Liturgical Morning Prayer - Day 5

Welcome to morning prayers. We are going to use the same liturgy each day this week. We hope that as it becomes more familiar it will help us to place God in the centre of our hearts and thoughts. It has been translated into French, Spanish and Indonesian. I will lead in English but feel free to read it in whichever language is easiest for you. 

The blue parts are the parts we read together. The reader will read the Scriptures. After the Psalm, you are welcome to pray silently or speak your praises out loud in whatever language you prefer to pray.

Opening sentences (all)

One thing I have asked of the Lord,
this is what I seek:
that I may dwell in the house of the Lord
all the days of my life;
to behold the beauty of the Lord
and to seek him in his temple.

Who is it that you seek?

We seek the Lord our God.

Do you seek Him with all your heart?

Amen. Lord, have mercy.

Do you seek Him with all your soul?

Amen. Lord, have mercy.

Do you seek Him with all your mind?

Amen. Lord, have mercy.

Do you seek Him with all your strength?

Amen. Christ, have mercy.

Declaration of faith (all)

To whom shall we go?
You have the words of eternal life,
and we have believed and have come to know
that you are the Holy One of God.

Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ,
King of endless glory.

Scripture reading:

Using the words of Ephesians 2:4–10 (NLT) we join in praise:

4 But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, 5 that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!) 6 For he raised us from the dead along with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ Jesus. 7 So God can point to us in all future ages as examples of the incredible wealth of his grace and kindness toward us, as shown in all he has done for us who are united with Christ Jesus.

8 God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. 9 Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. 10 For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.

Pause to pray

Psalm 71:1-8 (NIV) (Reader)

In you, Lord, I have taken refuge;
     let me never be put to shame.

2 In your righteousness, rescue me and deliver me;
     turn your ear to me and save me.

3 Be my rock of refuge,
     to which I can always go;

give the command to save me,
     for you are my rock and my fortress.

4 Deliver me, my God, from the hand of the wicked,
     from the grasp of those who are evil and cruel.

5 For you have been my hope, Sovereign Lord,
     my confidence since my youth.

6 From birth I have relied on you;
     you brought me forth from my mother’s womb.
     I will ever praise you.

7 I have become a sign to many;
     you are my strong refuge.

8 My mouth is filled with your praise,
     declaring your splendour all day long.

*Meditation (Leader) 

– by Thomas Merton, a Trappist monk and author 

My Lord God,
I have no idea where I am going.
I do not see the road ahead of me.
I cannot know for certain where it will end.

Nor do I really know myself,
And the fact that I think that I am following your will
Does not mean that I am actually doing so.
But I believe that the desire to please you
Does in fact please you.
And I hope that I have that desire in all that I am doing.

And I know that if I do this,
You will lead me by the right road
Although I may know nothing about it.

Therefore will I trust you always,
Though I may seem to be lost
And in the shadow of death,
I will not fear, for you are ever with me,
And will never leave me
To face my perils alone.

Pause to pray

Prayers for others 

Pray today for those to whom you wish to be a sign that God is your refuge; Psalm 71:7

Pray for those who are returning from the Global Gathering to situations where they need God’s deliverance. 

Pause to pray

Canticle (all)

Christ, as a light
illumine and guide me.
Christ, as a shield
overshadow me.
Christ under me;
Christ over me;
Christ beside me
on my left and my right.
This day be within and without me,
lowly and meek, yet all-powerful.
Be in the heart of each to whom I speak;
in the mouth of each who speaks unto me.
This day be within and without me,
lowly and meek, yet all-powerful.
Christ as a light;
Christ as a shield;
Christ beside me
on my left and my right.

Blessing (all)

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you,
wherever he may send you.
May he guide you through the wilderness,
protect you through the storm.
May he bring you home rejoicing
at the wonders, he has shown you.
May he bring you home rejoicing
once again into our doors.

Acknowledgements:

The liturgy and closing prayers are taken from the Northumbria Community morning prayer: https://www.northumbriacommunity.org/offices/morning-prayer/

*Prayer by Thomas Merton https://onbeing.org/blog/thomas-mertons-prayer-that-anyone-can-pray/