First Lutheran Church • 1 Lent • Sunday, February 22, 2026

Devotional

Day 1: God is present in the most unexpected places.

Jacob was alone, on the run, and using a stone for a pillow. In that desolate and uncertain place, he was certain he was alone. Yet, it was precisely there that God met him in a powerful dream, revealing His abiding presence. We can often feel that God is distant, especially in our own lonely or difficult seasons. The truth is that His presence is not limited to the places we expect to find Him. He is with us wherever we go, even when we do not know it. [10:37]

Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.” (Genesis 28:16 ESV)

Reflection: Recall a time when you felt alone or in a difficult place. In what ways, looking back, can you now see that God was present with you even when you were unaware?

Day 2: God chooses the weak to shame the strong.

The world values wisdom, power, and noble birth, often overlooking those who seem ordinary or insignificant. God’s economy operates on a completely different principle. He deliberately chooses what the world considers foolish, weak, and lowly to accomplish His purposes. This divine reversal dismantles human pride and ensures that all boasting is directed toward the Lord. Our value and calling are found not in our own credentials, but in His gracious choice. [13:02]

But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. (1 Corinthians 1:27-29 ESV)

Reflection: Where in your life do you feel inadequate or weak? How might God be inviting you to rely on His strength in that area rather than your own?

Day 3: We are called to pull alongside others in their need.

Ministry is often found in the simple, quiet act of showing up for someone. It does not always require a grand plan or eloquent words. Sometimes the most powerful witness is a faithful presence, standing with another person in their moment of grief, confusion, or pain. This practical care embodies Christ’s love and can inspire faith in profound ways. It is a tangible reminder that no one walks through life alone. [42:00]

Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. (Galatians 6:2 ESV)

Reflection: Who in your life might need someone to simply "pull alongside" them this week? What is one practical way you can offer your supportive presence to them?

Day 4: Our community is built on a foundation of welcome and hospitality.

A broken elevator can be a barrier that prevents someone from fully participating in the life of the community. Faithfulness involves creating spaces where all are welcome and can easily access the gifts of fellowship and worship. This extends beyond physical structures to the posture of our hearts, actively inviting others into relationship and making room for them. True hospitality seeks to remove obstacles so that all may know they belong. [50:43]

Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality. (Romans 12:13 ESV)

Reflection: What is one obstacle—whether physical, social, or personal—that might hinder someone from feeling welcome in your faith community? How could you help to remove it?

Day 5: We are united in a covenant of mutual support and promise.

The Christian faith is not a solitary journey but a shared life within the body of Christ. We make promises to support, pray for, and guide one another, just as we ask for help and guidance ourselves. This mutual covenant reflects our shared identity as people baptized into Christ’s death and resurrection. It is a commitment to walk together, rejoicing with each other and bearing each other up throughout our lives. [55:00]

So we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. (Romans 12:5 ESV)

Reflection: How does knowing that a community of believers has promised to support and pray for you change the way you face challenges? Who is one person in your faith community you can intentionally support this week?

Sermon Summary

Genesis recounts Jacob’s night at a roadside stone, where a ladder reached from earth to heaven and the Lord promised presence, protection, and blessing to the line of Abraham. 1 Corinthians calls the community to remember its origin: God chose what the world deems weak and foolish so that boasting belongs only to God. The creed and intercessions shape corporate confession and care, naming God’s action in creation, Christ’s life, death, resurrection, and the church’s mission to pray for the world and those in need. A personal testimony models practical faith: showing up, staying with the hurting, visiting those in care, and offering attention without being asked. The congregation receives an invitation to an Inspire Faith event at the World War II Aviation Museum as part of a capital campaign focused on hospitality and accessibility, with concrete needs like elevator repair highlighted as reasons for action. New life in baptism receives public affirmation, vows, and communal prayer that the Spirit will gift wisdom, counsel, and joy. The table of the Lord opens as a hospitable place where all are welcome to receive bread and wine (or juice and gluten-free bread), and the eucharistic words reframe bread and cup as the body and blood given for all. The service closes with a blessing to go and serve, singing a final hymn and sending the assembly into daily witness.

Key Takeaways

1. God’s presence accompanies every journey The dream of a ladder emphasizes that promise does not wait for clarity or success; presence arrives in ordinary, uncertain nights. This presence transforms a makeshift sleeping place into “the house of God” and reframes displacement as pilgrimage under promise. Attending to that reality trains the heart to look for covenantal care in disruption and to trust return even when direction feels unknown. [09:58]
2. God chooses the humble to reveal glory Scripture insists that God’s method often subverts human prestige: weakness and low status become the instruments of divine disclosure. This overturning resists worldly metrics of power and exposes pride by making God the only proper ground for boasting. Living under that pattern requires steady humility and discerning how apparent lack might house vocation. [12:44]
3. Faith shows up in unexpected proximity The story of faithful presence at grief and in care centers reframes ministry as sustained, ordinary attention rather than dramatic gesture. Remaining beside someone—standing through the long minutes, returning daily, noticing neighbors—creates a moral infrastructure that embodies gospel hospitality. Practicing such proximity trains imagination to seek the unseen burdens of others and to assume responsibility without being summoned. [41:24]
4. Baptism and table shape communal identity Public affirmation of baptism and an open eucharist bind personal vows to communal responsibility: hearing the Word, sharing the supper, serving others, and working for justice. These rites form persons into a people whose practices rewrite loneliness into belonging and whose memories ground future action. Approaching them with intentionality cultivates both inward formation and outward witness. [52:30]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[09:33] - Genesis reading (Jacob’s journey)
[09:58] - Jacob’s ladder and God’s promise
[12:44] - 1 Corinthians: God’s chosen
[13:28] - Creed and corporate confession
[35:08] - Prayers for church and world
[41:24] - Testimony: faithful presence
[47:11] - Campaign invitation and airplanes
[52:30] - Baptism and new member vows
[57:13] - Communion and Eucharistic prayer
[70:38] - Blessing and closing hymn

Bible Study Guide

Bible reading
Genesis 28:10-17 (ESV)
Jacob left Beersheba and went toward Haran. And he came to a certain place and stayed there that night, because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place to sleep. And he dreamed, and behold, there was a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven. And behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it! And behold, the Lord stood above it and said, “I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. The land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring. Your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south, and in you and your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed. Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.” And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.”

1 Corinthians 1:26-31 (ESV)
For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”

Observation questions

In Jacob's dream, what specific promises did God make to him regarding his future and God's presence?
How did Jacob's perception of the place change after he woke from his dream?
According to the passage in 1 Corinthians, what are the characteristics of the people God typically chooses?
What is the ultimate purpose God has for choosing the weak and foolish things of the world?

Interpretation questions

Jacob was in a place of uncertainty, fleeing from his brother and sleeping on a stone. Why might God choose such an ordinary and difficult moment to reveal His presence and promises?
The world often values wisdom, power, and noble birth. How does God's method of choosing the foolish, weak, and lowly things of the world subvert these worldly metrics?
The testimony shared described someone providing sustained, ordinary attention by simply standing with a grieving person [41:24]. How does this kind of action reflect the nature of God's presence with us in our own uncertain journeys?
Baptismal vows include promises to live among God’s people, hear His Word, and serve others [54:14]. How do these communal practices shape our identity and turn loneliness into belonging?

Application questions

God’s presence arrives in ordinary, uncertain nights, transforming a makeshift place into "the house of God." [09:58] When have you experienced God's presence in a moment of disruption or fear, and how did it reframe that experience for you?
God chooses what the world deems weak and foolish so that boasting belongs only to God. [12:44] In what areas of your life do you feel inadequate or weak? How might God want to use those very things to reveal His strength and glory?
Faithful presence is shown through sustained, ordinary attention—standing with someone, returning daily, noticing neighbors. [41:24] Who in your life needs that kind of unexpected proximity right now? What is one practical way you can "show up" for them this week without being asked?
The rites of baptism and communion bind personal vows to communal responsibility, rewriting loneliness into belonging. [52:30] How does participating in the Lord's Supper remind you that you are part of a larger family? What is one step you can take to deepen your connection to this community?
A broken elevator can keep people from worship [49:53], highlighting the need for practical hospitality. What is one tangible need in your community or church that, if met, would make it a more welcoming place for others? What role could you play in addressing it?
The Lord's table is a hospitable place where all are welcome to receive. [57:13] Is there someone you find it difficult to imagine sitting at the table with? What would it mean for you to embrace the hospitality of Christ that welcomes both you and them?

Sermon Clips

and unbeknownst to me, Wayne kinda, after the service, just picked me up and followed me outside and stood there for two and a half hours as I greeted people, holding my elbow, keeping me standing, and about halfway through sat me down and said she just said, you need to take a break. I want you to sit down for a little bit. And he went over to everybody else standing waiting, and he said, she'll be back in a few minutes. And and he stayed with me that whole morning, which [00:41:35] (26 seconds) #QuietSupport

The elevator is not working, which has kept two of our members from being able to attend their usual worship service on the 2nd Floor. Right? Those are the kinds of things that we wanna get ahead of and make sure we don't have happen here. We wanna be a welcome place where we can offer hospitality and get people to the places that they need to be. I invite you to come and learn more and just [00:50:21] (22 seconds) #AccessibilityMatters

You have to have them at your table at dinner, but after dinner, I will gladly take them and entertain them in the back of the room. We will make paper airplanes to fly. There will be coloring sheets for them. Please bring your kids. Here's the thing. You have to register today. [00:49:10] (16 seconds) #ChildcareAndFun

he said. So we taught them about all of these different things. So he had these little training tools, and he said it so I could show them how to and I was like, you're not even a pilot. I said, I think that these were just toys for you. Right. So these have been around my house for a long, long time, and I brought them today because [00:47:52] (17 seconds) #TrainingToolsStory

They are not toys. I mean, I kinda think they were my husband's toys at one time or another. He was a teacher in well, he was an intelligence officer in the air force. And one of the things that he did when he was at weapons school was teach about weapons. And I always thought he meant things like guns and, like, weapons. And he said, no. The weapon is the aircraft, [00:47:29] (23 seconds) #AircraftArePower

Because we're in the season of Lent, it means that we have some Lenten things going on. One of them is that Lori Duncan I have props. This morning. Minister of spiritual care. Usually, when I have props, it's for a children's sermon. Today, it is invitational. Right? Do you see what these are? They're airplanes. Right? [00:47:11] (19 seconds) #LentenAirplaneProps

Okay. These are the cool kids. This is who you wanna come and sit next to on Thursday. So I invite you, please, come and join us. You know, one of the reasons that we're doing this capital campaign that's important to us is how many of noticed the yellow tape over the elevator this morning? [00:50:05] (16 seconds) #SitWithTheCoolKids

Heavenly father, you alone are worthy of our worship and love. Inspire our faith as we share your love with the world and welcome more of your children into this community of faith. As you have given us so much, make us generous to bless your church and strengthen our witness so that all may know the joy of salvation. In Jesus' name, pray. Amen. [00:43:18] (30 seconds) #InspireOurFaithPrayer

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First Lutheran Church • 1 Lent • Sunday, February 22, 2026

Devotional

Day 1: God is present in the most unexpected places.

Day 2: God chooses the weak to shame the strong.

Day 3: We are called to pull alongside others in their need.

Day 4: Our community is built on a foundation of welcome and hospitality.

Day 5: We are united in a covenant of mutual support and promise.

Sermon Summary

Key Takeaways

Youtube Chapters

Bible Study Guide

Sermon Clips

Chatbot

First Lutheran Church • 1 Lent • Sunday, February 22, 2026

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