Morning Prayer, 3rd Monday in Ordinary Time
Please feel free to pause the service at any point if you would like more time to pray or to reflect.
OPENING SENTENCES
O Lord, open our lips.
And our mouth shall proclaim your praise.
Be willing, O God, to deliver us!
O Lord, come quickly to our help!
The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the Gospel. (Mark 1:15)
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 MORNING PSALM
Oh come, let us sing to the Lord;
let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!
Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;
let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!
For the Lord is a great God,
and a great King above all gods.
In his hand are the depths of the earth;
the heights of the mountains are his also.
The sea is his, for he made it,
and his hands formed the dry land.
Oh come, let us worship and bow down;
let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker!
For he is our God,
and we are the people of his pasture,
and the sheep of his hand.
Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts, as at Meribah,
as on the day at Massah in the wilderness,
when your fathers put me to the test
and put me to the proof, though they had seen my work.
For forty years I loathed that generation
and said, “They are a people who go astray in their heart,
and they have not known my ways.”
Therefore I swore in my wrath,
“They shall not enter my rest.” (Psalm 95:1-11)
THE PSALTER
Psalm 57
To the choirmaster: according to Do Not Destroy.
A Miktam of David, when he fled from Saul, in the cave.
Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me,
for in you my soul takes refuge;
in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge,
till the storms of destruction pass by.
I cry out to God Most High,
to God who fulfills his purpose for me.
He will send from heaven and save me;
he will put to shame him who tramples on me. Selah
God will send out his steadfast love and his faithfulness!
My soul is in the midst of lions;
I lie down amid fiery beasts—
the children of man, whose teeth are spears and arrows,
whose tongues are sharp swords.
Be exalted, O God, above the heavens!
Let your glory be over all the earth!
They set a net for my steps;
my soul was bowed down.
They dug a pit in my way,
but they have fallen into it themselves. Selah
My heart is steadfast, O God,
my heart is steadfast!
I will sing and make melody!
Awake, my glory!
Awake, O harp and lyre!
I will awake the dawn!
I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the peoples;
I will sing praises to you among the nations.
For your steadfast love is great to the heavens,
your faithfulness to the clouds.
Be exalted, O God, above the heavens!
Let your glory be over all the earth!
THE PSALM PRAYER
Good and gracious God, who has willed your people to walk before you in all sincerity and cleanness of life: Grant that those wicked, crafty, and malicious tyrants have no power to annoy us, according to their will; but that, they being rooted out of the number of the living, we may remain as fruitful trees in your house, through the good hope we have in you, and in your Son, Christ Jesus our Lord. AMEN.
THE OLD TESTAMENT LESSON
A reading from Isaiah, chapter 48:
Hear this, O house of Jacob,
who are called by the name of Israel,
and who came from the waters of Judah,
who swear by the name of the Lord
and confess the God of Israel,
but not in truth or right.
For they call themselves after the holy city,
and stay themselves on the God of Israel;
the Lord of hosts is his name.
“The former things I declared of old;
they went out from my mouth, and I announced them;
then suddenly I did them, and they came to pass.
Because I know that you are obstinate,
and your neck is an iron sinew
and your forehead brass,
I declared them to you from of old,
before they came to pass I announced them to you,
lest you should say, ‘My idol did them,
my carved image and my metal image commanded them.’
“You have heard; now see all this;
and will you not declare it?
From this time forth I announce to you new things,
hidden things that you have not known.
They are created now, not long ago;
before today you have never heard of them,
lest you should say, ‘Behold, I knew them.’
You have never heard, you have never known,
from of old your ear has not been opened.
For I knew that you would surely deal treacherously,
and that from before birth you were called a rebel.
“For my name’s sake I defer my anger;
for the sake of my praise I restrain it for you,
that I may not cut you off.
Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver;
I have tried you in the furnace of affliction.
For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it,
for how should my name be profaned?
My glory I will not give to another.” (Isaiah 48:1-11)
The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
THE CANTICLE The Song of Hannah
My heart exults in the Lord;
my horn is exalted in the Lord.
My mouth derides my enemies,
because I rejoice in your salvation.
There is none holy like the Lord:
for there is none besides you;
there is no rock like our God.
Talk no more so very proudly,
let not arrogance come from your mouth;
for the Lord is a God of knowledge,
and by him actions are weighed.
The bows of the mighty are broken,
but the feeble bind on strength.
The Lord kills and brings to life;
he brings down to Sheol and raises up.
The Lord makes poor and makes rich;
he brings low and he exalts.
He raises up the poor from the dust;
he lifts the needy from the ash heap
to make them sit with princes
and inherit a seat of honor.
For the pillars of the earth are the Lord’s,
and on them he has set the world.
The Lord will judge the ends of the earth;
he will give strength to his king
and exalt the horn of his anointed.
THE EPISTLE LESSON
A reading from Galatians, chapter 1:
Paul, an apostle—not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead— and all the brothers who are with me,
To the churches of Galatia:
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.
I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed. For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.
For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man’s gospel. For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ. For you have heard of my former life in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God violently and tried to destroy it. And I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people, so extremely zealous was I for the traditions of my fathers. But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with anyone; nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me, but I went away into Arabia, and returned again to Damascus. (Galatians 1:1-17)
The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
THE MORNING PRAYERS
The Prayers for Grace
Heavenly Father, in you we live and move and have our being: We humbly pray that you will so guide and govern us by your Holy Spirit, that in all the cares and occupations of our life, we may not forget you, but may remember that we are ever walking in your sight. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. AMEN.
Loving God, through your Son you have called on all people to repent of their sin, to believe in the Gospel, and to celebrate the coming of your Kingdom. Like Jesus’ first disciples, grant that we may we hear his call to follow him, and, forsaking our own way, proclaim the Good News of peace, happiness, and salvation, found in Christ alone, in whose name we pray. AMEN.
Monday Morning Prayers
God, our Father, of whom the whole family in heaven and on earth is named: Bestow upon your household of faith, at the beginning of this day, that grace that shall keep us in the fellowship of Christ’s way; and grant to each one of us that heavenly guidance and control, in all our labors, pleasures, and trials, which shall maintain our hearts in peace with one another and with you. Graciously help and prosper us in our various labors with a willing and cheerful mind; and defend us all, by your almighty power, both from inward evil and from outward harm, so that when the day is ended it may not leave us in sorrow, strife, or shame, but in true unity and thankful rest, through your merciful favor and your forgiving love; in Christ Jesus our Lord.
In his name, Father, we dare to pray for others, claiming your love in Jesus Christ for the whole world and committing ourselves to care for those around us in his name. Especially, we pray for:
- those who work for the benefit of others…
- those who cannot work today…
- those who teach and those who learn…
- those who are poor, or neglected and forgotten…
- the Church of Jesus Christ in Europe…
Personal Thanksgivings and Intercessions
Hear us now, Father, as in the name of Christ, we offer our own thanksgivings and intercessions for those in sickness, grief, persecution, bondage, fear, or loneliness…
Please feel free to pause the service for your personal prayers and thanksgivings for yourself, the Church, your officers, and others.
The Prayers of the Day
O God, because without you we are not able to please you, mercifully grant that your Holy Spirit may in all things direct and rule our hearts through Jesus Christ our Lord. AMEN.
Almighty God, who having made your dear Son Jesus Christ perfect through suffering, has called your people to be his disciples and followers: Fill us, we beseech you, with the same Spirit which was in him, that we, being crucified to the world, may patiently bear the cross. And being renewed in our natures in righteousness and true holiness, and walking in the way of Christ, grant that peace and mercy may be upon us. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. AMEN.
O Merciful God, who according to your divine power has given us all things pertaining to life and godliness: Make us strong in the Lord, in the power of his might; that putting on the whole armor of God, we may be able to resist all the temptations of the world, the flesh, and the devil, praying to you always with fervent prayer through Jesus Christ our Lord, who taught us to pray together:
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.
THE DISMISSAL
Go forth into the world in peace; be of good courage; hold fast that which is good; render to no one evil for evil; strengthen the fainthearted; support the weak; heal the afflicted; honor all people; love and serve the Lord, rejoicing always in the power of the Holy Ghost. And the blessing of God the Almighty, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, preserve and keep you this day and forevermore. AMEN.