIFE BY THE WORD
PSALM 119 : 89 - 96 (LAMEDH)
The opening line of our reading should sound familiar
since it is used as a response to the Word of God in Matins.
Note how many words in this text refer to God’s Word:
word, precepts, testimonies.
God created the universe through the Word.
He gives us life through His Word.
He sustains us in the face our enemies by means of His Word.
Truly, God’s Word is powerful.
But it isn’t powerful in that it is simply
“out there” somewhere in the universe.
Its power is experienced when it causes us to believe.
As we gather to hear the Word of God,
He creates, strengthens, and sustains our salvation.
Almighty God, grant that I would turn to You and Your Word
to be sufficient for me in all my needs
and not look to myself or the world.
Amen.


​TUESDAY AUGUST 29, 2023
SCRIPTURE: GLORY IN THE WORD
2 CORINTHIANS 3 : 4 - 11
When Paul speaks of “us” as ministers of the Gospel,
he is speaking about himself and his companions,
the Apostles and all fellow preachers.
Note that these ministers of the Gospel are made.
Made by whom?
They are made by God.
This is what we speak of as ordination.
The preaching ministry that Paul was given
is carried out in your midst today by your pastor.
It is through the pastor that Christ still feeds you with His saving gifts of grace.
Yet, the glory does not belong to the pastor,
but to Christ.
It is Christ who is serving us!
What an incredible thing to consider
that you are served by the same ministry, the same Lord,
as all those who have come before us!
Almighty God, I thank and praise You
for the blessings that You lavish upon me
through Your Word and Your merciful grace.
I pray that You would keep me in this faith to life everlasting.
Amen.


​WEDNESDAY AUGUST 30, 2023
SCRIPTURE: TODAY IS THE DAY
ISAIAH 29 : 18 - 19
Today is the day of salvation.
That is the message of Jesus.
The kingdom of God is at hand.
Through Christ, we see the literal fulfillment of these words.
They heard the Word of the Word made flesh.
Jesus Himself is the book that speaks the truth of God to the world.
And through His Word,
those who even today are spiritually deaf, blind, and dead
are made whole and alive in Him.
This is the gift that He has granted to you
and to all faithful believers.
Praise be to God!
Holy and eternal Father,
You have made me Your own through Your Son,
the Word made flesh, who died for me.
Grant that I may continue to have the ears
to hear and the eyes to see Your glory.
Amen.


​THURSDAY AUGUST 31, 2023
SCRIPTURE: WE SEEK THE WORD, NOT SIGNS
MATTHEW 12 : 31 - 42
In this text, Jesus makes clear the distinction
between His perfect Word and our sinful words.
Our faithless words can reveal a heart that is dead.
But life comes from Christ.
He is the One who is the living Word,
the living waters that spring up in our hearts to eternal life.
Because we have His Word,
we do not need to demand signs and wonders from Him.
In fact, He warns us that there will come those
who can perform signs and wonders only to deceive.
This is why we must hang onto the Word that has been revealed to us.
Almighty God, strengthen my faith that I may hear and rejoice only in Your Word,
finding comfort where You have promised to be
and not look for You where You have not promised to be.
Amen.


​FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 1, 2023
SCRIPTURE: THE POWER OF THE TONGUE
JAMES 3 : 1 - 12
The tongue is one of the strongest muscles in our bodies.
But James points out that our tongues can also contain
a lot of power that is not just physical.
The sting of words can cause real hurts.
We try to ignore this and even mock those today who insist upon it,
but even Scripture recognizes that we can hurt each other through our words.
But it is the Word of God that builds up, restores, and recreates.
Let us speak to each other in ways that are good and pleasing to God,
speaking His Word to His people rather than seeking to harm others.
Almighty God, forgive me for the times
that I have misused the body that You have given me.
Help me to rightly care for my neighbor by upholding and encouraging him.
Amen.


​SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 2, 2023
SCRIPTURE: GLORY AND WORD
PSALM 104
This psalm is a wonderful hymn of praise to God for His creation.
And it is all connected to His Word.
We know from Genesis 1 that God spoke all things into creation.
But this psalm speaks of God’s specific acts of setting limits for different things,
the trembling of creation at His Word and presence,
and in this text we see just how deeply connected
God’s Word is with His glory.
All of these things that speak of God’s glory
are connected with His actions through His Word.
In the same way, we give Him glory
because of what His Word did for us at the cross
and what His Word does for us today
through the continued ministry of Word and Sacrament.
For all these things, we rightly give our God all glory and praise.
Almighty God, give me the eyes to see the full depth of Your glorious works,
​especially those works that are to and for my benefit.
Amen.


PRAY THE PRAYER OF THE WEEK :
Almighty and merciful God,
whose gift it is that Your faithful possess all things pertaining to faith and life,
we implore You that we may so faithfully cling to Your promises in this life
that we fail not finally to attain to Your heavenly glory;
through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord,
who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever.
Amen.


PRAYER FOR OURSELVES AND OTHERS

​​
SING OR SAY THE HYMN OF THE WEEK :
SPEAK, O LORD, THY SERVANT HEARETH