Morning Prayer: Monday 17 October 2016

October 17, 2016

Ignatius of Antioch, Bishop and Martyr, c.115
Morning Prayer – Week C

O Lord, open our lips:
and our mouth shall proclaim your praise.

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.

PSALMODY

Antiphon: Be joyful in God, all you lands;*
sing the glory of his name! (Ps. 66.1)

Opening

VENITE

1 O come let us sing out to the Lord,*
let us shout in triumph to the rock of our salvation.
2 Let us come before his face with thanksgiving*
and cry out to him joyfully in psalms.
3 For the Lord is a great God,*
and a great king above all gods.
4 In his hands are the depths of the earth,*
and the peaks of the mountains are his also.
5 The sea is his and he made it;*
his hands moulded dry land.
6 Come let us worship and bow down,*
and kneel before the Lord our maker.
7 For he himself is our God;*
we are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his hand.
8 Today if only you would hear his voice:*
‘Do not harden your hearts as Israel did in the wilderness;
9 when your fathers tested me;*
put me to proof though they had seen my works.
10 Of whom I swore in my wrath:*
“They shall not enter my rest.”’

Glory to the Father… (may be said by all)

or (from Psalms 66 and 92)

1 All the earth bows down before you,*
sings to you, sings out your name.
2 Bless our God, you peoples;*
make the voice of his praise to be heard.
3 It is a good thing to give thanks to the Lord,*
and to sing praises to your name, O Most High;
4 to tell of your loving-kindness early in the morning*
and of your faithfulness in the night season.

Glory to the Father…

or a suitable hymn

Psalm 37.1-18

1 Do not fret yourself because of evildoers;*
do not be jealous of those who do wrong.
2 For they shall soon wither like the grass,*
and like the green grass fade away.
3 Put your trust in the Lord and do good;*
dwell in the land and feed on its riches.
4 Take delight in the Lord,*
and he shall give you your heart’s desire.
5 Commit your way to the Lord and put your trust in him,*
and he will bring it to pass.
6 He will make your righteousness as clear as the light*
and your just dealing as the noonday.
7 Be still before the Lord*
and wait patiently for him.
8 Do not fret yourself over the one who prospers,*
the one who succeeds in evil schemes.
9 Refrain from anger, leave rage alone;*
do not fret yourself; it leads only to evil.
10 For evildoers shall be cut off,*
but those who wait upon the Lord shall possess the land.
11 In a little while the wicked shall be no more;*
you shall search out their place, but they will not be there.
12 But the lowly shall possess the land;*
they will delight in abundance of peace.
13 The wicked plot against the righteous*
and gnash at them with their teeth.
14 The Lord laughs at the wicked,*
because he sees that their day will come.
15 The wicked draw their sword and bend their bow
to strike down the poor and needy,*
to slaughter those who are upright in their ways.
16 Their sword shall go through their own heart,*
and their bow shall be broken.
17 The little that the righteous has*
is better than great riches of the wicked.
18 For the power of the wicked shall be broken,*
but the Lord upholds the righteous.

God our strength, give us the humility to trust in your loving care, and the patience to be faithful in seeking your kingdom, that we may come to share in the inheritance of your saints; through Jesus Christ our Saviour.

Conclusion (from Isaiah 12)

1 Behold God is my salvation;*
I will trust and not be afraid;
2 the Lord God is my strength and my song;
he has become my salvation.
3 With joy you will draw water*
from the wells of salvation.
4 Give thanks to the Lord, call upon his name;*
make known his deeds among the nations.
5 Sing to the Lord for he has done gloriously;*
let this be known in all the earth.
6 Shout and sing for joy, O inhabitant of Sion,*
for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.

Glory to the Father…

Antiphon: Be joyful in God, all you lands;
Sing the glory of his name!

READING(S)

Sirach 4:20 – 5:7

Watch for the opportune time, and beware of evil,
and do not be ashamed to be yourself.
For there is a shame that leads to sin,
and there is a shame that is glory and favour.
Do not show partiality, to your own harm,
or deference, to your downfall.
Do not refrain from speaking at the proper moment,
and do not hide your wisdom.
For wisdom becomes known through speech,
and education through the words of the tongue.
Never speak against the truth,
but be ashamed of your ignorance.
Do not be ashamed to confess your sins,
and do not try to stop the current of a river.
Do not subject yourself to a fool,
or show partiality to a ruler.
Fight to the death for truth,
and the Lord God will fight for you.

Do not be reckless in your speech,
or sluggish and remiss in your deeds.
Do not be like a lion in your home,
or suspicious of your servants.
Do not let your hand be stretched out to receive
and closed when it is time to give.

Do not rely on your wealth,
or say, ‘I have enough.’
Do not follow your inclination and strength
in pursuing the desires of your heart.
Do not say, ‘Who can have power over me?’
for the Lord will surely punish you.

Do not say, ‘I sinned, yet what has happened to me?’
for the Lord is slow to anger.
Do not be so confident of forgiveness
that you add sin to sin.
Do not say, ‘His mercy is great,
he will forgive the multitude of my sins’,
for both mercy and wrath are with him,
and his anger will rest on sinners.
Do not delay to turn back to the Lord,
and do not postpone it from day to day;
for suddenly the wrath of the Lord will come upon you,
and at the time of punishment you will perish.

Revelation 7:1-8

After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth so that no wind could blow on earth or sea or against any tree. I saw another angel ascending from the rising of the sun, having the seal of the living God, and he called with a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to damage earth and sea, saying, ‘Do not damage the earth or the sea or the trees, until we have marked the servants of our God with a seal on their foreheads.’

And I heard the number of those who were sealed, one hundred and forty-four thousand, sealed out of every tribe of the people of Israel:5From the tribe of Judah twelve thousand sealed,from the tribe of Reuben twelve thousand,from the tribe of Gad twelve thousand, 6from the tribe of Asher twelve thousand,from the tribe of Naphtali twelve thousand,from the tribe of Manasseh twelve thousand, 7from the tribe of Simeon twelve thousand,from the tribe of Levi twelve thousand,from the tribe of Issachar twelve thousand, 8from the tribe of Zebulun twelve thousand,from the tribe of Joseph twelve thousand,from the tribe of Benjamin twelve thousand sealed.

Silence

Response (Ps. 63.4)

I will bless you Lord as long as I live.
I will bless you Lord as long as I live.
And lift up my hands in your name.
As long as I live.
Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
I will bless you Lord as long as I live.

BENEDICTUS

Benedictus Antiphon: God has set us free* to worship him.

1 Blessed be the Lord the God of Israel,*
for he has come to his people and set them free.
2 He has raised up for us a mighty saviour,*
born of the house of his servant David.
3 Through his holy prophets he promised of old*
that he would save us from our enemies,
from the hands of all that hate us.
4 He promised to show mercy to our forebears,*
and to remember his holy covenant.
5 This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham:*
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
6 free to worship him without fear,*
holy and righteous in his sight all the days of our life.
7 You my child shall be called the prophet of the Most High,*
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
8 to give his people knowledge of salvation*
by the forgiveness of all their sins.
9 In the tender compassion of our God*
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
10 to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death,*
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.

Glory to the Father… (may be said by all)

Benedictus Antiphon: God has set us free* to worship him.

PRAYERS

Lord, have mercy upon us.
Christ, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.

Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Do not bring us to the time of trial,
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours,
now and for ever.
Amen.

Collect of the Day
Almighty and merciful God: in your goodness keep from us all that is harmful; that, being ready both in body and soul, we may freely accomplish your will; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end.
Amen.

God most holy, we give you thanks for bringing us out of the shadow of night into the light of morning; and we ask you for the joy of spending this day in your service, so that when evening comes, we may once more give you thanks, through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord. Amen.

Let us bless the Lord:
Thanks be to God!

The Lord bless us and preserve us from all evil;
and bring us to life eternal.
Amen.