07 Aug – The Peanut Gallery

Praying the Psalms

+ In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!

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.

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

Morning Reading: Psalm 33 (NLT)

Let the godly sing for joy to the Lord; it is fitting for the pure to praise him. Praise the Lord with melodies on the lyre; make music for him on the ten-stringed harp. Sing a new song of praise to him; play skillfully on the harp, and sing with joy. For the word of the Lord holds true, and we can trust everything he does. He loves whatever is just and good; the unfailing love of the Lord fills the earth.

The Lord merely spoke, and the heavens were created. He breathed the word, and all the stars were born. He assigned the sea its boundaries and locked the oceans in vast reservoirs. Let the whole world fear the Lord, and let everyone stand in awe of him. For when he spoke, the world began! It appeared at his command.

The Lord frustrates the plans of the nations and thwarts all their schemes. But the Lord’s plans stand firm forever; his intentions can never be shaken.

What joy for the nation whose God is the Lord, whose people he has chosen as his inheritance.

The Lord looks down from heaven and sees the whole human race. From his throne he observes all who live on the earth. He made their hearts, so he understands everything they do. The best-equipped army cannot save a king, nor is great strength enough to save a warrior. Don’t count on your warhorse to give you victory—for all its strength, it cannot save you.

But the Lord watches over those who fear him, those who rely on his unfailing love. He rescues them from death and keeps them alive in times of famine.

We put our hope in the Lord. He is our help and our shield. In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name. Let your unfailing love surround us, Lord, for our hope is in you alone.
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Morning Prayer

Almighty God, Protector of your chosen people: we worship and praise your holy name –

+ For you are the Lord our God; you satisfy the desire of our hearts

+ For you are the living and true God; there is none like you

+ For you rule with righteousness; you shape us to become more like you

+ For you watch over us; we are your own inheritance our future is in your hands

Almighty God, Creator and Ruler of the world: our hope is in you; surround us with the loving-kindness of your Son, Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
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“Rejoice In The LORD O You Righteous” (Psalm 33) – Karl Kohlhase

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Blessing – (Northumbrian Community)

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.
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+ In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!

Reading, Reflection & Prayer

+ In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!

Opening – (Northumbria Community)

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.

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

Please Read: Leviticus 25-27 (NLT) – click here

Reflection & Prayer

Year of Jubilee

When [Jesus] came to the village of Nazareth, his boyhood home, he went as usual to the synagogue on the Sabbath and stood up to read the Scriptures. The scroll of Isaiah the prophet was handed to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where this was written:

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, and that the time of the Lord’s favor has come.”

He rolled up the scroll, handed it back to the attendant, and sat down. All eyes in the synagogue looked at him intently. Then he began to speak to them. “The Scripture you’ve just heard has been fulfilled this very day!” – Luke 4:16-21 (NLT)

Leviticus 25:8-10 (NLT) – “In addition, you must count off seven Sabbath years, seven sets of seven years, adding up to forty-nine years in all. Then on the Day of Atonement in the fiftieth year, blow the ram’s horn loud and long throughout the land. Set this year apart as holy, a time to proclaim freedom throughout the land for all who live there. It will be a jubilee year for you, when each of you may return to the land that belonged to your ancestors and return to your own clan. This fiftieth year will be a jubilee for you….”

Lord God: You established the year of jubilee as a time to release the poor held captive by debt, and to restore families torn apart by economic migration. It was a “year of release,” a “time of the Lord’s favor”, a time to start over with a clean slate. The year of jubilee was a time to get a new life.

And then, you sent your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, to proclaim the Good News – now is the year of jubilee. The time of the Lord’s favor has come!

+ Thank you Lord Jesus, for setting me free from my captivity to sin and death

+ Thank you Lord Jesus, for making me “poor in spirit” that I may enter your kingdom

+ Thank you Lord Jesus, for giving me a new life where I could make a fresh start as a new person created in your image

Lord God: May this be the year of jubilee; let your kingdom come and your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven – through Jesus Christ my Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
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“This Is The Year Of Jubilee” – by The Isaacs