Podcasts about Zondervan

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20260111dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. But John tried to deter him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” Jesus replied, “Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness.” Then John consented. As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” Matthew 3:13-17 How’s Your Approval Rating? Whether it’s at work, school, or home, we are constantly graded, compared to others, and rated. The boss gives us our annual review. The teacher hands out report cards. The son informs mom that her Mac & Cheese isn't as good as what Dylan’s mom makes. It is strange how these “ratings” can affect our day. If they’re good, we feel good. If they’re lousy, we feel lousy. If they’re nothing special, then we are tempted to feel that we’re nothing special. How's your approval rating with God? How have you been keeping up with those Ten Commandments? Remember, they’re not God’s suggestions; they are his commands. How’s it going between you and your neighbor, all your neighbors? Jesus said, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” If we’re going to talk comparisons, why not go all the way and, as God says, compare ourselves to him. “Be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy.” Yikes! Will I ever meet with God’s approval? Will God ever say of me, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased”? This is what makes the Baptism of Jesus, as well as our own baptisms so special. God, in his grace, has connected me to Jesus. God has given me faith in Jesus as my Savior. Jesus has taken away all my sins. Jesus gives me his perfection and holiness. When God looks at me, he sees Jesus and he says, “This is my son, my daughter, whom I love! With him, with her, I am well pleased.” Approval ratings don’t get any higher than this. God be praised! Prayer: Dear Jesus, when doubts of my worth come, drown them in the waters of Baptism and remind me of your love for me in Jesus. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20260110dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion [God] chose us in [Jesus] before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. Ephesians 1:4-6 Chosen by God Do you remember the feeling? You are preparing to play kickball during recess at school. Two captains are choosing players for their teams. They start with the best athletes. Was that you? Or were you picked later? Maybe even last? If God were picking teams, would you be chosen? There are days when you think, “Of course I would! I try my hardest. I’m honest, kind, and caring, just the kind of person God would want on his team.” And maybe you go to church, sing in the choir, and volunteer to serve in many ways. God should not only pick you but should name you MVP—Most Valuable Person. But there are other days—or parts of every day—when you realize that you don’t even deserve to be picked last. You shouldn’t even get a spot on the bench. So often, you hurt those around you with what you say or don’t say, with what you do or don’t do. With your life, you say to God, “I want to play by my own rules.” If God were picking teams, why would he choose you? But God did choose you! God’s choice was not based on your ability or performance. His choice, which he made before the creation of the world, came from pure love. He gives you that love freely, generously, and without condition. How comforting that is! It is all in God's hands. It is all because of God’s love. In love, God chose to send his Son, Jesus, to take away your sins and failures, so that you are holy and blameless in his sight. In love, God chose to adopt you as his own child through faith in your Savior, Jesus. In love, God chose to give you an eternal inheritance and a home with him in heaven. Praise God for his loving choice! Prayer: Father, I thank you that, in awesome and undeserved love, you chose me to be your child. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20260109dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory. Ephesians 1:13-14 God Made the Down Payment How do you go about paying for a new house? You deposit a portion of the cost for the house up front, right? You make a down payment. However, even though you still haven’t paid in full, you already get to move into the house. You get to live in it and enjoy it. You get to make it your own. You don’t have to wait to pay the full amount to make the house your home. Of course, many years later, when you one day make the final payment on your home, there’s a special joy and satisfaction in knowing the home is completely owned by you. There’s no one else with a claim on it at all anymore. Maybe buying a house can help you understand what God is telling you here in Ephesians chapter 1. When you believe in Jesus, you’re marked with God’s seal—the Holy Spirit himself. The Holy Spirit enters your heart as God’s down payment and guarantees your full future redemption to come. Before reaching your ultimate salvation on the Last Day when you sit at your Lord’s feet in heaven, already now, by faith, the Holy Spirit dwells in your heart. That means you now get to enjoy the blessings of God: to taste his forgiveness, to have a hope that presses you forward, to know a love that has no limit. This is just the down payment that guarantees so much more. Your eternal salvation is sealed already by the Spirit dwelling in you. God guarantees a future for you. The Holy Spirit has made your heart his home, and that means you are God’s special possession today and in eternity. Prayer: Dear Holy Spirit, I thank you for making my heart your home and for guaranteeing me a future with you and the Father and the Son. That you would do this, even for a sinner like me, shouts your praise and glory to the ends of the earth. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20260108dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us. Ephesians 1:7-8 The Adoption Price is Paid Adoption isn’t cheap. Apparently, the average cost of adopting a child in the United States is roughly $40,000! You can’t choose to adopt a child on a whim. If you’re going to adopt, then you need to plan, budget, and be deeply committed. God knew the price he’d have to pay to adopt you as his own. He knew what it would take, and he paid it. He was, and still is, deeply committed to making you, his child. God’s love for you is unquestionable, and it’s also unreasonable. On top of the steep price it took to adopt us; we were problem children. We weren’t the ones you’d have an easy time adopting. We weren’t like the cutest kittens and puppies at the shelter that got all the attention. No, we were the ones that were malnourished, feral, matted, and smelly. Our sins make us repulsive when we consider just how far we fall short of God’s standards for perfection. There’s nothing in us that should have made us attractive to him. There’s no phone filter out there that could hide who we truly are. And yet when God puts on his Jesus-tinted glasses, when he sees us through the Jesus filter, he says, “Yes, this one is the one I want. I’ll take her. I’ll take him. No matter the price, I’ll pay it.” And he did. As the blood ran from Jesus’ hands and feet and head and side, the payment was made. When the words were spoken “It is finished,” the purchase price was paid in full. He forgave us. We were redeemed, in other words, bought back from the sins that claimed us. Not only did God purchase us, but he also changed us. We’re no longer the problem child or the feral pet—but pure, cleansed by our Savior, made to look like one of God’s own possessions. That payment made for you at the cross, that forgiveness won for you by Jesus, is the ultimate picture of the lavish riches of God’s grace. Prayer: Dear heavenly Father, thank you for making me your child by giving up your only Son for me. Help me reflect your lavish grace to the world. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20260107dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. Ephesians 1:4-6 Destined to Be His When you were a child, maybe your parents took you to the animal shelter to pick out your very first pet. You looked at all the cute kittens and puppies until you found one that stole your heart. “I want that one,” you said. And you took it home. God has done the same for his followers. He’s chosen them. He’s adopted them into the family. He’s given them a part in all that is his. He said about them, “I need to have this one. I’m going to make this one my own.” What amazing comfort to know that God did this “in accordance with his pleasure and will.” God wasn’t forced into making his followers his own. He wanted to. And maybe the most mind-boggling thing is that God has chosen and predetermined that they would be his own even before they had a thought of wanting to be his. It’s tempting to think that belonging to Christ was some kind of decision they made. But today’s Bible verses pushes that idea aside. It was God who “chose us in him before the creation of the world.” That truth may cause our brains to run in circles, but it causes our hearts to rest with comfort and confidence. That truth gives us peace to know that no part of our salvation is up to us. God carries out our deliverance from beginning to end. He has sought his people out by his Spirit, paid for them in his Son, and will take them home to live with him forever. Prayer: Almighty Lord, your grace has no beginning and no end. I praise you for loving me even before the world began. I thank you for sending Jesus into the world to purchase me. I go in peace knowing your Holy Spirit has adopted me into your family at my baptism. In Jesus' name. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20260106dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Matthew 2:11 Extraordinarily Ordinary If you say, “yesterday was an extraordinary day,” you mean that something incredible happened. But if you say, “yesterday was an extra ordinary day,” you mean that it was even more normal and boring than usual. Just making one word into two gives the sentence an entirely opposite meaning. Extraordinary events surrounded the Magi’s visit to Bethlehem. But there were also a few extra ordinary things they discovered on their journey. An ancient prophecy and an extraordinary star led them to an extra ordinary little town called Bethlehem. The star stopped above what was probably an extra ordinary home. Inside, they found an extra ordinary looking Jewish couple with an ordinary-looking baby. But the Magi saw past the child’s ordinary surroundings. They saw their Savior, who was going to give them a gift far more precious than the gold, frankincense, and myrrh they had just laid at his feet. That baby would give the gift of sins forgiven and eternal life. The wise men didn’t need to see a king in a palace surrounded by servants. They’d likely seen plenty of kings like that in their lifetimes. The Magi needed to see their Savior. That’s exactly what God led them to see. It’s human nature to think we need more than what God has given. Maybe you’ve felt that attitude creep around in your heart. What God provides you in his Word might not seem like enough. You want him to do more for you. You want him to communicate more extraordinarily with you. But God chooses to use some extra ordinary looking ways to bring his good news to you. In the ordinary pages of the Bible, we see the Savior who proves his eternal kingship with a resurrection from the dead. In baptism, we see ordinary water poured out on a person’s head, marking them as an adopted child of God. In Holy Communion, we see ordinary bread and wine that, when the Word is spoken, have the power to forgive even the darkest sins. The means by which God extends his love to you look like ordinary things, but they work extraordinary results. Prayer: Dear Father, thank you for giving me the extraordinary message of Jesus in ordinary ways every day. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

Jesus Followers Must Meet Jesus' Expectation of His “Great Commission” By Both “Going” and “Making Disciples” MESSAGE SUMMARY: Jesus, in Luke 15:4-7, tells us, through His Parable of The Lost Sheep, the importance to God of our discipleship: “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open country, and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.' Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.".   Immediately before His Ascension into Heaven Jesus told the Apostles and us today, in His Great Commission found in Matthew 28:18-20, that as we go into our communities and into all parts of the world, we are to make disciples: “And Jesus came and said to them, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.'”. We must begin, as followers of Jesus, to meet His fundamental expectation for us by both going and making disciples!   TODAY'S PRAYER: Abba Father, I open my clenched fists to surrender everything you have given to me. Reestablish my identity in you — not in my family, my work, my accomplishments, or what others think of me. Cleanse the things in me that are not conformed to your will. By faith I unite my will to yours so that the likeness of Jesus Christ may be formed in me. In his name, amen.         Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 85). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. TODAY'S AFFIRMATION: Today, because I am filled with the Holy Spirit, I will not be controlled by my Self-Centeredness. Rather, I will walk in the Spirit's fruit of Love. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” (Galatians 5:22f). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Matthew 28:18-20; Matthew 10:16; Matthew 16:24-28; Psalms 29:1-11. A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. THIS SUNDAY'S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach's Current Sunday Sermon: “The Struggle with Time -- Until I Determine How We Want to Use Our Time, Others Will Determine How Our Time Is Used”, at our Website: https://awordfromthelord.org/listen/ DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20260106dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Matthew 2:11 Extraordinarily Ordinary If you say, “yesterday was an extraordinary day,” you mean that something incredible happened. But if you say, “yesterday was an extra ordinary day,” you mean that it was even more normal and boring than usual. Just making one word into two gives the sentence an entirely opposite meaning. Extraordinary events surrounded the Magi’s visit to Bethlehem. But there were also a few extra ordinary things they discovered on their journey. An ancient prophecy and an extraordinary star led them to an extra ordinary little town called Bethlehem. The star stopped above what was probably an extra ordinary home. Inside, they found an extra ordinary looking Jewish couple with an ordinary-looking baby. But the Magi saw past the child’s ordinary surroundings. They saw their Savior, who was going to give them a gift far more precious than the gold, frankincense, and myrrh they had just laid at his feet. That baby would give the gift of sins forgiven and eternal life. The wise men didn’t need to see a king in a palace surrounded by servants. They’d likely seen plenty of kings like that in their lifetimes. The Magi needed to see their Savior. That’s exactly what God led them to see. It’s human nature to think we need more than what God has given. Maybe you’ve felt that attitude creep around in your heart. What God provides you in his Word might not seem like enough. You want him to do more for you. You want him to communicate more extraordinarily with you. But God chooses to use some extra ordinary looking ways to bring his good news to you. In the ordinary pages of the Bible, we see the Savior who proves his eternal kingship with a resurrection from the dead. In baptism, we see ordinary water poured out on a person’s head, marking them as an adopted child of God. In Holy Communion, we see ordinary bread and wine that, when the Word is spoken, have the power to forgive even the darkest sins. The means by which God extends his love to you look like ordinary things, but they work extraordinary results. Prayer: Dear Father, thank you for giving me the extraordinary message of Jesus in ordinary ways every day. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20260105dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion I delight greatly in the LORD; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness. Isaiah 61:10 Gift Wrapped for God What do you think of your new clothes? We’re not talking about the new clothes you might have gotten for Christmas, but the new clothes that the Lord has gifted to you. Our eyes can’t perceive these new clothes we’re wearing, but God notices them on us. He sees us wrapped in “garments of salvation” and a “robe of righteousness.” We didn’t pick these clothes out or buy them for ourselves. These clothes were a gift from Jesus. And he paid a steep cost to give them to us. He paid with his life for us to wear these clothes. More than that, he took our grimy, dirty, sin-covered clothes away from us when he gave us his garment of salvation. Martin Luther famously captured this exchange that happened at the cross when he said, “Lord Jesus, I am your sin; you are my righteousness. I have made you what you were not; you have made me what I was not.” Jesus has made us what we were not. Jesus wraps us up as gifts for his heavenly Father. He presents us to the Father, wrapped in his perfection. He says, “These people are my joy. And I know you'll love them too, Father.” Prayer: Dear Lord Jesus, thank you for gift wrapping me in your garment of salvation and robe of righteousness. My soul rejoices in you because you covered my shame and sin with your forgiveness and glory. I am precious in God the Father's sight. Let that truth give me peace every single day. In your name, O Lord. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

Jesus Followers Are Sinners Who Have a Savior Because “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners . . .”; Is Jesus Your Savior Too? MESSAGE SUMMARY: We are all sinners, but we now have a Savior – Jesus. As Paul tells us, in 1 Timothy 1:15-16, that the Gospel provides Salvation for all followers of Jesus, including the worst of sinners -- Paul: “The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life.". Also, Paul, in 1 Timothy 2:3b-6, further points out that God wants all of us to be saved by His Grace through Jesus if we only, as sinners like Paul, reach out to bring Jesus into our lives: “God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time.”. It is only because of Jesus the Christ that we receive the healing that we need. “I am a sinner who now has a Savior – do you”?   TODAY'S PRAYER: Abba Father, I open my clenched fists to surrender everything you have given to me. Reestablish my identity in you — not in my family, my work, my accomplishments, or what others think of me. Cleanse the things in me that are not conformed to your will. By faith I unite my will to yours so that the likeness of Jesus Christ may be formed in me. In his name, amen. Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 85). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. TODAY'S AFFIRMATION: Today, Because of who I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be driven by Anger. Rather, I will abide in the Lord's Forgiveness. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): 1 Timothy 1:15-17; 1 Timothy 2:3b-6; 2 Timothy 1:8-12; Psalms 89a:1-13 A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. THIS SUNDAY'S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach's Current Sunday Sermon: “The Struggle with Time -- Until I Determine How We Want to Use Our Time, Others Will Determine How Our Time Is Used ”, at our Website: https://awordfromthelord.org/listen/ DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20260105dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion I delight greatly in the LORD; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness. Isaiah 61:10 Gift Wrapped for God What do you think of your new clothes? We’re not talking about the new clothes you might have gotten for Christmas, but the new clothes that the Lord has gifted to you. Our eyes can’t perceive these new clothes we’re wearing, but God notices them on us. He sees us wrapped in “garments of salvation” and a “robe of righteousness.” We didn’t pick these clothes out or buy them for ourselves. These clothes were a gift from Jesus. And he paid a steep cost to give them to us. He paid with his life for us to wear these clothes. More than that, he took our grimy, dirty, sin-covered clothes away from us when he gave us his garment of salvation. Martin Luther famously captured this exchange that happened at the cross when he said, “Lord Jesus, I am your sin; you are my righteousness. I have made you what you were not; you have made me what I was not.” Jesus has made us what we were not. Jesus wraps us up as gifts for his heavenly Father. He presents us to the Father, wrapped in his perfection. He says, “These people are my joy. And I know you'll love them too, Father.” Prayer: Dear Lord Jesus, thank you for gift wrapping me in your garment of salvation and robe of righteousness. My soul rejoices in you because you covered my shame and sin with your forgiveness and glory. I am precious in God the Father's sight. Let that truth give me peace every single day. In your name, O Lord. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20260104dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion “I delight greatly in the LORD; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.” Isaiah 61:10 You Are What You Wear Some have said, “You are what you wear.” If you are in a clown suit, you probably are a clown. If you’re wearing a baseball hat, team jersey, baseball pants, and cleats, you probably are a baseball player. If you are wearing a beautiful white wedding dress, you probably are a bride. You are what you wear. By birth, we needed new spiritual clothes to wear. Why? Because, by nature, we are sinful people who are wearing sinful, dirty, greedy clothes. Thankfully, through Jesus, God has given us new spiritual clothes. The prophet Isaiah wrote that, “He has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of righteousness.” The LORD himself has given us his garments of salvation; he has dressed us in his robe of righteousness. “Righteousness” is a word that means “perfection.” How did he do this? First, Jesus lived a perfect life; he was robed in righteousness. Then Jesus lovingly made a trade. He dressed us in his perfection and clothed himself with our sinfulness. Taking our sins on himself, he suffered the punishment we deserved. By his death, he paid for our sins so that we will never have to. As a result, we can delight greatly in the Lord! Martin Luther put it this way: “In his righteousness I live, not in mine.” In the end, who are we? Check out Isaiah’s description of our clothes once again. We are saved. We are perfect in God’s eyes. We are what we are wearing—beautifully perfect in the pure clothing given to us by God himself. Prayer: Dear Jesus, thank you for becoming what you were not, so that I might become what I was not. Give me great joy as I remember who I am through you—one who is clothed in a garment of salvation and arrayed in a robe of righteousness for all time. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

God Sees Jesus Followers as “In Christ”: “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” MESSAGE SUMMARY: As Followers of Jesus, we are "In Christ" -- God looks at us and sees Jesus in us. Throughout the Epistles we find: "In Christ" or "In Him". In Galatians 3:14, Paul tells us that our faith in Jesus makes us “In Christ” and recipients of God's Covenant with Abraham: “so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith.". Also, Paul goes even further, in Galatians 3:25-28, to tell us that, through our faith in Jesus, we no longer need any kind of intermediary because we are “In Christ” and we have a personal relationship with God, the Creator of the Universe: “But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian.”. The benefit our position "In Christ", as Christians, is that when God looks at us, He sees Jesus, the Son; therefore, He then sees us as His sons and daughters.     TODAY'S PRAYER: Keeping the Sabbath, Lord, will require a lot of changes in the way I am living life. Teach me, Lord, how to take the next step with this in a way that fits my unique personality and situation. Help me to trust you with all that will remain unfinished and to enjoy my humble place in your very large world. In Jesus' name, amen.    Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 129). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. TODAY'S AFFIRMATION: Today, I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM RIGHTEOUS IN GOD'S EYES. God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Corinthians 5:21 SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Romans 3:21-26; Romans 6:5-11; Romans 6:22-23; Psalms 77a:1-10. A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. THIS SUNDAY'S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach's Current Sunday Sermon: “The Struggle with Time -- Until I Determine How We Want to Use Our Time, Others Will Determine How Our Time Is Used” at our Website: https://awordfromthelord.org/listen/    DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20260104dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion “I delight greatly in the LORD; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.” Isaiah 61:10 You Are What You Wear Some have said, “You are what you wear.” If you are in a clown suit, you probably are a clown. If you’re wearing a baseball hat, team jersey, baseball pants, and cleats, you probably are a baseball player. If you are wearing a beautiful white wedding dress, you probably are a bride. You are what you wear. By birth, we needed new spiritual clothes to wear. Why? Because, by nature, we are sinful people who are wearing sinful, dirty, greedy clothes. Thankfully, through Jesus, God has given us new spiritual clothes. The prophet Isaiah wrote that, “He has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of righteousness.” The LORD himself has given us his garments of salvation; he has dressed us in his robe of righteousness. “Righteousness” is a word that means “perfection.” How did he do this? First, Jesus lived a perfect life; he was robed in righteousness. Then Jesus lovingly made a trade. He dressed us in his perfection and clothed himself with our sinfulness. Taking our sins on himself, he suffered the punishment we deserved. By his death, he paid for our sins so that we will never have to. As a result, we can delight greatly in the Lord! Martin Luther put it this way: “In his righteousness I live, not in mine.” In the end, who are we? Check out Isaiah’s description of our clothes once again. We are saved. We are perfect in God’s eyes. We are what we are wearing—beautifully perfect in the pure clothing given to us by God himself. Prayer: Dear Jesus, thank you for becoming what you were not, so that I might become what I was not. Give me great joy as I remember who I am through you—one who is clothed in a garment of salvation and arrayed in a robe of righteousness for all time. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

The Struggle with Time -- Until I Determine How We Want to Use Our Time, Others Will Determine How Our Time Is Used MESSAGE SUMMARY: Life will never settle down until we chose to settle down. Life is a choice more than we realize. We are given twenty-four hours in a day, and if God had wanted us to have thirty-six hours in our day, He would have given us a thirty-six-hour day. Therefore, if we don't have enough clock in our day, we are doing some things we should not be doing. We can determine some of the time traps that keep us from serving the Lord and how we can address the traps to better serve ourselves and the Lord. Is the clock our dictator; do we allocate time to serve the Lord, our families, and our work? How do we delegate? Life will never settle down until we choose to settle down; life is a choice. To manage our time as God would have us manage our lives: 1) Work is important and necessary, but working is not living; 2) Time is life first and then money; 3) More life productivity means more time; 4) How we use our time significantly effects our self-esteem, identity, and our fulfillment; and 5) We cannot control time, but we can control how we use time. We must get control of the time issues in our lives. The simple formula for managing our time: Prayer, Priority, and Plan. Managing our time better is a fundamental question as we end a year and begin a new year. We must learn to honor the Lord by "honoring our time".    TODAY'S PRAYER: Keeping the Sabbath, Lord, will require a lot of changes in the way I am living life. Teach me, Lord, how to take the next step with this in a way that fits my unique personality and situation. Help me to trust you with all that will remain unfinished and to enjoy my humble place in your very large world. In Jesus' name, amen.    Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 129). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. TODAY'S AFFIRMATION: Today, I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM FORGIVEN. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9 SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Ecclesiastes 3:1-8; Ecclesiastes 9:11-17; 1 Corinthians 10:31; 2 Corinthians 6:2; Romans 8:18; SCRIPTURE REFERENCE SEARCH: www.AWFTL.org/bible-search/ A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH'S DAILY DEVOTIONAL – “God Sees Jesus Followers as “In Christ”: “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus””: https://awordfromthelord.org/devotional/ DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20260103dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion In all their distress he too was distressed, and the angel of his presence saved them. In his love and mercy he redeemed them; he lifted them up and carried them all the days of old. Isaiah 63:9 In Distress The “damsel in distress” is a character often found in books and movies. She is usually helpless, in a dire predicament, and unable to save herself. Tied to the railroad tracks with a train barreling toward her or locked away in some tall tower, her only hope is for someone to come and rescue her. The hero rides in on his white horse and, with superior strength, he wins the day, many times with little effort or cost. Jesus is a different kind of hero. While Jesus won the day, he didn’t do it by coming in on a white horse. Rather, Jesus saved us in our distress by becoming distressed. Yes, Jesus came to rescue us by putting on flesh and being made like us in every way. He knows what our distress is like. He saved us because he knows what it is to cry and to be hungry. He saved us because he knows what it is to have friends leave and to be disappointed with others. He saved us because he knows what it means to be tempted to sin, and he knows what it takes to resist sin. He knows what it takes to have Satan come after him and what it takes to send him running. Most of all, he saved us because he knows what it takes to pay for our sin, as he still bears those marks in his hands and feet. This is how Jesus redeemed us and how he lifted us up and carries us. Yes, he came to earth as true God, but also came as true man. Not on a white horse nor a show of strength, he suffered to save us from suffering. Both as a powerful savior and a suffering servant, he came to rescue us. By being distressed for us, he saved us from all distress. Prayer: Father, you sent Jesus to be distressed in our distress. By his coming to earth and through his life and death he lifted us up. In our distress may we always look to his love and redemption. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

The Faith of Christians, Churches, and Nations Can Be Tested and Doubts Arise in Today's World; However, God Is Faithful and Will Not Forsake You MESSAGE SUMMARY: God will never leave you or forsake you. Even when difficulties arise and you are tempted to walk away from your faith, God will not leave you. When you are tempted to doubt God, remember that God is faithful. When the Apostles questioned Jesus about faith and prayer, Jesus told the Apostles, in Mathew 21:21-22, that your faith is powerful and that God will respond to your faith: “And Jesus answered them, ‘Truly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,' it will happen. And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.'”. Hold, unswervingly, to the hope and faith you profess because God, who promised us, is faithful. While you are endeavoring to hold onto your faith in God and Jesus' Gospel, you need to always remember the faithfulness of God, even in those times in which you may be doubting or questioning your faith. Do not give up your faith!   TODAY'S PRAYER: Lord, fill me with the simple trust that even out of the most awful evil around me, you are able to bring great good — for me, for others, and for your great glory. In Jesus' name, amen.     Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 91). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. TODAY'S AFFIRMATION: Today, I affirm that because I am in Jesus Christ, I will entrust to Him my future. I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day.  From 2 Timothy 1:12 SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Psalms 91:1-10; Mathew 28:16-20; Mathew 6:25-34; Psalms 18b:11-20. A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. THIS SUNDAY'S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach's Current Sunday Sermon: “A Christmas Message” at our Website: https://awordfromthelord.org/listen/ DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20260103dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion In all their distress he too was distressed, and the angel of his presence saved them. In his love and mercy he redeemed them; he lifted them up and carried them all the days of old. Isaiah 63:9 In Distress The “damsel in distress” is a character often found in books and movies. She is usually helpless, in a dire predicament, and unable to save herself. Tied to the railroad tracks with a train barreling toward her or locked away in some tall tower, her only hope is for someone to come and rescue her. The hero rides in on his white horse and, with superior strength, he wins the day, many times with little effort or cost. Jesus is a different kind of hero. While Jesus won the day, he didn’t do it by coming in on a white horse. Rather, Jesus saved us in our distress by becoming distressed. Yes, Jesus came to rescue us by putting on flesh and being made like us in every way. He knows what our distress is like. He saved us because he knows what it is to cry and to be hungry. He saved us because he knows what it is to have friends leave and to be disappointed with others. He saved us because he knows what it means to be tempted to sin, and he knows what it takes to resist sin. He knows what it takes to have Satan come after him and what it takes to send him running. Most of all, he saved us because he knows what it takes to pay for our sin, as he still bears those marks in his hands and feet. This is how Jesus redeemed us and how he lifted us up and carries us. Yes, he came to earth as true God, but also came as true man. Not on a white horse nor a show of strength, he suffered to save us from suffering. Both as a powerful savior and a suffering servant, he came to rescue us. By being distressed for us, he saved us from all distress. Prayer: Father, you sent Jesus to be distressed in our distress. By his coming to earth and through his life and death he lifted us up. In our distress may we always look to his love and redemption. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20260102dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.” So you are no longer a slave, but God’s child; and since you are his child, God has made you also an heir. Galatians 4:6-7 Christmas is About Family It’s almost a cliché these days, but it’s true: society has been removing Christ from Christmas for a long time. Ask most people what the holiday is about, and you’ll probably hear “time with family” more often than the birth of the Savior. And while Christians may lament that family has eclipsed Christ, our Bible reading today reminds us that Christmas is about family. Did you catch the good news in today’s Bible passage? Because of Christmas, God has made you part of his family. Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God. He rightly belongs in God's family. We do not. By nature, we are slaves to sin and estranged from God. But in his mercy, God sent his Son to redeem us and sent his Spirit into our hearts. And with the Holy Spirit dwelling in you, you can confidently call God, “Father.” That is pure grace—the grace of a God who not only forgives but adopts. And what comfort that adoption brings! All of us crave acceptance, belonging, and a sense of home. We often look for it in our earthly families and closest friendships. They are wonderful gifts, yet they can disappoint you, because like you, they are sinful. But the belonging your heart longs for is found fully in your place as a child of God. Because of Christmas, you can call Jesus your brother, and he gladly calls you his brother or sister. And you are part of a remarkable family: believers across the world and across the ages who trust in Christ. One day, you will experience the joy of a family reunion beyond imagining—a gathering that will include loved ones in Christ who died before you. So when your final day comes, you can rest in confidence. You are no longer a slave but God’s child, and since you are his child, you are also his heir. A place in your Father’s house is already prepared, and nothing can take it from you. Prayer: Father, thank you for adopting me as your child through Christ and giving me a place in your family forever. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

Pray for One Another in Our Race Issues and Go Make a Difference in Our Communities; Jesus Followers Are Here for Times Like This MESSAGE SUMMARY: With regards to our race issues, it will NOT be through political parties, rallies, elections, slogans, or marches that our attitudes and practices are changed or the souls of our nations are converted. Rather, the deep change, which we all need, will only be through a spiritual awakening. This spiritual awakening will come only from repentance – the turning away from our sin and toward God and his righteous ways in Jesus Christ. As Jesus commanded us in John 5:12: “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.”. Also, in John 13:34-35, Jesus commanded us: “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”. Jesus' “one another” is all inclusive and not just those that look like you and/or of your culture.   The Bible makes it unequivocally clear that we are all made in the image of God (Genesis 1:27): “So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.”.  You can start real “racial change” right where you are -- in your own heart first and then in your own relationship with God. At that point, you can then lead the change your own community -- one person at a time; one relationship at a time; and one act a time. You can reach out and build a relationship with someone different than you. However, doing nothing is no longer an option for us.   Let us pray for one another about these things and let us get out and make a difference in our local communities. God has placed us here for such a time as this.     TODAY'S PRAYER: Lord, fill me with the simple trust that even out of the most awful evil around me, you are able to bring great good — for me, for others, and for your great glory. In Jesus' name, amen.              Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 91). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. TODAY'S AFFIRMATION: Today, because I am filled with the Holy Spirit, I will not be controlled by my Procrastination. Rather, I will walk in the Spirit's fruit of Self-Control. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” (Galatians 5:22f). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Genesis 1:27; Revelation 7:1-17; Ephesians 2:19; John.13:35; Galatians 6:2; Romans 12:15; Psalms 103:12; Isiah 1:18. A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. THIS SUNDAY'S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach's Current Sunday Sermon: “A Christmas Message” at our Website: https://awordfromthelord.org/listen/ DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20260102dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.” So you are no longer a slave, but God’s child; and since you are his child, God has made you also an heir. Galatians 4:6-7 Christmas is About Family It’s almost a cliché these days, but it’s true: society has been removing Christ from Christmas for a long time. Ask most people what the holiday is about, and you’ll probably hear “time with family” more often than the birth of the Savior. And while Christians may lament that family has eclipsed Christ, our Bible reading today reminds us that Christmas is about family. Did you catch the good news in today’s Bible passage? Because of Christmas, God has made you part of his family. Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God. He rightly belongs in God's family. We do not. By nature, we are slaves to sin and estranged from God. But in his mercy, God sent his Son to redeem us and sent his Spirit into our hearts. And with the Holy Spirit dwelling in you, you can confidently call God, “Father.” That is pure grace—the grace of a God who not only forgives but adopts. And what comfort that adoption brings! All of us crave acceptance, belonging, and a sense of home. We often look for it in our earthly families and closest friendships. They are wonderful gifts, yet they can disappoint you, because like you, they are sinful. But the belonging your heart longs for is found fully in your place as a child of God. Because of Christmas, you can call Jesus your brother, and he gladly calls you his brother or sister. And you are part of a remarkable family: believers across the world and across the ages who trust in Christ. One day, you will experience the joy of a family reunion beyond imagining—a gathering that will include loved ones in Christ who died before you. So when your final day comes, you can rest in confidence. You are no longer a slave but God’s child, and since you are his child, you are also his heir. A place in your Father’s house is already prepared, and nothing can take it from you. Prayer: Father, thank you for adopting me as your child through Christ and giving me a place in your family forever. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

Watch the Devotion Based on Isaiah 63:7-9 Remember the Many Good Things the LORD Has Done for You Now that we have firmly stepped into a new year I want to ask, how was 2025? There are plenty of after action reviews out there to remind us. Nearly every news organization publishes a “year in review”. Like a military storyboard, many showcase the top pictures of the year or the trending memes from 2025. Even your phone will create a collage of your most memorable moments and people to help you recall this past year. God does something similar. The pictures he uses are the stories and promises he makes in the Bible. He wants to help you remember the good things he has done for you. Listen to the prophet Isaiah: “I will tell of the kindnesses of the LORD, the deeds for which he is to be praised, according to all the Lord has done for us—yes, the many good things he has done for Israel, according to his compassion and many kindnesses” (Isaiah 63:7). First, Isaiah shares why the LORD has done good things for you: he is compassionate and kind. His heart is moved by his love for sinners and he puts that love into action on our behalf. Because he is a kind and loving God Isaiah says, “… he became their Savior” (Isaiah 63:8). We need a Savior God because if we were to look at your year in review through pictures, I am sure there are some you wouldn't want to see. There are certainly pictures you wouldn't want others to see… pictures that show the thoughts you had towards others, words spoken, actions taken, actions you didn't take but should have. Since your kind, loving God is your Savior, he removes those pictures from your storyboard and replaces them with pictures of Jesus' loving words, his kind actions, his charitable thoughts. God wants you to remember the good things he has done for you – how he saved you from your sins and saved you for himself. Isaiah writes, “In his love and mercy he redeemed them.” (Isaiah 63:9) Good thing God did for you is he redeemed you. Jesus paid a price – his very life – to make you his own. You belong to him. Usually when a person is owned by someone else, that's not a good thing. But in this case, it is one of the many good things the LORD has done for you. Listen! “He lifted them up and carried them all the days of old” (Isaiah 63:9). The picture is of a child lifting up her arms saying, “Up! Up!” The Father lifts his child up in his arms. Because you belong to your Father in heaven he has lifted you up and carried you. Look back on the year and see how often the LORD did this for you. So instead of looking ahead to 2026 and wondering what this year will bring, start today by reading your bible every day and remember the many good things the LORD has done for you. Prayer: Eternal God, you are always the same and your years have no end. In your mercy we close another year and begin another. You have done good things for us. For this we humbly say, “Thank you.” Move us to devote our time to your Word this year, so that you may remind us of all the good things you have done and will continue to do for us. We march confidently into the New Year with your compassion and kindness to bless us. Amen. Written and recorded by Rev. Paul Horn, WELS National Civilian Chaplain to the Military, San Diego, California. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. Note: Scripture reading footnotes are clickable only in the web version.

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20260101dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. Galatians 4:4-5 The Greatest Christmas Gift Many people assume Christmas is just a single day, December 25th, or perhaps two if you count Christmas Eve. But it is, in fact, a season of twelve days. Today is the eighth day of Christmas, and God has another present for you to unwrap: the greatest gift of all. This gift arrives “when the set time had fully come.” Not a moment too late or too soon, the gift came at a specific, perfect moment in history, precisely when it was most needed. The gift came from God, because “God sent.” He did all the work; all you do is receive it. What did he send? “His Son, born of a woman.” The eternal God took on human flesh and blood. He who had no beginning suddenly had a birthday, an age, a hometown, and a body confined to time and space. The One who fills heaven and earth humbled himself to dwell among us. This humbling involved being “born under law.” That means he placed himself beneath the very commandments he authored and lived a life of perfect obedience. Jesus wasn’t your Savior only for the six hours he spent on the cross; he spent thirty-three years before that fulfilling the law in your place, as your Substitute. Every commandment you break, he kept flawlessly for you. Why this perfect obedience? “To redeem those under the law.” That’s all of humanity, including you. We are all under God’s law and guilty of breaking it. So, Jesus kept that law for us and bore its punishment on the cross, buying our freedom from our slavery to sin. The glorious result? “That we might receive adoption to sonship.” That’s amazing! In his Son, God the Father has given you the greatest Christmas gift of all: He made you a member of his family. No longer a slave, you are now an heir of forgiveness, peace, comfort, hope, and the everlasting riches of heaven. Prayer: Son of God, thank you for being born under the law to redeem me and make me an heir of heaven. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

God Is Focused a Jesus Follower's Heart, and He Changes Their Thinking and Attitude Through a Change in Their Heart MESSAGE SUMMARY: God makes you a new creation through your new heart created by an indwelling of the Holy Spirit in your life. God is interested in your heart, and He wants you to have a righteous heart– God changes your thinking and your attitude through a change in your heart. In Romans 8:26-27, Paul describes the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in Jesus Followers resulting in a new person, with a new heart, in Jesus: “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.". As a Jesus Follower, you are salt and light, comes from your righteousness – not just in deed and appearance but, also, in your inner person -- your heart.   TODAY'S PRAYER: Unclutter my heart, O God, until I am quiet enough to hear you speak out of the silence. Help me in these few moments to stop, to listen, to wait, to be still, and to allow your presence to envelop me. In Jesus' name, amen. Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 23). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. TODAY'S AFFIRMATION: Because of who I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be driven by Past Failures. Rather, I will abide in the Lord's Grace. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Proverbs 3:1-7; Romans 2:29; Romans 8:26-28; Psalms 18a:1-10. WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. THIS SUNDAY'S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach's Current Sunday Sermon: “A Christmas Message” at our Website: https://awordfromthelord.org/listen/ DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20260101dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. Galatians 4:4-5 The Greatest Christmas Gift Many people assume Christmas is just a single day, December 25th, or perhaps two if you count Christmas Eve. But it is, in fact, a season of twelve days. Today is the eighth day of Christmas, and God has another present for you to unwrap: the greatest gift of all. This gift arrives “when the set time had fully come.” Not a moment too late or too soon, the gift came at a specific, perfect moment in history, precisely when it was most needed. The gift came from God, because “God sent.” He did all the work; all you do is receive it. What did he send? “His Son, born of a woman.” The eternal God took on human flesh and blood. He who had no beginning suddenly had a birthday, an age, a hometown, and a body confined to time and space. The One who fills heaven and earth humbled himself to dwell among us. This humbling involved being “born under law.” That means he placed himself beneath the very commandments he authored and lived a life of perfect obedience. Jesus wasn’t your Savior only for the six hours he spent on the cross; he spent thirty-three years before that fulfilling the law in your place, as your Substitute. Every commandment you break, he kept flawlessly for you. Why this perfect obedience? “To redeem those under the law.” That’s all of humanity, including you. We are all under God’s law and guilty of breaking it. So, Jesus kept that law for us and bore its punishment on the cross, buying our freedom from our slavery to sin. The glorious result? “That we might receive adoption to sonship.” That’s amazing! In his Son, God the Father has given you the greatest Christmas gift of all: He made you a member of his family. No longer a slave, you are now an heir of forgiveness, peace, comfort, hope, and the everlasting riches of heaven. Prayer: Son of God, thank you for being born under the law to redeem me and make me an heir of heaven. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20260101dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. Galatians 4:4-5 The Greatest Christmas Gift Many people assume Christmas is just a single day, December 25th, or perhaps two if you count Christmas Eve. But it is, in fact, a season of twelve days. Today is the eighth day of Christmas, and God has another present for you to unwrap: the greatest gift of all. This gift arrives “when the set time had fully come.” Not a moment too late or too soon, the gift came at a specific, perfect moment in history, precisely when it was most needed. The gift came from God, because “God sent.” He did all the work; all you do is receive it. What did he send? “His Son, born of a woman.” The eternal God took on human flesh and blood. He who had no beginning suddenly had a birthday, an age, a hometown, and a body confined to time and space. The One who fills heaven and earth humbled himself to dwell among us. This humbling involved being “born under law.” That means he placed himself beneath the very commandments he authored and lived a life of perfect obedience. Jesus wasn’t your Savior only for the six hours he spent on the cross; he spent thirty-three years before that fulfilling the law in your place, as your Substitute. Every commandment you break, he kept flawlessly for you. Why this perfect obedience? “To redeem those under the law.” That’s all of humanity, including you. We are all under God’s law and guilty of breaking it. So, Jesus kept that law for us and bore its punishment on the cross, buying our freedom from our slavery to sin. The glorious result? “That we might receive adoption to sonship.” That’s amazing! In his Son, God the Father has given you the greatest Christmas gift of all: He made you a member of his family. No longer a slave, you are now an heir of forgiveness, peace, comfort, hope, and the everlasting riches of heaven. Prayer: Son of God, thank you for being born under the law to redeem me and make me an heir of heaven. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20251231dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi. Matthew 2:16 The Comfort of Christmas Herod, furious that the Magi left without telling him where Jesus was, went scorched earth and ordered every boy in the vicinity two years old and younger to be killed. Historians estimate that twenty to thirty children were murdered in his desperate attempt to eliminate the Christ child. It is uncomfortable to read this so soon after Christmas. Wouldn’t it be better to skip this part? Why remember such horror during Christmastime? Because it shows what happens when light enters a world of darkness. When the light arrives, the darkness does not politely step aside. It tries to snuff the light out. This is why Jesus came: to battle the darkness that rejected him from his very first days. This same battle between light and darkness continues in your own heart. When Christ’s light shines within you, your sinful nature fights against it. Yet God remains on your side—God rescued his Son from Herod’s sword so that his Son could rescue you from eternal darkness. Jesus’ death and resurrection became the ultimate light that conquers the darkness. And here lies one of the Bible’s hardest truths: though God possesses all power and hates evil, he still permits suffering. So here is the comfort of Christmas: God may save us from evil, or he may save us through evil. The boys of Bethlehem died tragically, but Christ the Savior was born not to save them from Herod, but from hell, and that is what he did. With God, wherever there is weeping, comfort follows. The grieving mothers of Bethlehem would see their sons again because their King came to save them through tragedy into heaven’s triumph. This is the comfort of Christmas. That even though the darkness could take the boys of Bethlehem away from their parents, it could not take them away from Christ. It cannot take you away from him either. Prayer: Merciful Father, thank you for the comfort of knowing that no darkness can separate me from the light of your Son. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

When the Bottom Falls Out in Your Life, Ask God to Get Involved Through Prayer AND Thanks – You will Be Amazed! MESSAGE SUMMARY: Sometimes the bottom falls out in your life, and you wonder where God is in all your stuff. Well, the challenge to you is to “Thank God” by turning your eyes away from all your life's “stuff” and turning your eyes to God and thanking Him! We have no better teacher, of the need to address God with our thanks, than when, in Luke11:2, Jesus responded to His Disciples' request to teach them to pray: “And he said to them, ‘When you pray, say: Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come.'". By taking your situation to God in prayer AND thanks, you will be amazed at what will happen to your situation which, before you asked God through prayer AND thanks, seemed insurmountable. What do you usually do? You worry and fret – you focus on the negative and give the adverse situation so much power, in your life, rather than focusing on God and giving Him thanks. In Mathew 6:34, Jesus tells you not to be anxious about your life situations: “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.". Ask God to get involved in your life through prayer and thanks – you will be amazed.   TODAY'S PRAYER: Lord, may your will, not my will, be done in my life. You know how easy it is to call myself a Christian but then become busy, forgetting about your will and desires. Forgive me for this sin. Help me listen to you, and grant me the courage to faithfully surrender to you. In Jesus' name, amen.    Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 25). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. TODAY'S AFFIRMATION: Today, I affirm that, because I am in Jesus Christ, My life is about Christ (Philippians 1:21). “I can do everything through Him who gives me strength.”. (Philippians 4:14). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): 1 Corinthians 11:25; Colossians 2:2-3; John 10:25-30; Psalms 17:1-15. A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. THIS SUNDAY'S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach's Current Sunday Sermon: “A Christmas Message”, at our Website: https://awordfromthelord.org/listen/ DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20251231dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi. Matthew 2:16 The Comfort of Christmas Herod, furious that the Magi left without telling him where Jesus was, went scorched earth and ordered every boy in the vicinity two years old and younger to be killed. Historians estimate that twenty to thirty children were murdered in his desperate attempt to eliminate the Christ child. It is uncomfortable to read this so soon after Christmas. Wouldn’t it be better to skip this part? Why remember such horror during Christmastime? Because it shows what happens when light enters a world of darkness. When the light arrives, the darkness does not politely step aside. It tries to snuff the light out. This is why Jesus came: to battle the darkness that rejected him from his very first days. This same battle between light and darkness continues in your own heart. When Christ’s light shines within you, your sinful nature fights against it. Yet God remains on your side—God rescued his Son from Herod’s sword so that his Son could rescue you from eternal darkness. Jesus’ death and resurrection became the ultimate light that conquers the darkness. And here lies one of the Bible’s hardest truths: though God possesses all power and hates evil, he still permits suffering. So here is the comfort of Christmas: God may save us from evil, or he may save us through evil. The boys of Bethlehem died tragically, but Christ the Savior was born not to save them from Herod, but from hell, and that is what he did. With God, wherever there is weeping, comfort follows. The grieving mothers of Bethlehem would see their sons again because their King came to save them through tragedy into heaven’s triumph. This is the comfort of Christmas. That even though the darkness could take the boys of Bethlehem away from their parents, it could not take them away from Christ. It cannot take you away from him either. Prayer: Merciful Father, thank you for the comfort of knowing that no darkness can separate me from the light of your Son. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20251231dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi. Matthew 2:16 The Comfort of Christmas Herod, furious that the Magi left without telling him where Jesus was, went scorched earth and ordered every boy in the vicinity two years old and younger to be killed. Historians estimate that twenty to thirty children were murdered in his desperate attempt to eliminate the Christ child. It is uncomfortable to read this so soon after Christmas. Wouldn’t it be better to skip this part? Why remember such horror during Christmastime? Because it shows what happens when light enters a world of darkness. When the light arrives, the darkness does not politely step aside. It tries to snuff the light out. This is why Jesus came: to battle the darkness that rejected him from his very first days. This same battle between light and darkness continues in your own heart. When Christ’s light shines within you, your sinful nature fights against it. Yet God remains on your side—God rescued his Son from Herod’s sword so that his Son could rescue you from eternal darkness. Jesus’ death and resurrection became the ultimate light that conquers the darkness. And here lies one of the Bible’s hardest truths: though God possesses all power and hates evil, he still permits suffering. So here is the comfort of Christmas: God may save us from evil, or he may save us through evil. The boys of Bethlehem died tragically, but Christ the Savior was born not to save them from Herod, but from hell, and that is what he did. With God, wherever there is weeping, comfort follows. The grieving mothers of Bethlehem would see their sons again because their King came to save them through tragedy into heaven’s triumph. This is the comfort of Christmas. That even though the darkness could take the boys of Bethlehem away from their parents, it could not take them away from Christ. It cannot take you away from him either. Prayer: Merciful Father, thank you for the comfort of knowing that no darkness can separate me from the light of your Son. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20251230dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt, where he stayed until the death of Herod. And so was fulfilled what the Lord had said through the prophet: “Out of Egypt I called my son.” Matthew 2:14-15 Out of Egypt The words in our Bible reading today show that even as a baby, Jesus was already fulfilling prophecy and establishing his credentials as the promised Savior. When King Herod sought to murder the Christ child, God sent the holy family fleeing to Egypt. Seven hundred years earlier, Hosea had foretold that God’s Son would go there and return—and now Jesus, cradled in his mother’s arms, was living out that prophecy. To understand this fulfillment, though, we must recall Israel’s story. Over three thousand years ago, God adopted a nation of slaves and called them his son. He brought Israel out of Egypt, led them through the wilderness, and gave them a new home in Canaan. But Israel did not always return their Father’s love. The people he rescued turned to false gods and sacrificed to idols. Through prophets like Hosea, God warned his disobedient children what would happen if they refused to repent. They deserved punishment for their idolatry. Yet God could not stop loving his son. That is the backdrop for Matthew’s quotation. Jesus is the perfectly obedient Son of God—so fully identifying with God’s people that his life mirrors theirs. As Israel once went down to Egypt, so he went down to Egypt. As Israel was called out, so he was called out. Where Israel failed, Jesus succeeded; where Israel rebelled, Jesus obeyed. And he obeyed for you! When the time had fully come, God sent his beloved Son to be born in Bethlehem, to live as the obedient child you were meant to be, to die on the cross, and to rise again so you could be brought into God’s family. He loved you so much that he poured out his Spirit into your heart so you can cry, “Father!” and know that the Almighty delights to hear you, protect you, bless you, and save you. Even though you have been a rebellious child, God’s grace is greater than your guilt. His love at the manger and the cross is more than enough to bring peace on earth and good will to men. Prayer: Father, thank you for fulfilling your Word by calling your Son out of Egypt, so that I am your own dear child. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

Jesus Followers Are to Pray Directly to God for “all people” Because God “desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” MESSAGE SUMMARY: Jesus taught us to pray to God for others and ourselves. We are told, in Hebrews 5:7-8, that Jesus, as a Human, prayed to God in both content and manner as: “In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications {submissive requests}, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence. Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered.". In your personal relationship with God, you can come before God, as Jesus did, on behalf of yourself or others in Intercessory Prayer. You are given the privilege of following Moses' example for Intercessory Prayer because of what Jesus has done for you. Jesus has given you the privilege of entering the Throne Room of God to have access to God the Father – this access to God is through prayer.  In 1 Timothy 2:1-4, we are told the importance if intercessory prayer: “First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.".   TODAY'S PRAYER: Unclutter my heart, O God, until I am quiet enough to hear you speak out of the silence. Help me in these few moments to stop, to listen, to wait, to be still, and to allow your presence to envelop me. In Jesus' name, amen.                 Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 23). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. TODAY'S AFFIRMATION: Today, because of I am filled with the Holy Spirit, I will not be controlled by my Addictions. Rather, I will walk in the Spirit's fruit of Self-Control. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” (Galatians 5:22f). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Exodus 33:11; Exodus 32:11; Hebrews 5:1-10; Psalms 73b:15-28. A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. THIS SUNDAY'S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach's Current Sunday Sermon: “A Christmas Message”, at our Website: https://awordfromthelord.org/listen/ DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20251230dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt, where he stayed until the death of Herod. And so was fulfilled what the Lord had said through the prophet: “Out of Egypt I called my son.” Matthew 2:14-15 Out of Egypt The words in our Bible reading today show that even as a baby, Jesus was already fulfilling prophecy and establishing his credentials as the promised Savior. When King Herod sought to murder the Christ child, God sent the holy family fleeing to Egypt. Seven hundred years earlier, Hosea had foretold that God’s Son would go there and return—and now Jesus, cradled in his mother’s arms, was living out that prophecy. To understand this fulfillment, though, we must recall Israel’s story. Over three thousand years ago, God adopted a nation of slaves and called them his son. He brought Israel out of Egypt, led them through the wilderness, and gave them a new home in Canaan. But Israel did not always return their Father’s love. The people he rescued turned to false gods and sacrificed to idols. Through prophets like Hosea, God warned his disobedient children what would happen if they refused to repent. They deserved punishment for their idolatry. Yet God could not stop loving his son. That is the backdrop for Matthew’s quotation. Jesus is the perfectly obedient Son of God—so fully identifying with God’s people that his life mirrors theirs. As Israel once went down to Egypt, so he went down to Egypt. As Israel was called out, so he was called out. Where Israel failed, Jesus succeeded; where Israel rebelled, Jesus obeyed. And he obeyed for you! When the time had fully come, God sent his beloved Son to be born in Bethlehem, to live as the obedient child you were meant to be, to die on the cross, and to rise again so you could be brought into God’s family. He loved you so much that he poured out his Spirit into your heart so you can cry, “Father!” and know that the Almighty delights to hear you, protect you, bless you, and save you. Even though you have been a rebellious child, God’s grace is greater than your guilt. His love at the manger and the cross is more than enough to bring peace on earth and good will to men. Prayer: Father, thank you for fulfilling your Word by calling your Son out of Egypt, so that I am your own dear child. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20251229dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up,” he said, “take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.” So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt. Matthew 2:13-14 God’s Purpose in Herod’s Fear One moment, the baby Jesus had magi laying treasures at his feet; the next, Joseph was taking him into the night and headed for Egypt. The Light of the world had come, but the darkness fought back. You see, the Magi had first come to Jerusalem and told King Herod that they were looking for the King of the Jews. Herod viewed the baby as a threat, and he didn’t like that. He had already killed three of his sons, his favorite wife, his mother-in-law, his uncle, some cousins, and the high priest for being threats to his crown. Now he targeted a baby. But God saved his Son from an early death because the plan of salvation required that he die on the cross when the time had fully come. He fled as a child so that he could later say, “It is finished” (John 19:30). The world did not change the night Jesus was born, but everything changed the morning he walked out of the tomb. The power of Jesus’ resurrection is already removing the darkness, and he will completely remove it on the Last Day. When evil touches your life, remember it also touched him. The child who fled Herod is the Savior who was “despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering and familiar with pain” (Isaiah 53:3). At Christmas, God gifts you his Son, Jesus. Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for stepping into this dark world so that you can call me out of it and into your wonderful light. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20251229dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up,” he said, “take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.” So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt. Matthew 2:13-14 God’s Purpose in Herod’s Fear One moment, the baby Jesus had magi laying treasures at his feet; the next, Joseph was taking him into the night and headed for Egypt. The Light of the world had come, but the darkness fought back. You see, the Magi had first come to Jerusalem and told King Herod that they were looking for the King of the Jews. Herod viewed the baby as a threat, and he didn’t like that. He had already killed three of his sons, his favorite wife, his mother-in-law, his uncle, some cousins, and the high priest for being threats to his crown. Now he targeted a baby. But God saved his Son from an early death because the plan of salvation required that he die on the cross when the time had fully come. He fled as a child so that he could later say, “It is finished” (John 19:30). The world did not change the night Jesus was born, but everything changed the morning he walked out of the tomb. The power of Jesus’ resurrection is already removing the darkness, and he will completely remove it on the Last Day. When evil touches your life, remember it also touched him. The child who fled Herod is the Savior who was “despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering and familiar with pain” (Isaiah 53:3). At Christmas, God gifts you his Son, Jesus. Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for stepping into this dark world so that you can call me out of it and into your wonderful light. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20251228dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion I will tell of the kindnesses of the LORD, the deeds for which he is to be praised, according to all the LORD has done for us—yes, the many good things he has done for Israel, according to his compassion and many kindnesses. Isaiah 63:7 Mercy and Compassion A highly respected running coach was once asked what he would do if he wanted to make his own son an Olympic runner. He responded, “I would get him a coach that believed he could be an Olympian.” After all his years of training runners, this man had learned that having a coach who believed in his runner was a key component to helping that athlete reach his true potential. Isaiah describes the Lord looking at his people and saying, “Surely they are my people, sons who will not be false to me.” How could the Lord say this when Israel had turned its back on him again and again? It wasn’t that God thought he could make his people better simply by believing in them. No, God calls Israel his people because in his love and mercy, he made them his people. “He became their Savior.” A coach might help an athlete achieve his greatest potential by believing in him, but God has done much more for us. Simply believing in us would not have been enough, because left to ourselves, our only potential was to go our own way and stray further away from him. So, God in his love and mercy redeemed us. By sending his only Son, he bought us back from our destiny of being sinners forever separated from him. This truth causes our Christmas joy to overflow every day of the year. In his loving kindness, the Lord has made us his people, who are given the righteousness and obedience of his Son. What’s our response to such mercy and compassion? We can join with Isaiah in saying, “I will tell of the kindnesses of the LORD, the deeds for which he is to be praised, according to all the LORD has done for us.” Prayer: Merciful and compassionate God, I thank you for being my Savior. You have made me your child through the redemption that comes through Jesus Christ. Help me to speak of your kindness, of all that you have done for me. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

Our Relationship with God Is Based Solely on Our Relationship with God, and He Desires to Have a Relationship with Each of Us MESSAGE SUMMARY: We may have a Godly father and mother, but our relationship with God is not based on their relationship with God; it is solely our relationship with God. God has given us covenants as a way to build our relationships. The people of Israel found out quickly that when they desired to live their lives apart from God that they brought disaster upon their lives. God is a covenant God. He will bless us if we obey Him; but if we disobey him, it leaves us to the consequences of our sin.   TODAY'S PRAYER: Keeping the Sabbath, Lord, will require a lot of changes in the way I am living life. Teach me, Lord, how to take the next step with this in a way that fits my unique personality and situation. Help me to trust you with all that will remain unfinished and to enjoy my humble place in your very large world. In Jesus' name, amen. Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 129). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. TODAY'S AFFIRMATION: Today, I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM RIGHTEOUS IN GOD'S EYES. God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Corinthians 5:21 SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Exodus 19:5-6; 1 Corinthians 11:23-32; Nehemiah 9:26-32; Acts 3:22-26. A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. THIS SUNDAY'S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach's Current Sunday Sermon: “A Christmas Message” at our Website: https://awordfromthelord.org/listen/    DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB 

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20251228dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion I will tell of the kindnesses of the LORD, the deeds for which he is to be praised, according to all the LORD has done for us—yes, the many good things he has done for Israel, according to his compassion and many kindnesses. Isaiah 63:7 Mercy and Compassion A highly respected running coach was once asked what he would do if he wanted to make his own son an Olympic runner. He responded, “I would get him a coach that believed he could be an Olympian.” After all his years of training runners, this man had learned that having a coach who believed in his runner was a key component to helping that athlete reach his true potential. Isaiah describes the Lord looking at his people and saying, “Surely they are my people, sons who will not be false to me.” How could the Lord say this when Israel had turned its back on him again and again? It wasn’t that God thought he could make his people better simply by believing in them. No, God calls Israel his people because in his love and mercy, he made them his people. “He became their Savior.” A coach might help an athlete achieve his greatest potential by believing in him, but God has done much more for us. Simply believing in us would not have been enough, because left to ourselves, our only potential was to go our own way and stray further away from him. So, God in his love and mercy redeemed us. By sending his only Son, he bought us back from our destiny of being sinners forever separated from him. This truth causes our Christmas joy to overflow every day of the year. In his loving kindness, the Lord has made us his people, who are given the righteousness and obedience of his Son. What’s our response to such mercy and compassion? We can join with Isaiah in saying, “I will tell of the kindnesses of the LORD, the deeds for which he is to be praised, according to all the LORD has done for us.” Prayer: Merciful and compassionate God, I thank you for being my Savior. You have made me your child through the redemption that comes through Jesus Christ. Help me to speak of your kindness, of all that you have done for me. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

A Christmas Message MESSAGE SUMMARY: The real meaning of Christmas is to celebrate the birth of Jesus the Christ – the Messiah, who is the Savior of the World. Christians emphasize Christmas and Jesus' birth because His birth: 1) fulfills many Biblical prophesies, especially n terms of the time and location of Jesus' birth; 2) points the fact that Jesus was more than just a man; 3) and life saw Jesus claim the right to forgive sins; 4) led Jesus to call God His “Father”, which indicated that Jesus was God; 5) resulted in Jesus' Resurrection, which validated Jesus' claims and made Him different; and 6) was God, through Jesus' birth, still trying to get our attention. God, through His Grace and through the birth of Jesus, did for us what we could not do for ourselves – save ourselves from our sins and our death that would result from our sins. God, through the birth of Jesus -- the God-Man, entered into our earthly mess to save us because, after God's Grace and Jesus' birth, all our sin now resides on Jesus. God's Grace through the birth of Jesus, demonstrates God's love for us. God wants us to know that Jesus was born for us out of His love for us. Therefore, we need to consider that God, the Creator of the Universe, entered the world, through the baby Jesus for us so that we might have a personal relationship with Him. Have you yielded to God so that your mind's consideration of God's Grace, love, and Jesus' birth can move from your mind into a commitment of both your mind and your heart to your faith in Jesus as your Savior and into God's service? Until we yield to God's lordship over our lives, we are saying to God that “we don't need your love”. Is Jesus your Lord and, therefore, your Savior? God has given you the greatest Christmas gift that you will ever receive. Have you accepted His Gift and opened His gift into your life? If not, then why not? With your hands open, you can accept God's Christmas gift by saying: “I am sorry; thank you; and please”.   TODAY'S PRAYER: Keeping the Sabbath, Lord, will require a lot of changes in the way I am living life. Teach me, Lord, how to take the next step with this in a way that fits my unique personality and situation. Help me to trust you with all that will remain unfinished and to enjoy my humble place in your very large world. In Jesus' name, amen. Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 129). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. TODAY'S AFFIRMATION: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM RIGHTEOUS IN GOD'S EYES. God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Corinthians 5:21). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Luke 2:9-11; Matthew 1:21; Isaiah 53:4-6; Colossians 1:15-19; Hebrews 1-3; John 1:4; John10:30; John 14:8-11; John 3:16-17. (Click the blue below to read the full Bible text for these scripture references in BOLD.). A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH'S DAILY DEVOTIONAL – “Our Relationship with God Is Based Solely on Our Relationship with God, and He Desires to Have a Relationship with Each of Us”: https://awordfromthelord.org/devotional/ DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20251227dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”). When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus. Matthew 1:22-25 God With Us Hundreds of years before the birth of Jesus, God spoke through the prophet Isaiah that he would be born of a virgin. God inspired the apostle Matthew to write about the fulfillment of that prophecy. Joseph had no sexual relations with Mary until Jesus was born. Joseph was not Jesus' father; God was. Isaiah said that “they will call him Immanuel”—(which means, “God with us).” The baby born of the virgin Mary is God with us—God became a human being because we are unable to save ourselves. We are unable to keep his commandments. We are unable even to do the one thing he requires of us: “Be holy” (Leviticus 19:2). The baby born of the virgin Mary is God with us—God became human to be one of us. To feel like we do. To eat and drink like we do. To walk and talk like we do. To go through what we go through. He didn’t do this because he needed to, but because we needed him to; so that “God with us” would show us that a human could do what God demanded. And so that “God with us” could suffer and die, and in doing so, pay for our sins. Since he is human, he could die. Since he is God, his payment is for all of us, for all time. Joseph gave him the name “Jesus.” His name declares his great purpose for coming from heaven to be with us on earth. He is our Savior who came to take us from earth to heaven! Prayer: Jesus, you came down from heaven to be with us. Your life and death accomplished my salvation. I worship and honor you for your great love. Come again and take me to be with you in heaven. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

In Today's Uncertainty, We Need to Remember that God Wants to Walk with Us In All Our Life Situations, Both Good and Bad – Just Ask Him MESSAGE SUMMARY: “Lord is my helper and confident, why should I be afraid? What can man do to me?” For this confidence, you must know who Jesus is – both in your heart and in your mind. Jesus is the Son of God – God in the flesh. As Paul tells us in Philippians 4:4: “do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.". Therefore, You do not need to worry about troubling circumstances in your life because you know that He is with you; and He will guide you no matter how dark your life seems. Jesus is the light that shines in darkness.  As Jesus tells you in Luke 12:4-5, that when you have anxiety and fear in your life, you must determine if this anxiety derivative of the right kind of fear: “I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have nothing more that they can do. But I will warn you whom to fear: fear him who, after he has killed, has authority to cast into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him!”. When you are faced with life's tragedies and the anxieties that result from just living your life, Jesus can turn those situations and your fears into ways and results that you cannot fathom, understand, or anticipate; but you can certainly appreciate. Why not give God a chance to walk with you in all your life situations -- good and bad? Ultimately, the Psalmist got it right in Psalm 23:4: “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.".     TODAY'S PRAYER: Lord, everything in me resists following you into the garden of Gethsemane to fall on my face to the ground before you. Grant me the courage to follow you all the way to the cross, whatever that might mean for my life. And then, by your grace, lead me to resurrection life and power. In Jesus' name, amen.   Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 100). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. TODAY'S AFFIRMATION: Today, I affirm that because I am in Jesus Christ, I will entrust to Him my future. I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day.  From 2 Timothy 1:12 SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Philippians 4:4-9; Mathew 6:25-34; Psalm 23:1-6; Psalms 22b:17-31 A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. THIS SUNDAY'S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach's Current Sunday Sermon: “A Christmas Message – What God Has Done For Us” at our Website: https://awordfromthelord.org/listen/ DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20251227dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”). When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus. Matthew 1:22-25 God With Us Hundreds of years before the birth of Jesus, God spoke through the prophet Isaiah that he would be born of a virgin. God inspired the apostle Matthew to write about the fulfillment of that prophecy. Joseph had no sexual relations with Mary until Jesus was born. Joseph was not Jesus' father; God was. Isaiah said that “they will call him Immanuel”—(which means, “God with us).” The baby born of the virgin Mary is God with us—God became a human being because we are unable to save ourselves. We are unable to keep his commandments. We are unable even to do the one thing he requires of us: “Be holy” (Leviticus 19:2). The baby born of the virgin Mary is God with us—God became human to be one of us. To feel like we do. To eat and drink like we do. To walk and talk like we do. To go through what we go through. He didn’t do this because he needed to, but because we needed him to; so that “God with us” would show us that a human could do what God demanded. And so that “God with us” could suffer and die, and in doing so, pay for our sins. Since he is human, he could die. Since he is God, his payment is for all of us, for all time. Joseph gave him the name “Jesus.” His name declares his great purpose for coming from heaven to be with us on earth. He is our Savior who came to take us from earth to heaven! Prayer: Jesus, you came down from heaven to be with us. Your life and death accomplished my salvation. I worship and honor you for your great love. Come again and take me to be with you in heaven. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20251226dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe. Hebrews 1:1-2 He Has Spoken by His Son When people want to know God’s will, they often search for a voice. Some look for signs in nature, others for whispers in their hearts. Some chase after visions or dramatic experiences. But the writer to the Hebrews reminds us that we don't need to guess where God speaks. We already have his clear Word. Long ago, God spoke through prophets like Moses and Isaiah. Their words were true, and they pointed forward to something greater. All those voices prepared the way for the day when God would speak through his Son. And that day has come. In Jesus, God has spoken once for all. Do you want to know how God feels about you? Look at his Son. See Jesus reaching out to touch the untouchable leper. Hear his voice calming the fearful. Watch him carrying your sins to the cross. Listen as he cries out, “It is finished!” That is God's message to you. No uncertainty. No guesswork. God loves you, forgives you, and calls you his child. Notice also how Jesus is described. He is the heir of all things, the One through whom the universe was made. This is no ordinary messenger. When he speaks, it is not merely advice or suggestion. It is the voice of the eternal Son of God. And that means you can trust his promises with complete confidence. So, when doubts arise, when your heart longs for assurance, you don't need to wait for a special sign from heaven. You already have the greatest sign: God has spoken by his Son. Open the Scriptures. Hear him there. His Word is living and active, still speaking forgiveness and peace into your life today. Prayer: Lord Jesus, you are the final and full Word of God. When I am tempted to look elsewhere for assurance, turn me back to you. Let me rest in your promises, for in you I hear God's love loud and clear. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

Our Sovereign God May Not Return to Us If Jesus Followers Do Not Lead America's Return to God; You Are Here for These Times MESSAGE SUMMARY: If enough of us get serious with God, then, perhaps, God will heal us and this land. When we, as both individual Jesus Followers and as a country, turn to the Lord, will we hear God's call and answer as in Isaiah 6:8: “And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?' Then I said, ‘Here am I! Send me.'”. As Jesus Followers but in our non-Christian behavior: we are mean; we are angry; we are judgmental; and we are selfish and self-centered. Also, in our non-Christian behavior, we are often in bondage to debt, drugs, and extramarital sex. In all these non-Christian behaviors, we are not different from the unbeliever next door. Therefore, we are not very different from God's people in the time of Hosea described in Hosea 11:7,10-11: “My people are bent on turning away from me, and though they call out to the Most High {God}, he shall not raise them up at all . . . They shall go after the LORD; he will roar like a lion; when he roars, his children shall come trembling from the west; they shall come trembling like birds from Egypt, and like doves from the land of Assyria, and I will return them to their homes, declares the LORD.". We need to ask ourselves: “Am I being faithful to Jesus Christ and what needs to change in me and my life? Also, we need to ask ourselves “how am I disobeying the Lord?”. Will you then say to God: “Here am I! Send me.” If NOT ENOUGH “Self-Identifying Christians” answer God's call to lead America in our “return to God”, then God, in His sovereignty, will not return to America – you are here for times like these!   TODAY'S PRAYER: Lord, I come this day inviting you to cut those deeply entrenched chains that keep me from being faithful to my true self in Christ. In doing so, may my life be a blessing to many. In Jesus' name, amen.      Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 44). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. TODAY'S AFFIRMATION: Today, because I am filled with the Holy Spirit, I will not be controlled by my Insensitivity. Rather, I will walk in the Spirit's fruit of Gentleness. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” (Galatians 5:22f). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV):  Hosea 11:1-11; Isaiah 6:8-13; Matthew 13:13-17; Psalms 13:1-6. A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. THIS SUNDAY'S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach's Current Sunday Sermon: “A Christmas Message – What God Has Done For Us” at our Website: https://awordfromthelord.org/listen/ DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20251226dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe. Hebrews 1:1-2 He Has Spoken by His Son When people want to know God’s will, they often search for a voice. Some look for signs in nature, others for whispers in their hearts. Some chase after visions or dramatic experiences. But the writer to the Hebrews reminds us that we don't need to guess where God speaks. We already have his clear Word. Long ago, God spoke through prophets like Moses and Isaiah. Their words were true, and they pointed forward to something greater. All those voices prepared the way for the day when God would speak through his Son. And that day has come. In Jesus, God has spoken once for all. Do you want to know how God feels about you? Look at his Son. See Jesus reaching out to touch the untouchable leper. Hear his voice calming the fearful. Watch him carrying your sins to the cross. Listen as he cries out, “It is finished!” That is God's message to you. No uncertainty. No guesswork. God loves you, forgives you, and calls you his child. Notice also how Jesus is described. He is the heir of all things, the One through whom the universe was made. This is no ordinary messenger. When he speaks, it is not merely advice or suggestion. It is the voice of the eternal Son of God. And that means you can trust his promises with complete confidence. So, when doubts arise, when your heart longs for assurance, you don't need to wait for a special sign from heaven. You already have the greatest sign: God has spoken by his Son. Open the Scriptures. Hear him there. His Word is living and active, still speaking forgiveness and peace into your life today. Prayer: Lord Jesus, you are the final and full Word of God. When I am tempted to look elsewhere for assurance, turn me back to you. Let me rest in your promises, for in you I hear God's love loud and clear. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20251225dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14 Give Glory to God How do you know what God is really like? Some imagine him as distant, powerful but far removed from daily life. Others picture him as a stern judge, always ready to condemn. Still others think of him as a vague spiritual force, too abstract to know personally. But John tells us something remarkable: “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.” The eternal Son of God didn't stay far away. He didn’t just send messages through prophets or appear in visions. He came down to live with us, fully human, yet still fully God. That changes everything. In Jesus, we see exactly what God is like. He is not cold or distant. He is not waiting for us to climb up to him. Instead, he comes down to us. He steps into our weakness, our suffering, even our death. He takes on flesh so that he can carry our sins to the cross and give us his righteousness in return. John says we have seen his glory. But notice how that glory shines. It is not in earthly splendor or political power, but in humble service, in compassion for the broken, in sacrifice for sinners. The manger, the cross, and the empty tomb reveal God's glory most clearly. There, we see a God full of grace and truth. Grace, because in Jesus, we receive forgiveness we could never earn. Truth, because in Jesus, we see God's faithfulness to every promise. This means you don’t have to wonder whether God loves you. You don’t need to search for hidden signs of his presence. The Word became flesh. He lived among us. He still comes to us today through his Word and sacraments. And he will dwell with us forever in heaven. Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for becoming flesh and making your dwelling among us. Help me to see your glory in your life, death, and resurrection. Fill me with confidence in your grace and truth. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

In Our Race Issues, Pray for One Another and Make a Difference Through Repentance and Reconciliation; Jesus Followers Are Placed Here for These Times MESSAGE SUMMARY: With regards to our race issues, it will not be through political parties, rallies, elections, slogans, or marches that our attitudes and practices are changed or the souls of our nations are converted. The deep change, which we all need, will only be through revival that comes from repentance – turning away from our sin and toward God and his righteous ways in Jesus Christ. As Jesus commanded us in John 5:12: “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.”. Also, in John 13:34-35, Jesus commanded us: “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”. Jesus' “one another” is all inclusive and not just those that look like you and/or of your culture. We do not have just a “skin problem”, we have a “sin problem”. As Dr. Tony Evans of Oak Cliff Bible Church in Dallas Texas recently said: “The evangelical church needs to speak up where it has been silent on injustice and racism. The biggest problem, in the culture today, is the failure of the church. We would not even have a racial crisis in America if the church had not consistently failed to deal with racism as the severe sin it is. But because the church has historically ignored and downplayed it {racial crisis}, the issue still exists. Where the church is called to set an example, we have cowered.”. The Bible makes it unequivocally clear that we are all made in the image of God (Genesis 1:27): “So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.”.  Any hostility between brothers and sisters in Christ is an affront to God and damages our souls and the “blessed community” so many of us seek. You can start real “racial change” right where you are -- in your own heart first and then in your own relationship with God. At that point, you can then lead the change your own community -- one person at a time; one relationship at a time; and one act a time. You can reach out and build a relationship with someone different than you. However, doing nothing is no longer an option for us. Let us pray for one another about these things and let us get out and make a difference in our local communities. God has placed you and me here for such a time as this.   TODAY'S PRAYER: Lord, I can relate to the Israelites in the desert and their desire to return to what is predictable — even if it is miserable. Change is hard. Grant me the courage of Moses to walk the delicate balance of being still and moving on to the new life in Christ that you have for me. In Jesus' name, amen.       Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 72). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. TODAY'S AFFIRMATION: Because of who I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be driven by Past Failures. Rather, I will abide in the Lord's Grace. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Genesis 1:27; Revelation 7:1-17; Ephesians 2:19; John.13:35; Galatians 6:2; Romans 12:15; Psalms 103:12; Isiah 1:18 WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. THIS SUNDAY'S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach's Current Sunday Sermon: “A Christmas Message – What God Has Done For Us” at our Website: https://awordfromthelord.org/listen/ DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20251224dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” Luke 2:8-12 A Savior Has Been Born to You The shepherds weren’t expecting anything that night. They were just doing their jobs. They watched their flocks, kept predators away, and tried to stay warm in the darkness. Then suddenly, the night sky blazed with God’s glory, and an angel stood before them. Terror filled their hearts. Who could stand in the presence of God’s holiness? But the first words they heard were not words of judgment. They were words of comfort: “Do not be afraid.” Why not? Because God had not come to condemn. He had come to save. “Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you.” Notice the angel’s message. This Savior is for you. Not just for kings or priests. Not just for the powerful or important. For shepherds, for sinners, for all people. And the sign? Not a mighty warrior or dazzling throne, but a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger. God’s Son came in humility so that no one would be too lowly to approach him. On this holy night, the same message comes to you: Do not be afraid. Whatever guilt weighs on your conscience, whatever darkness troubles your heart, your Savior has been born. Rejoice! The good news of great joy is for you. Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for coming into this world for me. Drive away my fears and fill my heart with your peace and joy this Christmas Eve. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20251223dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” Matthew 1:20-21 Give Him the Name Jesus Joseph’s world had been turned upside down. The woman he loved was expecting a child, and Joseph knew he wasn’t the father. In his hurt and confusion, he planned to end the engagement quietly. But before he could act, God intervened. Through an angel, the Lord gave Joseph the comfort he needed: “Do not be afraid.” Mary’s child was no scandal. He was the Savior, conceived by the Holy Spirit. This was not Joseph’s plan, but it was God’s, and it was perfect. The angel even told Joseph the baby’s name: Jesus. That name means “The Lord saves.” His purpose was clear. He will save his people from their sins. Not from Roman rulers. Not from poverty or sickness. But from the deeper problem that haunts every heart—sin. What a message of hope! We too face fear and confusion when life does not go as planned. We wrestle with guilt over choices we made, with uncertainty about the future, with the pain of brokenness in our world. Yet in our turmoil, God still speaks: “Do not be afraid.” Why not? Because Jesus has come. He has come to save us from our sins. He has lived the perfect life we could not, carried our guilt to the cross, and risen victorious from the grave. His name is still our comfort today: Jesus. The Lord saves. Like Joseph, we may not always understand God’s plan. But we can trust his promise. In Christ, we are forgiven. In Christ, we are safe. And in Christ, we have every reason to live without fear. Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for coming to save me from my sins. When fear and doubt rise in my heart, remind me of your name and your promise: The Lord saves. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

https://wels2.blob.core.windows.net/daily-devotions/20251222dev.mp3 Listen to Devotion Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. Isaiah 7:14 Look to the Sign We live in a world that constantly demands signs. Politicians promise change, and we look for signs that things will improve. Doctors give us a diagnosis, and we want signs that treatments will work. Even in our spiritual lives, we sometimes find ourselves asking God for signs as proof that he is with us, proof that he hears us and will help us. King Ahaz, the king of Judah, was in a difficult spot when Isaiah spoke the words of our Bible reading for today. Powerful armies threatened him. God offered him a sign of his faithfulness, but Ahaz doubted God. God’s promise did not depend on Ahaz’s faith. The Lord himself gave the sign: a virgin would conceive and give birth to a son, and his name would be Immanuel, “God with us.” Centuries later, Matthew's gospel revealed how wonderfully God kept that promise. The virgin Mary gave birth to Jesus, and in him God truly was with us, not just in spirit, not only in power, but in the flesh. He came to stand in our place, to live the perfect life we could not, and to die the death our sins deserved. The ultimate sign of God’s faithfulness is the cross and the empty tomb. What does this mean for us? It means we never need to doubt whether God is with us. Whatever troubles surround us—health concerns, family struggles, financial stress, or guilt from our sins—God has already given us the sign. In Jesus, he is with us. And if he is with us, then who can be against us? So, when doubts creep in, return to the sign God has given. Look to the manger, the cross, and the empty tomb. There you see Immanuel, God with us, God with you. Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for coming to be my Immanuel. When I am afraid or tempted to doubt, turn my eyes back to you and the sign of your love. Amen. Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.