Almighty Father, You sent Your Son into the world that all might be saved. Through Your Holy Spirit bring those who do not know You to repentance and faith. Grant all pastors, church workers and missionaries the skill, patience, and courage to open and teach the Scriptures as Philip did for the Ethiopian eunuch, that all may come to the waters of Holy Baptism.

Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

Source: LCMS “Let Us Pray”

“Yes, you must be contrite, but to think that the forgiveness of sins is to be made sure . . . by your contrition means to forsake the faith and deny Christ [in His work of reconciliation]. He wants to forgive and remit your sins not for your sake, but for His own sake, from pure grace.” (“Treatise on the Keys,” St. L. XIX:943 ff.)

Almighty Father, You sent Your Son into the world that all might be saved. Through Your Holy Spirit bring those who do not know You to repentance and faith. Grant all pastors, church workers and missionaries the skill, patience, and courage to open and teach the Scriptures as Philip did for the Ethiopian eunuch, that all may come to the waters of Holy Baptism.

Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

Source: LCMS Let Us Pray

Gracious Father, Satan and sin always seek to attack Your sheep. Bring us with steadfast faith and true repentance to Your table that we may eat Christ’s Body and drink of the overflowing cup of His Blood for our eternal good.

Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

Source: LCMS “Let Us Pray”

Lord, Your Son knows His sheep. He knows our frailties and weaknesses, our burdens and temptations. Visit, comfort and relieve those who suffer from illness, injury, or brokenness, (including_________). Keep them in Your hand, restore their souls, and comfort them with Your rod and staff.

Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

Source: LCMS “Let Us Pray”

Lord Jesus Christ, You have swallowed up death forever. The eye-witnesses of Your resurrection could not be silenced from proclaiming You even when threatened with death. Sustain our persecuted brothers and sisters in true faith and the bold confession of Your salvation

Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

Source: LCMS Let Us Pray

God of love, through the anointing of Holy Baptism, Your Son gathers the lambs in His arms and carries them close to His heart. Guide our children and young people throughout their lives to follow their Shepherd’s call that in fear and faith they may grow in love for You and for others. Give diligence and courage to Christian teachers and the schools of Your Church, so that Your lambs may continue to know Your Son’s voice and grow in useful knowledge.

Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

Source: LCMS “Let Us Pray”

Father, Your Son conquered death, and He leads and shepherds His sheep so that all may dwell in Your house forever. Keep us, (together with those who mourn the death of __________ ), mindful of Your presence here in the valley of the shadow of death, and give Your promised comfort of dwelling in Your house forever.

Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

Source: LCMS “Let Us Pray”

Yes, you read that correctly. Read the whole story here, here’s a snippet:

As coming out parties go, this was a big one.

As the American Atheists convention here wound down in March, a woman with short dark hair and a dark suit took the stage.

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Standing under the projection of a large capital “A,” she told the crowd of several hundred that she was a pastor who, for the last several months, had been questioning her beliefs online under the pseudonym “Lynn.”

Then she took a deep breath and said, “My name is Teresa. And I am an atheist.” As the room exploded with cheers, Teresa MacBain wiped away tears.

MacBain, 44, is the latest “graduate” of The Clergy Project, an online support network for pastors who, like her, have lost their faith and found atheism.

The goal of the project is not to pull pastors from the pulpit, but to provide those who have already lost their faith with a safe place to anonymously discuss what comes next. The hope is they will, like MacBain, eventually feel strong enough to put their families, friends and careers on the line and announce their atheism.

Lord of all, You sent Your Son as the Good Shepherd, to seek and to save all lost and wandering sheep. Send Your Son’s voice throughout the world to reach those who have gone astray, including those in prison and those misled by false teaching. Encourage and defend Your missionaries and their families.

Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

Source: LCMS “Let Us Pray”

Look what came across my desk today…the proof copy of the cover for the forthcoming new book: Faith and Act: The Survival of Medieval Ceremonies in the Lutheran Reformation. You can preorder a copy now, by clicking here. Download a PDF sample from the book, by clicking here.

Here is more information on the book:

The Reformation did not happen overnight, not with the singular act of posting of the Ninety-Five Theses, or even the presentation of the Augsburg Confession. Prof. Dr. Zeeden’s classic study of how medieval church practices continued and developed within Lutheran church orders offers readers a unique perspective on how faith influences the act of worship. Historians of liturgy and theology will discover insights and important continuity between the Lutheran churches of the sixteenth century and their forbearers of the late medieval period.

What Others Are Saying

“Faith and Act [is] . . . a mix of exacting research and historiographical vision that may justly be viewed as one of the foundation texts of modern Reformation history.”
—C. Scott Dixon Queen’s University, Belfast

“Historians of liturgy and church discipline will welcome the re-appearance of Zeeden’s classic monograph, gracefully translated and with updated bibliographical references.”
—Ralph Keen University of Illinois at Chicago

“Kevin Walker’s translation of Faith and Act represents a necessary addition to contemporary scholarship on how liturgical practices shaped the lived religion of the Reformation churches . . . and delightfully unsettles easy generalizations about the transition from medieval to early modern Christianity.”
—Phillip Haberkern Boston University

“Liturgical scholars as well as pastors will find this volume to be a useful guide to understanding the evangelical reception and appropriation of the catholic legacy of liturgical forms and practices in light of the immediate background of the medieval church.”
—John T. Pless Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, IN

“One of the most important works of German research from the past half century concerning the history of the Reformation and its ramifications. . . . It is to be highly welcomed that now after half a century this groundbreaking study for research is being translated into English.”
—Anton Schindling Eberhard-Karls-Universität Tübingen

“A gripping read awaits those who attend to Zeeden’s multi-faceted account of the nitty-gritty of classical Lutheran church life in its parish and public setting.”
—John R Stephenson Concordia Lutheran Theological Seminary, St. Catharines, Ontario

“What a service Kevin G. Walker has done for the Lutheran Church in English speaking lands by providing this fine translation of Ernst Zeeden’s helpful monograph. . . . I heartily recommend the book to any and all who love the Lutheran liturgy and seek to become better acquainted with its formative development in the time of the great Church Orders.”
—William C. Weedon Director of Worship The Lutheran Church Missouri Synod

Gracious Father, since You raised Your Son from the grave, death must release all who trust in Him. Give faith to those near death (including _______) and to their families.  Comfort all who mourn the death of loved ones (including ________).

Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

“God sends out no bailiffs or angels when He creates and preserves a thing, but all that is the direct work of His divine power. But if He is to create and sustain it, He must Himself be present and must form and sustain His creature, both in its innermost and its outermost parts. Therefore God must be present in every creature in its innermost and its outermost parts, on all sides, through and through, below and above, before and behind. Nothing can be more present and closer to the creature than God Himself with His power.” (St. L. XX:804.)

Gracious Father, hear the cries of all who are sick, recuperating, lonely, and depressed (including __________), and use us to bring Your Word of life to encourage them in Christ’s victory.

Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.