Daily Prayer, 2nd Friday in Eastertide

 

 

OPENING SENTENCES

Our help is in the name of the Lord,

Who made heaven and earth. (Psalm 124:8)

It is I,” says the Christ.

“So, come all families of people,

adulterated with sin,

and receive forgiveness of sins.

For I am your freedom.

I am the Passover of salvation,

I am the Lamb slaughtered for you,

I am your ransom,

I am your life,

I am your light,

I am you salvation,

I am your resurrection,

I am your King.

I shall raise you up by my right hand,

I will lead you to the heights of heaven,

there shall I show you the everlasting Father.”

Praise the Lord,

The Lord’s name be praised.

THE GLORIA PATRI

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. AMEN.

THE PSALMS

Psalm 148

Praise the Lord!

Praise the Lord from the heavens;

praise him in the heights!

Praise him, all his angels;

praise him, all his hosts!

Praise him, sun and moon,

praise him, all you shining stars!

Praise him, you highest heavens,

and you waters above the heavens!

Let them praise the name of the Lord!

For he commanded and they were created.

And he established them forever and ever;

he gave a decree, and it shall not pass away.

Praise the Lord from the earth,

you great sea creatures and all deeps,

fire and hail, snow and mist,

stormy wind fulfilling his word!

Mountains and all hills,              

fruit trees and all cedars!

Beasts and all livestock,

creeping things and flying birds!

Kings of the earth and all peoples,

princes and all rulers of the earth!

Young men and maidens together,

old men and children!

Let them praise the name of the Lord,

for his name alone is exalted;

his majesty is above earth and heaven.

He has raised up a horn for his people,

praise for all his saints,

for the people of Israel who are near to him.

Praise the Lord!

Psalm 138

Of David.

I give you thanks, O Lord, with my whole heart;

before the gods I sing your praise;

I bow down toward your holy temple

and give thanks to your name for your steadfast love and your faithfulness,

for you have exalted above all things

your name and your word.

On the day I called, you answered me;

my strength of soul you increased.

All the kings of the earth shall give you thanks, O Lord,

for they have heard the words of your mouth,

and they shall sing of the ways of the Lord,

for great is the glory of the Lord.

For though the Lord is high, he regards the lowly,

but the haughty he knows from afar.

Though I walk in the midst of trouble,

you preserve my life;

you stretch out your hand against the wrath of my enemies,

and your right hand delivers me.

The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me;

your steadfast love, O Lord, endures forever.

 Do not forsake the work of your hands.

THE PSALM PRAYER

Mighty Lord, full of peace and goodness, who has always borne such favor towards your Church that even strange nations have been compelled to acknowledge and praise your marvelous bounty with which you exalt those who are despised and contemptible in the world’s eyes and cast down those who are proud and haughty: Make, Lord, all people to submit to your mighty hand; and preserve your people from all calamities, so that all the world may know that you will not leave imperfect the work that you have begun in us. Through Jesus Christ your Son. AMEN.

THE OLD TESTAMENT LESSON

A reading from Daniel 3:1-18

King Nebuchadnezzar made an image of gold, whose height was sixty cubits and its breadth six cubits. He set it up on the plain of Dura, in the province of Babylon. Then King Nebuchadnezzar sent to gather the satraps, the prefects, and the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the justices, the magistrates, and all the officials of the provinces to come to the dedication of the image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up. Then the satraps, the prefects, and the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the justices, the magistrates, and all the officials of the provinces gathered for the dedication of the image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up. And they stood before the image that Nebuchadnezzar had set up.

And the herald proclaimed aloud, “You are commanded, O peoples, nations, and languages, that when you hear the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, you are to fall down and worship the golden image that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up. And whoever does not fall down and worship shall immediately be cast into a burning fiery furnace.” Therefore, as soon as all the peoples heard the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, all the peoples, nations, and languages fell down and worshiped the golden image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.

Therefore at that time certain Chaldeans came forward and maliciously accused the Jews. They declared to King Nebuchadnezzar, “O king, live forever! You, O king, have made a decree, that every man who hears the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, shall fall down and worship the golden image. And whoever does not fall down and worship shall be cast into a burning fiery furnace. There are certain Jews whom you have appointed over the affairs of the province of Babylon: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. These men, O king, pay no attention to you; they do not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.”

Then Nebuchadnezzar in furious rage commanded that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego be brought. So they brought these men before the king. Nebuchadnezzar answered and said to them, “Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the golden image that I have set up? Now if you are ready when you hear the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, to fall down and worship the image that I have made, well and good. But if you do not worship, you shall immediately be cast into a burning fiery furnace. And who is the god who will deliver you out of my hands?”

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If this be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of your hand, O king. But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.”

THE EPISTLE LESSON

A reading from 1 John 3:1-10

See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.

Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is lawlessness. You know that he appeared in order to take away sins, and in him there is no sin. No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him. Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous. Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God. By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother.

THE GOSPEL LESSON

A reading from Luke 3:15-22

As the people were in expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Christ, John answered them all, saying, “I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”

So with many other exhortations he preached good news to the people. But Herod the tetrarch, who had been reproved by him for Herodias, his brother’s wife, and for all the evil things that Herod had done, added this to them all, that he locked up John in prison. Now when all the people were baptized, and when Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, the heavens were opened, and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form, like a dove; and a voice came from heaven, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”

THE MIDDAY PRAYERS

I will bless the Lord at all times.

His praise shall continually be in my mouth.

Christ is risen from the dead,
by death he has trampled down death,
and upon those in the tombs
he has bestowed life!

Lord Jesus Christ,
Son of the Living God,
have mercy upon us
miserable sinners.

We humbly confess before you, O Lord, our sin and the guilt that comes from it; we beseech you to pardon our sins and transgressions. Create in us a clean heart, and renew a right spirit within us, that we may have power to serve you in righteousness and true holiness all our days. Give us, O Lord, an abiding sense of the vanity and shortness of this mortal life. Seeing that the Son of man will come at an hour when least expect it, may we be always ready; that so the dread summons may not come upon us unawares; but that, being well-prepared and our lamps burning, we may be like those who wait for their Lord, who taught us to pray together, saying:

The Lord’s Prayer     

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 debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: for Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. AMEN.

O Lord, hear our prayer;

And let our cry come to you.

Let us pray:

Friday Prayers

Lord our God, your steadfast love always goes before us and follows after us; your light, always shining, surrounds us. By grace, through faith, you have called us into your light, and through your Word by your Spirit, you direct our steps in the ways of goodness. Grant, Father, that we may always be hearing and answering your call and walking in your ways of goodness, through the cross of your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.

Enable us, O God, to do all things as unto you; that small things may be filled with greatness, and great things may be crowned with humility; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

God of mercy, this midday moment of rest is your welcome gift. Bless the work we have begun, make good its defects, and let us finish it in a way that pleases you. Grant this through Christ our Lord. We praise you, O God, with the morning light, and in the brightness of a new day we bless your holy name. For all you have given to us with the gift of life, making us in your own image and granting us to share as children in your knowledge and your love, in your work and your joy, we thank you, Heavenly Father. For all good things in the world, for food and clothing, for home and friendship, for useful tasks and pure pleasures, we thank you, Heavenly Father. For all spiritual blessings, for Thy holy Word, for Christian fellowship, for the good example and blessed memory of your saints, for the secret influence of your Spirit, we thank you, Heavenly Father. And above all we bless you for the redeeming life and death of your dear Son our Savior Jesus Christ. AMEN.

God of grace, let our concern for others reflect Christ’s self-giving love, not only in our prayers, but also in our practice. Especially we pray for:

• those subjected to tyranny and oppression…
• those who have been physically, or mentally, or spiritually wounded and injured…
• those who are facing death…
• the Church in Latin America…

Blessed Savior, from morning till evening, you hung upon the Cross, stretching out your loving arms: Grant that all the peoples of the earth may look to you and be saved; for your tender mercies’ sake.

Holy and mighty Lord, who turned back the angel of the plague from the dwellings of your people: We beseech you to hear our cry for those who are suffering and dying under this present pestilence. In your mercy give understanding and sound judgment to those called to make decisions of public policy; bless the means which are used to stay the spread of sickness; strengthen those who labor to heal and comfort the afflicted; support those who are in pain and distress; speedily restore those who have been brought low; and unto all who are beyond healing in this life, grant your heavenly consolation and your saving grace. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. AMEN.

THE DISMISSAL

O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.

For his steadfast love endures forever!

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God,

and the fellowship of the Holy Ghost, be with us all evermore. AMEN.