Morning Prayer: Sat, 18 Feb – Psalm 103:1-14; Isaiah 58:11-12; Philippians 4:10-13 ~ strength to rebuild/restore

Saturday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time

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

Opening Sentence

I have come to seek You, O God, just as I am I come.

I will wait for You, O God. My soul waits, and in Your word do I hope.
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Reading: Psalm 103:1-14 (NLT)

Let all that I am praise the Lord; with my whole heart, I will praise his holy name. Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things he does for me. He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases. He redeems me from death and crowns me with love and tender mercies. He fills my life with good things. My youth is renewed like the eagle’s!

The Lord gives righteousness and justice to all who are treated unfairly.

He revealed his character to Moses and his deeds to the people of Israel. The Lord is compassionate and merciful, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. He will not constantly accuse us, nor remain angry forever. He does not punish us for all our sins; he does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve. For his unfailing love toward those who fear him is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth. He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west. The Lord is like a father to his children, tender and compassionate to those who fear him. For he knows how weak we are; he remembers we are only dust.
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Aleppo, Syria
Aleppo, Syria

Reading: Isaiah 58:11-12 (NLT)

The Lord will guide you continually, giving you water when you are dry and restoring your strength. You will be like a well-watered garden, like an ever-flowing spring. Some of you will rebuild the deserted ruins of your cities. Then you will be known as a rebuilder of walls and a restorer of homes.
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Reading: Philippians 4:10-13 (NLT)

How I praise the Lord that you are concerned about me again. I know you have always been concerned for me, but you didn’t have the chance to help me. Not that I was ever in need, for I have learned how to be content with whatever I have. I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.
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Prayer:

Heavenly Father: You have adopted us into your family, and through the ages have stayed with us and kept us in your steadfast love. Lord, help us in our work and prayer – as “rebuilders of walls and a restorers of homes.”

+ We pray for all who rebuild and restore cities: give them wisdom and respect for every family, every life – both rich and poor.
+ Pour out your Spirit on artists, craftsmen, and musicians: may their work bring variety, joy, and inspiration to our lives.
+ Be with us as the cornerstone of all that we build: for we are only dust and can do nothing without your guidance and strength.
+ You have created us anew in the resurrection of your Son: rebuild and restore the spiritual life of broken cities through that same resurrection power.

Heavenly Father, we praise you with our whole heart and give thanks for all you are doing and will do. Life itself is your precious gift, may all we have and all we are be yours. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
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“Open Up Our Eyes” – Elevation Worship


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Blessing

  • When you no longer know how to be, may the Father take you on your deeper journey.
  • When you no longer know what to do, may the Spirit reveal to you your fitting task.
  • When all feels lost or foreign, may you know your home in Christ.

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

Morning Prayer: Fri, 17 Feb – Psalm 51:10-13; Jeremiah 29:7; John 4:39-42 ~ renew, restore, return

Friday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time

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

Opening Sentence

I have come to seek You, O God, just as I am I come.

I will wait for You, O God. My soul waits, and in Your word do I hope.
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Reading: Psalm 51:10-13 (NLT)

Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me. Do not banish me from your presence, and don’t take your Holy Spirit from me.

Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and make me willing to obey you. Then I will teach your ways to rebels, and they will return to you.
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Reading: Jeremiah 29:7 (NLT)

white-house-work-and-pray

And work for the peace and prosperity of the city where I sent you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, for its welfare will determine your welfare.
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Reading: John 4:39-42 (NLT)

Many Samaritans from the village believed in Jesus because the woman had said, “He told me everything I ever did!” When they came out to see him, they begged him to stay in their village. So he stayed for two days, long enough for many more to hear his message and believe. Then they said to the woman, “Now we believe, not just because of what you told us, but because we have heard him ourselves. Now we know that he is indeed the Savior of the world.”
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Prayer:

Father, we praise You for Your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ; through the Holy Spirit He offered Himself in sacrifice to You, that we might be delivered from death and selfishness, and be free to live in Your peace.

+ We accept this new day as Your gift, Lord; grant that we may live in newness of life.
+ You made all things, and keep all things in being; give us the insight to see Your hand at work in them all.
+ Your Son sealed the new and everlasting covenant in His blood; help us to live by this covenant and honor it.
+ You poured out Your Spirit on Your people; fill us with Your Spirit today and grant us Your peace.

Almighty God, as in this morning prayer we offer You our praise, grant that in Your kingdom, together with all Your saints, we may praise You with even greater joy. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
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“God Of This City” – Bluetree


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Blessing

  • When you no longer know how to be, may the Father take you on your deeper journey.
  • When you no longer know what to do, may the Spirit reveal to you your fitting task.
  • When all feels lost or foreign, may you know your home in Christ.

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

Morning Prayer: Thu, 16 Feb – Psalm 71:14-18; Genesis 12:1-5; 1 Peter 2:4-5 ~ leave… go… and bless

Thursday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time

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

Opening Sentence

I have come to seek You, O God, just as I am I come.

I will wait for You, O God. My soul waits, and in Your word do I hope.
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Reading: Psalm 71:14-18 (NLT)

I will keep on hoping for your help; I will praise you more and more. I will tell everyone about your righteousness. All day long I will proclaim your saving power, though I am not skilled with words. I will praise your mighty deeds, O Sovereign Lord. I will tell everyone that you alone are just.

O God, you have taught me from my earliest childhood, and I constantly tell others about the wonderful things you do. Now that I am old and gray, do not abandon me, O God. Let me proclaim your power to this new generation, your mighty miracles to all who come after me.
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Reading: Genesis 12:1-5 (NLT)

659px-molnar_abraham_kikoltozese_1850-abraham

The Lord had said to Abram, “Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you. I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. I will bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt. All the families on earth will be blessed through you.”

So Abram departed as the Lord had instructed, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he left Haran. He took his wife, Sarai, his nephew Lot, and all his wealth—his livestock and all the people he had taken into his household at Haran—and headed for the land of Canaan.
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Reading: 1 Peter 2:4-5 (NLT)

You are coming to Christ, who is the living cornerstone of God’s temple. He was rejected by people, but he was chosen by God for great honor.

And you are living stones that God is building into his spiritual temple. What’s more, you are his holy priests. Through the mediation of Jesus Christ, you offer spiritual sacrifices that please God.
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Prayer:

Blessed be our God and Father: You hear the prayers of Your children. Thank You for sending us Your Son, Jesus Christ, the Beginning and End of our life’s journey.

+ Give us faith to venture into the unknown, keeping Him before our eyes.
+ Make wisdom our guide; help us walk in newness of life throughout this day.
+ Give us Your strength in our weakness: when we meet problems give us courage to face them.
+ Direct our thoughts, our words, our actions today, so that we may know, and do, your will.

Lord God, continue to work Your saving power in us and through us. Make us into living stones of Your spiritual temple through faith in Your Son, Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with You, one God forever and ever. Amen.
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“I will never leave you” – Scripture Lullabies


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Blessing

  • When you no longer know how to be, may the Father take you on your deeper journey.
  • When you no longer know what to do, may the Spirit reveal to you your fitting task.
  • When all feels lost or foreign, may you know your home in Christ.

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

Morning Prayer: Wed, 15 Feb – Psalm 1:1-3; Hosea 10:12; John 15:1-5 ~ remain in me

Wednesday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time

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

Opening Sentence

I have come to seek You, O God, just as I am I come.

I will wait for You, O God. My soul waits, and in Your word do I hope.
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Reading: Psalm 1:1-3 (NLT)

Oh, the joys of those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand around with sinners, or join in with mockers. But they delight in the law of the Lord, meditating on it day and night.

They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season. Their leaves never wither, and they prosper in all they do.
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Reading: Hosea 10:12 (NLT)

I said, ‘Plant the good seeds of righteousness, and you will harvest a crop of love. Plow up the hard ground of your hearts, for now is the time to seek the Lord, that he may come and shower righteousness upon you.’
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Reading: John 15:1-5 (NLT)

i-am-the-vine-and-branches

“I am the true grapevine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch of mine that doesn’t produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more. You have already been pruned and purified by the message I have given you. Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me.

“Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.
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Prayer:

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.
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“Come To Me” – Jenn Johnson


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Blessing

  • When you no longer know how to be, may the Father take you on your deeper journey.
  • When you no longer know what to do, may the Spirit reveal to you your fitting task.
  • When all feels lost or foreign, may you know your home in Christ.

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

Morning Prayer: Tue, 14 Feb – Psalm 56:12-13; Ecclesiastes 4:12; 1 Corinthians 1:8 ~ companions on the way

Tuesday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time

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

Opening Sentence

I have come to seek You, O God, just as I am I come.

I will wait for You, O God. My soul waits, and in Your word do I hope.
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Reading: Psalm 56:12-13 (NLT)

I will fulfill my vows to you, O God, and will offer a sacrifice of thanks for your help. For you have rescued me from death; you have kept my feet from slipping. So now I can walk in your presence, O God, in your life-giving light.
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Reading: Ecclesiastes 4:12 (NLT)

marine-wedding-prayer

A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken.
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Reading: 1 Corinthians 1:8 (NLT)

He will keep you strong to the end so that you will be free from all blame on the day when our Lord Jesus Christ returns.
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Prayer: (Adapted from Dr. Louis H. Evans’ Marriage Prayer for Bride and Groom.)

Father in Heaven, thank You for our marriage and our commitment to be one in You. We pray that the future we build together may become even stronger because of our solid foundation in Jesus Christ.

+ Prayer for Husband: Bless this husband as provider and protector. Sustain him in all the pressures that come with the task of stewarding a family. May he so live that his wife may find in him the haven for which the heart of a woman truly longs.

+ Prayer for Wife: Bless this wife. Give her a tenderness that makes her great, a deep sense of understanding, and a strong faith in You. Give her that inner beauty of a soul that never fades, that eternal youth that is found in holding fast to the things that never age. May she so live that her husband may be pleased to reverence her in the shrine of his heart.

May we travel together as friends and lovers, brother and sister, husband and wife, father and mother, and as servants of Christ until He shall return or until that day when one shall lay the other into the arms of God. This we ask through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, the Great Lover of our souls. Amen.
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“Could I Have This Dance” – Anne Murray


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Blessing

  • When you no longer know how to be, may the Father take you on your deeper journey.
  • When you no longer know what to do, may the Spirit reveal to you your fitting task.
  • When all feels lost or foreign, may you know your home in Christ.

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