Great Plains Episcopal Area Daily
Devotion – Sunday, 1 December 2013
Pastor Susan Montgomery of Axtell-Beattie
UMCs of the Flint Hills District of the Kansas East Conference
Pastor Kendal Utt of Clearwater UMC of
the Wichita West District of the Kansas West Conference
Pastor Bryan Hankins of Bellevue
Aldersgate-Omaha Lefler UMCs of the Missouri River District of the Nebraska
Conference
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This Week's Lectionary:
1st Sunday of Advent – Purple or Blue
Isaiah 2: The
Future House of God
1 The word that Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning
Judah and Jerusalem.
2 In days to come
the mountain of the Lord’s house
shall be established as the highest of
the mountains,
and shall be raised above the hills;
all the nations shall stream to it.
3
Many peoples shall come and say,
“Come, let us go up to the mountain of
the Lord,
to the house of the God of Jacob;
that he may teach us his ways
and that we may walk in his paths.”
For out of Zion shall go forth
instruction,
and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
4 He shall judge between the nations,
and shall arbitrate for many peoples;
they shall beat their swords into
plowshares,
and their spears into pruning hooks;
nation shall not lift up sword against
nation,
neither shall they learn war any more.
Judgment Pronounced on Arrogance
5 O house of Jacob,
come, let us walk
in the light of the Lord!(NRSV)
Psalm 122: Song of Praise
and Prayer for Jerusalem
A Song of Ascents. Of David.
1 I was glad when they said to me,
“Let us go to the house of the Lord!”
2 Our feet are standing
within your gates, O Jerusalem.
3 Jerusalem—built as a city
that is bound firmly together.
4 To it the tribes go up,
the tribes of the Lord,
as was decreed for Israel,
to give thanks to the name of the Lord.
5 For there the thrones for judgment were
set up,
the thrones of the house of David.
6 Pray for the peace of Jerusalem:
“May they prosper who love you.
7 Peace be within your walls,
and security within your towers.”
8 For the sake of my relatives and
friends
I will say, “Peace be within you.”
9 For the sake of the house of the Lord
our God,
I will seek your good.(NRSV)
Romans 13: An
Urgent Appeal
11 Besides this, you know what time it
is, how it is now the moment for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is
nearer to us now than when we became believers; 12 the night is far gone, the
day is near. Let us then lay aside the works of darkness and put on the armor
of light; 13 let us live honorably as in the day, not in reveling and
drunkenness, not in debauchery and licentiousness, not in quarreling and
jealousy. 14 Instead, put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for
the flesh, to gratify its desires.(NRSV)
Matthew 24: The Necessity for Watchfulness
36 “But about that day and hour no one
knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son,[a] but only the Father. 37
For as the days of Noah were, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 38 For
as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and
giving in marriage, until the day Noah entered the ark, 39 and they knew nothing
until the flood came and swept them all away, so too will be the coming of the
Son of Man. 40 Then two will be in the field; one will be taken and one will be
left. 41 Two women will be grinding meal together; one will be taken and one
will be left. 42 Keep awake therefore, for you do not know on what day[b] your
Lord is coming. 43 But understand this: if the owner of the house had known in
what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and
would not have let his house be broken into. 44 Therefore you also must be
ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour.
Footnotes:
Matthew 24:36 Other ancient authorities
lack nor the Son
Matthew 24:42 Other ancient authorities
read at what hour(NRSV)
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Today's Devotional
Isaiah 52: Let Zion
Rejoice
1 Awake, awake,
put on your strength, O Zion!
Put on your beautiful garments,
O Jerusalem, the holy city;
for the uncircumcised and the unclean
shall enter you no more.
2 Shake yourself from the dust, rise up,
O captive[a] Jerusalem;
loose the bonds from your neck,
O captive daughter Zion!
3 For thus says the Lord: You were sold
for nothing, and you shall be redeemed without money. 4 For thus says the Lord
God: Long ago, my people went down into Egypt to reside there as aliens; the
Assyrian, too, has oppressed them without cause. 5 Now therefore what am I
doing here, says the Lord, seeing that my people are taken away without cause?
Their rulers howl, says the Lord, and continually, all day long, my name is
despised. 6 Therefore my people shall know my name; therefore in that day they
shall know that it is I who speak; here am I.
7 How beautiful upon the mountains
are the feet of the messenger who announces peace,
who brings good news,
who announces salvation,
who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.”
8 Listen! Your sentinels lift up their
voices,
together they sing for joy;
for in plain sight they see
the return of the Lord to Zion.
9 Break forth together into singing,
you ruins of Jerusalem;
for the Lord has comforted his people,
he has redeemed Jerusalem.
10 The Lord has bared his holy arm
before the eyes of all the nations;
and all the ends of the earth shall see
the salvation of our God.
Footnotes:
Isaiah 52:2 Cn: Heb rise up, sit(NRSV)
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Great Churches. Great Leaders. Great
Disciples. Transformed World.
Contact Information
Great Plains Episcopal Office
9440 E Boston, Suite 160
Wichita KS 67207
316-686-0600
800-745-2350
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