SVLC DEVOTION SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2023

by | Sep 16, 2023 | Daily Devotions

SHEPHERD OF THE VALLEY LUTHERAN CHURCH

DEVOTION, READINGS AND PRAYERS

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2023

 I was glad when they said to me, Let us go to the house of the Lord! Psalm 122:1

NEWS: Today is the Sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost as we return to God’s house. Pastor Joel leads our Bible study at 9 AM as we continue to study the book of Genesis. In our 10 AM worship service the title of Pastor Joel’s sermon is, “Forgiveness From the Heart” and is based on our Gospel lesson, Matthew 18:21-35 The Old Testament reading comes from Genesis 50:15-21 Our Psalmody is taken from Psalm 32 The Epistle comes from Romans 14:1-12

After we have celebrated the Eucharist and our service is complete,, please join us for fellowship time with coffee and goodies. Then fellowship continues at El Pollo Loco in the Mission Marketplace on College Ave., near Target. Please plan to join us!

 We pray all can join us for part of their Sunday but for those unable to worship in person, we stream our service live. The link is here: www.facebook.com/shepherdofthevalleyoceanside  Click on that, then click on the More dropdown arrow, then click Live. If you have a moment, please “Like” us and leave a brief comment about your online worship experience. Thank you! Also serving the Lord and our congregation today are:

Techies:  Ian Andrews, Victor Dille

Reader:  Allen Kolkman

Acolyte:  Josephine Neemia

Greeter:  Rick Adams

Ushers:   Keith Neblett & OPEN

Flowers:  Margaret Paton

Fellowship:  Diane Finley

A big THANK YOU goes out as well from the Woodward family to all who attended the Memorial service for Eric, as well as those who donated food and helped put the reception together and assisted in the clean-up effort. We are one awesome family at Shepherd of The Valley by God’s grace.

PRAYERS: Today we remember the Terrill family in our prayers: Amy, Abby, Lot and Asha.

In our Summer of Prayer series, we thank the Lord for the faithful service of all the volunteers at Shepherd of The Valley. We ask his help to raise up more volunteers and lead the church in ways to reach more people in Oceanside.

 COLLECT OF THE DAY: Lord Jesus Christ, our support and defense in every need, continue to preserve Your Church in safety, govern her by Your goodness and bless her with Your peace; for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

 READINGS: Ezekiel 14; Psalm 76; 2 Timothy 2:1-13

 Alleluia. All things are possible for one who believes. Alleluia.

 DEVOTION:

Daily Devotions from Lutheran Hour Ministries

“All Christians Who Have Been Baptized”
September 17, 2023

 

“In Baptism we now put on Christ—Our shame is fully covered. With all that He once sacrificed And freely for us suffered. For here the flood of His own blood. Now makes us holy, right, and good Before our heav’nly Father.

“So use it well! You are made new—In Christ a new creation! As faithful Christians, live and do Within your own vocation, Until that day when you possess His glorious robe of righteousness Bestowed on you forever!”

When we have a stain on our clothing, we may first attempt to scrub it out by hand, as a temporary fix. If that doesn’t work, the item goes in the wash, with the hope that soap and stain removers will take care of it. If we notice the stain at the last minute, while wearing the item and with no time to scrub out the stain, we may carefully arrange a jacket or sweater to cover the offending spot. Problem solved—more or less.

There is a far more deadly stain in our lives, the stain of sin, and it is a mark with eternal consequences. On our own, there is nothing we can do to remove that stain, although we do try, by making excuses or blaming others. Only God Himself, acting in grace and mercy, can remove that stain of sin and He has done so through the death and resurrection of His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.

The stain is swept away as “the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7b). In Baptism we are clothed in Christ, dressed in His righteousness. The apostle Paul explains that God made Christ “to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21b). By faith we are created anew in Christ, and now we stand “holy, right, and good before our heav’nly Father.”

This is our baptismal gift and our hymn encourages us, “So use it well!” Within our vocations, our daily callings as mother or faither, brother or sister, husband or wife, employee or employer, friend or neighbor, we live as faithful followers of Jesus. As we go about our daily work, we seek to show love and compassion to others and to work in kindness and honesty. We are clothed in Christ and when our Heavenly Father looks at us, He does not see the sins and failures we see so clearly. He sees us wrapped in the righteousness of His Son. He looks at us and sees Jesus. Each day, as we follow our Savior and reflect His love through our varied callings, we hope and pray that when others look at us, they too will see Jesus.
WE PRAY: Lord Jesus, I pray that others will see Your love through my words and actions. Amen.

This Daily Devotion was written by Dr. Carol Geisler. It is based on the hymn, “All Christians Who Have Been Baptized,” which is number 596 in the Lutheran Service Book.

Reflection Questions:

1. Why is it impossible for us to become sinless before God on our own?

2. How does one become clothed in the righteousness of Christ?

3. What can we do on a day-to-day basis to shine our light before others as children of God?

 

Today’s Bible in a Year Reading: Isaiah 17-19; Ephesians 4

 

WE HAVE TWO LIBRARIES AT CHURCH! One of them is in the back of our sanctuary. That has many books,m DVD’s and (I believe) CD’s that are available to check out and return on the honor system. We also have our “Little Library” just inside the driveway to our parking lot. Please feel free to take a book or leave a book. The main focus is childrens or Christian material, but other, appropriate for a church setting, is acceptable.

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 you 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.”

Now you can go to bed quickly and cheerfully.

OTHER RESOURCES:

 Our church website is: https://www.svlchurch.org/

 Below is our Facebook page:

www.facebook.com/shepherdofthevalleyoceanside

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

 Here is the website for Lutherans for Life: https://lutheransforlife.org/

A very blessed Lord’s Day and Sunday to everyone! For any needs or prayer requests, please contact us.

 Pastor Joel at pastor@svlchurch.org