August 26, 2023

Today's Reading: Introit to Pentecost 13: Psalm 28:1-2, 6-7

Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 24:1-22, 1 Corinthians 1:26-2:16

Blessed be the LORD! For he has heard the voice of my pleas for mercy. (Psalm 28:6)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. It’s been a long week. It seems as though attending the Divine Service last Sunday was longer than 6 days ago. Maybe a particularly difficult day this week is still replaying in your head. Maybe a committed sin keeps coming up in your thoughts (and stealing your sleep). Maybe a hurt caused by someone else has made its home in your heart. Life is hard down here; living in and with sin hurts. 

Today’s Psalm speaks about the weight of our need as sinners. We try and try, but we fail. And then, someone fails us. Usually, both happen frequently. We try again, and fail again. We try to fix what is broken, but make the mess messier. We cannot make it better and often feel beaten up by the end of the day, and certainly by the end of the week. We cry out to God in frustration, pain, and sorrow. We cannot carry the burdens of our sins and our hurts. It is heavy. It hurts. It is too much. 

Friend, your prayers have been heard. You are not alone in your pain and suffering. You have a loving God who has heard your cries and answers them. He meets our sin with forgiveness. He meets our pain with relief. He meets our deadness with new life. He does not leave us to wallow in our failures, but gives us victory. 

In our Baptism, we are made new. We are breathed to life and given Jesus’ life as our own. We are washed clean, renewed, loved, and mercied. In the Divine Service, we hear God’s Word preached. We hear our sins forgiven. We hear our neighbors’ sins forgiven. We receive Jesus’ Body and Blood. We are filled with the truth of whose we are and what we have been given. We are reminded of God’s grace and His mercy. 

The week has been long. But tomorrow, the table has been prepared for you. Your pastor will, in the stead of Christ, forgive your sins. He has prepared the Word to point you to your Savior. Carry your worries, burdens, hurts, and sins to church. Receive God’s promises, love, forgiveness, and hope. Blessed be the Lord! He has heard our cries for mercy!  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

Be still, my soul, before the Lord,  For God is always near.  Before your mind is moved to pray,   God listens and will hear.   (Be Still, My Soul, before the Lord, LSB 771:1)

-Deaconess Sarah Longmire is the bible study editor for Higher Things.

Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.

Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.