Morning Prayer | The Second Week of Christmas

OPENING SENTENCES

Nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising.    Isaiah 60:3

 

CONFESSION OF SIN

Most merciful God, we confess that we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done, and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We are truly sorry and we humbly repent. For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, have mercy on us and forgive us; that we may delight in your will, and walk in your ways, to the glory of your Name. Amen.

Silence for reflection

Almighty God have mercy on you, forgive you all your sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen you in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep you in eternal life. Amen.

Lord, open our lips. *
And our mouths shall proclaim your praise!

The Lord has shown forth his glory: Come let us adore him.

 

MORNING PSALM

Psalm 46

To the leader. Of the Korahites. According to Alamoth. A Song.
God is our refuge and strength,
a very present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change,
though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea;
though its waters roar and foam,
though the mountains tremble with its tumult.
Selah

There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
   the holy habitation of the Most High. 
God is in the midst of the city; it shall not be moved;
   God will help it when the morning dawns. 
The nations are in an uproar, the kingdoms totter;
   he utters his voice, the earth melts. 
The Lord of hosts is with us;
   the God of Jacob is our refuge.
          Selah 

Come, behold the works of the Lord;
   see what desolations he has brought on the earth. 
He makes wars cease to the end of the earth;
   he breaks the bow, and shatters the spear;
   he burns the shields with fire. 
‘Be still, and know that I am God!
   I am exalted among the nations,
   I am exalted in the earth.’ 
The Lord of hosts is with us;
   the God of Jacob is our refuge.
          Selah

 

God our king, you clothe the sky with light and the depths of the ocean with darkness. Among the peoples you work wonders, and rain terror upon your enemies. Do not try your servants by fire, but bring us rejoicing to the shelter of your home, where with your Son and the Holy Spirit you live and reign, now and forever.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.

 

MORNING SONG

See Amid the Winter's Snow

 

MORNING LESSONS

For those not receiving Evening Prayer emails, the lectionary OT & NT Lessons for today are Isaiah 49:1-7; Revelation 21:22-27.

Isaiah 52:7-10

How beautiful upon the mountains
are the feet of the messenger who announces peace,
who brings good news,
who announces salvation,
who says to Zion, ‘Your God reigns.’
Listen! Your sentinels lift up their voices,
together they sing for joy;
for in plain sight they see
the return of the Lord to Zion.
Break forth together into singing,
you ruins of Jerusalem;
for the Lord has comforted his people,
he has redeemed Jerusalem.
The Lord has bared his holy arm
before the eyes of all the nations;
and all the ends of the earth shall see
the salvation of our God.

Revelation 21:22-27

I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God is its light, and its lamp is the Lamb. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it.Its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there.People will bring into it the glory and the honour of the nations. But nothing unclean will enter it, nor anyone who practises abomination or falsehood, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

Matthew 12:14-21

But the Pharisees went out and conspired against him, how to destroy him.

When Jesus became aware of this, he departed. Many crowds followed him, and he cured all of them, and he ordered them not to make him known. This was to fulfil what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah: 
‘Here is my servant, whom I have chosen,
   my beloved, with whom my soul is well pleased.
I will put my Spirit upon him,
   and he will proclaim justice to the Gentiles. 
He will not wrangle or cry aloud,
   nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets. 
He will not break a bruised reed
   or quench a smouldering wick
until he brings justice to victory. 
   And in his name the Gentiles will hope.’

Silence for reflection

 

CONCLUDING PRAYER

In the morning, pray for:

  • the day and its tasks

  • the world and its needs

  • the Church and her life

Conclude with the Lord's Prayer and/or the following Collect for Epiphany:

O God, by the leading of a star you manifested your only Son to the Peoples of the earth: Lead us, who know you now by faith, to your presence, where we may see your glory face to
face; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Let us bless the Lord. *
Thanks be to God!