Daily Devotion for Wednesday 8/12/26
Second Reading: Romans 11:1-2a, 29-32
God has not rejected Israel. Rather, the call and gifts of God are irrevocable so that, while all have been disobedient, God has mercy upon all.
Devotion
When I was 5, my mom married the man who would adopt me and become my dad. At first I wasn’t crazy about the idea of them getting married. I wasn’t sure there was enough love to go around with this new person in our lives. What I discovered was there was actually more love to share. The same is true for us with God. “God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew.” When new people enter our tight-knit congregations, a community who have first known God’s love and received mercy, now there are others who are receiving that same mercy and experiencing God’s love. There is more than enough to go around. We haven’t been forgotten or rejected. Paul reminds us: “The gifts and calling of God are irrevocable.” From our solid place of community, with those new to our community, we get the opportunity to experience more mercy and more love—God being merciful to all.
Prayer
Thank you, O God, for your irrevocable love and mercy for each one of us. Let that abundance be a beacon for those who have yet to experience your welcome. Amen.
Nancy Amburn '94 M.Div.,Luther Seminary
Daily Devotion for Tuesday 8/11/26
Psalm: Psalm 67
Let all the peoples praise you, O God.
Devotion
Currently, the community around me is focused on one thing: the World Cup. Living in Paris, France, means being enveloped in the energy and paying attention to the joy and disappointment of each goal scored, each penalty shot pending, and each final score. We have experienced for weeks the nations together, being glad, singing, dancing, playing bagpipes, eating new foods, making new friends, and building bridges. In many ways, it has been a healing among the nations who all too often see each other only as ones to fear. Imagine what the memes and video clips would be if we lived this psalm here on earth already! What would the world feel and sound and look like if we were gracious to each other and blessed each other so that all could know God’s equity in this moment? Oh, how the nations would be glad and sing for joy!
Prayer
Through your graciousness to us, may we be gracious to one another. Guide us so you are revered to the ends of the earth, O Lord. Amen.
Nancy Amburn '94 M.Div.,Luther Seminary
Daily Devotion for Monday 8/10/26
First Reading: Isaiah 56:1, 6-8
The prophet calls upon Israel to do justice in view of God’s imminent intervention to save. Righteousness and obedience define who belongs to the Israelite community—not race, nationality, or any other category.
Devotion
We hear it often, whether from the pulpit, in a Bible study, in church community conversations. When we hear it, it rattles us. If we fully sit in the magnitude of it, we find ourselves uncomfortable. It means new. It means learning. It means being confronted with our prejudices and stubbornness. It means my way, my interpretation, my traditions, my habits, the way I like worship to happen will be examined, altered, moved, and adapted. It means where I sit and who is next to me in the sanctuary will not be the same. It means change. All are welcome. Those beyond the ones already gathered. The foreigners, the eunuchs, the outcasts. All are claimed. In verse 5, omitted in today’s reading, the Lord says, “I will give them an everlasting name that shall not be cut off.” All are gathered. The foreigners, the outcasts—and you!
Prayer
Lord, help us to maintain justice and do what is right, welcoming the foreigners. May this house be your house and may our church community be a house of prayer for all peoples. Amen.
Nancy Amburn '94 M.Div.,Luther Seminary