Jesus, quoting Isaiah 56:7, said, “My house shall be a house of prayer.” This is a wonderful and simple explanation of what the house of God is for, even today. God’s house, the place where we gather as God’s people is for prayer. Now, of course, you can and ought to pray to God wherever you are, whatever your need or thanksgiving. But God has provided a place where He has promised to be and to hear you. It is the place where He promises to meet with us to teach and feed and forgive. It is not about the building itself. It is about what God has promised to do for us in that place. The place which the Lord has given us here in Wylie is dear to us because it is our Father’s house where He gathers us as His children around His table to speak with us and feed us the Bread of Life. Together we lift our voices in prayer and praise, seeking our Father’s forgiveness and help in every time of need. Being in our Father’s house is not a good work for which we expect God to reward us. It is our need and our joy because of what God has promised for us as we hear His Word and receive the Holy Sacrament. Let us give thanks to God our Father for providing us a house where we can gather as His children to receive life and salvation from Him and to call upon Him in prayer. I look forward to seeing you this coming Lord’s Day.
Pastor Ulmer