Mike Willock writes: A recent Luther Seminary devotional highlighted two three-word prayers from the gospel of Matthew. I have added a third found in the Psalms. The first is in Matthew 14 after feeding the 5,000 when Jesus sent the disciples across the Sea of Galilee and went alone up the mountain to pray. Later that night the boat was caught in a storm and Jesus came to them walking on the water. Peter, ever the one to speak first, said, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” When Jesus said, “Come”, Peter got out of the boat but soon he became afraid of the wind and waves and began to sink. He cried out “Lord, save me” (Matthew 14:30) and Jesus caught him by the hand and rescued him. That’s one. The second is from the Matthew 15 story of the Canaanite woman who pleaded with Jesus to heal her demon-tormented daughter, crying, “Lord, help me” (Matthew 15:24). Jesus praised her persistent faith and healed her daughter, which marked a turning point in Jesu...

Mike Willock writes: Moving from the Maundy Thursday service in Niccolls Hall to the sanctuary where the Stations of the Cross are displayed, I was struck by two contrasting uses of a basin and water for washing. The basin in the Last Supper was used by Jesus, as described in John 13: “Jesus got up from the table and took off his robes. Picking up a linen towel he tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a washbasin and began to wash the disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel he was wearing. … After he washed the disciples’ feet, he put on his robes and returned to his place at the table. … If I, your Lord and teacher, have washed your feet, you too must wash each other’s feet. I have given you an example: Just as I have done, you must also do. ... I give you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, so you must also love each other. This is how everyone will know that you are my disciples, when you love each other.” The other basin was used by Pon...

During the Aug. 13 outdoor service in Tower Grove Park, Pastor Travis preached and led a discussion about the closing phrase in the Lord’s Prayer, “deliver us from evil.” A key part of the discussion focused on how we envision evil. Do we chiefly see evil as the systems and forces that shape our actions, something akin to the “principalities and powers” that Paul writes about his letter to the Ephesians? Or is it more personalized, a specific adversary, “the evil one,” sometimes characterized as the devil or Satan? Both these are commonplace interpretations and the tension between the two has its roots in the translations favored by Western theology (systems) and the Eastern theology (a specific adversary). In the same week as I encountered this fascinating insight, I also cam across a wonderful folktale from the Buddhist tradition, which also helps to illuminate the phrase “deliver us from evil.” It gave me a entirely fresh way to think about the battle between good and evil. Some b...