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09/06/2026

09/06/2026

God Pause
A daily devotion brought to you by the alumni of Luther Seminary

Sunday, September 6, 2026
Lord, Speak to Us, That We May Speak (Evangelical Lutheran Worship 676)
1 Lord, speak to us, that we may speak
in living echoes of your tone;
as you have sought, so let us seek
your straying children, lost and lone.

2 Oh, lead us, Lord, that we may lead
the wand’ring and the wav’ring feet;
oh, feed us, Lord, that we may feed
your hung’ring ones with manna sweet.

3 Oh, teach us, Lord, that we may teach
the precious truths which you impart;
and wing our words, that thy may reach
the hidden depths of many a heart.

4 Oh, fill us with your fullness, Lord,
until my very hearts o’erflow
in kindling thought and glowing word,
your love to tell, your praise to show.

Text: Frances R. Havergal; Music: Robert Schumann; Public Domain

Devotion
The opening verses of this hymn express a prayer that we will be spoken to, led, fed, and taught. Verse 4 asks, “What comes next?”

The end of verse 3 actually anticipates this beautifully as it points to the truth that a word, once received, doesn’t stay put. It moves. It enters into a neighbor’s story, a hard conversation, a stranger’s need. And so, in the final verse of this hymn, we pray that we would be so filled with God’s word that our hearts would overflow.

Overflow is exactly the right image, I think. It’s not about effort or obligation. It’s just what happens when a heart has actually been filled. So may we be filled to overflowing today so that we might be sentinels of God’s abundant grace: in our neighborhoods, our workplaces, and wherever love finds something to do.

Prayer
Lord, fill us until what we’ve received overflows into the world. Amen.

Joe Jorgensen ’23 M.Div.

09/05/2026

God Pause
A daily devotion brought to you by the alumni of Luther Seminary

Saturday, September 5, 2026
Lord, Speak to Us, That We May Speak (Evangelical Lutheran Worship 676)
1 Lord, speak to us, that we may speak
in living echoes of your tone;
as you have sought, so let us seek
your straying children, lost and lone.

2 Oh, lead us, Lord, that we may lead
the wand’ring and the wav’ring feet;
oh, feed us, Lord, that we may feed
your hung’ring ones with manna sweet.

3 Oh, teach us, Lord, that we may teach
the precious truths which you impart;
and wing our words, that thy may reach
the hidden depths of many a heart.

4 Oh, fill us with your fullness, Lord,
until my very hearts o’erflow
in kindling thought and glowing word,
your love to tell, your praise to show.

Text: Frances R. Havergal; Music: Robert Schumann; Public Domain

Devotion
This hymn, written by Frances Ridley Havergal in 1872, was originally titled “A Worker’s Prayer.” It reflects a belief that service flows from being shaped first by God. To me, it echoes the psalmist’s desire expressed in Psalm 119. The hymn’s first three verses give voice to that desire.

“Speak… lead… feed… teach.” Verse after verse asks for the same thing in different forms: before we can offer anything to anyone, we need to have first received it ourselves. We speak only as an echo of a voice we’ve heard. We lead only because we’ve been led first—through wandering, uncertainty, our own need to turn back. We feed only on bread that was placed in our hands by another. We teach only truths that were first taught to us.

This pattern underlies everything we have been hearing and pondering this week: we can’t pour out what we haven’t first received.

Prayer
Lord, speak, lead, feed, and teach us, so that we might do the same for others. Amen.

Joe Jorgensen ’23 M.Div.
Pastor, Christ Lutheran Church, Faribault, MN; Gol Lutheran Church, Kenyon, MN

09/04/2026

God Pause
A daily devotion brought to you by the alumni of Luther Seminary

Friday, September 4, 2026
Matthew 18:15-20 (NRSV)
Read Matthew 18:15-20 on biblegateway.com

Verse15"If another member of the church sins against you, go and point out the fault when the two of you are alone. If the member listens to you, you have regained that one. Verse16But if you are not listened to, take one or two others along with you, so that every word may be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses. Verse17If the member refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if the offender refuses to listen even to the church, let such a one be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Verse18Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. Verse19Again, truly I tell you, if two of you agree on earth about anything you ask, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. Verse20For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them."

Devotion
“Where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.”

I often hear these words spoken as a promise about worship, about Sunday mornings. But Jesus says these words right after talking about confrontation and reconciliation. He’s not just promising to show up when we sing. He’s promising to show up in the hard conversations, too. He promises to be present in moments where someone has to say “you hurt me” and someone else has to hear it.

And that is good news, because this work is hard—reconciling, speaking truth to those who’ve wronged us, forgiving. We need God’s presence to turn our hearts from hurt to restoration. We need the Holy Spirit to give us the words to speak.

None of this is meant to be done alone. Not the confrontation, not the forgiveness, not the restoring. Christ is in the room for all of it. Thanks be to God.

Prayer
Lord, meet us in all our gatherings—especially the hard ones. Amen.

Joe Jorgensen ’23 M.Div.
Pastor, Christ Lutheran Church, Faribault, MN; Gol Lutheran Church, Kenyon, MN

09/03/2026

God Pause
A daily devotion brought to you by the alumni of Luther Seminary

Thursday, September 3, 2026
Matthew 18:15-20 (NRSV)
Read Matthew 18:15-20 on biblegateway.com

Verse15"If another member of the church sins against you, go and point out the fault when the two of you are alone. If the member listens to you, you have regained that one. Verse16But if you are not listened to, take one or two others along with you, so that every word may be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses. Verse17If the member refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if the offender refuses to listen even to the church, let such a one be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Verse18Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. Verse19Again, truly I tell you, if two of you agree on earth about anything you ask, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. Verse20For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them."

Devotion
What happens when someone wrongs you? Maybe you pretend it didn’t happen. Maybe you post about it on social media. Maybe you rant to family or friends.

But Jesus says, first go to the one who wronged you and point out the fault. Privately. Directly. To their face, not behind their back.

I don’t know about you, but that sounds like hard, uncomfortable work. It would be easier to talk about the person than to them. But Jesus treats the relationship as worth more than our comfort. “If you are listened to, you have regained that one.” Not defeated them. Not proven a point. Regained them. The relationship is something precious that was in danger of being lost.

Only if that word goes unheard does the circle widen, first to witnesses, then the whole community. Confrontation, Jesus’ way, stays as small as it can, because the goal was never to win, but to restore a broken relationship.

Prayer
Lord, give us the courage to go to one another in times of conflict, and to seek restoration. Amen.

Joe Jorgensen ’23 M.Div.
Pastor, Christ Lutheran Church, Faribault, MN; Gol Lutheran Church, Kenyon, MN

Interested in digging deeper into today’s text?
Read more here.

09/02/2026

God Pause
A daily devotion brought to you by the alumni of Luther Seminary

Wednesday, September 2, 2026
Romans 13:8-14 (NRSV)
Read Romans 13:8-14 on biblegateway.com

Verse8Owe no one anything, except to love one another; for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. Verse9The commandments, "You shall not commit adultery; You shall not murder; You shall not steal; You shall not covet"; and any other commandment, are summed up in this word, "Love your neighbor as yourself." Verse10Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore, love is the fulfilling of the law.

Verse11Besides this, you know what time it is, how it is now the moment for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we became believers; Verse12the night is far gone, the day is near. Let us then lay aside the works of darkness and put on the armor of light; Verse13let us live honorably as in the day, not in reveling and drunkenness, not in debauchery and licentiousness, not in quarreling and jealousy. Verse14Instead, put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.

Devotion
Paul offers a clear instruction to the Romans: turn toward love. “Owe no one anything, except to love one another, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.”

When you look at the commandments, it’s easy to see that many of them coalesce into this one instruction. Not because the rules stop mattering, but because love was always what they were pointing to. Love does no wrong to a neighbor. It’s not a soft substitute for the law. It’s the whole point of the law.

And Paul’s invitation to love is an urgent one: “the night is far gone; the day is near.” Wake up. This isn’t a task for someday, it is a task for today, now. “Put on the Lord Jesus Christ” today, see the shape of his way, and speak his message to the world. In today’s ordinary rooms, to today’s ordinary neighbors: love, and love now.

Prayer
Lord, wake us up and send us to love, today. Amen.

Joe Jorgensen ’23 M.Div.
Pastor, Christ Lutheran Church, Faribault, MN; Gol Lutheran Church, Kenyon, MN

Interested in digging deeper into today’s text?
Read more here.

09/01/2026

God Pause
A daily devotion brought to you by the alumni of Luther Seminary

Tuesday, September 1, 2026
Psalm 119:33-40 (NRSV)
Read Psalm 119:33-40 on biblegateway.com

Verse33Teach me, O Lord, the way of your statutes, and I will observe it to the end.

Verse34Give me understanding, that I may keep your law and observe it with my whole heart.

Verse35Lead me in the path of your commandments, for I delight in it.

Verse36Turn my heart to your decrees, and not to selfish gain.

Verse37Turn my eyes from looking at vanities; give me life in your ways.

Verse38Confirm to your servant your promise, which is for those who fear you.

Verse39Turn away the disgrace that I dread, for your ordinances are good.

Verse40See, I have longed for your precepts; in your righteousness give me life.

Devotion
The psalmist doesn’t ask God for a script. The psalmist asks to be shown the way, to see the shape of God’s design, and for their own heart to be turned.

“Teach me… give me understanding… lead me… turn my heart… turn my eyes.” Each of these phrases is a request to be changed, not to be handed answers. Before this voice can speak a word to anyone else, it wants its own self to be reordered from the inside.

So, if we are to be sentinels of God’s call to repentance, it’s worth sitting with these words from the psalmist. It’s tempting to hear “speak the word you hear” and rush straight to speaking. But first, it is wise to ask God to shape what we’re even capable of hearing. Turn my heart from selfish gain. Turn my eyes from vanity. Then, maybe, I can truly discover the word God would have me speak.

Prayer
Lord, teach us your way before you send us to speak it. Amen.

Joe Jorgensen ’23 M.Div.
Pastor, Christ Lutheran Church, Faribault, MN; Gol Lutheran Church, Kenyon, MN

Interested in digging deeper into today’s text?
Read more here.

08/31/2026

God Pause
A daily devotion brought to you by the alumni of Luther Seminary

Monday, August 31, 2026
Ezekiel 33:7-11 (NRSV)
Read Ezekiel 33:7-11 on biblegateway.com

Verse7So you, mortal, I have made a sentinel for the house of Israel; whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give them warning from me. Verse8If I say to the wicked, "O wicked ones, you shall surely die," and you do not speak to warn the wicked to turn from their ways, the wicked shall die in their iniquity, but their blood I will require at your hand. Verse9But if you warn the wicked to turn from their ways, and they do not turn from their ways, the wicked shall die in their iniquity, but you will have saved your life.

Verse10Now you, mortal, say to the house of Israel, Thus you have said: "Our transgressions and our sins weigh upon us, and we waste away because of them; how then can we live?" Verse11Say to them, As I live, says the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from their ways and live; turn back, turn back from your evil ways; for why will you die, O house of Israel?

Devotion
God calls the prophet to be a sentinel—one who keeps watch and raises the alarm—and then God gives this sentinel a clear task: speak the word you hear.

But this is no simple task, and the stakes are high. What the sentinel says—or doesn’t say—becomes part of someone else’s story. That voice might be the difference between someone turning around and someone wandering further into the dark.

So what message does God want delivered? Not condemnation, but words of grace and invitation. “Turn back, turn back from your evil ways, for why will you die, O house of Israel?” God takes no pleasure in anyone’s demise, but rather delights in their turning, their living.

We, too, are given words to speak, often to people we love, in rooms where silence would be easier. But the sentinel’s call isn’t to stand over others in judgment. It’s to stand with them, and say the hard, hopeful thing: turn back. Live.

Prayer
Lord, give us the courage to speak, and the wisdom to speak rightly. Amen.

Joe Jorgensen ’23 M.Div.
Pastor, Christ Lutheran Church, Faribault, MN; Gol Lutheran Church, Kenyon, MN

Interested in digging deeper into today’s text?
Read more here.

08/30/2026

God Pause
A daily devotion brought to you by the alumni of Luther Seminary

Sunday, August 30, 2026
My Life Flows On in Endless Song (Evangelical Lutheran Worship 763)
1 My life flows on in endless song;
above earth’s lamentation,
I catch the sweet, though far-off hymn
that hails a new creation.

Refrain
No storm can shake my inmost calm
while to that Rock I’m clinging.
Since Christ is Lord of heaven and earth,
how can I keep from singing?

2 Through all the tumult and the strife,
I hear that music ringing.
It finds an echo in my soul.
How can I keep from singing? (Refrain)

3 What though my joys and comforts die?
The Lord my Savior liveth.
What though the darkness gather round?
Songs in the night he giveth. (Refrain)

4 The peace of Christ makes fresh my heart,
a fountain ever springing!
All things are mine since I am his!
How can I keep from singing? (Refrain)

Text: Robert Lowry; Music: Robert Lowry; Public Domain

Devotion
To sing, especially in the face of adversity, is to live in hope—irrepressible hope.

This hymn was composed in the politically turbulent late 1860’s. President Lincoln had been assassinated and President Johnson was one Senate vote from being removed from office. The 14th Amendment was ratified, but the Ku Klux Klan waged a campaign of terror against newly freed Black voters. The slogan of one political party was, “This is a White Man’s Government,” targeting the racial anxieties of white voters.

Through it all the church kept singing, “No storm can shake my inmost calm…since Christ is Lord of heaven and earth, how can I keep from singing?”

Storms rage yet today, without and within—too numerous and too obvious to list here. And our hearts, our communities, are not unscathed. Yet people of faith continue to stand and sing in hope and a greater vision, “What though the darkness gather round? Songs in the night he giveth.
Since Christ is Lord of heaven and earth, how can I keep from singing?”

Prayer
So fill us with the vision of your grace and love, O God, that our voices in the face of life’s storms may rise together in irrepressible hope. May the peace of Christ keep us singing. Amen.

Phil Rue ’72 M.Div.