Results Announced for LHM’s 2018 Election
More than two-thirds of Lutheran Hour Ministries' registered voting members cast ballots in the recent election to fill seats on the organization’s Board of Directors. Jack Ficken of Fairview, Tennessee, Gretchen Jameson of Muskego, Wisconsin, and Phillip Johnson of Maplewood, Minnesota were all re-elected to an additional three-year term on the Board. Voting members also elected Jonathan Laabs of Roselle, Illinois and Karen Soeken of Ellicott City, Maryland to fill the remaining two open positions. Based on a Bylaws change approved by the membership in 2017, this was the first year where a separate vote no longer took place for the Officer positions of Chairman or Vice Chairman. The Board will now appoint these Officer positions for the next year from among sitting Board members (just as the Board has previously done for the Officer positions of Secretary and Treasurer).
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LHM Daily Devotion - Tuesday, June 5, 2018 "Hidden Riches" from The Lutheran Hour Ministries in Saint Louis, Missouri, United States
Daily Devotions from Lutheran Hour Ministries by Pastor Ken Klaus, Speaker Emeritus of The Lutheran Hour "Hidden Riches" for Tuesday, June 5, 2018
1 Peter 3:15 - But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect.In 1947 Sylvia Bloom became one of the first employees of the New York law firm Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton. Apparently, she did a good job. She stayed with the firm and watched it grow to more than 1,200 lawyers. She stayed on and watched it grow for 67 years.
Bloom's principal job was that of a secretary, an administrative assistant, a girl Friday. It was her job to do for her boss all the correspondence, all the time-consuming things he didn't want to do, or didn't have time to do.
One of those things she did for her bosses over the years is buy stock for them. They would tell her what they wanted, and she would call in the order and, as long as she was putting in an order for them, she put in an order for herself. No, her order was never as big as theirs; how could it have been? After all, she was only a secretary.
Well, that's the way Sylvia Bloom lived her life.
She and her husband never had children, so work was what gave her purpose. Not so many winters ago, when Bloom was 96, one of her colleagues saw her climbing out of the subway and trudging through a snowstorm to work. He stopped and inquired, "Sylvia, what are you doing here?"
Her shocked reply says it all. She said, "Why? Where should I be?"
Well, Bloom died in 2016 and, after a protracted period of time, her estate has been settled.
Settling the estate took a while since it took a long time to contact three brokerage houses and the eleven banks which held Bloom's $9 million. It came as quite a shock to people. Nobody knew, nobody, not her closest friends, not her relatives, and most believe not even her husband knew how much she had salted away.
It was Bloom's lifetime secret, and the thought of the surprised faces that would come after she died must have given her the occasional chuckle.
To be honest, I respect a woman like Bloom. She could keep a secret, which is what people in her position are supposed to do. As is right, she was generous with her bequests after she died.
As I look at Bloom's life, I can think of one other lesson we can learn: don't be like her.
That's right. Don't be like her when it comes to sharing the riches of your Christian faith. Because of Jesus' life, suffering, death, and wonderful resurrection, we have been given an inheritance which is worth more than gold or precious gems.
Our forgiveness, the Savior by our side, the promise of the joys of heaven have made us incredibly rich, and the Savior has asked us to share that wealth with others. It is something our thankful hearts should be glad to do, day in and day out.
THE PRAYER: Dear Lord, not through any merit of mine have I become rich. Now may I share that faith as freely with others as You have shared it with me. In Jesus' Name I ask it. Amen.
The above devotion was inspired by a number of sources, including one written by Corey Kilgannon for the New York Times on May 6, 2018. Those who wish to reference that article may do so at the following link, which was fully functional at the time this devotion was written: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/06/nyregion/secretary-fortune-donates.html
In Christ I remain His servant and yours,
Pastor Ken Klaus
Speaker Emeritus of The Lutheran Hour
Lutheran Hour Ministries
Today's Bible in a Year Reading: Psalms 101, 103, 108; John 15Psalms 100:1 (0) A psalm of David:
(1) I am singing of grace and justice;
I am singing to you, Adonai.
2 I will follow the path of integrity;
when will you come to me?
I will run my life with a sincere heart
inside my own house.
3 I will not allow before my eyes
any shameful thing.
I hate those who act crookedly;
what they do does not attract me.
4 Deviousness will depart from me;
I will not tolerate evil.
5 If someone slanders another in secret,
I will cut him off.
Haughty eyes and proud hearts
I cannot abide.
6 I look to the faithful of the land,
so that they can be my companions;
those who live lives of integrity
can be servants of mine.
7 No deceitful person can live in my house;
no liar can be my advisor.
8 Every morning I will destroy
all the wicked of the land,
cutting off all evildoers
from the city of Adonai.
103:1 (0) By David:
(1) Bless Adonai, my soul!
Everything in me, bless his holy name!
2 Bless Adonai, my soul,
and forget none of his benefits!
3 He forgives all your offenses,
he heals all your diseases,
4 he redeems your life from the pit,
he surrounds you with grace and compassion,
5 he contents you with good as long as you live,
so that your youth is renewed like an eagle’s.
6 Adonai brings vindication and justice
to all who are oppressed.
7 He made his ways known to Moshe,
his mighty deeds to the people of Isra’el.
8 Adonai is merciful and compassionate,
slow to anger and rich in grace.
9 He will not always accuse,
he will not keep his anger forever.
10 He has not treated us as our sins deserve
or paid us back for our offenses,
11 because his mercy toward those who fear him
is as far above earth as heaven.
12 He has removed our sins from us
as far as the east is from the west.
13 Just as a father has compassion on his children,
Adonai has compassion on those who fear him.
14 For he understands how we are made,
he remembers that we are dust.
15 Yes, a human being’s days are like grass,
he sprouts like a flower in the countryside —
16 but when the wind sweeps over, it’s gone;
and its place knows it no more.
17 But the mercy of Adonai on those who fear him
is from eternity past to eternity future,
and his righteousness extends
to his children’s children,
18 provided they keep his covenant
and remember to follow his precepts.
19 Adonai has established his throne in heaven;
his kingly power rules everything.
20 Bless Adonai, you angels of his,
you mighty warriors who obey his word,
who carry out his orders!
21 Bless Adonai, all his troops,
who serve him and do what he wants!
22 Bless Adonai, all his works,
in every place where he rules!
Bless Adonai, my soul!
108:1 (0) A song. A psalm of David:
2 (1) My heart is steadfast, God.
I will sing and make music with my glory.
3 (2) Awake, lute and lyre!
I will awaken the dawn.
4 (3) I will thank you, Adonai, among the peoples;
I will make music to you among the nations.
5 (4) For your grace is great, above heaven,
and your truth, all the way to the skies.
6 (5) Be exalted, God, above heaven!
May your glory be over all the earth,
7 (6) in order that those you love can be rescued;
so save with your right hand, and answer me!
8 (7) God in his holiness spoke,
and I took joy [in his promise]:
“I will divide Sh’khem
and determine the shares in the Sukkot Valley.
9 (8) Gil‘ad is mine and M’nasheh mine,
Efrayim my helmet, Y’hudah my scepter.
10 (9) Mo’av is my washpot; on Edom I throw my shoe;
Over P’leshet I shout in triumph.”
11 (10) Who will bring me into the fortified city?
Who will lead me to Edom?
12 (11) God, have you rejected us?
You don’t go out with our armies, God.
13 (12) Help us against our enemy,
for human help is worthless.
14 (13) With God’s help we will fight valiantly,
for he will trample our enemies.
John 15:1 “I am the real vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 Every branch which is part of me but fails to bear fruit, he cuts off; and every branch that does bear fruit, he prunes, so that it may bear more fruit. 3 Right now, because of the word which I have spoken to you, you are pruned. 4 Stay united with me, as I will with you — for just as the branch can’t put forth fruit by itself apart from the vine, so you can’t bear fruit apart from me.
5 “I am the vine and you are the branches. Those who stay united with me, and I with them, are the ones who bear much fruit; because apart from me you can’t do a thing. 6 Unless a person remains united with me, he is thrown away like a branch and dries up. Such branches are gathered and thrown into the fire, where they are burned up.
7 “If you remain united with me, and my words with you, then ask whatever you want, and it will happen for you. 8 This is how my Father is glorified — in your bearing much fruit; this is how you will prove to be my talmidim.
9 “Just as my Father has loved me, I too have loved you; so stay in my love. 10 If you keep my commands, you will stay in my love — just as I have kept my Father’s commands and stay in his love. 11 I have said this to you so that my joy may be in you, and your joy be complete.
12 “This is my command: that you keep on loving each other just as I have loved you. 13 No one has greater love than a person who lays down his life for his friends. 14 You are my friends, if you do what I command you. 15 I no longer call you slaves, because a slave doesn’t know what his master is about; but I have called you friends, because everything I have heard from my Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose me, I chose you; and I have commissioned you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last; so that whatever you ask from the Father in my name he may give you. 17 This is what I command you: keep loving each other!
18 “If the world hates you, understand that it hated me first. 19 If you belonged to the world, the world would have loved its own. But because you do not belong to the world — on the contrary, I have picked you out of the world — therefore the world hates you. 20 Remember what I told you, ‘A slave is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you too; if they kept my word, they will keep yours too. 21 But they will do all this to you on my account, because they don’t know the One who sent me.
22 “If I had not come and spoken to them, they wouldn’t be guilty of sin; but now, they have no excuse for their sin. 23 Whoever hates me hates my Father also. 24 If I had not done in their presence works which no one else ever did, they would not be guilty of sin; but now, they have seen them and have hated both me and my Father. 25 But this has happened in order to fulfill the words in their Torah which read, ‘They hated me for no reason at all.’[John 15:25 Psalms 35:19; 69:5(4)]
26 “When the Counselor comes, whom I will send you from the Father — the Spirit of Truth, who keeps going out from the Father — he will testify on my behalf. 27 And you testify too, because you have been with me from the outset. (Complete Jewish Bible).
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LHM Daily Devotion - Monday, June 4, 2018 "Knowing What's Best for Us" from The Lutheran Hour Ministries in Saint Louis, Missouri, United States
Daily Devotions from Lutheran Hour Ministries by Pastor Ken Klaus, Speaker Emeritus of The Lutheran Hour "Knowing What's Best for Us" for Monday, June 4, 2018
2 Corinthians 5:17-19 - Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to Himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.Not so long ago, in a general conversation, a man told me about his dog, a dog who had a history.
Early in his life this dog had been beaten and bruised, left unfed for days at a time. Even though he knew the dog's background, the man adopted the mutt anyway.
Instantaneously, that dog's life was transformed.
His new master had a kindly voice rather than sharp shouts. The dog was fed richly and regularly. He was walked in the morning and in the evening. He was patted, petted, and scratched.
That dog was loved.
"Still," the man told me, "it still took years before that dog totally understood."
Yes, there were things in his new life the dog didn't understand. He didn't understand why his new master gave him baths. He didn't understand why his master took him to the vets to be prodded, poked, and pinched.
Eventually, the dog figured things out. As best a dog can, he knew
* that when his master showed up, it was a good thing;
* that when he had an accident, he found he didn't have to cower and cringe;
* that he could go to his new master and be forgiven;
* that when the master allowed something to happen to him that hurt, he could still trust that the master knew what was best.
Because he trusted his master, the dog was content to place his future into the master's hands.
Do I need to explain the comparison?
You, I, and all of humanity, by God's grace, can have a new Master. By Jesus' sacrifice we have been purchased from our abusive masters: sin, death, and devil. By God's love, we have been brought into a new home, God's home, a home where love abounds.
Yes, there may be times when things happen and we don't understand why.
But if we remember all the good the Lord has done for us,
* we will trust Him and know the things He does for us are for our own good.
* when we sin, we know we need not be afraid, the Master forgives the repentant heart.
* and because God loves us, we are able to place our future into God's hands.
Why? Because His love blesses us in the good times and carries us through the bad. Amen.
THE PRAYER: Dear Lord, not because of anything I have done, but purely out of Your own loving heart, my life has been changed infinitely for the better. Help me, even when I don't fully understand, to gladly pray, "Thy will be done." In Jesus' Name I ask it. Amen.
In Christ I remain His servant and yours,
Pastor Ken Klaus
Speaker Emeritus of The Lutheran Hour
Lutheran Hour Ministries
Today's Bible in a Year Reading: Psalms 68, 72, 86; John 14Psalms 68:1(0) For the leader. A psalm of David. A song:
2 (1) Let God arise, let his enemies be scattered;
let those who hate him flee from his presence.
3 (2) Drive them away as smoke is driven away;
like wax melting in the presence of a fire,
let the wicked perish in the presence of God.
4 (3) But let the righteous rejoice and be glad in God’s presence;
yes, let them exult and rejoice.
5 (4) Sing to God, sing praises to his name;
extol him who rides on the clouds
by his name, Yah;
and be glad in his presence.
6 (5) God in his holy dwelling,
is a father to orphans and defender of widows.
7 (6) God gives homes to those who are alone
and leads prisoners out into prosperity.
But rebels must live in a parched wasteland.
8 (7) God, when you went out at the head of your people,
when you marched out through the wilderness, (Selah)
9 (8) the earth quaked, and rain poured from the sky,
at the presence of God.
Even Sinai [shook] at the presence of God,
the God of Isra’el.
10 (9) You rained down showers in plenty, God;
when your heritage was weary, you restored it.
11 (10) Your flock settled in it;
in your goodness, God, you provided for the poor.
12 (11) Adonai gives the command;
the women with the good news are a mighty army.
13 (12) Kings and their armies are fleeing, fleeing,
while the women at home divide the spoil.
14 (13) Even if you lie among the animal stalls,
there are wings of a dove covered with silver
and its plumes with green gold.
15 (14) When Shaddai scatters kings there,
snow falls on Tzalmon.
16 (15) You mighty mountain, Mount Bashan!
You rugged mountain, Mount Bashan!
17 (16) You rugged mountain, why look with envy
at the mountain God wants for his place to live?
Truly, Adonai will live there forever.
18 (17) God’s chariots are myriads, repeated thousands;
Adonai is among them as in Sinai, in holiness.
19 (18) After you went up into the heights,
you led captivity captive,
you took gifts among mankind,
yes, even among the rebels,
so that Yah, God, might live there.
20 (19) Blessed be Adonai!
Every day he bears our burden,
does God, our salvation. (Selah)
21 (20) Our God is a God who saves;
from Adonai Adonai comes escape from death.
22 (21) God will surely crush the heads of his enemies,
the hairy crowns of those who continue in their guilt.
23 (22) Adonai said, “I will bring them back from Bashan,
I will fetch [those rebels] even from the depths of the sea;
24 (23) so that you can wash your feet in their blood,
and your dogs’ tongues too can get their share from your foes.
25 (24) They see your processions, God,
the processions of my God, my king, in holiness.
26 (25) The singers are in front, the musicians last,
in the middle are girls playing tambourines.
27 (26) “In choruses, bless God, Adonai,
you whose source is Isra’el.”
28 (27) There is Binyamin, the youngest, at the head;
the princes of Y’hudah, crowding along;
the princes of Z’vulun; the princes of Naftali.
29 (28) God, summon your strength!
Use your strength, God, as you did for us before,
30 (29) from your temple in Yerushalayim,
where kings will bring tribute to you.
31 (30) Rebuke the wild beast of the reeds,
that herd of bulls with their calves, the peoples,
who ingratiate themselves with bars of silver;
let him scatter the peoples who take pleasure in fighting.
32 (31) Let envoys come from Egypt,
Let Ethiopia stretch out its hands to God.
33 (32) Sing to God, kingdoms of the earth!
Sing praises to Adonai, (Selah)
34 (33) to him who rides on the most ancient heavens.
Listen, as he utters his voice, a mighty voice!
35 (34) Acknowledge that strength belongs to God,
with his majesty over Isra’el and his strength in the skies.
36 (35) How awe-inspiring you are, God,
from your holy places,
the God of Isra’el, who gives strength
and power to the people.
Blessed be God!
72:1 (0) By Shlomo:
(1) God, give the king your fairness in judgment,
endow this son of kings with your righteousness,
2 so that he can govern your people rightly
and your poor with justice.
3 May mountains and hills provide your people
with peace through righteousness.
4 May he defend the oppressed among the people,
save the needy and crush the oppressor.
5 May they fear you as long as the sun endures
and as long as the moon, through all generations.
6 May he be like rain falling on mown grass,
like showers watering the land.
7 In his days, let the righteous flourish
and peace abound, till the moon is no more.
8 May his empire stretch from sea to sea,
from the [Euphrates] River to the ends of the earth.
9 May desert-dwellers bow before him;
may his enemies lick the dust.
10 The kings of Tarshish and the coasts will pay him tribute;
the kings of Sh’va and S’va will offer gifts.
11 Yes, all kings will prostrate themselves before him;
all nations will serve him.
12 For he will rescue the needy when they cry,
the poor too and those with none to help them.
13 He will have pity on the poor and needy;
and the lives of the needy he will save.
14 He will redeem them from oppression and violence;
their blood will be precious in his view.
15 May [the king] live long!
May they give him gold from the land of Sh’va!
May they pray for him continually;
yes, bless him all day long.
16 May there be an abundance of grain in the land,
all the way to the tops of the mountains.
May its crops rustle like the L’vanon.
May people blossom in the city like the grasses in the fields.
17 May his name endure forever,
his name, Yinnon, as long as the sun.[Psalm 72:17 Or: “May his name flourish/propagate as long as the sun.” Jewish tradition considers Yinnon a name of the Messiah.]
May people bless themselves in him,
may all nations call him happy.
18 Blessed be Adonai, God,
the God of Isra’el,
who alone works wonders.
19 Blessed be his glorious name forever,
and may the whole earth be filled with his glory.
Amen. Amen.
20 This completes the prayers of David the son of Yishai.
86:1 (0) A prayer of David:
(1) Listen, Adonai, and answer me,
for I am poor and needy.
2 Preserve my life, for I am faithful;
save your servant,
who puts his trust in you
because you are my God.
3 Take pity on me, Adonai,
for I cry to you all day.
4 Fill your servant’s heart with joy,
for to you, Adonai, I lift my heart.
5 Adonai, you are kind and forgiving,
full of grace toward all who call on you.
6 Listen, Adonai, to my prayer;
pay attention to my pleading cry.
7 On the day of my trouble I am calling on you,
for you will answer me.
8 There is none like you among the gods, Adonai;
no deeds compare with yours.
9 All the nations you have made
will come and bow before you, Adonai;
they will honor your name.
10 For you are great, and you do wonders;
you alone are God.
11 Adonai, teach me your way,
so that I can live by your truth;
make me single-hearted,
so that I can fear your name.
12 I will thank you, Adonai my God,
with my whole heart;
and I will glorify your name forever.
13 For your grace toward me is so great!
You have rescued me from the lowest part of Sh’ol.
14 God, arrogant men are rising against me,
a gang of brutes is seeking my life,
and to you they pay no attention.
15 But you, Adonai,
are a merciful, compassionate God,
slow to anger
and rich in grace and truth.
16 Turn to me, and show me your favor;
strengthen your servant, save your slave-girl’s son.
17 Give me a sign of your favor,
so that those who hate me
will see it and be ashamed,
because you, Adonai,
have helped and comforted me.
John 14:1 “Don’t let yourselves be disturbed. Trust in God and trust in me. 2 In my Father’s house are many places to live. If there weren’t, I would have told you; because I am going there to prepare a place for you. 3 Since I am going and preparing a place for you, I will return to take you with me; so that where I am, you may be also. 4 Furthermore, you know where I’m going; and you know the way there.”
5 T’oma said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you’re going; so how can we know the way?” 6 Yeshua said, “I AM the Way — and the Truth and the Life; no one comes to the Father except through me. 7 Because you have known me, you will also know my Father; from now on, you do know him — in fact, you have seen him.”
8 Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it will be enough for us.” 9 Yeshua replied to him, “Have I been with you so long without your knowing me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father; so how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? 10 Don’t you believe that I am united with the Father, and the Father united with me? What I am telling you, I am not saying on my own initiative; the Father living in me is doing his own works. 11 Trust me, that I am united with the Father, and the Father united with me. But if you can’t, then trust because of the works themselves. 12 Yes, indeed! I tell you that whoever trusts in me will also do the works I do! Indeed, he will do greater ones, because I am going to the Father. 13 In fact, whatever you ask for in my name, I will do; so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 If you ask me for something in my name, I will do it.
15 “If you love me, you will keep my commands; 16 and I will ask the Father, and he will give you another comforting Counselor like me, the Spirit of Truth, to be with you forever. 17 The world cannot receive him, because it neither sees nor knows him. You know him, because he is staying with you and will be united with you. 18 I will not leave you orphans — I am coming to you. 19 In just a little while, the world will no longer see me; but you will see me. Because I live, you too will live. 20 When that day comes, you will know that I am united with my Father, and you with me, and I with you. 21 Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me, and the one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and reveal myself to him.”
22 Y’hudah (not the one from K’riot) said to him, “What has happened, Lord, that you are about to reveal yourself to us and not to the world?” 23 Yeshua answered him, “If someone loves me, he will keep my word; and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. 24 Someone who doesn’t love me doesn’t keep my words — and the word you are hearing is not my own but that of the Father who sent me.
25 “I have told you these things while I am still with you. 26 But the Counselor, the Ruach HaKodesh, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything; that is, he will remind you of everything I have said to you.
27 “What I am leaving with you is shalom — I am giving you my shalom. I don’t give the way the world gives. Don’t let yourselves be upset or frightened. 28 You heard me tell you, ‘I am leaving, and I will come back to you.’ If you loved me, you would have been glad that I am going to the Father; because the Father is greater than I.
29 “Also, I have said it to you now, before it happens; so that when it does happen, you will trust.
30 “I won’t be talking with you much longer, because the ruler of this world is coming. He has no claim on me; 31 rather, this is happening so that the world may know that I love the Father, and that I do as the Father has commanded me.
“Get up! Let’s get going." (Complete Jewish Bible).
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Use these devotions in your newsletter and bulletin! Used by permission; all rights reserved by the Int'l LLL (LHM).
CHANGE THEIR WORLD. CHANGE YOURS.
THIS CHANGES EVERYTHING.
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