Church Blog (Page 5)
Jesus For You | Advent Devotion
Jesus For You Daily Devotion for Advent 2019 | Wednesday, December 11 And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a Son, and you shall call His Name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to Him the throne of His father David, and He will…
Greatly Troubled | Advent Devotion
Greatly Troubled Daily Devotion for Advent 2019 | Tuesday, December 10 And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. Luke 1:28-29 Mary was greatly troubled by the angel’s greeting. Well, who wouldn’t be? There she was, probably doing her daily work in her mother’s house—cooking, cleaning, carrying water, just like any other day. Then suddenly an…
On A Schedule | Advent Devotion
On A Schedule Daily Devotion for Advent 2019 | Monday, December 9 In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin’s name was Mary. Luke 1:26-27 I love the way this passage starts: “In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God …” I have an absurd picture in my mind,…
Taking It Slow | Advent Devotion
Taking It Slow Daily Devotion for Advent 2019 | Sunday, December 8 After these days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and for five months she kept herself hidden, saying, “Thus the Lord has done for me in the days when He looked on me, to take away my reproach among people.” Luke 1:24-25 “If a miracle ever happened to me, I’d be shouting it everywhere!” Ever hear someone say something like that to you? But John’s conception and birth was different. It started with…
Embarrassing | Advent Devotion
Embarrassing Daily Devotion for Advent 2019 | Saturday, December 7 And Zechariah said to the angel, “How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.” And the angel answered him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news. And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things take…
Change | Advent Devotion
Change Daily Devotion for Advent 2019 | Friday, December 6 And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him. But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard ….” Luke 1:11-13a It must have been rough for Zechariah. For years and years he and his wife had been praying…
The Days of Herod | Advent Devotion
The Days of Herod Daily Devotion for Advent 2019 | Thursday, December 5 In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah … Luke 1:5a “In the days of Herod,” says Luke. It’s easy to skip over those words, to treat them as a date and nothing more. Yet if we do that, we miss something important. Who was this Herod, king of Judea? Well, he was a genius in some ways—a great builder in particular. But…
Keeping Promises | Advent Devotion
Keeping Promises Daily Devotion for Advent 2019 | Wednesday, December 4 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and they shall call His Name Immanuel” (which means, God with us). Matthew 1:22-23 Back in the late 1970s, my future husband was in a prison camp in Vietnam with a friend of his, Ben. Ben was a jeweler, and he promised that one day, if they both…
Show Us The Father | Advent Devotion
Show Us The Father Daily Devotion for Advent 2019 | Tuesday, December 3 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. … No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, He has made Him known. John 1:14, 18 “Show us the Father,” said one of Jesus’ disciples on the night before He…
A Deep Dive Into The Ordinary | Advent Devotion
A Deep Dive Into The Ordinary Daily Devotion for Advent 2019 | Monday, December 2 Jesus, when He began His ministry, was about thirty years of age, being the son (as was supposed) of Joseph, the son of Heli, the son of Matthat … the son of Esli … the son of Josech … the son of Elmadam … the son of Nathan, the son of David … Luke 3:23-31 and following Have you ever heard of an underground river?…
Big and Tiny | Advent Devotion
Big and Tiny Daily Devotion for Advent 2019 | Sunday, December 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him was not any thing made that was made. John 1:1-3 Advent for us starts where it always has—with the One who created everything. It starts with God the Father, who made us and loved us—…
Fundraising Nearly Complete For Joplin’s Next Comfort Dog
Tremendous Support After just two weeks of fundraising, Immanuel Lutheran Church and Martin Luther School is nearing their goal of funding the purchase and training of a new Lutheran Church Charities Comfort Dog for Joplin. Applying for Joplin’s next Comfort Dog will allow Immanuel Lutheran to commit to at least ten more years of serving those who are suffering and in need in the Four States area. Adding a new dog will also help the ministry’s now semi-retired Comfort Dog…