Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ. 1 Corinthians 11:1
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:
The salvation story of Jesus Christ reaches around the world. So that the readers of our Daily Devotion may see the power of the Savior on a global scale, we have asked the volunteers of our International Ministry Centers to write our Friday devotions. We pray that the Spirit may touch your day through their words.
In Christ, I remain, His servant and yours,
Kenneth R. Klaus
Speaker of The Lutheran Hour
A professor once said, "Young people may not be open to hearing advice, but they are open to following examples." If this is where you are in life, here's an example to follow -- read the Bible.
In Paraguay, a pastor often went to a local jail to hold Bible class with some of the young inmates. He noticed another young man watching what was going on and invited him to join the group. Even though the boy reacted with coldness and indifference, the pastor gave him a New Testament before leaving. The boy accepted it with the comment the pages would be used to roll his cigarettes. The pastor replied that would be fine, as long as he read the page before smoking it.
A few visits later, the young man came looking for the pastor. "Pastor," he said, "I smoked Matthew, Mark, and Luke, but I could not smoke John. I fell at the feet of Jesus Christ."
We can feel much satisfaction by reading the Bible but, even more, we can enter into communication with God, our Creator. He is our loving Father who wants to give us pardon for our sins, peace for our hearts, and a life filled with hope.
In the Gospel of John we find these words: "But these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name" (John 20:31).
THE PRAYER: Heavenly Father, help us to be involved in reading Your Word and set an example for others to do so, too. Amen.
Biography of Author:
Pastor Eugenio Wentzel is president of Iglesia Evangelica Luterana del Paraguay (IELPA). He and his wife, Leonisa, have two daughters: Ana Paula and Gabriele. Part of Lutheran Hour Ministries' efforts at reaching individuals with the Gospel includes radio programming, newspaper ads, door-to-door ministry, and Bible Correspondence Courses designed for both children and adults.
To learn more about our International Ministries, click here or visit www.lhmint.org.
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Today's Bible Readings: Job 36-37 Matthew 15:1-20
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