Nativity Lutheran Church

06/02/2026

06/02/2026

Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.
— Hebrews 9:28

Thought

Can you think of anything more exciting than waiting for Jesus to come take us home to share with him in his glory?!
Ours isn't a passive wait. Jesus gave us a commission to take his story to the whole world and invite others to prepare and join with us in awaiting his glorious return. We worship and praise our great God as we anticipate this great day — as we eagerly await him. We joyfully anticipate our salvation, trusting that it is nearer now than when we first believed (Romans 13:11). We stand on spiritual tiptoe, eagerly awaiting our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ (Philippians 3:20). We not only believe, we anticipate his return to bring the full experience of salvation promised to "those who are waiting for him." But until then, we work on mission so that others will join us in our anticipation, and say with us, "Maranatha! Come, O Lord (1 Corinthians 16:22).

Prayer

Majestic King of the Ages, may your Kingdom come in all its fullness as every knee bows to your Savior, and our King, the Lord Jesus Christ. We anticipate this day when every knee will bow. Please grant that this glorious day may come to pass in our generation as we work to bring others to know Jesus and anticipate his coming with us. Through Jesus, I expectantly pray. Amen.

06/01/2026

I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride, beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.
— Revelation 21:2-4

Thought

I don't know about you, but I'm kind of ready for that old order stuff to go away. The end of tears, death, mourning, crying, violence, abuse, suffering, war, divisive politics, and pain sounds pretty good to me! No wonder the early Christians would say, "Marantha. Come, O Lord" (1 Corinthians 16:22). They couldn't wait. How about us? How about you? What is keeping you from saying, "Lord Jesus, please come, and come soon? I urge you to put it aside, or put it under the lordship of Jesus, and use those moves to make you ready to receive the glory yet to be revealed in us (Romans 8:18; Colossians 3:3-4). Let's make ourselves ready for the time when:

“He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.
Hallelujah!”

Prayer

Holy God, please help me as I try to serve you faithfully and yearn for Jesus' return. I desire to be steadfast in my love, living for you until the glorious day that so many of your children have longed to experience over the centuries. I long to see you in your glory, to share in your presence, and to join with the saints of all ages praising you around your glorious throne. And yes, dear Father, I long for you to wipe away all my tears and welcome me home. Because of Jesus' victory, and by his authority, I offer my prayer in holy expectation. Amen.

05/31/2026

The Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. — 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17

Thought

What do you have that is forever?
Most of what we have in this world falls apart, breaks, or wears out quickly. But we have three things that last forever: God (Father, Son, Spirit), our Christian friends, and our praise of God. These are eternal. The glorious truth is that Jesus is going to return, the dead who died in him will be raised to receive their eternal bodies, and those living at his return will have their bodies changed into their immortal bodies. The best part of all of this is we will be reunited with all the faithful of all the centuries, and we all will be with the Lord forever. As the old hymn says it, "One day He's coming, O glorious day."

Prayer

God, I look forward to the day of your next great surprise, the return of Jesus in glory. I join the angels in standing on tiptoe as I look to the clouds to see my Lord and your Son return in glory and receive the welcome and honor he deserves. I praise you for that day now, even though I only see it by faith. Until I see you on that day, please know my heart's desire is to serve you, even when my weakness gets in the way of showing it as fully as I should, and my heart loses touch with the promise of Jesus' return. I offer you my sincerest thanks and praise in Jesus' name. Amen.

05/30/2026

In God, whose word I praise — in God I trust, and I will not be afraid. What can mortal man do to me? — Psalm 56:4

Thought

One of the powerful things about having a Bible as a repository of God's words is that its age and influence across diverse countries and cultures remind us how enduring God's truth is. Still, we remember that it is God in whom we put our trust! His enduring presence across cultures, centuries, and countries reminds us that eternity is beyond our grasp. Still, the Eternal One holds us in his hands as we journey toward the destination he has for us. Our lives, with our future secured, are hidden with Christ in God and are destined for his glory (Colossians 3:1-4). Our worst days, months, and years of suffering, hardship, difficulty, and challenges cannot compare to the glory that is yet to be revealed in us (Romans 8:18-21). Our trust is in our eternal Savior, so let's keep our eyes focused and our hopes centered on him and the glory that awaits us (Colossians 3:2; Hebrews 12:1-2). In God I trust, and I will not be afraid. What can mortal man do to me if God is my God!

Prayer

O Great and Eternal God, thank you that you are more stable than the ground on which I stand, more enduring than the mountain peaks I admire, and more constant than the waves upon the oceans that I love. I trust my life, future, and soul with you. I want to please you in the way I live. I want my life to be marked by consistent faithfulness to you, for in you I trust. In the name of Jesus, I ask for the Spirit's help to keep my focus on you. Amen.

05/29/2026

But from everlasting to everlasting the Lord's love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children’s children — with those who keep his covenant and remember to obey his precepts. — Psalm 103:17-18

Thought

Forever love is sometimes talked about in dime store novels, but this kind of love is only found in God's faithful lovingkindness. Thankfully, we can tap into that reservoir of eternal and divine love through the Holy Spirit, whom Jesus pours into our hearts to help us both receive that kind of forever love and share it with others (John 7:37-39; Romans 5:5). Importantly, our verse emphasizes how God's kind of love is multigenerational — generations before us passed it along to us, and we must pass it on to the generations that come after us. This multigenerational principle is not just a practice of celebrating God's love and our love for others found under the Old Covenant; it is also one that the apostle Paul taught Timothy to pass on to Jesus' disciples (2 Timothy 2:1-2). Ours is a multigenerational celebration of the goodness of God — "from everlasting to everlasting the Lord's love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children's children." We must celebrate the goodness and love of our God so that our grandchildren can know God and celebrate his goodness in their day and share it with their children, and children's children!

Prayer

O God of glory and grace, thank you for your promises, your covenants, and your love. May I live in such a way that others, especially those who come after me in my family and church family, know that your love is from everlasting to everlasting. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.

05/28/2026

Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.
— Romans 12:15

Thought

We are not alone. God promised that he would never leave us or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5-6). He has given us Jesus' family to find support and share our joys. Along the way, we want to share each other's burdens and soar on each other's joys. We want to love each other through our hurts and mourn with each other through our grief. There should be no such thing as a solo Christian, whether joyful or in sorrow, excited or downtrodden. If we see a brother or sister struggling in life and feeling alone, let's decide to walk with them. If we see one in joyful celebration, we should join them in that celebration. If they feel horrible sorrows and grief, we should sit with them and let them share their grief with us. We demonstrate our love for Jesus by the ways we love each other, and demonstrate that love in clear, practical ways of being with them, serving them, and sharing in their joys and sorrows (John 13:34-35; 1 John 3:16-18).

Prayer

Loving Father, lead me to the people today who need their burdens lifted and their joys celebrated. Let me be your presence in the life of another believer today, whether they face good times or hard times. I ask to be more like Jesus, to sense the needs of my brothers and sisters, and to be present for them. I pray this in the power and authority of Jesus' name. Amen.

05/27/2026

However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given to me — the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace. — Acts 20:24

Thought

How important is grace? Paul said that sharing the good news of God's grace was more important to him than his life! In fact, that was his life after his conversion to Jesus. The wonderful thing for Paul is that he aligned his life's mission to be an expression of God's grace. That's why he could tell the Philippians:

“I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain (Philippians 1:20-21).”

The challenge for us is to find out where we fit in God's story of unfolding grace and live into that role as our life's mission. We don't have to be a missionary, preacher, pastor, or evangelist to have such a mission. God longs for each of us to see living for him and sharing his mercy, grace, and love in Jesus as essential — as our life. No matter what we do to earn a living, lead a family, live as a single for Jesus, or influence others as a teen, God has a mission for us in who we are and where he has placed us. In whatever place we find ourselves, let's live as Jesus' salt and light in a world of decay and darkness so that others can discover grace and glorify our Father in heaven (Matthew 5:13-16).

Prayer

Almighty God, thank you for your lavish grace, demonstrated and fully expressed in sending Jesus to save us and give meaning to our lives. As your children, and in thanks for your sacrificial gift, we pledge to you our lives, our love, and our all. We ask for the Holy Spirit's help to know and complete the mission you have for each of us. In the name of Jesus, we pray. Amen.

05/26/2026

God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.
@— John 3:17

Thought

How do you view God?
Is he someone looking for a way to condemn or punish you? Is he an out-of-touch ol' curmudgeon who doesn't really know what it's like in our modern world? Is he too pious and holy to soil himself with the concerns of mere mortals and has left it up to us to work everything out for ourselves, including earning our salvation?
No. NO. NO!
God chose to enter our world and experience it from the side of mortality. Why? Because he loves us and yearns to save us. God chose to enter our world, not to condemn us or it, but to redeem it and each of us. Jesus is the great reminder that God longs to save us, not condemn us. He's looking for ways to give us life, not to exclude us from his presence. Thank God for God! Thank God for Jesus, who was and is Immanuel, God with us (Matthew 1:23).

Prayer

Holy and Heavenly Father, thank you for choosing to be with those of us who are contrite and repentant and who long for your presence. You know we are only mortal, broken, but still you chose to love us in Jesus. You know that we are deeply flawed, but you've redeemed us. You know that we are not perfect, but God sent Jesus as the perfect sacrifice to save us. Thank you. Through your Son and my Savior, Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ, the Son of God, I offer you my sincerest gratitude, praise, and life. Amen.