Community of Joy Lutheran Church issued the following announcement on Sept. 6.
Isaiah 50:4-9a (NRSV)
4 The Lord God has given me the tongue of a teacher, that I may know how to sustain the weary with a word. Morning by morning he wakens wakens my ear to listen as those who are taught. 5 The Lord God has opened my ear, and I was not rebellious, I did not turn backward. 6 I gave my back to those who struck me, and my cheeks to those who pulled out the beard; I did not hide my face from insult and spitting. 7 The Lord God helps me; therefore I have not been disgraced; therefore I have set my face like flint, and I know that I shall not be put to shame; 8 he who vindicates me is near. Who will contend with me? Let us stand up together. Who are my adversaries? Let them confront me. 9 It is the Lord God who helps me; who will declare me guilty? All of them will wear out like a garment; the moth will eat them up.
Devotion
There are so many voices and so many words echoing around us these days. Social media, cable news, podcasts, traditional media—all expand the reach and volume of words. Everyone, it seems, has something to say. Isaiah makes a daring claim—that God has opened his ears so that he may speak what God has to say. What’s more, Isaiah is confident God’s speech will be effective—to teach, to sustain, to help. Can we dare to make that claim when we speak? What words are waking you up to listen? I don’t suppose many of us hear an actual voice, but there are Godly words you can claim, like Isaiah. What are the content and shape of God’s words? Scripture demonstrates they wouldn’t be rebellious or insulting or shaming. They would be kind, graceful, loving—they’d be shaped like Jesus.
Prayer
Lord, help us listen for and speak words shaped by Jesus. Stand us up together so that our words may sustain, comfort, and help all those who hear us. Amen.
Wade Wacholz '17 M.Div.
Pastor, Calvary Lutheran Church, Edina, MN
We invite you to join us online for chapel service.
Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Original source can be found here.
Source: Community of Joy Lutheran Church
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