Please click on the link below to view the service bulletin for Sunday, July 5,2026.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/12Cw4VyIgFqtZehUzmIDE23qNagCIyFoR6sxvZJqxeAM/edit?usp=sharing

Sixth Sunday after Pentecost

Zechariah 9:9-12 “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!”

Psalm 145:1-14 “The Lord upholds all who are falling.”

Romans 7:14-25a “I know that nothing good dwells in me.”

Matthew 11:25-30 “Come to Me, all who labor and are heavy laden.”

Collect of the Day

Gracious God, our heavenly Father, Your mercy attends us all our days. Be our strength and support amid the wearisome changes of this world, and at life’s end grant us Your promised rest and the full joys of Your salvation; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Theme

“Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion.” When we hear these words of the prophet Zechariah in the season of Advent, we are evermore ready to rejoice, especially as Christmas approaches. But to hear these words now in the middle of summer may strike us as a little more challenging. The pressures and doldrums of daily life can wear away momentary joys. In fact, the call to rejoice can seem pointless echoing against the hard walls of a prison of our own making. No matter how many Christmases we have celebrated, like the apostle Paul, we may continue to feel trapped by our unrelenting sinfulness. True joy comes only as we receive the comforting words of our Lord, “Come to Me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). Herein is the goal of Christmas. Here today by means of the Word of God and the receiving of His body and blood, God gives you faith to believe and to receive eternal salvation. By God’s Word, even today “it’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas.” For here is where true joy is found.

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Martin Luther’s Morning Prayer

I thank You, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, that You have kept me this night from all harm and danger; and I pray that You would keep me this day also from sin and every evil, that all my doings and life may please You. For into Your hands I commend myself, my body and soul, and all things. Let Your holy angel be with me, that the evil foe may have no power over me. Amen.

Martin Luther’s Evening Prayer

I thank You, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, that You have graciously kept me this day; and I pray that You would forgive me all my sins where I have done wrong, and graciously keep me this night. For into Your hands I commend myself, my body and soul, and all things. Let Your holy angel be with me, that the evil foe may have no power over me. Amen.