Thanksgiving Prayers and Videos
Thanksgiving Prayers and Videos
This week is Thanksgiving. Because of this, we are doing a few things differently for our Thursday prayers, including having “Thank You, God” videos and changing the time of the prayers.
“Thank You, God” Videos:
We thought it would be great if we included a montage of people thanking God. I would like to ask you, yes you, to create a short thanking God for whatever you would like. Then send me that video and I will include it in the Thanksgiving Prayer Video. The videos need to submitted by noon on Wednesday. Send your video to Pastor Kurt’s email, which is Kurt at the church’s website address.
The Time of the Prayers:
Since our time of prayer would normally be right when a lot of people will be celebrating Thanksgiving, we are simply going to post the video of the prayers on Thursday morning instead of having a live-stream in the evening. You can start the video and join the prayers whenever you would like.
Prayer Requests:
We will also still be having our normal prayers which will include your prayer requests. Please submit your prayer requests through our Contact Us form by noon on Wednesday.
Thank you and God bless!
In Christ’s Service,
Pastor Kurt
Thankful for Peace
Thankful for Peace
“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.” – Colossians 3:15
What do you find gives you a sense of peace?
Some people like to go for a walk. Others will head up to the mountains or out on a secluded beach. Most of us have some things we like to do (or would like to do if we could find the time) to gain a little peace in our hectic lives.
Momentary Peace
Whether you like a hike in the mountains or a soak in the tub, the problem with all these activities is that they don’t last. At some point, you have to head home. If you stay in the tub too long, you get all pruney and no one likes that. 😉 So, where can we find lasting peace?
Earthly Peace
Turn on the TV or surf the Internet for a while and you’ll find plenty of messages about finding something that offers more than a momentary sense of peace. If you just had enough money or the right car or a big enough house, you would truly have peace. If this political party wins, everything will be alright. If you get in shape or earn a college degree, you’ll be good. Yet, none of these things are eternal and eventually people find out, they don’t really fix the problem. There’s always something to steal your peace.
Maybe the answer if a new philosophy, meditation, or medication. Just learn to shrug off the problems. Repeat to yourself, “Serenity Now.” and breathe. These may help us relax a bit, but ignoring problems doesn’t lead to lasting peace.
Godly Peace
The peace of Christ is different from all these. It isn’t temporary, dependent on what you achieve, or even from yourself. Christ is eternal and His peace is as well. You don’t have to be in a certain place or doing a certain activity to have it. Christ’s peace cannot be achieved. You can’t earn it. It’s available to the most disciplined and successful among us as well as those who can’t find their keys, can’t stay on a diet, and feel like a failure.
Why?
Christ’s peace is because of who God is and what He has done. God loves us and is perfectly faithful. He demonstrated His love by sacrificing Himself on the cross, defeating death and hell. This does not change whether we go to the beach, sit in our office, or attend school. It doesn’t change if we are rich or poor, powerful or weak, healthy or sick. It’s not dependent on you.
God’s peace is from God.
Not only is God’s peace grounded in who He is and what He has done, but it is also given to us by Him. He who created us and knows us better than we know ourselves gives us this peace. In moments when we think we should be freaking out, God can come in and settle us. He can fill us with His Spirit even in the middle of a storm.
Let that peace, peace that is eternal and grounded in the love and faithfulness of God, peace that is beyond our understanding and momentary situation, fill your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, Amen.
Heavenly Father,
My life can get pretty hectic and even scary at times. Turn my eyes to you and fill me with Your Spirit. Please give me Your peace and let that peace rule my heart.
Amen.
In Christ’s Service,
Pastor Kurt
Thankful for Grace
Thankful for Grace
“I always thank God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus. For in him you have been enriched in every way — in all your speaking and in all your knowledge.” – 1 Corinthians 1:4-5
What does it mean that God has given us grace?
Grace can be a difficult thing for many people. The word has been used in many different contexts with different meanings and, even when we understand the meaning, it can be difficult for us to accept.
What does grace mean?
Grace can mean elegance or refinement. It can mean to honor someone with your presence. It can even mean a pleasing, youthful appearance. I’m not talking about any of these.
David was the youngest of his brothers. He was small and had never served in the government or the military. He was so obscure that when the prophet Samuel, at the Lord’s command, went to the house of David’s father, Jesse, to anoint one of his sons as king of Israel, Jesse didn’t even think of David until none of his other sons were selected and Samuel asked if he had any more sons.
Yet, God chose David. David hadn’t done anything to make him worthy of being anointed, king. God chose him out of God’s own pleasure. That is grace.
Grace is receiving the unearned favor of God. It isn’t a wage for your good works. It’s a gift.
This is also different from mercy. Mercy is not receiving the punishment you deserve. Grace is receiving a blessing you don’t deserve.
Difficult to Accept
Even when we hear that grace is a gift, the unearned favor of God, we still often struggle to believe it. Why would God simply give me something, especially so many big gifts? Sure, a favor here and there we may accept, but to be made His child? To be given the righteousness of Jesus? To be given the Holy Spirit? Surely, we must do something to deserve this!
This thinking is what has led many to redefine grace as something God gives you so that you can do the things you’re supposed to do to earn all these things. They treat grace like a spiritual steroid that gives you the strength to earn your own righteousness because, surely, we must do something to deserve this. Right? Wrong!
It’s all a gift. You don’t earn any of it.
In fact, you can’t earn any of these amazing blessings. They only come as gifts.
So, how can we learn to accept that all this really is grace? How can we accept that God just gives it?
We see why God gives all these blessings.
Have you ever given someone a gift just because you wanted to? It wasn’t their birthday and they didn’t do anything. You just wanted to give them a gift. That’s what God does…all the time.
He does it because He loves us. He does it because He wants to.
What an amazing relief and joy to know that we don’t earn any of this. When we mess up or outright sin, we don’t have to fear that we have just lost our salvation or sonship or righteousness because it was never dependant on us. You have all these blessings because God wants to give them to you.
So, let us be thankful for God’s grace.
Heavenly Father,
You have shown great mercy to forgive my sins, but You don’t stop there. You give unimaginable gifts by Your grace. Thank you.
Amen.
In Christ’s Service,
Pastor Kurt
Happy Thanksgiving
Happy Thanksgiving
Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song. For the Lord is the great God, the great King above all gods. – Psalm 95:2-3
God has given us so much to be thankful for, most especially salvation through Jesus Christ. I pray that the Lord blesses you on this Thanksgiving Day.
God bless!
In Christ’s Service,
Pastor Kurt
21 Days of Prayer – Bonus Day
21 Days of prayer - Bonus Day
Heavenly Father,
God our Father, fountain and source of our salvation, may we proclaim your glory every day of our lives, that we may sing your praise forever in heaven.
I confess that I have not always had a heart of gratitude for all that You have done for me. I have not loved You with my whole heart and I have not loved my neighbor as myself.
(take a moment to reflect on the past day and confess your sins.)
I am sorry for my sins and pray for Your great mercy. For the sake of Jesus Christ, please forgive me of all my sins.
Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer:
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name,
Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us;
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever.
Amen
Prayer of the Day:
Heavenly Father,
You have created us and given us life. However, You didn’t stop there. You continue to sustain us and provide for us. You give me everything I need for my life even when my life does not live up to Your standards. For my life, I thank you.
You have given Your very life for my salvation. You forgive my sins. You give me eternal life with You. You fill me with Your Spirit and strengthen me with Your Body and Blood. You hear my prayers and give me a place in Your ministry. For my salvation and new life in You, I thank You.
You have given us Your church through which You bless us with love and friendship as well as guidance and encouragement. You teach me and strengthen my faith through Your church. For Your church, especially Faith Lutheran Church, I thank You.
You send rain and provide sunlight for the crops. You give livestock and grain. You give strength to the farmer, the butcher, the factory worker, the delivery man, the shop keeper, and all those who work diligently under Your care to provide for me and all people. For food and all things I need to sustain my life, I thank You.
You created man and woman and made it that they would leave their mother and father and cling to each other in marriage. You give the blessing of children. You give parents, aunts, uncles, grandparents, grandchildren, and all members of our families. When we have no blood family, You provide a family in friends and Your church. For my family, I thank You.
I thank and praise You for all that You give us. May my heart always be grateful and my lips always praise Your name.
Amen.
The Psalms:
The Psalms have long been considered the prayer book of the Bible and have been used as prayers by countless Christians over the centuries. So, we join them in this practice and pray a Psalm.
Psalm 1460
1 Praise the Lord.
Praise the Lord, my soul.
2 I will praise the Lord all my life;
I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.
3 Do not put your trust in princes,
in human beings, who cannot save.
4 When their spirit departs, they return to the ground;
on that very day their plans come to nothing.
5 Blessed are those whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the Lord their God.
6 He is the Maker of heaven and earth,
the sea, and everything in them—
he remains faithful forever.
7 He upholds the cause of the oppressed
and gives food to the hungry.
The Lord sets prisoners free,
8 the Lord gives sight to the blind,
the Lord lifts up those who are bowed down,
the Lord loves the righteous.
9 The Lord watches over the foreigner
and sustains the fatherless and the widow,
but he frustrates the ways of the wicked.
10 The Lord reigns forever,
your God, O Zion, for all generations.
Praise the Lord.
(Take a few minutes to add your personal prayers, now.)
Conclude your time of prayer with either Luther’s morning or evening prayer, depending on what time of day it is.
Luther’s Morning Prayer:
I thank you, my Heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, that You have kept me this night from all harm and danger; and I pray that You would keep me this day also from sin and every evil, that all my doings and life may please You. For into Your hands I commend myself, my body and soul, and all things. Let Your holy angel be with me, that the evil foe may have no power over me. Amen.
Luther’s Evening Prayer:
I thank You, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, that You have graciously kept me this day; and I pray You to forgive me all my sins where I have done wrong, and graciously keep me this night. For into Your hands I commend myself, my body and soul, and all things. Let Your holy angel be with me, that the wicked foe may have no power over me. Amen.
In Christ’s Service,
Pastor Kurt
I’m Thankful For…The Church
I’m Thankful For…The Church
“For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers,”
“Do I have to go to church?”
If you have kids and attend church, you have probably heard this before. If you grew up in family that attended church, you probably have said this. While some may, at time, lament “going to” church, church is a good thing.
First, we should clarify that when we talk about “going to” church, we are really referring to attending a worship service, which is a blessing in itself. When the Bible talks about church, though, it almost always uses the term in relation to the believers.
God is a God of relationships. He created marriage and families, He formed Israel into a nation, and He sent His Son to die for us that our relationship with Jesus could be restored and made right. Even in His very nature (Trinity) God exists in perfect ministry. God also gave us the church.
As the church, we have a group of fellow believers to gather with, confide in, and build up by the grace of God.
I am thankful for the church because it is place where I can hear the Word of God. I can also be built up, admonished, and strengthened.
I don’t have to walk this faith-lilfe alone and neither do you. We have the church Praise the Lord!
The Lord’s Prayer:
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name,
Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us;
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever.
Amen
I’m Thankful For…Prayer
I'm thankful for...prayer
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. – Philippians 4:6-7
The Bible talks about many different kind of prayers. There are prayers of thanksgiving, praise, intercession, confession, requests, and even sighs and moans. The Bible encourages and even commands us to pray at varying times of the day, morning, noon, evening, before bed, when you rise, in worship, and even continually.
Yet, with so many times and ways of praying, sometimes it can become something we take for granted. We forget that what is really happening is that we are talking to the God of the Universe!!
Some people will wait in line for hours to get a chance to meet their favorite musician or actor. They will pay lots of money to get to talk to a political candidate. These are mere people. Prayer is talking with God.
I think it’s absolutely incredible that the God who created all things and holds them together wants me to talk with Him. He wants me to share with Him both the highs and lows of my life. He wants me to ask Him things. He wants me to ask Him for things for others. He even wants me to confess my sins.
That’s right, not only does the perfect and almighty God want to talk to a human, He wants to talk to sinners deserving His wrath. He’s already sacrificed His only Son for us and made us His children and now the King wants us to approach His throne boldly and pray.
Awesome!
Heavenly Father,
I only deserve Your wrath, yet you love me and care for me. I don’t deserve to talk with You at all. Yet, you bid me to come. Thank you for providing a way to come to You and talk with You in prayer. Help me to not to take that blessing for granted.
Amen.
I’m Thankful For…Music
I'm Thankful for...music
“From them will proceed thanksgiving
And the voice of those who celebrate;
And I will multiply them and they will not be diminished;
I will also honor them and they will not be insignificant.” – Jeremiah 30:19
I remember the first time I heard the Lion King soundtrack (the original, not the “live action”). I hadn’t seen the movie yet. So, I hadn’t seen the images that went along with the music. I didn’t know the story line. So, I didn’t know what was happening. Yet, when I listened to track 7, it was like I was there. (You can listen to it here.)
I had images of a chase and a cliff running through my mind and could feel the tension and panic. It was only later that I watched the movie. I was amazed how close the images in my mind had been to what was actually in the movie without anyone describing it to me.
Music is special. It’s different. It’s this crazy thing that is both math and art. It can touch the soul. Without words, it can still communicate ideas and emotions. With words, those words come alive in a unique way.
It’s no wonder music has been a part of people’s lives for so long. It is as early as Genesis 4 that we hear of someone playing music,
“His brother’s name was Jubal; he was the father of all those who play the lyre and pipe.” – Genesis 4:21
Music has played a large role in worship for both Israel and the church. When Jesus is born, the angels sing! There’s even music in Heaven.
So, I am thankful for music. It adds a richness to our lives and helps us express ourselves to our God.
Dear Jesus,
Thank you for music. Thank you for giving us art and expression. May You bring forth a song of praise and joy in hearts this day and every day.
Amen
In Christ’s Service,
Pastor Kurt