Over the next two weeks, we will be blessed to baptize two infants and adult.

When we attend a baptism service or when we remember our own baptisms, we are invited to live in Beersheba! 

At the end of our Old Testament lesson, (Genesis 19-21), Abraham calls a well in the Negev Desert "Beer Sheba" which means "well of seven" or "well of oath." You can find Beer Sheva near the bottom of the satellite map above. 

This morning I realized that I can call my baptism "Beersheba." It is the water, the deep well of God's oath to me. There I can claim again the oath the LORD, the Eternal God, has given to me in my baptism. 

I am blessed when I live in my Beersheba... living in the promise of forgiveness and the power of the Holy Spirit. 

Worship - Public and Private 

Two days ago, in the Beatitudes Jesus encouraged us to let our light shine to the world. Let your worship, your Christian life, be evident to those around you.

In Matthew 6:1-18, Jesus talks about private worship. Do things in secret. Don’t let anyone see.

Why the different comments about private and public worship?

Our Christian light shines bright when we are merciful, peacemakers, living a godly life. Living the Christian life is a beautiful thing.

What is ugly… in God’s sight and in the sight of others… is faking it, doing  things only because others will see.

It is amazing how “contemporary” Jesus is! According to numerous surveys, what the younger generations seek is “authenticity” As we join in the Lord’s Prayer today, let us pray that God would work a miracle in us, so that our faith is authentic…

• His name is glorified, not ours.
• His kingdom comes, not more power and prestige to us
• His will be done, even if his will means our life is hard right now.

Let us pray for what we need for an authentic faith:

• Father, give us the daily bread of spiritual courage to be honest with ourselves.
• Father, forgive us for the hypocrisy you see in our hearts.
• Father, lead us away from the temptations to “go through the motions.”
• Father, deliver us from Satan’s attacks lest our Christianity be revealed as hypocritical and so destroy any kingdom building work you have done through us.

For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory… this little doxology is not found in most of the ancient Greek manuscripts. It is a little song of praise the Church added as part of our worship.

It was only when I began teaching confirmation classes I realized how wonderful Dr. Martin Luther captured the essence of Christianity in his Small Catechism. I’ve attached this little booklet to help you in your devotional readings. You can also find it at the Welcome Center at St. Paul's/The Bridge. Check out the section on the Lord's Prayer. 

The need for constant prayer is revealed in our Old Testament lesson (Genesis 19-21).

• Like Lot, we live in a wicked world that tempts us. 
• Like Lot’s daughters, our children are being tempted to find solutions on their own rather than trust in God’s care and timing.
• Like Abraham, we are tempted to fudge the truth to make life easier for ourselves.
• Like Sarah and Hagar, Ishmael and Isaac, family strife can destroy any Christian witness we had hoped to display.

And so, let us daily go to our private personal Beersheba, the Well of God's grace in our baptisms, and pray the prayer our Savior taught us.

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours now and forever. Amen.