Higher Things Daily Reflections

July 4, 2009 - Saturday in the 3rd Week After Trinity

Sat, 04 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Daily Lectionary: Joshua 10:1-25; Acts 11:19-30

The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? (Psalm 27:1, from the Introit for Trinity 4)

These questions from the beginning of Psalm 27 seem like very simple questions from the perspective of a Christian. When you think of it, what really is there to fear? What really is there to be afraid of? No problem, right?

But then the reality of our sinful nature sets in, and then we begin to re-examine and even doubt those words of Scripture. You know how the conversations in your head go… If the Lord is supposed to be my strength, then why am I afraid of what will happen to me? If the Lord is supposed to be my light and salvation, then why do I have fears? Maybe, just maybe I am not that strong of a Christian in the first place. Maybe, just maybe I need to be doing more good works, like praying more, or giving more in the offering plate at church, or being a better student. Surely I have done something that has caused God to draw back from me; that’s why I feel so afraid of the dark, the economy, nuclear war…blah, blah, blah.

Most certainly those thoughts and ideas are being fueled by the devil himself who wants you to doubt God’s love for you. His job is to distract your mind and heart away from Christ and onto yourself

. So, shake your head, repent of your self-serving fretting and pity-party, and commit all those thoughts to Christ and let Him worry about them. Get yourself to the Divine Service tomorrow morning and cling like crazy to the Gospel you will hear. Let your ears take in the message that Christ has paid for all your sins and has given you the sure and certain hope of the resurrection. Let your ears hear that Christ has defeated even death itself–and everything leading up to it. You have nothing to fear. Let your mouth take in His body and blood, so that He continues to take up residence in you and forgives you your sins. For as Christ dwells in you then certainly you can confess that His light and salvation drive away all fear and doubt.

I walk with Jesus all the way, His guidance never fails me; Within His wounds I find a stay When Satan’s pow’r assails me; And by His footsteps led, My path I safely tread. No evil leads my soul astray; I walk with Jesus all the way. (LSB 716:5)

July 3, 2009 - Friday in the 3rd Week After Trinity

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Today's Reading: I Peter 5:6-11

Daily Lectionary: Joshua 8:1-28; Acts 11:1-18

“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.” (I Peter 5:8)

We are in the end times. We have been in the end times ever since our Lord Jesus, the Lion of Judah, spoke of His second coming and the signs of that coming around 2,000 years ago. One of the many signs of Christ’s coming is that there will be many people in His name who say, “I am the Christ” (Matthew 24:5), and many will be deceived.

We have seen over the years the likes of Jim Jones who, in the late 1970’s, deceived over 900 gullible people into believing he was the Christ and, at the end, commanding and forcing them all to kill themselves by drinking cyanide-laced Kool-Aid.

We know of David Koresh in Waco, TX, who led many to believe that he was the Christ and that only he knew the Scriptures. In the end, was responsible for the fiery death of himself and his followers.

And there will be more of these imposters throughout time who will lead people astray and convince them to believe false things about themselves and the Bible so that they will die out of the faith. These false teachers are nothing other than the devil using them to focus on themselves or someone other than Jesus. In these cases the devil is being portrayed as a Jesus figure–a roaring lion (remember Aslan in the Narnia books?)–not to save people, but to devour them.

You, dear Christian, are to listen to and receive only the Jesus of the Scriptures. You hear His voice whenever your pastor reads and preaches Jesus to you–the Jesus who comes to devour your sin by His all-atoning sacrifice on the cross. And you receive Jesus in His body and blood in the Sacrament. And you have Jesus who puts His name on you in Holy Baptism. And you have Jesus in your ear in Holy Absolution. These are the only ways Jesus comes to you, not to devour you but to devour and destroy the work of the devil, and to save you and keep you in the one true faith by His work.

“May the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen and settle you. To Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.” (I Peter 5:10-11).

July 2, 2009 - The Visitation

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Today's Reading: Luke 1:39-56

Daily Lectionary: Joshua 7:1-26; Acts 10:34-48

My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior (Luke 1:46-47)

About 2,000 years ago Mary was visited by an angel who told her that she was to bear the Christ, the Son of God, in her womb and give birth to Him. Concerned at the time about this wondrous news, she was comforted by the angel and assured that this was indeed from God.

A few months later, Mary visited her cousin Elizabeth. Elizabeth, too, was expecting a child; that child was St. John the Baptist, the forerunner of Christ. It is this visitation–from Mary to Elizabeth, and, from Jesus to John–that is the focus of this great Feast in the Church Year.

During this visit, a remarkable thing happened. “When Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the babe (John) leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. The she spoke out with a loud voice and said, ‘Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.’” (Luke 1:41-42). After Elizabeth finished speaking, Mary then launched into what has been called The Magnificat, that beautiful song of joy which begins, “My soul magnifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.” These words have been set to beautiful music in the Office of Evening Prayer in the LSB hymnal.

An angel visits Mary. Mary and Jesus visit Elizabeth and John. John, if you will, confesses Christ through his leaping in the womb. Elizabeth confesses Christ and blesses Mary. Mary confesses Christ and sings of God’s mercy in the Magnificat. All these people are blessed beyond measure by the presence of the Lord Jesus among them.

You are blessed in the Divine Service for the same reason: Jesus is among you. He is with you in His Word preached and read in the Absolution, and with you in His body and blood in the Sacrament of the Altar. God grant that you may leap for joy each time Christ visits you with His holy gifts.

My soul rejoices, My spirit voices—Sing the greatness of the Lord! For God my Savior Has shown me favor—Sing the greatness of the Lord! With praise and blessing, Join in confessing God, who is solely Mighty and holy—O sing the greatness of God the Lord! His mercy surely Shall rest securely On all who fear Him, Love and revere Him—O sing the greatness of God the Lord! (LSB 933:1)

July 1, 2009 - Wednesday in the 3rd Week After Trinity

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Today's Reading: Mark 16:16; Small Catechism – What Benefits does Baptism Give?

Daily Lectionary: Joshua 6:6-27; Acts 10:18-33

Baptism works forgiveness of sins, rescues from death and the devil, and gives eternal salvation to all who believe this, as the words and promises of God declare. (Baptism 2)

“Sing the Faith” is a great little CD from CPH which has children with beautiful voices singing the Small Catechism. As a pastor I have used this CD with surprising success as it helps children learn the Catechism through music. These are not just empty little camp song ditties, but quality music which reflects the text–you know,Lutheranmusic! Once you learn those Catechism songs, you can’t recite the words without singing them.

And singing about your baptism is always a great thing, for through singing you pray twice. And praying your Catechism is what we are about as Lutheran Christians. To know and believe that through Holy Baptism God has washed away your sins is a true joy, for the work God does through baptism is not your work, but His.

And what is that work? Through baptism God gives you forgiveness of sins (Acts 2:38–“Repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.”), rescue from death and the devil (Romans 6:3,5–“Don’t you know that all of us were baptized into His death?”), and eternal salvation (I Peter 3:21–“This water symbolizes baptism which now saves you”).

Why do you need baptism? Because you were conceived and born in sin. And you (Leave this: catechism words) But all of Christ’s gifts of forgiveness are yours in your baptism–given freely on account of Christ’s suffering, death and resurrection for you. And as a baptized, catechized, and conformed believer, you also are privileged to receive Christ’s body and blood in the Sacrament for further forgiveness and strengthening of your faith in Jesus.

God’s Word and promise declare that you are His own child. Receive His gifts regularly in the Divine Service and sing for joy!

The gifts flow from the font Where He calls us His own; New life He gives that makes Us His and His alone. Here He forgives our sins With water and His Word; The triune God Himself Gives pow’r to call Him Lord. (LSB 602:2)

June 30, 2009 - Tuesday in the 3rd Week After Trinity

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Today's Reading: Micah 7:18-20

Daily Lectionary: Joshua 5:1-6:5; Acts 10:1-7

Who is a God like You, pardoning iniquity and passing over the transgression of the remnant of His heritage? He does not retain His anger forever, because He delights in mercy. (Micah 7:18)

Of all the “gods” in this world, one stands out: the God of the Holy Scriptures, the God who has sent His one and only Son Jesus to take away your sins and give you the sure and certain hope of everlasting life in Him. There really is no other “God” in the true sense of the word, at least not according to Holy Scripture.

Oh, there are other “gods.” Blessed Martin Luther reminds us that “a god means that from which we are to expect all good and in which we are to take refuge in all distress” (Large Catechism I:1).

So what kinds of things do you expect from your gods: pleasure, money, happiness, intimacy, a warm fuzzy…? And who or what are your gods? Your iPod? Your Blackberry? Your Mac? Your significant other? Your friends that you can’t help but text 129 times a day–or more? Your wardrobe? Yourself? Surely you can name many more than that. All those things from which you receive satisfaction and in which you trust, those are your gods. Don’t lie; you have them. And God knows that you have them.

Repent of having these other gods, and turn to the one true God who reveals Himself fully in His Son, Jesus Christ. In and through Jesus, God pardons your iniquity. Because of Jesus’ sacrificial life, suffering, death and resurrection for you and in your place, God does not retain His anger against you. It was all taken away in His Son.

And as a result you receive all the blessings and benefits of Christ’s work through Holy Baptism, Holy Absolution, Holy Gospel, and Holy Supper–all for you from the one true God who delights in mercy, that is, not giving you what you deserve for your sins (which is eternal death), but what Christ bought for you with His work. And with that you have a sure and certain hope of the resurrection to eternal life.

And that’s all you will ever need.

Lamb of God, You take away the sin of the world, have mercy on us; Lamb of God, You take away the sin of the world, have mercy on us; Lamb of God, You take away the sin of the world. Grant us peace. (Agnus Dei)

June 29, 2009 - St. Peter & St. Paul, Apostles

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Today's Reading: St. Matthew 16:13-19

Daily Lectionary: Joshua 4:1-24; Acts 9:23-43

Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.” (St. Matthew 16:17)

So, was this Peter’s confession of the faith, when he said about Jesus, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16)? And in Acts 15:11, was this Paul’s confession of the faith when he said, “But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved…”? Sure, the words came out of Peter’s mouth and Paul’s mouth, but whose words were they really? Did they come up with these confessions of the faith all by themselves? Were Peter and Paul such great theologians and students of the Bible that they should be credited with these confessions on their own merit?

Of course not! To be sure, the mouths of Peter and Paul were used by God to speak God’s truth, but Jesus tells us whose words they were. Jesus tells us whose confessions these were: They were the words of His Father. God Himself gives the true confession of the one true faith–the faith that is summarized and fulfilled in Christ’s life, suffering, death and resurrection.

Just like Peter and Paul, your pastor is given words from the Lord to speak and to proclaim Jesus for you. His mouth, lips and tongue are used by the Lord to preach the Gospel to you and pronounce the Absolution. And your pastor’s hands are used by the Lord to give you the Lord’s gifts of Baptism and the Supper. Those words are not your pastor’s words, nor do those gifts come from your pastor alone–they are from the Lord through your pastor to you.

Thank God for Saints Peter and Paul and their true and uncompromising confessions of Christ who paid for our sins in His body on the tree of the cross to set us free from sin, death and the devil.

We praise You for Saint Peter; We praise You for Saint Paul; They taught both Jew and Gentile That Christ is all in all. To cross and sword they yielded And saw Your kingdom come; O God, these two apostles Reached life through martyrdom. (LSB 518:19)

June 28, 2009 - The 3rd Sunday after Trinity

Sun, 28 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Today's Reading: St. Luke 15:1-10

Daily Lectionary: Joshua 3:1-17; Acts 9:1-22

[Jesus said] “In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” (St. Luke 15:10)

How can these two words, “rejoicing” and “repentance” be in the same sentence? Well, when you’re dealing with Jesus, they belong together.

Repentance is that change of mind brought about by the truth of God’s Word applied to your life; that is what brings rejoicing in heaven. Repentance is simply, but profoundly acknowledging that God is right–that you are a sinner, damned and condemned by God; that you are a liar, and as such you deserve God’s eternal wrath and displeasure. You want to make God and the whole heavenly host rejoice? Repent, and acknowledge your sins.

All people are sinners. We are beggars, it is true. We have sinned, it is true. We do not deserve God’s mercy; we deserve only His hot anger. But God has had mercy upon us in Christ; He has not dealt with us according to our sins, but has accepted Christ’s sacrificial death in our place for our sins. He has dealt with us according to His unfailing love and has blotted out our iniquities. Let us therefore repent and agree with God, that we are wrong and He alone is right.

Rejoicing and repentance belong in the same sentence. For it is the work of God to bring a person to repentance and to cry out for the absolution, the proclaimed forgiveness of sins. It is repentance, that wonderful work of God, which unlocks the door to heaven and sets the prisoner free. It is repentance, that marvelous work of God, which is followed by the absolution, the pronouncement of sins forgiven by Christ’s work of suffering, death, and resurrection. And it is repentance, that astounding work of God, which releases true rejoicing in heaven. For the lost sheep has been found by God; the lost coin has been discovered by God. The sinful life has been exposed by God; the sinner has acknowledged his sin before God. And the chains of death and hell are broken by God

Collect: O God, the Protector of all who trust in You, without whom nothing is strong and nothing is holy, multiply Your mercy on us that, with You as our Ruler and Guide, we may so pass through things temporal that we lose not the things eternal; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for Trinity 3)

June 27, 2009 - Saturday in the Second Week After Trinity

Sat, 27 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Today's Reading: Introit for Trinity 3

Daily Lectionary: Joshua 2:1-24, Acts 8:26-40

To You, O Lord, I lift up my soul. O my God, I trust in You; Let me not be ashamed. You are the God of my salvation; on You I wait all the day.(From the Introit for Trinity 2)

When you are at your wit’s end, where do you go? What do you do? Is there some place you go until everything settles out? I usually self-prescribe some “gunpowder therapy.” There’s nothing like a day at the range making targets drop right and left to bring a sense of order back to my mind.

Perhaps it is counterintuitive, but that’s what works. Maybe I need to spend a little more time listening to David. While the shooting range might settle things for me mentally, it doesn’t really do much spiritually. There’s usually still a sense of something being a little ‘off,’ even after a satisfying day. And that’s where David’s words come in.

Our God is the only true deliverer we have from what the world and Satan throw at us. No matter how well you might seem be able to set things in order by yourself, there is still something missing in all that work: the peace a child of God has when he rests in our Lord’s hands.

When our minds get clouded to the point that we can no longer think straight, when we get to the point that we’re ready to tear our hair out, we should pray with David, “To You, O Lord, I lift up my soul.”

The only place true and lasting peace can be found is in God. It is only in our Father that we can finally duck away from what the world is throwing at us and hear Him speak of our salvation.

And that’s where we can wait on Him to give us those comforting words of the Gospel; that He, as the God of our salvation, the Son has come into our world and fixed what has gone so terribly wrong. That Christ Jesus has taken each and every one of our burdens on Himself and killed them in His death. That salvation is ours because of His death.

So, no matter how terribly the day has gone, we can look to Him for guidance and He will give it. He will always guide and guard us, keeping us safe in Christ from whatever wild scheme Satan tries to cook up.

O God, forsake me not! Take not Your Spirit from me; Do not permit the might Of sin to overcome me. Increase my feeble faith, Which you alone have wrought. O be my strength and pow’r – O God, forsake me not! (LSB #731, v.2)

June 26, 2009 - Friday in the Second Week After Trinity

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Daily Lectionary: Joshua 1:1-18, Acts 8:1-25

The Lord said to Joshua…“Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”(Joshua 1:1, 9)

Sometimes we need a second or third reminder that God is with us, that He has things under His control.

Joshua had been told by God once already, in Deuteronomy 31, to be strong and courageous, that God was going before him when he led Israel across the Jordan. But he needed to be told again, because, like us, he wasn’t so sure of what the future held. This was a whole new experience: a new country, he was the new leader of the people, and things were different.

As much as Israel hated their life in the wilderness and living in tents for forty years, at least it was familiar and they knew what to expect. Now, that’s all going to change, and it’s going to be a hard road for a while. So, God gently reminds Joshua that he is not alone in crossing the Jordan. He will not lead God’s chosen people all by himself.

Much like Joshua, there is unknown in our lives, too. Some of you are about to embark on the adventure of life in the working world, others are leaving the familiarity of high school behind for the strange new world of college.

It can seem daunting, this whole new experience and whole new unfamiliar world, but the words spoken to Joshua should ring in your ears, too, because there is comfort in them.

God iswith you wherever you go. In your baptism, you put on Christ, and He is with you, hearing your prayers, knowing your anxiety, comforting your uneasiness.

Just like He lead Joshua across the Jordan and into a world of the unknown without ever once forgetting Joshua’s uncertainty, so He also does with you – He leads you through death to life in Jesus in your baptism, and He’s got a firm grip on your hand, wherever you may go.

Lord God, You have called Your servants to ventures of which we cannot see the ending, by paths as yet untrodden, through perils unknown. Give us faith to go out with good courage, not knowing where we go but only that Your hand is leading us and Your love supporting us; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for Coping With Change.)

June 25, 2009 - Thursday in the Second Week After Trinity

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Today's Reading: Baptism 1

Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 31:10-31, John 21:1-25

What is Baptism? Baptism is not just plain water, but it is the water included in God’s command and combined with God’s word. (Part One of the Explanation of the Sacrament of Holy Baptism)

God can be sneaky sometimes. Even in our day, people expect to see the biblical appearances of God: flaming bushes, booming voices from the sky, strange visitors from heaven, and tongues of fire.

But God doesn’t work that way now. Not, that He can’t,He just chooses not to. Instead, God works through the plain, mundane things of our daily lives to give us Jesus and His gifts.

There’s no greater example of that than in Baptism. Those outside of the church see a quaint ceremony that must have somemeaning for believers, but they don’t see the glory, they don’t see the wonderful gifts God gives in those splashes of water.

Well, we don’t necessarily “see” those things, either. Not with our human eyes. But with eyes of faith, with ears that hear and hearts that believe, we see that that’s not plain water there – it is God’s greatest gift!

It is the forgiveness of sins and faith itself being given in that water tied to His Word. And not just forgiveness, we are also placed in communion with the eternal three-in-one, Him in whose name we are baptized: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. No longer is life empty or meaningless. In that triple sprinkling (or dunking, or splashing), all that Jesus has done for us is applied to us. Jesus gave the command to go, and while going, to teach and baptize all nations, because God wants all people to be joined to Him for eternity.

“All nations.” Everyone is included in those two words. Not just Americans, not just grownups, not just children, but allpeople. These are the people for whom Jesus died, and these are the multitudes John sees in his Revelation – those from every tribe and language, streaming into the presence of the Lamb who was slain.

And how did they get there? Through some magical experience with God? No. Simply through baptism. Through God’s Word tied to a little water. Through His gift, freely and plainly given for you.

God’s own child, I gladly say it: I am baptized into Christ! He, because I could not pay it, Gave my full redemption price. Do I need earth’s treasures many? I have one worth more than any That brought me salvation free Lasting to eternity! (LSB #594, v.1)

June 24, 2009 - The Nativity of St. John the Baptist

Wed, 24 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Today's Reading: Luke 1:57-80

Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 30:1-9, 18-33; John 20:19-31

And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people in the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God.(Luke 1:76-78)

It may seem odd to think of Advent in the middle of summer, but that’s where we are today – remembering the birth of the forerunner of Christ. Gabriel tells Mary that Elizabeth, her cousin, is in her sixth month of pregnancy.

In the great scheme of things, does it really matter whenJohn was born? No. But whyhe was born doesmatter.

John was the forerunner, the way-preparer, the advance team for the royal visit. John softens up the beachhead of sinful humanity to “prepare the way of the Lord.” John issues a call to repentance, a call that all should hear and heed. It is a call that earns him nothing but grief and ultimately costs him his life, but it is a call that he makes over and over again so that the “way of the Lord” might be easier for Jesus.

John prepares the way so that Jesus might follow that way – that path – to its ultimate destination, the cross of Calvary. Jesus takes that path that Israel then, and we now, could not follow.

Jesus accomplished the redemption of his people by following the path John had prepared to its bloody end. John’s preparation had given “knowledge of salvation to his people.”

The content of that knowledge was the forgiveness of sins, for only in forgiveness can one find entry into the eternity of heaven. And forgiveness is ours only in the cross of Christ.

Only in the cross of Christ is salvation, because there the perfect sacrifice is made, the Law perfectly kept, and God’s requirements perfectly fulfilled, all for us.

O Lord God, heavenly Father, who through Your servant Saint John the Baptist did bear witness that Jesus Christ is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, and that all who believe in Him shall inherit eternal life, we humbly implore You to enlighten us by Your Holy Spirit that we may at all times find comfort and joy in this witness, continue steadfast in the true faith, and at last with all believers attain unto eternal life; through the same Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.Amen. (Collect for The Nativity of St. John the Baptist)

June 23, 2009 - Tuesday in the Second Week After Trinity

Tue, 23 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Today's Reading: 1 John 3:13-18

Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 27:1-24, John 20:1-18

Do not be surprised, brothers, that the world hates you. We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers…let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.(1 John 3:13-14 18)

No one likes to be hated, to be the butt of jokes or to be on the receiving end of abuse, but we’ve all been there at some point. We’ve all suffered at the hands of others for some inconsequential thing like a certain haircut, the wrong brand of jeans, the wrong color shoes.

But, it seems that we’ve gone past those digs of old and entered into a whole new era of real hatred for the church. Not just dislike, but out and out hatred of everything that we confess.

Whether it is our response to social issues (go back a month or two and ask Miss California about that one!), or our theology, the world seems to find a new reason every day to hate us just a little bit more.

But why are we surprised? This is the lot of Christians in this sinful world.

So let’s all gather together in a Christian commune and ignore them, then, shall we?

That’s all well and good, until we realize that the world needs us. The world needs the peace and comfort that we have, and the only way it’s going to get it is through the Holy Spirit working through us.

We are the hands of God to those around us. We are His voice and His face. Sure, it is the pastor who speaks from the pulpit, but you are Christ to those around you during the week.

And you are His love, too. Talk is cheap. We can all wish someone well when he’s not, but it does nothing for him if we are able to actually dosomething for him and don’t.

God chose us and drew us to Himself to give us everlasting life. We are now able to go out into the world that hates us and spread that life and that love in all our doings, not just in nice, trite sayings.

We are able, through Christ in us, to love not only our brothers in the faith, but all those who God would have join us with Him forever. And not just love them in our words, but with a servant’s heart, in the way Christ first loved us – by freely giving of the gifts we’ve been given.

Lord, help us walk Your servant way Wherever love may lead And, bending low, forgetting self, Each serve the other’s need. (LSB #857, v.1