Christ Memorial was a church plant of Salem Lutheran in Affton in 1948. Our history is God “sowing seeds” and “bearing fruit.” What will he grow in the next 75 years? Martin Luther once said, “Even if I knew the world would end tomorrow, I would still plant my apple tree today.” We continue to plant seeds for coming generations of gospel multiplication. More people loved in Christ, more people sent into the world.
Invocation
Make the sign of the cross, and say,
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Invocation
Make the sign of the cross, and say,
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Invitation Prayer
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” (Matt. 5:8) O Lord, you see all things. Purify my heart that I may see you clearly. Amen.
Word: Luke 21:2-4
“[Jesus] also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. “”I tell you the truth,” he said, “this poor widow has put in more than all the others. All these others gave out of their wealth, but she out of her poverty put in everything she had to live on.”
Meditation
It’s the Little Things by Susan Senechal
At my mom’s funeral last year, the pastor asked for a show of hands—how many people had ever received a scrubby from Harriet? Almost the entire church raised their hands. In her golden years, my mom found a pattern for crocheting dish scrubbies out of strips of nylon net. To say she made thousands of them is not an exaggeration. One of the last things I did for my mom a few months before her death was to cut yards of the netting into 3-inch strips. Mom sold the scrubbies at church sales and put the profits into whatever special offering they were collecting for. She took orders for certain colors to match a bride’s colors to give as party favors. But mostly, she gave them away. Every time I do dishes, I think of my mom.
In those golden years, my mom knit tiny caps, donating them to the hospital for preemie babies. She knit so many caps she was once a volunteer of the year at the hospital. After my dad died, my mom almost every Sunday picked up a much younger woman, who for medical reasons didn’t have a driver’s license, and took her to church. Sometimes on the way home she would stop at the local grocery store so Margaret could do a little shopping.
Are these actions extraordinary? No. They were simple little acts that mom could do. Day to day she touched lives in small and ordinary ways, in ways that wouldn’t matter to big wigs. But these small acts of kindness were so special to the people who received them.
God works in small things, through things that seem inconsequential. Little actions can move hearts and touch lives. Daily, in ways big and small (but mostly small) we can touch lives.
How can you impact a life? Can you crochet scrubbies? Drive someone to church? Read with littles at an elementary school once a week? Play catch with a boy down the street whose father is not around? Take a meal to a family with a loved one in the hospital? The possibilities are endless and as varied as your skills and talents. There are other people who are blessed to do the extraordinary. You can be someone who quietly touches a life.
Dear Jesus, I cannot speak like an angel or preach like Paul, but show me where I can tell of your love through small actions, to take the tasks you give me gladly, and use them for your glory. Help me touch the lives of those around me with your love. Amen.
Prayer for the World
· For my city, state, and country.
· For leaders: mayor, governor, president, congress.
· For those who serve the public: police officers, firefighters, teachers, first responders, medical personnel.
· For the nations of the world, for world leaders.
· For good government, good schools, good business.
· For justice, especially for the oppressed: minorities, immigrants and refugees, orphans, widows, the very young or unborn, the aged.
· For creation: for the care of land, air, wildlife, and sea.
Closing Prayer
King Jesus, your Kingdom comes by a cross. Help us to see your hidden work. Forgive our blindness to your activity. Have mercy on us. Renew us and lead us to walk in your ways until our life’s end. Amen.