Category: Lent

Hold On

Jeff6 Comments

Today is Saturday, the fourth day of April, 2026, in the sixth week of Lent, Holy Week. Today is the final day of Lent. It is Holy Saturday.

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.
(John 14:27 ESV)

It is the 94th day of 2026. There are 271 days left in the year.

Tomorrow is Resurrection Sunday!

Four days until Mama’s birthday!

Day 24,859 of my life

Today is 404 Day. Now hear me out. It is supposed to be to focus on “internet censorship in public schools and libraries.” And if you click on that link, well, you’ll see what you get. How cool is it that it fell on this day? Holy Saturday. The one day when Jesus is “not found” and the disciples are cowering in fear in the upper room? I love it when the “world” unintentionally points to Jesus.

If you don’t know the significance of “404” it’s that annoying error you get, sometimes, when a link you click on doesn’t work.

It is also St. Lazarus Day.

Daily writing prompt
What Olympic sports do you enjoy watching the most?
View all responses

I love ice skating in the Winter Olympics, and my favorite in that sport is the ice dancing. I love how beautiful and creative they can be in ice dancing. (I was watching the live broadcast the day Tonya Harding landed the first ever triple axel for a female skater. What a tragic story that turned into.) I might be weird, but, for some reason, I also enjoy curling. I’ve also always been fond of bobsled and other sports of that same variety, luge and whatnot. Anything involving speeding down an ice track on some kind of vehicle, at break-neck speed. Oh, and ski-jumping! May be the closest thing a human will ever get to flying. In Summer Olympics, gymnastics has always been my favorite. Mostly floor exercises, balance beam, uneven bars, and that vault thingy.

Today, as mentioned previously, is Holy Saturday. It is, fortuitously, an off-work Saturday for me. The only plans I have for this day involve cooking burgers for dinner tonight, and going out to get our Sonic drinks, of course.

This may be the most “Sabbath” Saturday of the year.

JESUS TIME

Faithful Father in heaven, I have neither the power nor the ability to praise and thank You enough for all the loving-kindness that You have so graciously shown me my entire life. I am but flesh and blood that can do nothing but evil. Yet You allow an abundant flow of gifts to come to me every day, especially in the past night when You were my shield and my support. Were that not so, the power of the devil surely would have struck me so severe a blow that I could not have hoped to arise again in sound condition. Yet through Your gracious protection I have been defended in a manner unsurpassed. I beseech You from the utmost depths of my being that You would let Your grace flow over me and defend me. I am Yours by the blood of Christ, from now unto eternal life. Amen. Amen. Lord Jesus, take my soul into Your hands and let me be commended unto You. Amen.
(Lutheran Book of Prayer, Prayer 44, Saturday Morning)

Father, today is another gift from You. Every good thing I enjoy is from You, and I thank You for Your abundant blessings. All I own is Yours, to be used for Your good purposes and especially for the good of others. Where I would take these blessings and use them selfishly, move me instead to generosity, kindness, goodness, and love. Among the greatest gifts You’ve given me are the people in my life—especially my family, friends, and neighbors. I want them to know Your love and to feel cared for and blessed when they are with me. Fill me with Your Spirit that they see Jesus through me today. In His name. Amen.
(Portals of Prayer, Prayer for Saturday Morning)

Lord God, on this Holy Vigil, we thank You for sending Your mighty servant Moses to fearlessly baptize Your people by delivering them from Egypt’s army when they passed between the waters of the Red Sea. As You drowned Pharaoh’s host, You still drown all our enemies, including Satan’s host, sin, death, and hell, through Holy Baptism. Thank You for this gift in Jesus Christ, who died and rose for us. In His name we pray. Amen.
(Portals of Prayer, Holy Saturday)

Almighty and eternal God, You created all things in wonderful beauty and order. Help us now to perceive how still more wonderful is the new creation by which in the fullness of time You redeemed Your people through the sacrifice of our Passover, Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen.
(For All the Saints, Saturday of Holy Week, Opening Prayer)

In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace.
(Ephesians 1:7 ESV)

By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers.
(1 John 3:16 ESV)

Today I am grateful:

  1. For a beautiful Good Friday service, last night, full of beautiful music, Scripture, and prayers
  2. For this day of rest, Holy Saturday, as we wait in hope for Resurrection Sunday
  3. For “redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace”
  4. That we live in perpetual Sabbath, having entered into the rest of our Savior, who has invited us into His easy yoke, that we might find rest for our wear souls
  5. That “The love that’s poured in silence at old graves Renewing flowers, tending the bare earth, Is never lost. In him all love is found And sown with him, a seed in the rich ground.” (Malcolm Guite, The Word in the Wilderness)
Lord, in Your mercy, hear, now, the prayers lifted up to you for all who need strength, healing, comfort, and peace. 

If you are reading this, I encourage you to stop and pray for someone, at this time. Or, if there is something on your heart, please leave a comment. What can I pray for you?

Psalm of the Day – Psalm 42:1-5

As a deer pants for flowing streams,
so pants my soul for you, O God.
My soul thirsts for God,
for the living God.
When shall I come and appear before God?
My tears have been my food day and night,
while they say to me all the day long,
“Where is your God?”
These things I remember, as I pour out my soul:
how I would go with the throng
and lead them in procession to the house of God
with glad shouts and songs of praise,
a multitude keeping festival.

Why are you cast down, O my soul,
and why are you in turmoil within me?
Hope in God; for I shall again praise him,
my salvation and my God.
(Psalms 42:1-6a ESV)

One wonders if this psalm was echoing in Jesus’s mind when He said, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied” (Matthew 5:6) The psalmist “pants for a drink of God,” here, and his only food has been his tears. In addition, he is being mocked by others, and his memories taunt him.

“In the arid land of exile, where demons spit slurs, memories stab deep, and our souls, like the tongue of a panting deer, hang there, gasping, thirsting, craving relief from heaven’s crystal streams, we sit. Hurting. Needing. Waiting. The arid land of exile can be a doctor’s office. An empty bedroom. It can be a hustling, bustling workplace where, every day, we feel a little more unalive inside. Where. Are. You. God? we silently scream.”

That arid land might also be Holy Saturday. Again, I find myself pleasantly surprised at the timing of this psalm, this particular season. I wonder if the disciples had any hint of remembrance of this psalm as they huddled in the upper room on that day. We pretty much know that they were not expecting what happened the next morning. But the psalmist, here suddenly realized, as evidenced by verse 5, “that this is not just god we are talking about. This is my God. My salvation. My hope. My everything. And because he is mine, I am his, come what may. Do we dare presume that the Lord who willingly died for us will abandon us when we feel dead? Heaven forbid. Though for a time, we struggle, we thirst, Jesus will soon place his cup of mercy to our parched lips, the cup brimming with life, hope, and yes, even praise.”

And let us remember that Jesus Christ drank the cup of God’s wrath exactly so that we could drink His cup of mercy, “brimming with life, hope, and yes, even praise.”

“A panting hart run to the desert
Brays for water, no stream near,
And beagles, yipping, lap
His customary spring.
My soul licks salt tears as the pack
Gives tongue, baying,
‘Where is God?’
This vacant lot in earshot
Of cartwheels, tumblers, loose change at their festival.

Why lose heart?
Hear bottom now?
I still can call out,
Still praise him.”
(Excerpt from Laurance Wieder, Words to God’s Music, Psalm 42: BAY)

Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us fear lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it. For good news came to us just as to them, but the message they heard did not benefit them, because they were not united by faith with those who listened. For we who have believed enter that rest, as he has said,

“As I swore in my wrath,
‘They shall not enter my rest,’”

although his works were finished from the foundation of the world. For he has somewhere spoken of the seventh day in this way: “And God rested on the seventh day from all his works.” And again in this passage he said,

“They shall not enter my rest.”

Since therefore it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly received the good news failed to enter because of disobedience, again he appoints a certain day, “Today,” saying through David so long afterward, in the words already quoted,

“Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts.”

For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken of another day later on. So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his.

Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience. For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.

Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
(Hebrews 4:1-16 ESV)

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.
(Romans 8:1-11 ESV)

“His spirit and his life he breathes in all.
Now on this cross his body breathes no more.
Here at the centre everything is still,
Spent, and emptied, opened to the core.
A quiet taking down, a prising loose,
A cross-beam lowered like a weighing scale,
Unmaking of each thing that had its use,
A long withdrawing of each bloodied nail.
This is ground zero, emptiness and space
With nothing left to say or think or do,
But look unflinching on the sacred face
That cannot move or change or look at you.
Yet in that prising loose and letting be
He has unfastened you and set you free.”

“Here at the centre everything is still,
Before the stir and movement of our grief
Which bears its pain with rhythm, ritual,
Beautiful useless gestures of relief.
So they anoint the skin that cannot feel
And soothe his ruined flesh with tender care,
Kissing the wounds they know they cannot heal,
With incense scenting only empty air.
He blesses every love that weeps and grieves,
And makes our grief the pangs of a new birth.
The love that’s poured in silence at old graves
Renewing flowers, tending the bare earth,
Is never lost. In him all love is found
And sown with him, a seed in the rich ground.”
(Malcolm Guite, The Word in the Wilderness, Holy Saturday, “XIII Jesus’ body is taken down from the cross, XIV Jesus is laid in the tomb)

My Lord, I thank You for the hope of Resurrection Sunday. Today is a day of desolation, of surrender, of nothingness. We wait, with Your disciples, but we cannot know what they experienced; we cannot know the despair that they must have felt.

I also thank You for Sabbath. I realize, Lord, that we live in perpetual Sabbath, as we have entered into the rest that was purchased for us by Your Son. He, Himself, invited us into that rest when He said, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” And we have been in that rest ever since He rested on the Sabbath. But did He rest? His body rested, but He, apparently, was busy.

May we, in our rest, also be about Your business. Our rest is a rest of spirit, a rest from worry, a rest from anxiety. For we truly have nothing to worry about, nothing to fear, because everything is settled. Our only source of worry or anxiety simply comes from the fact that we do not know in what manner things have been settled. We do not know certain outcomes. Therefore, we wait in hope and in trust that You, our God, our Father, are truly, according to the Scriptures, working all things out for good for those of us who love You and are called according to Your purposes.

And in that light, my God, I can, with all confidence, say to You, do with me as You like; use me in any way You deem necessary. I am not my own, but belong to You, body and soul, in life and in death.

Thank You, Lord, that in You, “all love is found and sown . . . a seed in the rich ground.” May You grow our love, and make it ever new as we offer our lives up to You.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Grace and peace, my brothers and sisters! Drink deep of the deep, deep love of Jesus!

CHRIST IS EVERYTHING!!!

GOOD FRIDAY

Jeff1 Comment

Today is Friday, the third day of April, 2026, in the sixth week of Lent, Holy Week. It is “Good Friday.” It’s Friday . . . but Sunday’s a-comin’.

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

It’s the 93rd day of 2026, with 272 days remaining in the year.

Two days until Resurrection Sunday. Five days until Mama’s birthday!

Day 24,858 of my life.

Today is Weed Out Hate Day. And what better day to have that than the day that Jesus Christ died for the sins of the world.

Daily writing prompt
How would you improve your community?
View all responses

My response to that is to say see the above “holiday.” If we could weed out all hatred and bigotry, it would vastly improve all of our communities. Love your neighbor as yourself. That’s how you improve your community.

Today is the least normal Friday of the entire year. Good Friday. It’s a day of contradictions. How can it be called “good?” How is death good? But today, we who follow Christ experience joy and sorrow all at the same time. Tonight, our church (Living Word Lutheran Church) will meet at 7:00. We will enter the sanctuary in silence. The choir (which I am part of) will move in quietly and take our seats in our risers. There will be a couple of hymns and prayers, and the candles on the altar will begin to be extinguished. The choir will sing a cantata. It’s really and Easter cantata, but we don’t finish it until Sunday morning. It ends after the crucifixion. At that point, the lights in the sanctuary will begin to be darkened, as more candles are extinguished, one by one. People will move to the front and strip the altar of all of its ornamentation, and cover everything in black cloths. A string quartet will play during all of this (last year, they played Adagio for Strings). After everything else is done, the sanctuary is mostly dark, the pastor walks out with the missal (a giant book containing texts used in worship services), stands behind the altar and slams it shut, lays it down and walks away. The service is over, and we leave in silence.

Three years ago was my first Good Friday service there. I had had Good Friday services before, but never anything like that. I think I sobbed all the way home. After three of those, it still leaves me wrecked. And I’m okay with that. I don’t ever want to “get used” to it.

Both C and I are off work today. Well, C would have been anyway, but she’s off work for a least a couple more weeks, probably. But she and I just walked all the way around the block. She was exhausted after, but that was huge to accomplish.

If you are anywhere close to Grapevine, Texas, I invite you to attend our service tonight. The address can be found at the link above.

Here is the quartet anthem I sang in last night. I’m the guy with the least hair.

And here is the wonderful sermon from last night.

JESUS TIME

In Your name, O crucified Lord Jesus Christ, I now arise from sleep. You suffered the all-painful death on the trunk of the holy cross as the true, patient, sacrificial Lamb for me. You have bought my freedom from all my sins, death, the devil, and hell through Your rose-colored blood. Rule my heart by Your Holy Spirit, refreshing it with the heavenly dew of Your grace. Preserve me with Your divine love and hide me – body and soul – in Your holy wounds. Wash me clean of all my sins, maintain me in every good work, and lead me out of the vale of tears that is this world into eternal joy and glory, O faithful Savior, Jesus Christ, my only solace, hope, and life. Amen.
(Lutheran Book of Prayer, Prayer 42, Friday Morning)

Heavenly Father, the week has been long and arduous as I tended to the many needs in front of me every day. It is so tempting to let self-pity direct my day. Give me grace for this day, I pray. Help me to faithfully perform the tasks and duties before me. Keep me attuned to the needs of others instead of turned inward to my own wants. Help me be aware of how You are at work in the lives of all people I encounter today, and enable me to respond with grace and kindness in all situations so that I reflect Your love and point people to You. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
(Portals of Prayer, Prayer for Friday Morning)

Heavenly Father, as Abraham prepared to sacrifice his son Isaac, You graciously provided a ram in a thicket to be sacrificed in his place. On this day of atonement, there is no replacement for Your only Son, Jesus Christ. You allowed Him to be sacrificed for us. Thank You for sending Jesus to willingly bear the weight of our sin and that of the entire world, removing all shame now and forever. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
(Portals of Prayer, Good Friday)

Lord, by shedding His blood for us Your son, Jesus Christ, established the paschal mystery. In Your goodness, make us holy and watch over us always. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
(For All the Saints, Good Friday, Opening Prayer)

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.
(Hebrews 12:1-2 ESV)

Today I am grateful:

  1. For GOOD FRIDAY
Lord, in Your mercy, hear, now, the prayers lifted up to you for all who need strength, healing, comfort, and peace. 

If you are reading this, I encourage you to stop and pray for someone, at this time. Or, if there is something on your heart, please leave a comment. What can I pray for you?

But he was pierced for our transgressions;
he was crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,
and with his wounds we are healed.
(Isaiah 53:5 ESV)

Psalm of the Day – Psalm 41:4-13

As for me, I said, “O LORD, be gracious to me;
heal me, for I have sinned against you!”
My enemies say of me in malice,
“When will he die, and his name perish?”
And when one comes to see me, he utters empty words,
while his heart gathers iniquity;
when he goes out, he tells it abroad.
All who hate me whisper together about me;
they imagine the worst for me.

They say, “A deadly thing is poured out on him;
he will not rise again from where he lies.”
Even my close friend in whom I trusted,
who ate my bread, has lifted his heel against me.
But you, O LORD, be gracious to me,
and raise me up, that I may repay them!

By this I know that you delight in me:
my enemy will not shout in triumph over me.
But you have upheld me because of my integrity,
and set me in your presence forever.

Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel,
from everlasting to everlasting!
Amen and Amen.
(Psalms 41:4-13 ESV)

From Untamed Prayers, “Even My Close Friend,” by Chad Bird

How appropriate to reach this reading on Good Friday!

Immediately after Christ washed the feet of His disciples, He said, “I am not speaking of all of you; I know whom I have chosen. But the Scripture will be fulfilled, ‘He who ate my bread has lifted his heel against me’” (John 13:18). He quoted Psalm 41:9. “Even my close friend in whom I trusted, who ate my bread, has lifted his heel against me.” Of course, this refers to Judas Iscariot, one of Jesus’s close friends.

You see, we always envision Judas as a thief and a backstabber, which he was, “but he was also an apostle and friend of Jesus,” which makes his betrayal even worse. “With friends like that, who needs enemies?” That old saying has never been more true.

“What has also never been truer is that ‘God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God’ (Rom. 8:28 NASB).” The actions of Judas were an integral part of accomplishing “our salvation in the death and resurrection of Jesus.” But we also note that, in Matthew’s account of this event, Jesus said of Judas, “It would have been better for that man if he had not been born.”

“Forty days after his resurrection, Jesus could say the words of Psalm 41:12, ‘[You] set me in your presence forever.’ There, at the Father’s right hand, he who lifted up his heel atop the cross and brought it down to crush the head of the satanic Serpent (Gen. 3:15), reigns as the true and ever-loyal friend of sinners. Let us, therefore, ‘kiss the Son’ (ps. 2:12), not in betrayal but as our beloved friend and Lord.”

From For All the Saints, Good Friday

I am the man who has seen affliction
under the rod of his wrath;
he has driven and brought me
into darkness without any light;
surely against me he turns his hand
again and again the whole day long.

He has made my flesh and my skin waste away;
he has broken my bones;
he has besieged and enveloped me
with bitterness and tribulation;
he has made me dwell in darkness
like the dead of long ago.

He has walled me about so that I cannot escape;
he has made my chains heavy;
though I call and cry for help,
he shuts out my prayer; he has blocked my ways with blocks of stones;
he has made my paths crooked.
(Lamentations 3:1-9 ESV)

Remember my affliction and my wanderings,
the wormwood and the gall!
My soul continually remembers it
and is bowed down within me.
But this I call to mind,
and therefore I have hope:

The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases;
his mercies never come to an end;
they are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
“The LORD is my portion,” says my soul,
“therefore I will hope in him.”

The LORD is good to those who wait for him,
to the soul who seeks him.
It is good that one should wait quietly
for the salvation of the LORD.
It is good for a man that he bear
the yoke in his youth.

Let him sit alone in silence
when it is laid on him;
let him put his mouth in the dust—
there may yet be hope;
let him give his cheek to the one who strikes,
and let him be filled with insults.

For the Lord will not
cast off forever,
for, though he cause grief, he will have compassion
according to the abundance of his steadfast love;
for he does not afflict from his heart
or grieve the children of men.
(Lamentations 3:19-33 ESV)

“He was born in an obscure village,
the child of a peasant woman.
He grew up in still another village, where he worked
in a carpenter shop until he was thirty.
Then for three years he was an itinerant preacher.
He never wrote a book. He never held an office.
He never had a family or owned a house. He didn’t
go to college. He never visited a big city.
He never traveled two hundred miles from the place
where he was born. He did not of the things
one usually associates with greatness.
He had no credentials but himself. He was only
thirty-three when the tide of public opinion
turned against him. His friends ran away. He was
turned over to his enemies and went through
the mockery of a trial. He was nailed to a cross
between two thieves. While he was dying,
his executioners gambled for his clothing,
the only property he had on earth.
When he was dead, he was laid in a borrowed grave
through the pity of a friend.
Nineteen centuries have come and gone, and today
he is the central figure of the human race
and the leader of mankind’s progress.
All the armies that ever marched, all the navies
that ever sailed, all the parliaments that ever sat,
all the kings that ever reigned, put together,
have not affected the life of man
on this earth as much as that
ONE SOLITARY LIFE.
(Anonymous)

I will note that this writing that FAtS attributes to “anonymous” is attributed, in many different sources, to one James Allan Francis (1864-1928), and has several different variations. It is mostly the same, but some of the lines are in a different order in other places. It is also given the title, “One Solitary Life.”

“The dark nails pierce him and the sky turns black
We watch him as he labours to draw breath.
He takes our breath away to give it back,
Return to its birth through his slow death.
We hear him struggle, breathing through the pain,
Who once breathed out his spirit on the deep,
Who formed us when he mixed the dust with rain
And drew us into consciousness from sleep.
His Spirit and his life he breathes in all,
Mantles his world in his one atmosphere,
And now he comes to breathe beneath the pall
Of our pollutions, draw our injured air
To cleanse it and renew. His final breath
Breathes and bears us through the gates of death.”
(Malcolm Guite, The Word in the Wilderness, “XII Jesus dies on the cross”)

O sacred head, now wounded,
With grief and shame weighed down,
Now scornfully surrounded
With thorns, Your only crown.
O sacred head, what glory
And bliss did once combine;
Though now despised and gory,
I joy to call You mine!

How pale You are with anguish,
With sore abuse and scorn!
Your face, Your eyes now languish,
Which once were bright as morn.
Now from Your cheeks has vanished
Their color once so fair;
From loving lips is banished
The splendor that was there.

What language can I borrow
To thank You, dearest friend,
For this Your dying sorrow,
Your mercy without end?
Bind me to You forever,
Give courage from above;
Let not my weakness sever
Your bond of lasting love.

Amen.
(For All the Saints, Good Friday, Closing Prayer, Paul Gerhardt)

Immeasurable Goodness

Jeff

Today is Thursday, the second day of April, 2026, in the sixth week of Lent, Holy Week.

May the peace of Christ surround you and yours today and every day!

It is the 92nd day of 2026, with 273 days remaining in the year.

Today is Holy Thursday, also known as Maundy Thursday. Tomorrow is Good Friday. Three days until Resurrection Sunday.

Six days until Mama’s birthday!

Today is International Children’s Book Day. I will always celebrate books.

It is also National Burrito Day. But due to circumstances beyond my control, I don’t think I will be able to take advantage of that.

It is also World Autism Awareness Day, and Autism Acceptance Day.

Daily writing prompt
How have you adapted to the changes brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic?
View all responses

In all honesty, it’s been so long, now, that everything seems mostly “normal,” whatever that means. I suppose that means I’ve adapted well. The one thing that seems to have remained intentionally (and unnecessarily, I might add) difficult is renewing driver’s licenses. It was already a ridiculously complicated process, but the DMV opted to keep “appointment only” procedures in place, even when the pandemic was ended. Fortunately, I only have to deal with that very infrequently. I should be able to renew my next one online. And that’s not for four more years.

Oh, I just thought of another thing that has hung around. That’s the tendency of people to run and buy everything in the store anytime any kind of “crisis” looms. Most recently, a hard freeze was forecast for a weekend, and people flocked to the stores and bought all of the toilet paper and paper towels again. I will never understand this mentality.

Today is not really “normal,” I suppose. C continues to be off work. I am off, as usual, for Thursday. But S and I have a Maundy Thursday service at church, tonight, at which I will be singing in a quartet. Then we have an additional choir practice until 9:00 PM tonight. S also has a doctor appointment at 1:30, this afternoon.

JESUS TIME

God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, O Holy Trinity worthy of praise, to You I offer myself with body and soul from this moment on, even unto eternity. I give You praise and thanks that You have not permitted the enemy to come and harm me in the night, but rather, through the protection of Your dear angels, I have been preserved. With what could I possibly repay You? How might I praise You for this? I will give You a shattered heart full of fear, a heart full of blood-red sins, with penitence and contrition. I do so, that You may graciously receive it and wash it white as snow with the noble blood of Your dear Son, my Redeemer. I do so, that You might hide it away in His holy, sinless wounds and thus return to me the gracious forgiveness of all my sins. Help me today and every day that I may remain in Christian readiness, for I cannot know when and how You shall come and call me away from this life, so that I may be led to eternal joy. Such things grant to me, O gracious God and Father, on account of Your dear Son, Jesus Christ. Amen.
(Lutheran Book of Prayer, Prayer 40, Thursday Morning)

Omnipotent, heavenly Father, as I awake to a new dawn, I entrust my life to Your care and favor. I thank You for another day to serve You. The apostle Paul exhorts, “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:5); may my thoughts be fixed on You. As my body is Your temple, enable me to remember that my physical life is not my own, but is Yours. As my soul can find satisfaction only with faith in Christ, help me to bring honor and glory to Him in both word and deed. In the name of Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, I pray. Amen.
(Portals of Prayer, Prayer for Thursday Morning)

Dear Lord Jesus, on this day, we remember that You washed Your disciples’ feet, asked them to love one another, instituted Your Holy Supper, and went to the garden to pray. Thank You for loving Your church through the ongoing threefold testimony of Your Holy Spirit wonderfully working through baptismal water, Your Holy Word, and Your Holy Supper. By these means, enable us to genuinely love others, as You have so generously loved us. Amen.
(Portals of Prayer, Holy (Maundy) Thursday)

Father, by the power of the Holy Spirit You anointed Your only Son Messiah and Lord of creation: You have given us a share in His consecration to priestly service in Your Church. Help us to be faithful witnesses in the world to the salvation Christ won for all mankind. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
(For All the Saints, Maundy Thursday, Opening Prayer)

“I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”
(John 16:33 ESV)

Today I am grateful:

  1. For the peace that Christ gives in the midst of the tribulations of this world
  2. For the institution of Holy Communion, as we receive the Body and Blood of Christ tonight
  3. For the greatest commandment, that we should love our eternal King with all our hearts, souls, minds, and strength; and for the second greatest commandment, that we should love our neighbor as ourselves; “On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets” (Matthew 22:37-40)
  4. For the steadfast love (“chesed”) of Christ, to which I cling as He continues to call me to speak His love out to the world
  5. For my Lord’s forgiveness of all my sins, more than I even know, more than I could ever imagine
Lord, in Your mercy, hear, now, the prayers lifted up to you for all who need strength, healing, comfort, and peace. 

If you are reading this, I encourage you to stop and pray for someone, at this time. Or, if there is something on your heart, please leave a comment. What can I pray for you?

Psalm of the Day – Psalm 41:1-3

Blessed is the one who considers the poor!
In the day of trouble the LORD delivers him;
the LORD protects him and keeps him alive;
he is called blessed in the land;
you do not give him up to the will of his enemies.
The LORD sustains him on his sickbed;
in his illness you restore him to full health.
(Psalms 41:1-3 ESV)

From Untamed Prayers, “Blessed Is the One,” by Chad Bird

Brother Bird points out, here, that the Psalms are divided into five books. Psalm 41 is the last prayer in book one. He says it is a fitting ending, “for it describes the healing ministry of Jesus, the opposition from his enemies, the betrayal by Judas, and Christ’s exaltation to the presence of his Father. In short, Book One ends at the beginning of the hope of all humanity.”

Psalm 1 begins with the words, “Blessed is the man,” and Psalm 41 begins with “Blessed is the one who considers the poor.” Bird says that the word for “consider” means to “treat them properly,” or “act wisely” toward the poor. “So Jesus did: he fed them, cared for them, showed compassion toward the hurting and hungry. His entire ministry was a public exhibition of the gentle heart of God toward those in distress.”

Likewise, 41:1-3 could just as well be seen as the Father acting toward the Son. For the Son surely took our illnesses and infirmities upon Himself, according to Isaiah 53. “Like a human sponge, Jesus was taking on all manner of human pain and oppression long before he was crucified. This same Savior still considers us, treats us with compassion. No tear escapes his notice. His heart moves him toward us when we suffer, not away. He will sit with us in our sadness. Sustain us upon our sickbeds (41:3). And even if full healing does not come in this life, we have from Jesus the promise of full healing in the resurrection of the body and the life everlasting.”

“It’s hard to talk about the poor and not mean
‘Poor me.’ Some think the cure is the disease.
Perhaps, if knowledge comforted, and fortune
                Made no enemies.
Ninnies, calling sickness judgement,
Send for drugs to end my suffering,
And squabble over what I’ll leave behind me.
Even friends I trusted eye their share of me
                 That is to come.
I am not dumb. God, pity dictates
That you set my foot down on top
Of their heads, heavily, to stop
Their wagging tongues now, and indefinitely.”
(Laurance Wieder, Words to God’s Music, RECOVERY)

From For All the Saints, Maundy Thursday

Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry. I speak as to sensible people; judge for yourselves what I say. The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread.
(1 Corinthians 10:14-17 ESV)

And on the first day of Unleavened Bread, when they sacrificed the Passover lamb, his disciples said to him, “Where will you have us go and prepare for you to eat the Passover?” And he sent two of his disciples and said to them, “Go into the city, and a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him, and wherever he enters, say to the master of the house, ‘The Teacher says, Where is my guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ And he will show you a large upper room furnished and ready; there prepare for us.” And the disciples set out and went to the city and found it just as he had told them, and they prepared the Passover.

And when it was evening, he came with the twelve. And as they were reclining at table and eating, Jesus said, “Truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me, one who is eating with me.” They began to be sorrowful and to say to him one after another, “Is it I?” He said to them, “It is one of the twelve, one who is dipping bread into the dish with me. For the Son of Man goes as it is written of him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for that man if he had not been born.”

And as they were eating, he took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to them, and said, “Take; this is my body.” And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, and they all drank of it. And he said to them, “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many. Truly, I say to you, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.”
(Mark 14:12-25 ESV)

“Among all the memorable events of Christ’s life, the most worthy of remembrance is that last banquet, the most sacred supper. Here not only the Paschal lamb was presented to be eaten but also the immaculate Lamb, who takes away the sins of the world. . . . In this banquet the marvelous sweetness of Christ’s goodness shone forth when He dined at the same table and on the same plates with those poor disciples and the traitor Judas. The marvelous example of His humility shone forth when, girt with a towel, the King of Glory diligently washed the feet of the fishermen and even of His betrayer. The marvelous richness of His generosity was manifest when He gave to the whole Church and the world, His most sacred body and His true blood as food and drink so that what was soon to be a sacrifice pleasing to God and the priceless price of our redemption would be our viaticum [provisions for a journey] and sustenance. Finally, the marvelous outpouring of His love shone forth when loving His own to the end, He strengthened them in goodness with a gentle exhortation, especially forewarning Peter to be firm in faith and offering to John His breast as a pleasant and sacred place of rest.

“O how marvelous are all these things, how full of sweetness, but only for that soul who, having been called to so distinguished a banquet, runs with all the ardor of its spirit so that it may cry out with David:

As the stag longs for the springs of water,
so my soul longs for You, O God!”
(Bonaventure, The Tree of Life)

Dearest Jesus, I thank Thee with all my heart in the council of the godly and the congregation of the Lord, that before entering death Thou has remembered us, Thy Christians, so well, in spreading before us so bounteous a table for our souls. I magnify Thee, most merciful Savior, with all my capabilities and energies, that Thou didst not only give Thyself a sacrifice for my sins and the sins of the whole world, dying on the cross, but that Thou dost also nourish us poor mortals with Thy body and blood in Holy Communion, thereby appropriating unto us all those gifts of grace and the benefits Thou didst acquire. O Lord, the bread which we break is the communion of Thy body given for us on the cross; and the wine we drink at Thy altar is the communion of Thy precious blood, shed for us throughout all Thy painful sufferings. In what manner indeed have we deserved to receive such great proofs of Thy goodness? Who are we that Thou dost draw so nigh to us by uniting with us so closely that Thou art and ever wilt remain in us and we in Thee, as members of Thy body. What return can we make to Thee for taking so deep an interest in our souls, cleansing them from all transgressions and consequent condemnation and applying to them Thy perfect obedience, merits and righteousness, yea giving Thine own self as a pledge of their salvation. O dearest Jesus, even as Thou didst in the Holy Supper establish a memorial of Thy wonderful gifts to us, so this Sacrament shall be a constant memorial in my heart of Thy love and mercy. As oft as I shall eat of this bread and drink of this cup, I will proclaim Thy death, and tell in thankful strains what Thou hast done for me. Oh grant, my Redeemer and Savior, that by means of this blessed food and drink I may be strengthened more and more in my faith, be joined to Thee inseparably, gain strength for a godly life upon earth, and be positively assured of the eternal life of joy in heaven; all for the sake of Thy holy merits. Amen.
For All the Saints, Maundy Thursday, Closing Prayer, Abridged Treasury of Prayers)

My God, I cannot adequately express my gratitude, this day, for all You have done for me. You know my heart; You know my mind; You know my level of thankfulness, and that words cannot do it justice. Help me, today, to, as I acknowledge Your great mercy and love lavished upon me, and Your great forgiveness that came at such a price, show, in turn, that great mercy and love and forgiveness to all who need it, to all who cross my path, today.

Lord, have mercy; Christ, have mercy; Lord, have mercy.

Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, have mercy upon us!

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, amen.

Grace and peace, my brothers and sisters! May you be fed and sustained by His Word and Sacrament!

CHRIST IS EVERYTHING!!!

“Let Us Swing Into the Orbit of Your Love”

Jeff1 Comment

Today is Wednesday, the first day of April, 2026, in the sixth week of Lent, Holy Week. It is Wednesday of Holy Week.

May the peace of God embrace you today and may You feel His love for you.

It is the 91st day of 2026, with 274 days left in the year.

Tomorrow is Maundy Thursday, two days until Good Friday, and four days until Resurrection Sunday.

Day 24,856 of my life.

It’s NATIONAL TROMBONE PLAYERS DAY!!! I’ll be!! That’s me! Huzzah!!!

It’s also Library Snapshot Day. I need to let my people know about that!

Daily writing prompt
What are your morning rituals? What does the first hour of your day look like?
View all responses

My day begins with coffee. If I’m first up, I feed the cats and scoop out litter boxes . After I get my first cup of coffee, I sit down at this computer and start getting ready for my devotional morning, which I refer to as “Jesus Time.” This eventually winds up taking several hours, because I am far too easily distracted. I still need to work on that. There is also always a second cup of coffee.

Today is a normal-for-right-now Wednesday. I’m off work, and C is “working” to recover from her surgery, as her company has mandated that she take some time off to heal. S and I have choir practice tonight to prepare for Good Friday. That’s about it. My car is still in the shop, as I wait for it to be finished. The repairs will cost a little over $2000, as I’m having to get new injectors installed. Egad.

JESUS TIME

O almighty, merciful God, gracious Father in heaven, You once again have defended me this night through the protection of Your holy angels, so that I have lived to see yet another day refreshed and sound. For that, I give You thanks and praise. Let all my doings and my will match Yours, and of Your great mercy, forgive me the miserable sin that accompanies me. Govern with Your Holy Spirit all my efforts, heart, intellect, desires, and thoughts, all my words and works, that I might understand that which is good and that which is evil. May I also be able to live and find my way today in this evil and perverted world, so that, above all else, forgiven of my sins, I may carry a heartfelt longing for the eternal heavenly home that has been purchased and won for me by Christ, my Savior. May I not belittle, fritter away, and finally lose that with my sinful life. To that end, graciously help me with Your divine love and the power of the Holy Spirit; for the sake of Your dear Son, Jesus Christ. Amen.
(Lutheran Book of Prayer, Prayer 38, Wednesday Morning)

Heavenly Father, I have again entered the morning of midweek. Help me be appreciative of every morning You give me, no matter what day of the week. Help me see each day as an opportunity to serve and glorify You. To that end, send Your Holy Spirit to strengthen and guide me during my various routines and during the fulfillment of my vocations, that all may be done out of love and concern for others. Help my words and actions so that through them Christ may be glorified and magnified, that those near me may realize that by Your grace I am His sibling. In His name. Amen.
(Portals of Prayer, Prayer for Wednesday Morning)

Father, in Your plan of salvation Your Son Jesus Christ accepted the cross and freed us from the power of the enemy. May we come to share the glory of His resurrection, for He lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
(For All the Saints, Wednesday of Holy Week, Opening Prayer)

Then Pilate said to him, “So you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world—to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.”
(John 18:37 ESV)

Today I am grateful:

  1. That You have given me ears to hear and listen to Your voice and Your Word; You Word is Truth, Your Word is Life
  2. That You called me to this life from before the foundations of the earth, and set things in motion that would bring me to where I am today
  3. For the bread and wine of Communion, Your Body and Blood, given for me
  4. That all the hairs on my head numbered; there is no detail of my life of which You are not aware
  5. That You, who knew no sin, were made to be sin on our behalf, that we might be redeemed from our sin for all eternity; THANK YOU, JESUS, MY KING!!! 💜💜💜
Lord, in Your mercy, hear, now, the prayers lifted up to you for all who need strength, healing, comfort, and peace. 

If you are reading this, I encourage you to stop and pray for someone, at this time. Or, if there is something on your heart, please leave a comment. What can I pray for you?

Today’s devotional from Henri Nouwen is beautiful.

“Jesus has called you from the moment you were knitted together in your mother‘s womb. It is your vocation to receive and give love. But from the very beginning, you have experienced the forces of death. They attacked you all through your years of growing up. You have been faithful to your vocation, even though you have often felt overwhelmed by darkness. You know now that these dark forces will have no final power over you. They seem overwhelming, but the victory is already won. It is the victory of Jesus, who has called you. He overcame for you the power of death so that you could live in freedom.”

When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:

“Death is swallowed up in victory.”
“O death, where is your victory?
O death, where is your sting?”

The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
(1 Corinthians 15:54-57 ESV)

“Reflection Question:  If Jesus has called you from the very beginning to receive and give love—and has already overcome the forces that try to overwhelm you—where in your life today are you being invited to trust His victory instead of the darkness you feel?”

Psalm for the Day – Psalm 40:11-17

As for you, O LORD, you will not restrain
your mercy from me;
your steadfast love and your faithfulness will
ever preserve me!
For evils have encompassed me
beyond number;
my iniquities have overtaken me,
and I cannot see;
they are more than the hairs of my head;
my heart fails me.

Be pleased, O LORD, to deliver me!
O LORD, make haste to help me!
Let those be put to shame and disappointed altogether
who seek to snatch away my life;
let those be turned back and brought to dishonor
who delight in my hurt!
Let those be appalled because of their shame
who say to me, “Aha, Aha!”

But may all who seek you
rejoice and be glad in you;
may those who love your salvation
say continually, “Great is the LORD!”
As for me, I am poor and needy,
but the Lord takes thought for me.
You are my help and my deliverer;
do not delay, O my God!
(Psalms 40:11-17 ESV)

From Untamed Prayers, “More Than the Hairs of My Head,” by Chad Bird

In Matthew 10:30, Jesus told His disciples, “Even the hairs of your head are all numbered.” The average human head has anywhere between 80,000 to 150,000 hairs on it. Mine is far from average, as I am mostly bald, now. But that’s a lot of hairs to number. The point there, though, really has nothing to do with numbered hairs. It has to do with the fact that “no detail of who we are is unnoticed by our Father.”

As Jesus prays in Psalm 40, though, He speaks of hairs in a different way. Note verse 12: “For evils have encompassed me beyond number; my iniquities have overtaken me, and I cannot see; they are more than the hairs of my head; my heart fails me.”

“These iniquities that Jesus describes vastly outnumber 150,000. They are his but not his. They are the evils done and goods left undone by us, by all humanity, from Adam down to the last person who will ever be conceived in this world. Onto Christ, the head of a new humanity, all this wrong was piled, until these iniquities were more than the hairs of his head. ‘For our sake [the Father] made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God’ (2 Cor. 5:21). ‘Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us’ (Gal. 3:13), so that in him we become the blessed of the Father.”

Therefore, we, who are redeemed by Jesus, “say continually, ‘Great is the LORD!’ (Psalm 40:16). “We rejoice that even the hairs of our head are all numbered because Jesus took our innumerable sins upon himself, thereby reconciling us to the Father. Great indeed is the Lord Jesus, the innocent one who became guilty that we the guilty might be innocent in him.”

From For All the Saints – Wednesday of Holy Week

And he began to speak to them in parables. “A man planted a vineyard and put a fence around it and dug a pit for the winepress and built a tower, and leased it to tenants and went into another country. When the season came, he sent a servant to the tenants to get from them some of the fruit of the vineyard. And they took him and beat him and sent him away empty-handed. Again he sent to them another servant, and they struck him on the head and treated him shamefully. And he sent another, and him they killed. And so with many others: some they beat, and some they killed. He had still one other, a beloved son. Finally he sent him to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ But those tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ And they took him and killed him and threw him out of the vineyard. What will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the tenants and give the vineyard to others. Have you not read this Scripture:

“‘The stone that the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone;
this was the Lord’s doing,
and it is marvelous in our eyes’?”
(Mark 12:1-11 ESV)

“With sorrowful heart,
Yet for the joy of atonement,
You went, O Christ, to Calvary.
If the stars ceased to twinkle
And the sun forgot to shine,
The ever-increasing rays of God’s love
Would find an earthward passage
Through you.

O Christ,
That a thousand and a thousand years
Have passed since Golgotha you braved;
And still men gasp with fear
And grasp with greed–and suffer:
Let us swing into the orbit of your love.

Hasten the day
When we can forget the borders of countries.
The hues of the skin;
When we–all of us together–
Can praise in harmony your love.

O, let us see more vividly
Your blood of love from Calvary,
Streaming like ever-increasing rays . . .
Earthward.”
(Toyohiko Kagawa, “Via Dolorosa”)

My Lord and my God: Thou seest how much of hypocrisy and falsehood dwells within me, in my worldliness as well as in my piety. Thou seest how I spurn Thy love by spurning those to whom thou dost send me, and how I thereby deliver Thee anew to death and the cross.

Lord, forgive me! Lord, convert me! Lord, prepare me for a true Easter! Amen.
(For All the Saints, Wednesday of Holy Week, Closing Prayer, Per Lønning)

My Jesus, I praise You for taking on our sins, many more than the hairs on Your head, that we might be saved, redeemed from our sins, and spend eternity with You. May we, indeed, Lord, “swing into the orbit of your love!” What a beautiful line, what a beautiful poem! I, too, Lord look forward to the day when we can finally forget the borders of countries and all of the hatred and bigotry that accompany them, and forget the colors of skin, and worship You together in one massive group of Your brothers and sisters, all in the harmony of Your steadfast love and mercy! What a day that will be!! All praise and glory to You and worship forever, my Jesus!

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, amen.

Grace and peace, my brothers and sisters! Drink deep of the love of God!

CHRIST IS EVERYTHING!!!

“Destroyed and Rendered Formless”

Jeff1 Comment

Today is Tuesday, the thirty-first day of March, 2026, in the sixth week of Lent, Holy Week. It is Holy Tuesday.

May the peace and love of Christ flood your soul, today!

It is the 90th day of 2026, with 275 days remaining in the year.

Two days until Maundy Thursday, three until Good Friday, and five until Resurrection Sunday.

It is day 24,867 of my life

Today is National Crayon Day. It is also Dance Marathon Day, but I’m more likely to play with crayons.

Daily writing prompt
Which aspects do you think makes a person unique?
View all responses

Besides the obvious answer, which is DNA, there are aspects of personality that are different in everyone. Even in people we think are “just like me,” there are differences, and that’s what makes the world a beautiful place. How boring it would be if we were all the same. For the most part, our physical appearances are all unique, as well. Somewhere in the world, I have a doppelganger or two, but in my own sphere, I have not encountered many people who look just like me. It is always interesting, though, when we encounter someone who is totally unrelated (in a familial way), but yet you find that they could just as easily be your brother or sister. It’s more than interesting . . . it’s beautiful and delightful. IYKYK.

Today is a mostly normal Tuesday, at least for me. I have work at the library today from 4:15-8:15. I am taking my car to a shop across the street at 2:00 today, because my pesky engine light came on Sunday morning, and I want to get it take care of. Hopefully, it will be something simple. But is it ever? I can take C’s car to work, this evening, and even to church tomorrow, if it takes longer than that to fix. I’ll be heading to Sonic in a few minutes to get our ubiquitous Sonic drinks, and stopping by CVS, as well, to grab something for C. She continues to be off work, to help recover from her surgery.

JESUS TIME

O eternal, merciful, and bounteous God of heaven, I thank You that out of surpassing grace and fatherly care You have allowed me to complete another day in fitness and soundness. I confess that this day I have not added to Your honor and praise, nor have I shown myself to be sufficiently useful to my neighbor, all because my corrupted nature favors evil instead of good. Therefore, forgive me, O faithful God, that I, born of sinful seed, may yet take part in Your grace. Teach me often to contemplate my own end that I thus may be found to be truly contrite. When that end does draw near, let me depart from this vale of tears as one comforted and blessed and find a place among all believing Christians in the heavenly paradise. Take me under Your almighty protection as long as I have days numbered upon the earth. Graciously defend and preserve me from all injury and danger to body and soul for the sake of Jesus Christ, Your dear Son. Amen.
(Lutheran Book of Prayer, Prayer 37, Tuesday Evening)

Gracious heavenly Father, I thank You for keeping me safe through the quiet hours of this past night. As a new day dawns, help me to see, through the eyes of faith, that the challenges that might be in front of me today are not greater than the power behind me. Help me to see that everyone I engage with today was created in Your image and thus worthy of respect. If someone has a need, help me to meet that need where I am able. Enable me to trust the promise that You have the power to work all things for my good. In the name of Jesus, Your dear Son, I pray. Amen.
(Portals of Prayer, Prayer for Tuesday Morning)

Father, may we receive Your forgiveness and mercy as we celebrate the passion and death of the Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
(For All the Saints, Tuesday of Holy Week, Opening Prayer)

The angel of the LORD encamps
around those who fear him, and delivers them.

Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good!
Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!
(Psalms 34:7-8 ESV)

Today I am grateful:

  1. That I have tasted and seen that the Lord is good; He is my refuge and my strength
  2. That His steadfast love will never let me go
  3. That He has enabled me to cast off the weight of sin that clings so closely, that I may run the race set before me (Hebrews 12:1)
  4. That God has given me “an open ear” that I might hear and do His will for me (Psalm 40)
  5. For the four ways that Christ has entered the Temple of my heart; as an infant, restoring my innocence, as a child, teaching me to ask questions and seek my Father’s will, as a man, showing me proper zeal and passion and anger, and finally, in His death on the cross, tearing away the veil between me and the Holy of Holies where the Father dwells
Lord, in Your mercy, hear, now, the prayers lifted up to you for all who need strength, healing, comfort, and peace. 

If you are reading this, I encourage you to stop and pray for someone, at this time. Or, if there is something on your heart, please leave a comment. What can I pray for you?

Psalm of the Day – Psalm 40:6-10

In sacrifice and offering you have not delighted,
but you have given me an open ear.
Burnt offering and sin offering
you have not required.
Then I said, “Behold, I have come;
in the scroll of the book it is written of me:
I delight to do your will, O my God;
your law is within my heart.”

I have told the glad news of deliverance
in the great congregation;
behold, I have not restrained my lips,
as you know, O LORD.
I have not hidden your deliverance within my heart;
I have spoken of your faithfulness and your salvation;
I have not concealed your steadfast love and your faithfulness
from the great congregation.
(Psalms 40:6-10 ESV)

From Untamed Prayers, “In Sacrifice and Offering You Have Not Delighted,” by Chad Bird

“The broken record of God’s preaching to Israel is, ‘Listen to me . . . incline your ear to me . . . hear my word.’ Be People of the Ear. Why? Because the words of God vivify. Like rain waters parched soil, the cloud of the Lord’s word pours water into our arid hearts via our ears, producing the crops of faith, hope, and love.”

The Lord accepted the sacrifices of Israel, “offered when they had sinned by not listening to his word,” but what He really wants is for them to listen. This has been the theme of my Lenten season, listening. I’m not sure how good I’m doing, but it is always in front of me, as it sits at the top of my daily order of devotional readings.

So if we consider that Christ is saying these words (and we will see later, in Hebrews, that He is), He says in verse 6, “You have given me an open ear.” Then He says, “Burnt offering and sin offering you have not required.” Instead, Christ says, “I have come; in the scroll of the book it is written of me: I delight to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart.” The Word of the Father was engraved into the heart of Jesus. “His listening, his unwavering obedience ‘to the point of death, even death on a cross,’ earned salvation for us (Phil. 2:8).”

See this passage from Hebrews.

Consequently, when Christ came into the world, he said,

“Sacrifices and offerings you have not desired,
but a body have you prepared for me;
in burnt offerings and sin offerings
you have taken no pleasure.
Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come to do your will, O God,
as it is written of me in the scroll of the book.’”

When he said above, “You have neither desired nor taken pleasure in sacrifices and offerings and burnt offerings and sin offerings” (these are offered according to the law), then he added, “Behold, I have come to do your will.” He does away with the first in order to establish the second. And by that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
(Hebrews 10:5-10 ESV)

“With open ears,” says Bird, “in the body prepared for him, Jesus did the will of his Father. ‘And by that will we have been sanctified through the offering of Jesus Christ once for all.’ (Heb. 10:10). Because ‘it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins’ (10:4), Jesus, our embodied God, took those sins away when he rendered ‘himself as a guilt offering’ (Isa. 53:10 NASB). This ‘glad news of deliverance’ in Jesus is the best news to ever enter our open ears (Ps. 40:9).

“The cross teaches us to believe in hope even when there is no hope. The wisdom of the cross is deeply hidden in a profound mystery. In fact, there is no other way to heaven than taking up the cross of Christ. On account of this we must beware that the active life with its good works, and the contemplative life with its speculations, do not lead us astray. Both are most attractive and yield peace of mind, but for that very reason they hide real dangers, unless they are tempered by the cross and disturbed by adversaries. The cross is the surest path of all. Blessed is the man who understands this truth.

“It is a matter of necessity that we be destroyed and rendered formless, so that Christ may be formed within us, and Christ alone be in us. . . . Real mortifications do not happen in lonely places away from the society of other human beings. No! They happen in the home, the market place, in secular life. . . . ‘Being conformed to Christ’ is not within our powers to achieve. It is God’s gift, not our own work.

“He who is not crucianus, if I may coin a word, is not Christianus: in other words, he who does not bear his cross is no Christian, for he is not like his Master, Jesus Christ.”
(For All the Saints, Tuesday of Holy Week, Martin Luther, A reflection on the cross)

And this, my brothers and sisters, is exactly what Christ did to me, last February. He destroyed me, rendered me formless, and began forming Himself within me. All glory to Him, and worship forever!

From Word in the Wilderness, by Malcolm Guite

This being Tuesday of Holy Week, it is remembered as the day that Jesus cleansed the temple, turning over the tables of the merchants who were cheating the people.

“Come to your Temple here with liberation
And overturn these tables of exchange,
Restore in me my lost imagination,
Begin in me for good the pure change.
Come as you came, an infant with your mother,
That innocence may cleanse and claim this ground.
Come as you came, a boy who sought his father
With questions asked and certain answers found.
Come as you came this day, a man in anger,
Unleash the lash that drives a pathway through,
Face down for me the fear, the shame, the danter,
Teach me again to whom my love is due.
Break down in me the barricades of death
And tear the veil in two with your last breath.”
(Cleansing the Temple, Malcolm Guite)

In this sonnet, Guite reflects on God’s four advents into the temple; as a baby when His parents brought Him, fulfilling the law; as a young boy, talking to the teachers, “seeking to know his father’s will;” on this day, as a man, with righteous anger; and finally, by His death on the cross, tearing the veil between us and the Holy of Holies.

But within those reflections, Guite also focuses on those actions in our own hearts, asking Christ to come into us as a baby, restoring our innocence and purity; as a child, that we might also seek God and come to Him as children, seeking His will; and most effectively, perhaps, as the first four lines ask, to come into our hearts “with liberation and overturn these tables of exchange,” restoring our lost imagination, changing us for good.

Says Guite, “There is a right and proper way to do this that is rich and imaginative, but there is also a cold and calculating way, a temptation to cash everything out as a payment to the ego. We need the exchange to work two ways; we need to be able to take the little tokens of our own feelings and imaginatively exchange them for a real understanding of the feelings of others.” He then references back to the first four lines of the sonnet.

“I ask for Christ to come in all his ways: as the infant to claim and renew my infancy, and all that is and should remain child-like in me; as a questioning boy, that I too might have the courage to question the learned doctors of the Church and offer some insights too; as a man of zeal and passion, that he might stir in me a proper anger and courage in the face of injustice. But is the last of his comings to the temple that changes everything, and for that we will have to wait for Good Friday, though we anticipate it a little here. For that final visit to the temple is done, paradoxically, from the cross, when as Jesus breathes his last the veil in the temple is torn in two from top to bottom. As Hebrews tells us, that veil hangs between heaven and earth, and Christ, the great high priest, has gone within the veil on our behalf and brings not just our outer names but our inner nature into the heart of heaven itself – the heaven of which the temple, both outward and inner, was only a type and shadow.”

This just may be the best reading in the book, thus far.

    Beloved Lord: Help me to fix my gaze on you. You are the embodiment of divine Love, you are the expression of God’s infinite compassion, the visible manifestation of the holiness of the Father. You are beauty, goodness, sweetness, forgiveness, and mercy. In you, everything can be found. Outside of you, there is nothing. Why should I look elsewhere or go somewhere else? You have words of eternal life, you are food and drink, you are the Way, the Truth, and the Life. You are the light that shines in the darkness, the light on the candlestick, the house on the hill. You are the perfect Image of God. In you and through you I can see the Heavenly Father, and with you I can find my way to him. Oh, holy, beautiful, glorious, be my Lord, my Savior, my Redeemer, my Guide, my Comfort, my Consolation, my Hope, my Joy, and my Peace. I want to give you everything I am. Make me generous, not stingy or hesitant. Let me give it all to you: everything I have, everything I think, everything I do, everything I feel, Lord. Please, accept it and make it completely yours.
    (Henri Nouwen)

    My Lord, You have truly spoken Life to me, this morning, and given me open ears to hear Your Word. Thank You, my Lord, for all of this. Thank You for teaching me to listen, and encouraging me to do so. For it is when I listen to You that I am fed, transformed, and given more maturity. Thank You for destroying me and rendering me formless, last February, and then beginning to rebuild and forming Christ in me, that He might be all in all and everything to me. Thank You for this beautiful sonnet by Malcolm Guite that so aptly illustrates the ways that Christ has come into the Temple of my heart. Thank You most of all for His tearing of the veil between me and You, that I might be Your child and worship You forever. Please keep feeding me by Your Word and Sacrament, daily and weekly. I love You, my Lord, and praise and worship You forever. I cannot wait to stand in Your presence and be completely destroyed by Your beauty.

    My Jesus, You are all and in all! You are everything! I am wholly Yours, as You have bought me, body, soul, and spirit. I thank You Jesus, with every ounce of my being, for all eternity.

    In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, amen.

    Grace and peace, my brothers and sisters! Drink deep!

    CHRIST IS EVERYTHING!!!

    My Cross To Bear

    Jeff

    Today is Monday, the thirtieth day of March, 2026, in the sixth week of Lent, also known as Holy Week. It is Holy Monday.

    May the peace of Christ surround you, today, and guard your hearts and minds!

    It is the 89th day of 2026, with 276 days remaining in the year.

    There are three days until Maundy Thursday, four days until Good Friday, and six days until Resurrection Sunday.

    It is day 24,854 of my life.

    Today is Grass is Always Browner on the Other Side of the Fence Day. It is also National Folding Laundry Day, which I will be doing. While not comparing my life to someone else’s side of the fence. 🤣🤣

    Daily writing prompt
    If you could have something named after you, what would it be?
    View all responses

    Huh. I have to say that I’ve never really considered that. If I could have something named after me, it would be a library, but not just any library. It would be a library/spiritual direction resource. Maybe “The Jeff Bickley Center of Learning that Christ Is Everything.” I think I know who I would put in charge of it.

    Today is an off-work Monday for me. It is already mid-afternoon, because of various reasons that have pulled me away or distracted me from my spiritual activities. But I’m nearly finished with this, and will move on to the aforementioned folding of the laundry, in celebration of this special day. Of course every other Monday is “Folding Laundry Day” for me. As well as other sporadic days, depending on when the hamper gets full. That and getting the trash out to the curb for tomorrow’s collection are all I have to do today. I’ve already picked up the groceries. Oh, and I need to cook dinner tonight, too.

    JESUS TIME

    Merciful God, gracious Father, I thank You that You have graciously protected me today, even to this very hour, from all misfortune of body and soul. For the sake of Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, forgive me all my sins on account of grace, for this day I have repeatedly worked against You in thought, word, and deed, while failing to consider the eternal consequences. Grant that I may lie down to a safe rest and a peaceful sleep, preserved by Your fatherly care and Your almighty power from every assault against my body and soul. Defend me against the cunning and power of the devil; keep me free from bad, useless, and shameful dreams. As it be Your will, awaken me refreshed and healthy to praise You another day. Now, into Your divine hand I commend myself entirely. You have redeemed me, O faithful God. Amen.
    (Lutheran Book of Prayer, Prayer 35, Monday Evening)

    Lord Jesus Christ, today I begin another week of service to You and to my neighbor. Give me the motivation and energy I need to fulfill my vocations, occupations, and responsibilities. Watch over my coming in and my going out, that I may always remember that You are with me. Help, guide, and teach me to follow Your example, that I may take pleasure in the work of my hands. Help me resist temptations to sin. “Thus, Lord Jesus, ev’ry task be to You commended; may Your will be done, I ask, until life is ended. Jesus, in Your name begun be the day’s endeavor; grant that it may well be done to Your praise forever” (LSB 869:5).
    (Portals of Prayer, Prayer for Monday Morning)

    All-powerful God, by the suffering and death of Your Son, strengthen and protect us in our weakness. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
    (For All the Saints, Monday of Holy Week, Opening Prayer)

    He was despised and rejected by men,
       a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief;
    and as one from whom men hide their faces
       he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

    Surely he has borne our griefs
       and carried our sorrows;
    yet we esteemed him stricken,
       smitten by God, and afflicted.
    But he was pierced for our transgressions;
       he was crushed for our iniquities;
    upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,   
       and with his wounds we are healed.
    All we like sheep have gone astray;
       we have turned—every one—to his own way;
    and the LORD has laid on him
       the iniquity of us all.
    (Isaiah 53:3-6 ESV)

    Today I am grateful:

    1. That Christ bore our griefs, carried our sorrows, was pierced for our transgressions, and crushed for our iniquities; all glory to Him and worship forever
    2. That the Lord heard my cries, drew me up from the pit of destruction, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock; not just any “rock,” though; THE Rock.
    3. That He put a new song in my mouth, and is still putting new songs in my mouth; all glory to Him and worship forever
    4. That God comforts me in my various and occasional afflictions, so that I might, in turn, comfort others in theirs; a new opportunity for me to do this is coming soon
    5. For the forgiveness of my sins and the ongoing reminder that I must also forgive others
    Lord, in Your mercy, hear, now, the prayers lifted up to you for all who need strength, healing, comfort, and peace. 

    If you are reading this, I encourage you to stop and pray for someone, at this time. Or, if there is something on your heart, please leave a comment. What can I pray for you?

    Psalm of the Day – Psalm 40:1-5

    I waited patiently for the LORD;
       he inclined to me and heard my cry.
    He drew me up from the pit of destruction,
       out of the miry bog,
    and set my feet upon a rock,
       making my steps secure.
    He put a new song in my mouth,
       a song of praise to our God.
    Many will see and fear,
       and put their trust in the LORD.

    Blessed is the man who makes
       the LORD his trust,
    who does not turn to the proud,
       to those who go astray after a lie!
    You have multiplied, O LORD my God,
       your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us;
       none can compare with you!
    I will proclaim and tell of them,
       yet they are more than can be told.
    (Psalms 40:1-5 ESV)

    From Untamed Prayers – “Out of the Miry Bog,” by Chad Bird

    I can identify a bit with Chad Bird as he describes his fear of being caught in quicksand, based on the amount of television watching we did as kids in the seventies. It seemed like adults were constantly getting trapped in quicksand. We have discovered, however, as we grew up, that it is actually quite rare. On the other hand, sinking into “the pit of destruction,” and the “miry bog” described in Psalm 41, are all to real. Thes pits and bogs might be known as “depression, melancholy, shame, despair, and other spiritual dangers.”

    But we find that the tone or “vibe” of Psalm 40 “is not doleful.” The focus is not falling into these pits, but rather, being delivered from them! “He drew me up from the pit of destruction,” says verse 2, “and set my feet upon a rock.” Who is the “me” in this psalm? Is it David? Yes, as he is the writer of the psalm. Is it us? Yes, as we join the author of the psalm in our prayers. But it is also Jesus. Bird promises more on this tomorrow, but says that “Christ is the Me of Psalm 40.”

    “The Son of God says, ‘I waited patiently for the LORD; he inclined to me and heard my cry’ (40:1), for ‘in the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence’ (Heb 5:7). ‘He put a new song in my mouth,’ Christ says, for he sings praises to his Father ‘in the midst of the congregation’ (Ps. 22:22; Heb 2:12). ‘Many will see and fear and put their trust in the LORD’ our Savior says. Indeed they have, all because of his saving work on our behalf. Jesus was drawn from the pit of death for us, his feet were set upon the solid rock of resurrection. Blessed are all of us who make him and his Father our trust (40:4).”

    From For All the Saints – Monday of Holy Week

    Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For as we share abundantly in Christ’s sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too. If we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; and if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which you experience when you patiently endure the same sufferings that we suffer. Our hope for you is unshaken, for we know that as you share in our sufferings, you will also share in our comfort.
    (2 Corinthians 1:3-7 ESV)

    On the following day, when they came from Bethany, he was hungry. And seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. And he said to it, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard it.

    And they came to Jerusalem. And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold and those who bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons. And he would not allow anyone to carry anything through the temple. And he was teaching them and saying to them, “Is it not written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations’? But you have made it a den of robbers.” And the chief priests and the scribes heard it and were seeking a way to destroy him, for they feared him, because all the crowd was astonished at his teaching. And when evening came they went out of the city.

    As they passed by in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered away to its roots. And Peter remembered and said to him, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree that you cursed has withered.” And Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God. Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.”
    (Mark 11:12-25 ESV)

    “Meanwhile let’s bear it in mind for our safe-conduct, that the cross is no incidental privation, no personal misfortune. I’ve heard everything called a cross, from ill-health to a wayward son; from loneliness to an unruly temper; from somebody who pays you no attention to somebody who pays you too much. It’s a kind of blasphemy. When we talk that way we are thinking more of ourselves than of anybody else, fairly eaten away with self-pity. And we dress up our complaining spirit in the garb of sainthood.

    “The cross is any place where a saving love goes out to undergird this life of ours, and comes back with the hot stab of nails in its hands! It’s the place where you try with all your might, and have nothing. It may be but a hurt for your trying, and a heart that keeps stretching anyway as far as your arms can reach. When you’ve begun to grow muscle like that; when you’re ready for the defeat life is always trying to impose on you, yet by His grace can assert your mastery still – striking out toward a lost world through the floods that have gone over you – only then may you begin to talk falteringly of a cross, and reach up unashamed to the feet of Him who still rules from it. ‘There they crucified him.’ I wish we’d quit expecting anything to come of anything else – in God’s world or man’s!”
    (Paul Scherer, A Sermon, “The Ageless Cross”)

    I have long felt that most of the things that we refer to when we say, “Well, that’s just my cross to bear,” are not at all “crosses.” No sickness is your “cross to bear.” No unruly neighbor is your “cross to bear.” Because any cross that you bear must be something that you choose to intentionally pick up. I didn’t choose to need a pacemaker, this past January. It is, in a way, an “affliction,” albeit a mild one, but it is not a “cross to bear.” The cross that I bear is the love of Christ and my belief that He is everything, that He owns me, and that my life is not my own. Those are things that I choose (of course, even that “choice” is due to His grace and mercy in my life).

    I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
    (Galatians 2:20 ESV)

    O God, who in the death of Thy beloved Son didst endure for our sake the agony of the cross; grant to us, we beseech Thee, such a measure of Thy Spirit that we may not shrink from loss or pain in Thy service but may do all we can under Thee to help one another and to promote justice and peace upon earth. Forbid that we should complain of burdens and ills that are not worthy to be compared with the sufferings of Christ or the wounds of many among His faithful disciples. Save us from the weakness and futility of self-pity, and from faithless brooding and anxiety. Give us grace to forget ourselves in concern for others. Teach us to find healing for our hurt in unwearied effort to heal the hurt of the world. Fill us with Thine own compassion for the sick, the hungry, the lonely, the discouraged, and for all who are victims of prejudice and injustice, that we may enter into the constancy and joy of Thy service, and be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of Thee; Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
    (For All the Saints, Monday of Holy Week, Closing Prayer, Ernest Fremont Tittle)

    Father, I am hard-pressed to add to or improve upon this prayer already provided in my devotional reading, today. Indeed, I pray that You save me and protect me from the “weakness and futility of self-pity, and from faithless brooding and anxiety.” Help me, indeed, to forget myself and have more concern for others. for the needs and burdens of my brothers and sisters . . . well, that IS a cross that I can bear. But I can only bear it in Your strength, my Lord. If I dare step out and try to do it alone, I will fail in misery and humiliation. So give me Your strength, daily, to do what needs to be done for the sake of Your sheep, Lord, for the sake of my beautiful brothers and sisters in Christ. Help me to see their beauty and not their flaws, for I, too, am deeply flawed and broken.

    Thank You for saving, Me, Lord. Thank You for lifting me up out of the pit of destruction, the miry bog, and setting me on The Rock that is Jesus Christ.

    In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, amen.

    Grace and peace, my brothers and sisters! Drink deep!

    CHRIST IS EVERYTHING!!!

    Holy Week/Creation Week

    Jeff

    This afternoon, I read the day’s reading in Ever Approaching Dawn, the Lenten devotional by Christianity Today. There will be a reading for every day this week. Today’s was called “Let There Be Light,” and was written by Gretchen Ronnevik.

    As Gretchen writes about the scene where Jesus goes to Bethan to raise Lazarus from the dead, she refers to Him frequently as the Light of the World. “The Light of the World doesn’t worry about the dark.” And she also makes note that, in His conversation with Martha, where she complains that if He had been there sooner, Lazarus would not have died, that Jesus didn’t just say that He could resurrect someone; He said He is the resurrection.

    Following that, we get the Triumphal Entry, where Ms. Ronnevik wonders if the people shouting “Hosanna” and cheering Christ were cheering for the wrong reasons. They still didn’t get it, and thought He was going to overthrow the Romans.

    She speaks of the destruction of Holy Week. “Jesus curses a fig tree. He turns tables over and cleans out the temple. He says he’ll tear it all down and rebuild it in three days.”

    But then the author really blows my mind. She begins to compare Holy Week to Creation Week. I have never seen or heard anyone do this before.

    “During Creation week, God separated the land from the seas, while during Holy Week, Jesus cleared out his temple.

    “The day when God created all the plantes in the world correlates to Holy Week when Jesus examined the fig tree he condemned.

    “In harmony with the day God created all the animals, Jesus ate the slaughtered lamb of the Passover.

    “On the sixth day, in which God created humanity, Jesus himself died on the cross.

    “On the seventh day, God rested, and Jesus lay in the tomb.

    “And on the eighth day, Resurrection Day, there is new life. A new creation begins.

    “This timeline would make Palm Sunday the first day of re-creation. . . . Let there be light.

    “The light of the World does not stumble in the dark.

    “He who has eyes to see, let him see. Jesus is about to remake the world.”

    I am so very excited for this week! A continuous worship service from today until next Sunday. Don’t go from “Hosanna” to “Alleluia” without experiencing Thursday and Friday! (That was shamelessly stolen from my pastor’s sermon, this morning. Wait . . . it wasn’t in the sermon; it was in the announcements!)

    On the sixth day, God created mankind; and on the sixth day, He died for mankind. I am utterly gobsmacked.

    Just something to ponder for your Holy Week.

    Grace and peace, my brothers and sisters! Drink deep!

    CHRIST IS EVERYTHING!!!

    Ready

    Jeff

    Today is Sunday, the twenty-ninth day of March, 2026, in the sixth week of Lent, Holy Week. It is Palm Sunday.

    May you experience the peace of the Lord in your soul, today!

    It is the 88th day of 2026, with 277 days left in the year.

    It is, again, Palm Sunday, but it is also R’s birthday!

    Four days until Maundy Thursday. Five days until Good Friday. Seven days until Resurrection Sunday.

    Day 24,853 of my life.

    It is also World Piano Day! Here’s a little bit of piano music (song featured in the TV show, Station Eleven)

    I’m laughing as I watch this. It’s ridiculous.

    Daily writing prompt
    What makes you laugh?
    View all responses

    That piano piece up there, that’s what makes me laugh. I’m a piano player, but I could never pull this off!! And Lang Lang is so nonchalant about it!

    Other things that make me laugh . . . puns. I love puns. I think they are mostly called “dad jokes” now. I love dad jokes. But sometimes I laugh for joy. There have been times that Jesus has made me laugh. (You can’t not bring Jesus into can you??) Nope.

    It’s been a good Sunday, so far. We’ve already been to church and back, and had lunch. S and I will be headed back up to church in a little while, so she can help out with the confirmation class. I’ll take a book. On the way to church, this morning, the “Emission Systems Problem” light popped up on my instrument panel. I don’t know what’s wrong, and I don’t know when I’ll get it checked out, but it likely won’t be this week. I don’t know. The car still runs fine, though. I’ll have to get it fixed before the end of June, because my inspection is due then.

    The sermon and worship were good, this morning. And I forget what happens at the end of Palm Sunday every year. Ironically, the sermon was “Tears” and the gist of it was debunking the ridiculous myth that “real men don’t cry.” Because if anyone was ever a “real man,” it was Jesus, and he cried. Well, at the end of Palm Sunday, there is no benediction, just a Scripture reading, and, you guessed it, I was crying. Not only that, but here are the words to the hymn we sang right after Communion:

    On my heart imprint your image,
    blessed Jesus, king of grace,
    that life’s troubles nor its pleasures
    ever may your work erase;
    let the clear inscription be:
    Jesus, crucified for me,
    is my life, my hope’s foundation,
    all my glory and salvation!

    Wow! That was followed by this reading, in place of the usual benediction:

    And taking the twelve, he said to them, “See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written about the Son of Man by the prophets will be accomplished. For he will be delivered over to the Gentiles and will be mocked and shamefully treated and spit upon. And after flogging him, they will kill him, and on the third day he will rise.”
    (Luke 18:31-33 ESV)

    Then I came home and read the bulk of my devotional readings for the morning. So on to that.

    JESUS TIME

    Eternal, almighty God and Father, I give You heartfelt praise and thanks that You have graciously preserved me from all evil and danger to body and soul during the past night and all time previously by means of Your holy angels. I now earnestly beseech You to forgive me all my sins, with which I have ever offended You, and enlighten me by Your Holy Spirit, that I may daily grow in the knowledge of You. Bestow Your grace upon me, that I may be defended throughout this coming day from all sin and disgrace. May it be found in Your divine will that I also may walk in Your path, that being thus protected from all evil, I may always and unceasingly keep You in my heart and in my thoughts. When my hour of death draws near and I must depart this life, may You then let me joyfully fall asleep unto eternal life in the true knowledge of Your dear Son, Jesus Christ. Amen.
    (Lutheran Book of Prayer, Prayer 32, Sunday Morning)

    Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, be with me today. Remind me that I am Yours and that You have saved me through the precious blood of Jesus. I am sorry for my sins. Please forgive me. Help me hear You speaking to me through my pastor’s mouth today. Thank You for feeding me Your very body and blood through the bread and wine of Your Supper. Strengthen me through Your Word and Sacrament. Help me stay connected to You, the true vine, by connecting with Your Body, the church. May I never neglect meeting together with Your church, that we can encourage and love one another (Hebrews 10:25). Through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
    (Portals of Prayer, Prayer for Sunday Morning)

    Almighty, ever-living God, You have given the human race Jesus Christ our Savior as a model of humility. He fulfilled your will by becoming man and giving His live on the cross. Help us to bear witness to You by following His example of suffering and make us worthy to share in His resurrection. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
    (For All the Saints, Sunday of the Passion, Opening Prayer)

    “I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep.”
    (John 10:14-15 ESV)
    For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
    (2 Corinthians 5:21 ESV)

    Today I am grateful:

    1. For the opportunity to gather with the community of saints, sing praise to God, and be fed by Word and Sacrament
    2. That Christ knows me and owns me, and laid down His life for me, taking on my sin, that I might become the righteousness of God
    3. That I have seen faith, hope, and love growing in my life, abundantly, over the last thirteen months; Thank You, my Lord! Thank You!
    4. For the life and legacy of Dietrich Bonhoeffer; what inspiration for me!
    5. For Holy Week and all that it means for us; what a rich week of worship, virtually one continuous worship service from Palm Sunday until Easter Sunday (but don’t go from “Hosanna” to “Alleluia” without experiencing Thursday and Friday)
    Lord, in Your mercy, hear, now, the prayers lifted up to you for all who need strength, healing, comfort, and peace. 

    If you are reading this, I encourage you to stop and pray for someone, at this time. Or, if there is something on your heart, please leave a comment. What can I pray for you?

    Psalm of the Day – Psalm 39:7-13

    “And now, O Lord, for what do I wait?
       My hope is in you.
    Deliver me from all my transgressions.
       Do not make me the scorn of the fool!
    I am mute; I do not open my mouth,
       for it is you who have done it.
    Remove your stroke from me;
       I am spent by the hostility of your hand.
    When you discipline a man
       with rebukes for sin,
    you consume like a moth what is dear to him;
       surely all mankind is a mere breath! Selah

    “Hear my prayer, O LORD,
       and give ear to my cry;
       hold not your peace at my tears!
    For I am a sojourner with you,
       a guest, like all my fathers.
    Look away from me, that I may smile again,
       before I depart and am no more!”
    (Psalms 39:7-13 ESV)

    From, Untamed Prayers, “Look Away from Me,” by Chad Bird

    Unlike many psalms, this one does not end with praise. It ends with a shocking, stark request, “Look away from me!” How many of us have felt like saying this to God at our lowest points?

    “The welcome news is that our Father is not baffled by the emotional zigging and zagging of such prayers. He knows our needs better than we do. He will listen. He will nod. And he will do, through his Spirit, what needs to be done to hold us as we heal. Maybe he will send a friend to comfort us. Maybe he will give us someone to care for. He certainly will, in ways imperceptible to us, slowly inch us out of the shadowlands of grief and closer to the bright garden of hope in Jesus our Savior. What he will never do is abandon us. Even when we tell him to leave. He’s too good a God for that.”

    From For All the Saints – Sunday of the Passion

    Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses. I charge you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who in his testimony before Pontius Pilate made the good confession, to keep the commandment unstained and free from reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, which he will display at the proper time—he who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see. To him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen.
    (1 Timothy 6:12-16 ESV)

       And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it, saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.”

       And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold, saying to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a den of robbers.”
       And he was teaching daily in the temple. The chief priests and the scribes and the principal men of the people were seeking to destroy him, but they did not find anything they could do, for all the people were hanging on his words.
    (Luke 19:41-48 ESV)

    “Bonhoeffer is then taken to Flossenbürg, where he is given the death sentence. After it has been delivered, the prison doctor catches a glimpse of him through the half-opened door of one of the huts, still in his prison clothes, and kneeling in fervent prayer to the Lord his God. ‘The devotion and evident conviction of being heard that I saw in the prayer of this intensely captivating man,’ the doctor is subsequently to recall, ‘moved me to the depths.’ The next morning – in Mary Bosanquet’s word – ‘naked under the scaffold in the sweet spring woods,’ Bonhoeffer kneels for the last time to pray. Five minutes later his life is ended.

    “As this happens five years of the monstrous buffooneries of war are drawing to a close. Hitler’s Reich, which was to last for a thousand years, will soon reach its ignominious and ruinous end; the liberators are moving in from the east and the west with bombs and tanks and guns and cigarettes and Spam; the air is thick with rhetoric and cant. Looking back now after twenty-four years, I ask myself where in that murky darkness any light shines; not among the Nazis, certainly, not among the liberators, who, as we know, were to liberate no one and nothing. The rhetoric and cant have mercifully been forgotten; what lives on is the memory of a man who died, not on behalf of freedom or democracy or any of the twentieth century’s counterfeit hopes and desires, but on behalf of a Cross on which another man had died two thousand years before. As on that previous occasion, on Golgotha, so amidst the rubble and desolation of liberated Europe, the only victor is the man who died, as the only hope for the future lies in his triumph over death. There never can be any other victory or any other hope. This is what I am trying, so inadequately to say.”
    (Malcolm Muggeridge, Jesus Rediscovered)

    As I read this excerpt, and these Scripture readings, this morning, I am reminded of something that the Lord showed me somewhere around this same time, last year. I am prepared to die for Christ. Not for country, not for “freedom,” not for “democracy,” or for ” any of the twentieth century’s counterfeit hopes and desires,” (or the twenty-first century’s, as well) for they truly are all counterfeit. No, I am prepared to die “on behalf of a Cross on which another man” died. For Jesus Christ, my all in all, my only hope. My life is forfeit to Him. He alone is worthy of my devotion and loyalty. He is my Sovereign, my only King.

    From My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

    “You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.”
    (Luke 12:40 ESV)

    What does it mean to be ready; to be “ready to face Jesus Christ at any and every turn”? If we get so absorbed in the work that we are not ready to face Him, we just might miss Him. The question is not facing my belief, or my creed, or whether I am of any use . . . It is to face Him.

    “Jesus rarely comes where we expect Him; He appears where we least expect Him, and always in the most illogical connections.” I have to be ready for His “surprise visits.” I need to expect Him at every turn. Last February (2025), I most definitely got a “surprise visit,” and it is still happening. I have grown to expect Him every day, at every turn. So much so that, if I don’t receive something moving every day, I begin to come close to despair, and the enemy tempts me to think my journey is coming to an end.

    I know that sounds ridiculous, but that’s the way our enemy works, especially if one is a “chronic overthinker,” which I am. “If we are going to be ready for Jesus Christ, we have to stop being religious (that is, using religion as a higher kind of culture) and be spiritually real.” I may get accused of being “unpractical and dreamy,” but frankly, I don’t care. “Trust no one, not even the finest saint who ever walked this earth, ignore him, if he hinders your sight of Jesus Christ.”

    Jesus Christ “came in like a wrecking ball” last February (sorry, Miley)(no I’m not), but He didn’t just wreck and run. He hung around to rebuild and is still building. I am ready, and looking for Him at every turn, every day.

    “O God,
    early in the morning I cry to you.
    Help me to pray,
    and to concentrate my thoughts on you:
    I cannot do this alone.

    In me there is darkness,
    But with you there is light;
    I am lonely, but you do not leave me;
    I am feeble in heart, but with you there is help;
    I am restless, but with you there is peace.
    In me there is bitterness, but with you there is patience;
    I do not understand your ways,
    but you know the way for me . . .

    Restore me to liberty,
    And enable me so to live now
    that I may answer before you and before me,
    Lord, whatever this day may bring,
    Your name be praised.
    Amen.”
    (For All the Saints, Sunday of the Passion, Closing Prayer, Dietrich Bonhoeffer)
     

    Oh, holy Father, I thank You for everything that You have done for me, in me, and all that You will do through me for the rest of my life. For I know that You have tasks for me to do (because I’m still here). There are things on the horizon that I am anticipating, but also mildly anxious about. But I trust in You to give me the strength to do what needs to be done, as well as the words to say what needs to be said. Give me a heart of compassion for all who will intersect my life every day, Lord. Help me to love, to love, and to love some more. My life is not my own, it belongs to You, entirely. I am ready for whatever You have for me, and a silly little “check engine” light is nothing more than a speck of dust on the highway.

    You have set me free, oh, my Lord! You delivered me from darkness, and You keep on shining the light into me. I am not lonely, anymore, my Lord, because You have filled my life with people who love me and support me and encourage me. Friends, family, church family . . . I am surrounded by You and Yours. But, just like Brother Bonhoeffer prayed, I cannot do this alone, and You know that. Therefore, I also know that I am not alone.

    I am ready. I am free. You wrecked me, then You started rebuilding. And You are still rebuilding. I am ready. I am liberated. Protect me from our enemy, Lord, because he’s trying to undo what You have done. Give me the strength . . . You know, Lord, I started to pray for You to give me the strength to hang on. How ridiculous!!! I don’t need to hang one. You are the one hanging on . . . TO ME!!

    And You

         Will

              Never

                   Let

                        Me

                             Go!

    In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, amen.

    Grace and peace, my brothers and sisters! Drink Deep!

    CHRIST IS EVERYTHING!!!

    Live Now

    Jeff1 Comment

    Today is Saturday, the twenty-eighth day of March, 2026, in the fifth week of Lent.

    May the peace of Christ surround you, today, and drive away all of your anxieties and fears.

    It is the 87th day of 2026, and there are 278 days left in the year.

    Tomorrow is Palm Sunday, and R’s birthday.

    Day 24,852 of my life

    Today is International Women in Music Day. So here is a clip of Nancy Wilson tearing up an acoustic guitar (and some excellent vocals by Ann, as well)

    Daily writing prompt
    When you were five, what did you want to be when you grew up?
    View all responses

    Heck if I know. My goodness, that was 63 years ago. Oddly, though, I do remember the day that JFK was assassinated. We were moving that day, from the rental house to the house where my parents would live until my mother moved in with us in 2021. (Or 2022, even that memory is fuzzy.) I do remember, though, wanting to be a lawyer at one point during high school. That God I didn’t do that. Most of my life, I wanted to be a musician of some kind. There was also a period where I wanted to be a rock star. I’m pretty glad that that didn’t happen, as well. In fact, all things considered, I’m pretty content with the way things have turned out, warts and all.

    Today is a working Saturday for me. I will be at the library circulation department from 9:30 to 6:15, today. I don’t know what C has planned for her day. She did say that she and Mama might go out to the bank.

    JESUS TIME

    I thank You, heavenly Father, for setting Your angel to guard my slumber during the night past and for the day of grace and service into which You have awakened me. Keep me steadfast in the awareness of Your protection and in faith in the redemptive work of Jesus Christ, Your Son. Lord, make me mindful of the temptations of sinful care, selfishness, and impure desires, which beset me on every side and from within. Help me in this hour to put on anew the armor of light, that I may be fitted with every weapon of offense and defense against the perils that threaten my spiritual life. Let Your Gospel call me with new sweetness to be reconciled to you; let Your Spirit call me with new power to follow You. Teach me to live this day as though it is my last on earth, knowing that whether I live or whether I die I am present with You. Be my Protector, my Guide, and my Father; for Jesus’ sake. Amen.
    (Lutheran Book of Prayer, Prayer 30, Saturday Morning)

    “All praise to Thee, who safe hast kept and hast refreshed me while I slept; grant, Lord, when I from death shall wake, I may of endless light partake” (LSB 868:3). Loving heavenly Father, gracious Lord God, my strength and my solace, I begin my day with prayer, asking You to guide and direct me, cheer my spirit, and deepen my love for You, who loves me as a father loves his child. I love You because You sent Jesus to redeem me. For this I give You my heartfelt thanks, praise, and adoration. I rely on You; I depend on You; I trust You. Having You at my side, I am confident and content. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
    (Portals of Prayer, Prayer for Saturday Morning)

    God our Father, You always work to save us, and now we rejoice in the great love You give to Your chosen people. Protect all who are about to become Your children, and continue to bless those who are already baptized. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
    (For All the Saints, Saturday of the Week of Lent 5, Opening Prayer)

    “For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”
    (John 6:40 ESV)

    Today I am grateful:

    1. That I have looked on the Son and believed in Him, and therefore, have eternal life
    2. For Christ’s invitation to come to Him and step into His easy yoke, that He might give us rest from our burdens
    3. That He will supply every need of ours, “according to His riches in glory”
    4. That Christ is truly hidden in my neighbors
    5. For God’s Word in my life, may I be loyal to Christ, and not to my “notion” of Him (Oswald Chambers)
    Lord, in Your mercy, hear, now, the prayers lifted up to you for all who need strength, healing, comfort, and peace. 

    If you are reading this, I encourage you to stop and pray for someone, at this time. Or, if there is something on your heart, please leave a comment. What can I pray for you?

    Psalm of the Day – Psalm 39:1-6

    I said, “I will guard my ways,
       that I may not sin with my tongue;
    I will guard my mouth with a muzzle,
       so long as the wicked are in my presence.”
    I was mute and silent;
       I held my peace to no avail,
    and my distress grew worse.
       My heart became hot within me.
    As I mused, the fire burned;
       then I spoke with my tongue:

    “O LORD, make me know my end
       and what is the measure of my days;
       let me know how fleeting I am!
    Behold, you have made my days a few handbreadths,
       and my lifetime is as nothing before you.
    Surely all mankind stands as a mere breath! Selah
       Surely a man goes about as a shadow!
    Surely for nothing they are in turmoil;
       man heaps up wealth and does not know who will gather!
    (Psalms 39:1-6 ESV)

    From Untamed Prayers, “Let Me Know How Fleeting I Am,” by Chad Bird

    “Fleeting” is a good word for it. Time perspective changes. When we are five years old, a year feels like forever. When I’m 68, a year feels like a snap of the fingers. “Time flies when you’re having fun,” it is said. No, I disagree. Time flies, whether you’re having fun or not.

    “The swiftness of earthly existence is a constant biblical theme. ‘What is life?’ James asks, ‘For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes’ (4:14). He is echoing what Job (7:7), Moses (Ps 90:10), and Solomon affirmed long before (Eccl. 14:1-2). David, too, in today’s psalm prays, ‘Let me know how fleeting I am! . . . My lifetime is as nothing before you. Surely all mankind stands as a mere breath! Surely a man goes about as a shadow!’ (39:4-6). Call it a mist. Call it a breath or a shadow. The point is the same. One day you’re wearing diapers, the next you’re wearing Depends.”

    As David recognizes this, He speaks (verse 3), not allowing the distress to continue. In fact, as he begins to pray these things to God, he is stressing over the wicked. And his way to deal with it was not to vent on social media or rant or argue with his neighbor. “Instead, he prayed that in this brief existence, the Lord would remind David that life is measured not in miles or yards or even feet, but ‘handbreadths’ (39:5). Our graves are always but a stone’s throw away. Let us, therefore, live now so as to live better when this life wraps up. To die to ourselves now, that having died to sin, physical death may be but the swinging door into our heavenly home. To live now in Jesus, that in Jesus we live forever, fully and incalculably alive, and on the last day, fully resurrected into a world with no zoning for cemeteries.”

    “I said, I will watch my mouth
    And made no comment even
    On the good, and I was sad.
    My heart raced, something hot
    Inside me made me cry out loud:

    God, let me know when I’ve begun
    A thing, and when it will be done;
    Let me know how my days will run
    From hot and fat to dim, to fail
    And fall without a flutter by your hand.

    What’s there to wait for? Money? Power?
    What’s there to hope for? Old age? Honor?
    The mock of dimwits? Spoiled children?
    Your finger pressed across my mouth.
    My lovely self was flannel, time a moth.

    Hear me. Don’t be put off by tears.
    I’m a stranger and a nomad like my father.
    Give me strength enough to rise, to speak,
    To spill a glass of water on the tabletop before
    I thirst, and sip, and am no more.”
    (Laurance Wieder, Words to God’s Music, Psalm 39, BRIDLED)

    From For All the Saints, Saturday of the Week of Lent 5

       Since we have the same spirit of faith according to what has been written, “I believed, and so I spoke,” we also believe, and so we also speak, knowing that he who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and bring us with you into his presence. For it is all for your sake, so that as grace extends to more and more people it may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God.
       So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.
    (2 Corinthians 4:13-18 ESV)

    And they came to Jericho. And as he was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a great crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside. And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” And Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” And they called the blind man, saying to him, “Take heart. Get up; he is calling you.” And throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. And Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?” And the blind man said to him, “Rabbi, let me recover my sight.” And Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your faith has made you well.” And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way.
    (Mark 10:46-52 ESV)

    “Meanwhile the cross comes before the crown. . . . It may be possible for each to think too much of his own potential glory hereafter; it is hardly possible for him to think too often or too deeply about that of his neighbour. The load, or weight, or burden of my neighbour’s glory should be laid daily on my back, a load so heavy that only humility can carry it, and the backs of the proud will be broken. . . . There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. . . . Next to the Blessed Sacrament itself, your neighbour is the holiest object presented to your senses. If he is your Christian neighbour he is holy in almost the same way, for in him also Christ vere latitat – the glorifier and the glorified, Glory Himself, is truly hidden.”
    (C.S. Lewis, A sermon, “The Weight of Glory”)

    “Vere Latitat” means “truly hidden,” which is the last two words of the excerpt. This is, indeed, a “weighty” thing to read, but worthy of consideration. How many of us look upon our neighbor in this way? How many of us look upon our neighbor at all?

    Glory be to Thee, O Lord; glory be to Thee. That this day, and every day, may come on, perfect, holy, peaceable, healthful and without sin, grant, Lord, we beseech Thee. What things are good and profitable to our souls, together with peace in this world, grant, Lord, we beseech Thee. Whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are of good report, that we may think on these things to do them, grant, Lord, we beseech Thee. A Christian end of our life, without sin, without shame, and, if Thou thinkest good, without pain; when Thou wilt and as Thou wilt, grant, Lord, we beseech Thee. Amen.
    (For All the Saints, Saturday of the Week of Lent 5, Closing Prayer, Lancelot Andrewes)

    Lord, I am grateful for my life. Chad Bird is right. It seems like only yesterday that I was five years old. And every day flies by, now. But I ask You to help me make the most of every minute, every hour, as I “live now.” Help me to live now, with all the faith that You have given me. Everything that I have, You have given me. I have nothing that I can call my own, Lord. And I am grateful for it all.

    As I live this life, Lord, help me to look at my “neighbor” correctly. Shoot, Lord, help me to look at my neighbor at all! I confess that I have spent far too long not looking around at the people around me, completely self-absorbed in my own little world. That’s probably an exaggeration, because there are definitely people in my life, people You have placed there, whom I care about deeply. But the “incidental” people? The ones that live around me that I rarely see? These are my neighbors, truly. These are people created in your image. Help me to do better at caring about them and loving them, willing good for them.

    Teach me to number my days, Lord, and give me a heart of wisdom.

    In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, amen.

    Grace and peace, my brothers and sisters! Drink deep!

    CHRIST IS EVERYTHING!!!

    “Preach CHRIST, Always and Evermore”

    Jeff

    Today is Friday, the twenty-seventh day of March, 2026, in the fifth week of Lent.

    May the peace of the Lord be with you always!

    It is the 86th day of 2026, and there are 279 days left in the year.

    Only two more days until Palm Sunday, the beginning of Holy Week, and R’s birthday.

    Day 24,851 of my life

    There are several interesting “holidays” today. It is World Theater Day. It is also Wear A Hat Day, but I do that most days. It is National Acoustic Soul Day, celebrating “the soulful melodies of acoustic music. And it is International Whisk(e)y Day. So take your pick. There are a few others, but those were the ones most interesting to me.

    Daily writing prompt
    What’s something most people don’t understand?
    View all responses

    Honestly, I don’t like this question. “Most people.” I’m not sure how to answer it. There are certainly some things I don’t understand. I’m willing to bet most people don’t understand quantum physics. I’m not even sure the quantum physicists understand quantum physics. It might even be safe to say that most people don’t understand God. I don’t “understand” God. I feel like I know Him to a degree. But “understand?” Uh-uh. Not even close.

    Today should be a normal Friday for me. I will be in the library computer center from 9:15-6:15 today. Last night was really busy! I don’t normally work on Thursday nights, so it was very strange. One patron printed 1265 pages! It took the better part of an hour, and there were a couple of other people waiting to print, like one page, which was very frustrating to them. Unfortunately, we only have one print station, and there is no way to pause it to print a shorter document. It wouldn’t be worth the cost to put in a second station, because this kind of thing rarely happens.

    C will be resting, today, hopefully, and not working. She’s not supposed to be working. Hopefully, here people will leave her alone.

    JESUS TIME

    Heavenly Father, in the name of Jesus, my Savior, I approach You in this morning hour, beseeching You to let Your grace and mercy go with me through the day. Let Your presence give me the blessed assurance of Your divine protection amid dangers, guidance amid uncertainty, and strength against temptations. Bless the labors of my hands. Bless our home with Your continued presence. Bless our nation, and let righteousness and peace prevail. Bless Your Church, and keep her in Your Word and truth. Bless our schools, and grant that boys and girls may grow in grace and knowledge of You and Your will. Remember not the sins of my youth nor my many trespasses. Bring me safely home tonight, and keep me steadfast in faith; through Jesus Christ, my Redeemer. Amen.
    (Lutheran Book of Prayer, Prayer 28, Friday Morning)

    Dear Lord, “Direct, control, suggest this day all I design or do or say that all my pow’rs with all their might in Thy sole glory may unite” (LSB 868:5). You have awakened me for another day of service and witnessing to Your greatness. Grant me opportunities to do so with a cheerful spirit. Give me patience and perseverance where needed. May my service encourage other Christians to witness and serve You. Keep far from me Satan and his temptation to sin. Watch over those whom I love. Guard them with Your holy angels and strengthen their faith and trust in You. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
    (Portals of Prayer, Prayer for Friday Morning)

    Lord, grant us Your forgiveness and set us free from our enslavement to sin. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
    (For All the Saints, Friday of the Week of Lent 5, Opening Prayer)

    Behold, how good and pleasant it is
       when brothers dwell in unity!
    (Psalms 133:1 ESV)

    May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
    (Romans 15:5-6 ESV)

    Today I am grateful:

    1. For this admonition/call to unity and harmony of the Body of Christ; may we do better 
    2. That though the mountains depart and the hills be removed, the steadfast love of Christ will never depart from me, nor His peace be removed (Isaiah 54:10) 
    3. For the opportunity for confession and absolution every Sunday morning; what joy to hear and know that my sins are forgiven 
    4. That I am blessed to attend a church where my pastors faithfully “preach CHRIST, always and evermore” (C.H. Spurgeon) 
    5. That Christ continues to bring me higher in my spiritual journey, and strengthens me against temptations that come with that upward movement 
    Lord, in Your mercy, hear, now, the prayers lifted up to you for all who need strength, healing, comfort, and peace. 

    If you are reading this, I encourage you to stop and pray for someone, at this time. Or, if there is something on your heart, please leave a comment. What can I pray for you?

    Psalm of the Day – Psalm 38:17-22 

    For I am ready to fall,  
       and my pain is ever before me.  
    I confess my iniquity;  
       I am sorry for my sin.  
    But my foes are vigorous, they are mighty,  
       and many are those who hate me wrongfully.  
    Those who render me evil for good  
       accuse me because I follow after good.  
     
    Do not forsake me, O LORD!  
       O my God, be not far from me!  
    Make haste to help me,  
       O Lord, my salvation!  
    (Psalms 38:17-22 ESV) 

    From Untamed Prayers, “I Confess My Iniquity,” by Chad Bird 

    Oh, but this is beautiful, today, as it highlights my second-favorite part of every Sunday morning’s worship. 

    The psalmist uses ten words to sum up the entire psalm. “I confess my iniquity; I am sorry for my sin” (verse 18). Truly, does this not sum up my entire life?? Bird says that the Hebrew word for “confess” (nagad) is related to another Hebrew word, neged,” which means “In front of, before the face.” So by confessing, what we are doing is putting our sin “in front of us.” We are, in effect, “facing up” to our sin. “No blame-shifting, finger-pointing, or lawyering up.” (Remember Adam in the garden? “That woman you gave me, she gave me the fruit, so I ate it!” Who is Adam really blaming there? Hmm?) And, says Bird, the word that is translated “sorry” in our ESV translation really has a meaning that is more like “anxious.” In fact, the NASB reads, “I am full of anxiety because of my sin.”  
     
    Here’s the thing. God knows about our sin, right? “Vanity of vanities is trying to slip something past an all-seeing Lord! We too already know our sin. So what’s to stop us from confessing? Simple: the fear of speaking the truth.” 
     
    Confession is good for the soul, right? David, in Psalm 32:3, says, “For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long.” Brothers and sisters, I have been there!! 
     
    But confession isn’t enough, is it? “It does us no good to fess up to the Judge of all, if he merely glares at us or walks away. What we truly need is for our Father to comfort us when we are finished confessing. To say, ‘My child, I love you, I remove your sin as far as the east is from the west (cf. Ps. 103:12). I have buried it in the crucified body of my Son, who left your iniquity buried in his short-used grave. Be of good cheer. You are forgiven.” for though confession is good for the soul, absolution is best.” 
     
    This, my brothers and sisters, is why that part of the service is my second-favorite part (Communion is first, but has to come after that, of course). After we say our confession, to hear my pastors say these words: “Almighty God, in his mercy, has given his Son to die for us and, for his sake, forgives us all our sins. As a called an ordained minister of the Church of Christ, and by his authority, I therefore declare to you the entire forgiveness of all your sins, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit” (emphasis mine). 

    And we all say, “Amen!” 

    From For All the Saints – Friday of the Week of Lent 5 

    Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart. But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God’s word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God. And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. 
     
    But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our bodies. For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. So death is at work in us, but life in you. 
    (2 Corinthians 4:1-12 ESV) 

    “The word ‘sermon’ is said to signify ‘a thrust,’ and, therefore, in sermonizing it must be our aim to use the subject in hand with energy and effect, and the subject must be capable of such employment. To choose mere moral themes will be to use a wooden dagger; but the great truths of revelation are as sharp swords. Keep to doctrines which stir the conscience and the heart. . . . Hence I urge you to keep to the old-fashioned gospel, and to that only, for assuredly it is the power of God unto salvation. Of all I would wish to say this is the sum: my brethren, preach CHRIST, always and evermore. He is the whole gospel. His person, offices, and work must be our one great, all-comprehending theme. The world needs still to be told of its Saviour, and of the way to reach him. Justification by faith should be, far more than it is, the daily testimony of Protestant pulpits; and if with this master-truth there should be more generally associated the other great doctrines of grace, the better for our churches and our age. . . . We are not called to proclaim philosophy and metaphysics, but the simple gospel. Man’s fall, his need of a new birth, forgiveness through an atonement, and salvation as the result of faith – these are our battle-axe and weapons of war. We have enough to do to learn and teach these great truths, and accursed be that learning which shall divert us from our mission, or that willful ignorance which shall cripple us in its pursuit. More and more am I jealous lest any views upon prophecy, church government, politics, or even systematic theology should withdraw one of us from glorying in the cross of Christ. . . . Blessed is that ministry of which CHRIST IS ALL.” 
    (Charles Haddon Spurgeon, “Lectures to My Students”) 

    I almost cannot imagine what it must have been like to hear this dear saint preach! But one thing I do know: I am blessed to attend a church where my pastors do exactly what he encourages here. They “preach CHRIST, always and evermore!” 

    From My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers 

    “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.” 
    (Revelation 4:1 ESV) 

    “The golden rule in temptation is – Go higher. When you get higher up, you face other temptations and characteristics.” And when God brings us up higher, He doesn’t leave us clinging to some razor-thin pinnacle, hanging on for dear life. No, He brings us to “a great tableland where it is easy to move. . . . 
     
    “Compare this week in your spiritual history with the same week last year and see how God has called you up higher.” At this point, I wrote a huge “!” In the book! This same week last year was just over a month after my transformation began. I was moving upward, rather rapidly, as Christ worked miracles in my life. But this upward movement continued on, and I can say, with great confidence, that I am ever so much higher in Christ today than I was a year ago. The “whooshes” don’t come as fast and furiously as they did at first, and that’s okay. And, as Chambers writes, the temptations have also changed, over this journey. I have been completely delivered from some of my “besetting sins.” That is marvelous. But others that dwelt more deeply within me, buried under those “surface sins,” have arisen to take their place. And Christ continues to work on those, as well.  

    “Growth in grace is measured not by the fact that you have not gone back, but that you have an insight into where you are spiritually.”  

    We give Thee thanks, Almighty God, for that inward light by which in the midst of outward darkness and outward light, we may behold, as far as may be, Thy purposes and Thy doings, and see under all things Thy judgments, and being upheld by perfect trust in Thee, in times of evil we may rejoice, and in days of darkness be fearless and in times of light be unbewildered and undeceived, and pass on through life in safety, led by Thy sure guidance. Forgive us when we forget or fall away from Thee, when the lights of time hide the lights of eternity. Amen. 
    (For All the Saints, Friday of the Week of Lent 5, Closing Prayer, George Dawson) 

    Father, You have spoken great things to me, this morning, and I am rejoicing. I thank You for the ongoing transformation and maturity that You are gifting me in my journey with Christ Your Son! I thank You for this ever-upward call that You have placed on my life, and that You have delivered me from my sinfulness, but are also strengthening me against new and different temptations along the way. I rejoice that I can look back on this same week a year ago, as Chambers suggests, and see that I am continuing to go higher with You. However, keep humility in front of me as I go, Lord, that I may never think that I am any better than anyone else, for I am most certainly not. Nor have I “arrived,” dear Lord, for there is ever so much farther to go. Infinitely farther, in fact.

    I praise You for my pastors, Lord, who have never allowed philosophy, politics, or any other topic to be more important than preaching “CHRIST, always and evermore!” And I thank You for the confession and absolution that we are blessed with every Sunday morning, before we are then fed by Your Word and by the Sacrament of Holy Communion. What joy! And what pleasures are ours by Your side forever more, Lord! Joy in Your presence, pleasures forevermore at Your right hand (Psalm 16:11).

    Glory to You, Lord God of our fathers;
You are worthy of praise;
glory to You.
Glory to You for the radiance of Your holy Name;
we will praise You and highly exalt You for ever.
Glory to You in the splendor of Your temple;
on the throne of Your majesty, glory to You.
Glory to You, seated between the Cherubim;
we will praise You and highly exalt You for ever.
Glory to You, beholding the depths;
in the high vault of heaven, glory to You.
Glory to You, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit;
we will praise You and highly exalt You for ever.
(TeDeum)

    Grace and peace, my brothers and sisters! Drink deep of the mercy and grace of Christ, always and evermore!

    CHRIST IS EVERYTHING!!!