After Pentecost | Wednesday 20 Nov 2024
+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Opening:
Stir up, O Lord,
the wills of your faithful people,
that bringing forth in abundance
the fruit of good works, they may be
abundantly rewarded when our Savior Jesus Christ
comes to restore all things;
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
“Everyone will hate you
because you are committed to me.
But the person who endures to the end
will be saved.”
(Mark 13:13)
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From the Psalms: Psalm 3 | Poor Bishop Hooper
you oh lord are a shield around me
you oh lord are my only glory
i cried out and you heard my story
and you answered and you answered
i slept in fear but i woke in safety
for you oh lord are always watching over me
though ten thousand though ten thousand stand against me
you answered oh you answered
salvation belongs to only you god
arise oh lord arise oh lord
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OT Reading: 1 Kings 8:22-30 (GW)
Solomon’s Prayer
8:22 In the presence of the entire assembly of Israel, Solomon stood in front of the Lord’s altar. He stretched out his hands toward heaven and said,
“Lord God of Israel,
there is no god like you in heaven above or on earth below.
You keep your promise of mercy to your servants,
who obey you wholeheartedly.
You have kept your promise to my father David, your servant.
With your mouth you promised it.
With your hand you carried it out as it is today.
“Now, Lord God of Israel,
keep your promise to my father David, your servant.
You said, ‘You will never fail to have an heir
sitting in front of me on the throne of Israel
if your descendants are faithful to me
as you have been faithful to me.’
“So now, God of Israel,
may the promise you made to my father David,
your servant, come true.
“Does God really live on earth?
If heaven itself, the highest heaven, cannot hold you,
then how can this temple that I have built?
Nevertheless, my Lord God, please pay attention to my prayer for mercy.
Listen to my cry for help as I pray to you today.
Night and day may your eyes be on this temple,
the place about which you said, ‘My name will be there.’
Listen to me as I pray toward this place.
Hear the plea for mercy
that your people Israel and I pray toward this place.
Hear us ⌞when we pray⌟ to heaven, the place where you live.
Hear and forgive.
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Solomon’s Prayer | Liberated Wailing Wall / Kenneth Hinkley
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NT Reading: Mark 13:9-23 (GW)
13:9 “Be on your guard! People will hand you over to the Jewish courts and whip you in their synagogues. You will stand in front of governors and kings to testify to them because of me. But first, the Good News must be spread to all nations. When they take you away to hand you over to the authorities, don’t worry ahead of time about what you will say. Instead, say whatever is given to you to say when the time comes. Indeed, you are not the one who will be speaking, but the Holy Spirit will.
“Brother will hand over brother to death; a father will hand over his child. Children will rebel against their parents and kill them. Everyone will hate you because you are committed to me. But the person who endures to the end will be saved.
“When you see the disgusting thing that will cause destruction standing where it should not (let the reader take note), those of you in Judea should flee to the mountains. Those who are on the roof should not come down to get anything out of their houses. Those who are in the field should not turn back to get their coats.
“How horrible it will be for the women who are pregnant or who are nursing babies in those days. Pray that it will not be in winter. It will be a time of misery that has not happened from the beginning of God’s creation until now, and will certainly never happen again. If the Lord does not reduce that time, no one will be saved. But those days will be reduced because of those whom God has chosen.
“At that time don’t believe anyone who tells you, ‘Here is the Messiah!’ or ‘There he is!’ False messiahs and false prophets will appear. They will work miraculous signs and do wonderful things to deceive, if possible, those whom God has chosen. Be on your guard! I have told you everything before it happens.
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Only Jesus | Casting Crowns / Christ The King Music
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Gracious and holy Father, please give me intellect to understand you, reason to discern you, diligence to seek you, wisdom to find you, a spirit to know you, a heart to meditate upon you, ears to hear you, eyes to see you, a tongue to proclaim you, a way of life pleasing to you, patience to wait for you, and perseverance to look for you. Grant me a perfect end, your holy presence, a blessed resurrection, and life everlasting. Amen. | Benedict of Nursia
Our God, in whom we trust: Strengthen us not to regard overmuch who is for us or who is against us, but to see to it that we be with you in everything we do. Amen. | Thomas à Kempis
Sovereign Lord: We pray for the peace of Jerusalem:
+ Do what only you can do to make your faithful people the blessing promised to every family on earth.
+ Protect them from the assaults of the evil one, coming from every direction and in every form.
+ Grant your heavenly wisdom to Israel’s leadership; give them the courage to do what’s right in your sight.
+ Comfort all those who mourn the loss of loved ones; deliver the hostages from captivity and restore their souls.
+ Destroy every stronghold and every expression of the evil death cult terrorizing the Middle East.
+ Protect the Israel Defense Forces and every soldier engaged in their mission to root out this evil.
+ Strengthen the Messianic communities; use them to restore your faithful people to their proper place in your kingdom.
+ Unify your faithful people around your promise to Abraham – to bless every family on earth through them.
+ Intervene in the Middle East in ways that only you can; protect the innocent and punish the guilty, that all may live in peace.
We ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Go before us, O Lord, in all our doings with your most gracious favor, and further us with your continual help; that in all our works begun, continued, and ended in you, we may glorify your holy Name, and finally, through your mercy, obtain everlasting life; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Closing: FaithandWorship.com | John Birch
The Lord bless us, and preserve us from all evil,
and keep us in eternal life.
+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
So don’t lose your confidence. It will bring you a great reward. You need endurance so that after you have done what God wants you to do, you can receive what he has promised.
10:26 If we go on sinning after we have learned the truth, no sacrifice can take away our sins. All that is left is a terrifying wait for judgment and a raging fire that will consume God’s enemies. If two or three witnesses accused someone of rejecting Moses’ Teachings, that person was shown no mercy as he was executed. What do you think a person who shows no respect for the Son of God deserves? That person looks at the blood of the promise (the blood that made him holy) as no different from other people’s blood, and he insults the Spirit that God gave us out of his kindness. He deserves a much worse punishment. We know the God who said,
As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives facing the temple buildings, Peter, James, John, and Andrew asked him privately, “Tell us, when will this happen? What will be the sign when all this will come to an end?”
“He had one more person to send. That person was his son, whom he loved. Finally, he sent his son to them. He thought, ‘They will respect my son.’
The Peanut Gallery 