Romans 1:16

We must not be ashamed of the Gospel, but be ready anytime with anyone to share the Good News of Jesus and invite them to know and believe in him also. 

Jesus, Savior and Lord of all, inspire in me a boldness to share the Good News of your love with all I meet. Thank you Jesus. Amen.

Today’s devotion by prepared by Pastor Walt Waiser, the Senior Pastor of Peace Lutheran Church in Hurst, Texas. Visit their website by clicking here.

2 Corinthians 2:14-15

I love the smell of our kitchen when my wife Becky’s brownies are fresh out of the oven. I love the smell of my German mother’s Italian spaghetti sauce bubbling on the stove. Smells like that tell me that something good is happening here!

Paul here tells us that we are the fragrance and “aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing.” When people meet and smell our kind of Christian witness that is the smell of Jesus to them.

I must be honest…My discipleship doesn’t always smell so good! In fact, there are times I am downright ashamed of how my flawed discipleship must smell to believers and especially to those who are not yet believers. All of us who are about Christ’s mission need to be very clear that the attitudes, love and care that people smell on us (or the lack of them) is what others think Jesus smells like.

I don’t know about you, but I want my life to “spread everywhere the fragrance and knowledge of him.” So, how do you smell today? God wants the fragrance of his mission to spread through you.

Father, thanks for taking away the stink of sin in my life through the blood of Jesus. Make of my life a sweet fragrance that draws unbelievers to you like fresh brownies to a welcoming kitchen. Amen.

Today’s devotion was prepared by Paul Krentz, the extremely resourceful Mission and Ministry Facilitator for the Texas District. Visit Paul’s blogsite by clicking here.

Luke 10:2

The neighbor I was speaking of is a young family, and the wife is from France. We learned on Saturday that she would be departing for France to visit her family for a month. So on Sunday during the message, I felt compelled to pray for this family before she left for France. Honestly, my plan was to go on Sunday afternoon. But, we got busy and forgot. The next morning I thought - “we blew it.” We missed an opportunity to pray for our neighbor before her departure.

By God’s grace, my son and I were cutting the grass together on Monday, and I saw the wife putting luggage in her car. So I thought, here is our chance to bless them with a prayer. I went in and told Joy about the opportunity, and we gathered the kids together and went over to their house. As they were walking out the door, we were walking up their drive. We told them that we wanted to say good bye, then I asked, “Do you mind if we pray for you?” Guess what they said…”yes!” We formed a circle and prayed together. We got to enjoy them and minister to them.

Let me tell you why this is so marvelous. We have been loving this family for over a year and a half. (Not just us, but our whole neighborhood.) They have visited our congregation but not on a regular basis. I am OK with this because I love this family whether they come to our church or not. I’ve got to tell you - enjoying them is much better than pursuing them to come to our church building.

Let’s all be reminded, “God will not ask us how much we know, he will ask us how much we love.” I challenge you to get out there and enjoy someone by loving them, all to the glory of our Savior Jesus!

Lord Jesus, your enduring and selfless love is not only our refuge, it is also our model. As we cling to your saving grace, may it inspire us to acts of courageous love.   Amen!

Today’s devotion was prepared by Pastor Lonnie Gonzales, the youth and family Pastor of Gloria Dei Lutheran Church in Nassau Bay, Texas. Visit their website by clicking here.

John 10:10

So I just planted my garden! (actually I watched as my father-in-law planted most of it). I can not wait to taste the huge red tomatoes and the cherry tomatoes and the cucumbers when I pick them off the vine! They will taste so good. It is amazing how God has made it so that you plant a seed into the ground so that it dies and then out of the death of that seed comes the new life of a plant - a tomato vine or a cucumber vine. Death brings life, and life brings fruit - tomatoes and cucumbers. And so you can not have life without death. You can not enjoy the fruit that comes from life, unless there is death.

Salvation is the same way. We could not have eternal life unless God died for us. He was planted in a tomb for three days only to rise from the dead and bring life into the world - but not just any life - eternal life.”  I came to give life and give life to the full,” Jesus said. And boy did He give it to the full - eternal full! And He did that by first dying for us. 

Because of Jesus’ death and resurrection, we live with the sure and certain hope of eternal life, and thus we carry a posture of constant openness…ready to be used by God to plant seeds of the Savior to others.  God desires Full Life for all of his creation, and He will not rest until all have come to a knowledge of the truth - a knowledge of their perfect Savior!  What an awesome, life-giving God we serve!

Lord God, you alone can bring life from death, and you certainly have done so with the life, death, and resurrection of your Son!  Create in our hearts a full assurance that in your Son Jesus, we have the full, eternal life that you’ve promised.  And may the joy of eternal life spread from us to others, as your Great Commission most certainly continues.  Amen!

Today’s devotion was prepared by Pastor Mark Hoehner, the lead Pastor of Chapel of the Cross Lutheran Church in St. Peters, Missouri.  Visit their website by clicking here.

Proverbs 3:5    

My daughter loves that blanket.

I don’t know if you ever had a blanket like that. Maybe you still do. What I do know is this: Life was much simpler as a kid. It’s as we grow older that life becomes more and more complicated. But why is that? Could it be that as we grow older we simply become less and less like a child?

One thing that I’ve learned from my daughter Trinity is the quality of dependence. Yes, that is correct - the quality of dependence. Not independence as we might think.

As I shared with you my daughter has a yellow blanket - a blanket she absolutely loves! And everywhere she goes, so does her blanket. You see, my daughter depends on her yellow blanket. She depends on it for comfort. She depends on it for security. And she depends on it for peace.

So why is it that dependence is something that most adults see as a weakness? Could it be that as adults we’ve become less and less childlike? As I humbly attempt to follow God’s lead in the planting of a new church, I long for the childlike faith Jesus speaks of - a faith that trusts in Him and Him alone!

My daughter has a yellow blanket - a blanket that she absolutely loves! And everywhere she goes, so does her blanket.

Lord, God, it is by grace that we are saved, through faith - a faith that trusts in You. As we follow where You lead, help us to be humble in ourselves and confident in You. Give us Your heart for those who don’t yet know you, that we might share Your love with them. Amen!

Today’s devotion was prepared by Pastor Dustin Lappe, an LCMS mission planter engaged in launching Cross of Christ Lutheran Church in Aurora, Co.  Check out their website by clicking here.