Twelve Weeks of Prayerful Discernment

Listening Together for Where God Is Leading Holy Trinity

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Over the past two years, Holy Trinity has been engaged in an intentional journey of discipleship and mission.

In 2024, we committed ourselves to a renewed emphasis on Christian discipleship. We reflected on the ancient pattern of Oratio (Prayer), Meditatio (Meditation on God's Word), and Tentatio (the trials and struggles through which God forms His people). We recognized that discipleship is not merely the accumulation of knowledge, but the lifelong process of being shaped and reshaped by God's Word and Spirit.

This year, we entered what we have called a Season of Discernment. Together we have been asking important questions:

• How is God calling Holy Trinity to serve our community?
• What opportunities has He placed before us?
• How do we faithfully steward the gifts He has entrusted to us?
• Where is He leading us as a congregation?

As I have reflected on these conversations, there is one thing I have not emphasized nearly enough.

We must bathe this entire season in prayer.

• Not simply prayer before meetings.
• Not simply prayer before decisions.
• Not simply prayer when challenges arise.

Rather, prayer must become the atmosphere in which our discernment takes place.

For that reason, I would like to invite our entire congregation into a shared practice I am calling:

Twelve Weeks of Prayerful Discernment: Listening Together for Where God Is Leading Holy Trinity.

What This Is—and What It Is Not

Before we begin, it is important to understand what this process is intended to be.

• This is not a survey.
• This is not a vote.
• This is not a strategic planning exercise.

This is a congregational practice of prayerful discernment rooted in God's Word.

Over the next twelve weeks, we will read Scripture together, pray through Scripture together, reflect together, and engage one another in faithful conversation.

We will not begin by asking, "What should Holy Trinity do?"

Instead, we will begin by asking:

"What is God already doing among us?"

Because that is the foundational conviction of this entire process.

• We are not undertaking this journey because we believe God is absent.
• We are not beginning because we think the future of Holy Trinity depends upon our creativity, intelligence, or planning.
• Nor do we believe that we must create God's vision for this congregation.

Quite the opposite.

We begin by believing God is already at work among us.

Christ is building His Church.

The Holy Spirit continues to work through the Word.

God continues to provide opportunities for ministry, witness, service, and growth.

The challenge before us is not creating God's future for Holy Trinity.

The challenge is learning to recognize where He is already leading us.

Learning to Pray with Luther

Nearly five hundred years ago, Martin Luther was asked by his barber, Peter Beskendorf, a simple question:

"How should a Christian pray?"

Luther's answer became a short guide called A Simple Way to Pray.

Rather than teaching complicated methods, Luther encouraged Christians to begin with God's Word and ask simple questions:

Instruction

• What is God teaching me?

Thanksgiving

• What do I thank God for?

Confession

• Where have I fallen short?

Petition

• What should I ask God for?

As we begin this Season of Discernment together, I would like to add a fifth question:

Recognition

• Where do we already see evidence of God's work among us?

This question will help bridge prayer and discernment.

Throughout these twelve weeks, we will pray through Scripture using these questions and allow God's Word to shape our thinking, our conversations, and our prayers.

Keeping a Discernment Journal

As you participate in these Twelve Weeks of Prayerful Discernment, I encourage you to keep a simple journal dedicated to this process.

This journal may be handwritten, typed in a Word document, maintained in a notebook, or kept in whatever format best supports your prayer and reflection.

As you read the Scriptures, pray through the questions, and discuss these matters with fellow members, record anything that seems significant:

• Insights from Scripture.
• Themes that repeatedly emerge.
• Opportunities that deserve further exploration.
• Concerns that continue to surface.
• Conversations that challenge or encourage you.
• Areas where you see God already at work.
• Questions that remain unresolved and require continued prayer.

Do not worry about whether an observation is "important enough" to record.

Simply write it down.

Discernment unfolds over time. What may seem insignificant during Week 1 may become important by Week 8.

At the conclusion of these twelve weeks, those who wish may voluntarily share portions of their journals with the Planning Committee.

There is no requirement to do so.

Some reflections may remain deeply personal.

Others may become gifts for the wider congregation.

As these reflections are gathered, the Planning Committee will prayerfully listen for recurring themes, shared hopes, emerging opportunities, common concerns, and evidence of God's work among us.

No single member sees the whole picture.

Each of us sees only a portion.

Yet together our reflections may form a larger tapestry of discernment.

• One member may identify an opportunity.
• Another may recognize a strength.
• Another may highlight a challenge.
• Another may see evidence of God's faithfulness that encourages the entire congregation.

Viewed individually, these observations may appear small.

Viewed together, they may help us better recognize where God is already at work among us.

Throughout this process, we remain grounded in God's Word, guided by prayer, and attentive to one another.

Our confidence rests not in our ability to analyze or plan, but in Christ, who continues to build and sustain His Church.

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Week 1

God Is the Primary Actor

Scripture Readings

Read:

• Acts 13:1–3
• John 15:1–17
• Ephesians 2:1–10

Reflection

One of the greatest temptations facing any congregation is the belief that the future ultimately depends upon us.

We may never say those words aloud, but we often live as though they are true.

• We worry.
• We strategize.
• We debate.
• We wonder whether we have enough people, enough resources, enough volunteers, enough money, enough time, or enough energy.

Yet these three passages gently remind us that God is always the primary actor.

• In Acts, the church does not begin by creating a strategic plan. The believers worship. They pray. They fast. Then the Holy Spirit acts.
• In John, Jesus reminds His disciples that branches do not produce fruit by trying harder. They bear fruit only by remaining connected to the Vine.
• In Ephesians, Paul reminds us that even our good works have been prepared beforehand by God Himself.

Notice what these passages have in common.

• God acts first.
• God calls.
• God sustains.
• God prepares.
• God sends.

Our role is not to manufacture God's work.

Our role is to receive His gifts, listen to His Word, and faithfully walk in the opportunities He places before us.

As Holy Trinity continues in this Season of Discernment, perhaps the most important question is not:

 

"What should we do?"

 

Perhaps the better question is:

 

"What is God already doing among us?"

• Where is Christ already bearing fruit?
• What opportunities has He already placed before us?
• What gifts has He already entrusted to this congregation?
• What conversations has He already begun?

Discernment begins there.

• Not with anxiety.
• Not with fear.
• Not with urgency.
• But with trust.

 

The Lord of the Church remains faithful.

Luther's Five Questions

Instruction

• What do these passages teach us about God's role in the life of His Church?
• What do they teach us about our role?

Thanksgiving

• What gifts has God already given Holy Trinity?
• Where have you witnessed God's faithfulness within our congregation?

Confession

• Where have fear, anxiety, impatience, or self-reliance shaped our thinking?
• Where have we forgotten to trust God's providential care?

Petition

• What should we ask God to strengthen within Holy Trinity?
• What wisdom and guidance should we seek from Him?

Recognition

• Where do you already see evidence of God's work among us?
• What ministries, relationships, opportunities, or blessings seem especially fruitful?
• What signs of God's faithfulness might we be overlooking?

Three Layers of Reflection

Personal Reflection

• What challenged you in these readings?
• What comforted you?
• What convicted you?

Congregational Reflection

• What strengths do you see within Holy Trinity?
• What gifts has God entrusted to our congregation?
• Where do you see God already bearing fruit among us?
• What opportunities seem to be emerging?

Discernment Reflection

• What themes keep surfacing as you pray through these passages?
• What opportunities deserve further prayer and conversation?
• What do these texts encourage us to continue doing?
• What assumptions or priorities might God be challenging?
• What recurring themes should be shared with the Planning Committee?

Conversation Challenge

Before next Sunday, discuss at least one of these questions with:

• A family member.
• A fellow member.
• Your Bible study group.
• A member of the Planning Committee.

Record any significant insights in your discernment journal.

Pay particular attention to recurring themes, repeated observations, and ideas that emerge independently in multiple conversations.

Discernment is rarely done alone.

God often brings clarity through the mutual conversation and consolation of believers.

As we listen to God's Word, pray together, and engage one another in faithful conversation, we trust that the Holy Spirit will continue to bring greater clarity, unity, and direction to Holy Trinity's life and mission.

Our Shared Prayer

Come, Holy Spirit.

Root us in Christ.

Open our hearts to our neighbor.

Send us where You will.

Amen.

Easter Is Still Being Given to You!

There is a temptation, every year, to treat Easter like a finish line.

We walk through Lent.
We gather on Good Friday.
We arrive at Easter morning—bright, full, triumphant.

And then, almost without realizing it, we move on.

But the Church does not.

Because Easter is not the end of something.
It is the beginning of something that is still being given.

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From the Table, to the Cross, to the Empty Tomb

Just days ago, we walked together through the Triduum—the three holy days that are really one unfolding proclamation.

On Maundy Thursday, Jesus gave.
“Given for you.”
Before the cross, before the suffering, Jesus placed His body and blood into the mouths of His disciples. Not as a symbol, but as a promise.

On Good Friday, Jesus finished His work.
“It is finished.”
Not started. Not made possible. Finished.
Sin atoned for. Death defeated. The full weight of the world’s brokenness carried—yours included.

And on Easter morning, Jesus was raised.
Not as a reversal—but as a declaration.

The sacrifice stands.
The work is complete.
Death does not win.

But here is what we must not miss:

Easter is not just proof of what happened then.
Easter is the delivery of what Jesus accomplished—for you, now.

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Behind Locked Doors

In John 20, the disciples are not bold.
They are not confident.
They are not “living their best Easter life.”

They are behind locked doors.

Fearful.
Uncertain.
Unsure what comes next.

And into that—Jesus comes.

Not after they get it together.
Not after they figure out a plan.
Right into the fear. Right into the confusion. Right into the locked room.

And Jesus says:

“Peace be with you.”

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That hits closer to home than we might like to admit.

Because for many of us, life right now feels a lot more like locked doors than open tombs.

• There is instability in the world—wars, especially in the Middle East, that remind us how fragile peace really is.
• There is division and discord in our own country.
• There is grief—the loss of loved ones that still lingers.
• There is uncertainty in work and vocation. I know that personally after last week.
• There is strain in marriages and families.
• There is a quiet drift in faith—sometimes guilt, sometimes numbness, sometimes just exhaustion.

And even as a congregation, if we are honest, there are moments where we feel… stuck.
Waiting. Wondering. Seeking clarity about who we are and where we are going.

It can feel like we, too, are behind locked doors.

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Easter Meets You There—Now, But Not Yet in Fullness

And yet—this is exactly where the risen Jesus comes.

Not to the polished version of your life.
Not to the part that looks put together on Sunday morning.

Jesus comes into the locked places of your life.

And Jesus does not bring a list of demands.

Jesus brings Himself.

“Peace be with you.”

Not as a wish.
As a declaration.

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But here is the tension we live in:

Jesus is risen.
Jesus has won.
Forgiveness is real.
Life is yours.

And yet…

The grief still aches.
The conflict is not fully resolved.
The direction is not always clear.
The struggle with sin still lingers.

This is the life of the Christian.

Not because Easter failed.

But because Easter has begun something that will only be brought to its fullness on the Last Day.

Right now, you live in what Jesus has already secured.
And at the same time, you are still waiting for its complete fulfillment.

You are forgiven—fully.
And yet you still feel the weight of sin.

You are alive in Christ—truly.
And yet your body and this world still bear the marks of death.

You have peace with God—right now.
And yet you still long for the day when that peace will fill everything.

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How Easter Is Still Delivered

This is why the Easter Season matters.

Because Jesus is not distant.
Jesus is not waiting for you to climb your way back.

Jesus is still coming to you—through the very means He has given.

• In His Word, where Jesus still speaks into your locked places: “Peace be with you.”
• In Holy Baptism, where Jesus’ death and resurrection were placed on you—not as an idea, but as your identity.
• In Confession and Absolution, where what Jesus finished on the cross is spoken directly into your ears: your sins are forgiven.
• In the Lord’s Supper, where the same body Jesus gave on Maundy Thursday and the same blood Jesus shed on Good Friday are now placed into your hands and your mouth—risen, living, and for you.

Easter is not something you work your way into.

It is something that Jesus keeps giving to you—again and again.

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A Different Kind of Life Together

And this begins to shape how we live—not just individually, but as families and as a congregation.

If Jesus comes into locked rooms…
then we do not need to pretend we have everything figured out.

If Jesus speaks peace into fear…
then we can be honest about where we are.

And if Jesus is alive and active among us…
then our future is not something we manufacture—but something we receive and walk into together.

This is where our Season of Discernment matters.

Not as a strategic exercise alone.
But as a posture of listening.

Because Jesus is not absent from His Church.

Jesus is here.
Jesus is speaking.
Jesus is leading.

And as we consider how we serve our neighbors here in Lutz—not from fear, not from pressure, but from the life we have already been given—we do so with confidence:

We are not bringing Jesus to a place where He is not.
We are participating in what Jesus is already doing.

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You Are Not Waiting for Victory

This is perhaps the hardest shift.

We often live as though we are still trying to get to Easter.

Trying to get things under control.
Trying to fix what is broken.
Trying to become who we think we should be.

But Easter says something different.

You are not living toward victory.

You are living from it.

And yet—you are also waiting for its fullness.

The day is coming when:

• every tear will be wiped away
• every division will cease
• every burden will be lifted
• every question will be answered

That day is certain.

Because Jesus is risen.

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Christ Is Risen—For You, Now and Unto Fullness

So if your life feels like a locked room right now…

If there is fear, or grief, or uncertainty…
If there is guilt that lingers or numbness that won’t lift…
If you do not yet see clearly what comes next…

Hear this clearly:

Jesus is risen.

And Jesus is not waiting outside the door.

Jesus is already there, with you.

Speaking peace.
Giving forgiveness.
Feeding you with His own life.

Not because you have it all together.

But because it is finished.

And it is for you.

Now.

And unto the day when it will be yours in the full, complete perfection He has prepared for you!

Easter Sunday — Risen and Given to You

Christ is risen!

• The silence is broken.
• The tomb is empty.
• Death has been defeated.

But this is more than a moment to celebrate.

This is the confirmation that everything Christ has done is complete, and now belongs to you!

• What was given…
• What was finished…
• Is now revealed as victory.

The body that was given is alive.
The blood that was shed has conquered death.

And that means:

• His victory is not distant.
• It is not abstract.
• It is not something you must reach for.

It is given!

"For you."

So today, do not stand at the empty tomb as a spectator.

Hear what the resurrection declares:

Christ is risen—for you.
And His life is now your life!
 

Holy Saturday — When God Is Silent

Today is a day of silence.

• The crowds are gone.
• The cross stands empty.
• The tomb is sealed.

 

• There are no new words.
• No visible action.
• No sign of what is coming next.

For the disciples, this is a day of confusion and grief. Everything seems lost. Everything feels finished.

And yet… Christ’s work has not changed.

What was accomplished on the cross remains true, even when it cannot be seen.

This is the day of waiting.

The day when faith does not rest on what is visible, but on what Christ has already done.

If you have ever known seasons where God feels silent…
where nothing seems to be happening…
where hope feels buried…

This day speaks to you.

Because even here, even in the silence:

Christ’s work remains sure.

And the story is not over!

Good Friday — It Is Finished

Today, you see what it cost.

What Christ gave last night, He now accomplishes on the cross.

• This is not chaos.
• This is not failure.
• This is not unfinished work.

This is completion.

“It is finished.”

With this word, everything is done.

• Every sin answered.
• Every debt paid.
• Every accusation silenced.

 

• There is nothing left for you to complete.
• Nothing left for you to fix.
• Nothing left for you to add.

The work of your salvation is finished, fully and completely.

And now you begin to understand:

What you received…
this is what it cost.

So today, do not try to move past the cross too quickly.

Stay here.

And hear again the word that changes everything:

"It is Finished."

Maundy Thursday — Given for You

Tonight, everything changes.

• Before the cross is seen…
• Before the suffering unfolds…
• Before the blood is poured out…

Jesus gives Himself.

“Take, eat; this is My body… given for you.
Drink of it… this is My blood… shed for you for the forgiveness of sins.”

• He does not wait for you to understand.
• He does not wait for you to be ready.
• He does not wait for you to prove anything.

He gives.

And what He gives is not a symbol or a reminder.

He gives His very body and blood, the same body that will be given on the cross, the same blood that will be shed for the forgiveness of sins.

Tonight, you do not stand at a distance watching.

You receive.

Before you ever see the cross, Christ places it into your hands and mouth.

"For you."

Holy Wednesday — Even Now, He Is Moving Toward the Cross

Holy Wednesday is quiet.

• There are no great crowds.
• No dramatic scenes.
• No major events recorded for us.

And yet… everything is moving.

Behind the scenes, betrayal is forming. Judas prepares to hand Jesus over. The path to the cross is set.

And Jesus knows.

Nothing here is hidden from Him. Nothing is catching Him off guard.

And still—He does not turn away.

• He does not avoid what is coming.
• He does not change course.
• He does not escape.

He continues forward.

This is the quiet, steady movement of your salvation.

Even when nothing seems to be happening… everything is unfolding exactly as it must.

So today, in the stillness, remember:

Christ is not absent in the silence.
He is not distant in the waiting.

Even now, He is moving toward the cross, for you.