Preparation
O God, make speed to save us.
O Lord, make haste to help us.
Make me to know your ways, O Lord,
and teach me your paths. Psalm 25:3
The Lord is full of compassion and mercy,
slow to anger and of great kindness.
He has not dealt with us according to our sins,
nor rewarded us according to our wickedness.
For as the heavens are high above the earth,
so great is his mercy upon those who fear him.
Silence is kept for reflection
Holy God,
Holy and strong,
Holy and immortal,
have mercy upon us.
As far as the east is from the west,
so far has he set our sins from us.
As a father has compassion on his children,
so is the Lord merciful towards those who fear him.
Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and all that is within me bless his holy name.
Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits. cf Psalm 103
You, Christ, are the King of glory,
The eternal Son of the Father.
When you took our flesh to set us free
You humbly chose the Virgin’s womb.
You overcame the sting of death
And opened the kingdom of heaven to all believers.
You are seated at God’s right hand in glory.[1]
Glory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning is now
and shall be for ever. Amen.
The night has passed, and the day lies open before us;
let us pray with one heart and mind.
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
be acceptable in your sight, O Lord,
My strength and my redeemer. Psalm 19:14
The Word of God
Psalm 105:23-29
Refrain: Remember the marvels the Lord has done.
23 Israel also came into Egypt.
Jacob lived in the land of Ham.
24 He increased his people greatly,
and made them stronger than their adversaries.
25 He turned their heart to hate his people,
to conspire against his servants. R
26 He sent Moses, his servant,
and Aaron, whom he had chosen.
27 They performed miracles amongst them,
and wonders in the land of Ham.
28 He sent darkness, and made it dark.
They didn’t rebel against his words.
29 He turned their waters into blood,
and killed their fish.
Silence may be kept.
O God Eternal, who is always mindful of your covenant, and who delivered the seed of Abraham from the slavery of Egypt, from the waves of the sea, from the rage of Pharaoh, from the thirst and famine of the wilderness, continue like mercies to all your people; deliver us from the bondage of our sins, and preserve us in the Ark of the Church, that we perish not in the waves of this troublesome world; save us from all our earthly and spiritual enemies, feed us with food from heaven, and give us enough on earth, that we may gladly keep your statutes, observe your Laws, and so imitate your Son. Grant this, we pray through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. [2]
Leviticus 21:17-33
17 “Say to Aaron, ‘None of your offspring throughout their generations who has a defect may approach to offer the bread of his God. 18 For whatever man he is that has a defect, he shall not draw near: a blind man, or a lame, or he who has a flat nose, or any deformity, 19 or a man who has an injured foot, or an injured hand, 20 or hunchbacked, or a dwarf, or one who has a defect in his eye, or an itching disease, or scabs, or who has damaged testicles. 21 No man of the offspring of Aaron the priest who has a defect shall come near to offer the offerings of the LORD made by fire. Since he has a defect, he shall not come near to offer the bread of his God. 22 He shall eat the bread of his God, both of the most holy, and of the holy. 23 He shall not come near to the veil, nor come near to the altar, because he has a defect; that he may not profane my sanctuaries, for I am the LORD who sanctifies them.’ ”
24 So Moses spoke to Aaron, and to his sons, and to all the children of Israel.
Proverbs 22:20-21
20 Haven’t I written to you thirty excellent things
of counsel and knowledge,
21 To teach you truth, reliable words,
to give sound answers to the ones who sent you?
A song may be sung (“Ghost of a King” | Gray Havens )
Ghost of a King
Met a ghost of a king on the road when I first fell, fire burning
To my knees, to my knees I fell
Met a ghost of a king on a road
Words of fire
He said, “You are a lonely soul
With a heart of stone that rakes against your thirsty bones
Such a lonely soul”
Said, “I can show you what can save you, but we need to go
Where no chariot can take you
Where the river meets the sand
There is water there that can quench your thirsty bones
And make you well, make you well”
So I followed the ghost of a king with every step
I tried to see beyond for a trace of the riverside
But restlessness was my prize
And then we came upon a golden shore
But the voice of fire wasn’t comin’ from a ghost no more
My heart of stone came alive
When my eyes were opened up
And I saw that I had come
Where no chariot can take you
Where the river meets the sand
There is water there that can quench your thirsty bones
And make you well, make you well
So I knelt beside the river and I drank until, I drank until, I drank until I died
There’s something in the water, must have brought me back
It brought me back, it brought me back to life
Where no chariot can take you
Where the river meets the sand
There is water there that can quench your thirsty bones
And make you well, well
Where no chariot can take you
Where the river meets the sand
There is water there that can quench your thirsty bones
And make you well, make you well
Mark 8:27-30
27 Jesus went out, with his disciples, into the villages of Caesarea Philippi. On the way he asked his disciples, “Who do men say that I am?”
28 They told him, “John the Baptiser, and others say Elijah, but others: one of the prophets.”
29 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”
Peter answered, “You are the Christ.”
30 He commanded them that they should tell no one about him. [3]
Today, Father, may your words be always in front of my eyes;
may my hands be engaged in the practice of your commands. Psalm 143:8
Prayers
Prayers may include these concerns:
– That which burdens you
Lord, in your mercy
hear our prayer
Silence may be kept.
The Collect of the day or the following is said
O Lord our God,
grant us grace to desire you with our whole heart;
that so desiring, we may seek and find you;
and so finding, may love you;
and so loving, may hate those sins from which you have delivered us;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Let us pray with confidence as our Saviour has taught us:
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done;
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power and the glory,
for ever and ever.
Amen.
Merciful Father,
accept these prayers
for the sake of your Son,
our Saviour Jesus Christ.
Amen.
The Conclusion
I will meditate on your precepts,
and fix my eyes on your ways. Psalm 119:15
I run in the path of your commands,
for you have set my heart free. Psalm 119:32
The sum of your word is truth,
and every one of your righteous rules endures forever. Amen. Psalm 119:160 [4]
(the pdf of this days prayer may be downloaded here)
[1] from Te Deum Laudamus
[2] after THE PSALTER OF DAVID WITH Titles and Collects according to the matter of each PSALME. OXFORD, Printed by Leonard Lichfield, Printer to the University. 1644.
[3] All Scripture from the World English Bible: British Edition (WEBBE)
[4] N. Andrew Long. The Offerings of Our Lips: Prayer in Community. Nampa, ID: In(habit) Media, 2017.
Long-ing For Life 