Every Divine Service begins with the invocation: “in the Name of the Father, and of the + Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” This is not the church’s way of saying, “Let’s get started.” It is, rather, a statement, a proclamation of the truth, a means by which GOD reminds us who we are. This is what St. Paul reminded the Corinthians near the beginning of his first letter (1 Cor 1.10-18): you belong to Christ. In making this invocation we confess that we are under authority, that Jesus Christ is our Lord, that the government of our lives is “upon His shoulder.” (Isa 9.6) In making this invocation we acknowledge Jesus’s call to follow Him (Mt 4.19), which is a call to daily repentance (Mt 4.17) and love others as He did (Mt 4.23-25).