Prayer and Psalm of the Day July 2

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Psalm 143

1 Hear my prayer, O Lord;
    give ear to my supplications in your faithfulness;
    answer me in your righteousness.
2 Do not enter into judgment with your servant,
    for no one living is righteous before you.

3 For the enemy has pursued me,
    crushing my life to the ground,
    making me sit in darkness like those long dead.
4 Therefore my spirit faints within me;
    my heart within me is appalled.

5 I remember the days of old,
    I think about all your deeds,
    I meditate on the works of your hands.
6 I stretch out my hands to you;
    my soul thirsts for you like a parched land.Selah

7 Answer me quickly, O Lord;
    my spirit fails.
Do not hide your face from me,
    or I shall be like those who go down to the Pit.
8 Let me hear of your steadfast love in the morning,
    for in you I put my trust.
Teach me the way I should go,
    for to you I lift up my soul.

 

9 Save me, O Lord, from my enemies;
    I have fled to you for refuge.
10 Teach me to do your will,
    for you are my God.
Let your good spirit lead me
    on a level path.

11 For your name’s sake, O Lord, preserve my life.
    In your righteousness bring me out of trouble.
12 In your steadfast love cut off my enemies,
    and destroy all my adversaries,
    for I am your servant.

Praying for God to destroy our enemies seems contrary to Jesus’ teachings to pray for one’s enemies.  This is an honest prayer, and one full of raw emotion.  This is a psalm of David and reflects times in his life when he was threatened.  His hope was in the Lord and God’s ability to deliver him while defeating those who worked against him.  His prayers were truthful, much like we have prayed during war time, fear, desperation.  Save us and defeat the enemy!  Mixed in with this psalm, along with the prayers for victory over his foes, David seeks God’s will and desires righteousness.  Psalms such as this one remind us how messy life can be, that what we want may not always be what God wants.  Our means may not always be God’s means of achieving an outcome.  Yet, life is often about our struggles to understand and overcome as we seek to understand and serve God.
Prayer:
Holy God, you scatter the power of death and raise us together with Christ through his life, death, and resurrection.  We thank you for the gift of this day and opportunities it holds for us.
Especially we thank you for
the community of faith in our church…
those with whom we work or share common concerns…
the diversity of your children…
indications of your love at work in the world…
those who work for reconciliation…
(Other prayers of thanksgiving)…
Mighty God, with the dawn of your love you reveal your victory over all that would destroy or harm and you brighten the lives of all who need you.
Especially we pray for
families suffering separation…
people different from ourselves…
those isolated by sickness or sorrow…
the victims of violence or warfare…
the church of the Pacific region…
(Other prayers of intercession)…
Amen
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Psalm and Prayer of the Day July 1

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Psalm 65

1 Praise is due to you,
    O God, in Zion;
and to you shall vows be performed,
2     O you who answer prayer!
To you all flesh shall come.
3 When deeds of iniquity overwhelm us,
    you forgive our transgressions.
4 Happy are those whom you choose and bring near
    to live in your courts.
We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house,
    your holy temple.

5 By awesome deeds you answer us with deliverance,
    O God of our salvation;
you are the hope of all the ends of the earth
    and of the farthest seas.
6 By your[a] strength you established the mountains;
    you are girded with might.
7 You silence the roaring of the seas,
    the roaring of their waves,
    the tumult of the peoples.
8 Those who live at earth’s farthest bounds are awed by your signs;
you make the gateways of the morning and the evening shout for joy.

9 You visit the earth and water it,
    you greatly enrich it;
the river of God is full of water;
    you provide the people with grain,
    for so you have prepared it.
10 You water its furrows abundantly,
    settling its ridges,
softening it with showers,
    and blessing its growth.
11 You crown the year with your bounty;
    your wagon tracks overflow with richness.
12 The pastures of the wilderness overflow,
    the hills gird themselves with joy,
13 the meadows clothe themselves with flocks,
    the valleys deck themselves with grain,
    they shout and sing together for joy.

Prayer

O God, you are the one who defines blessing. You have created so much beauty and bounty in this world. Your creativity is astounding. Your care is immeasurable. Open our eyes to see you in the world around us, in the people, in all living things, in the colors, in the great and the small. Help us to cherish how and what you cherish so we can take care of your creation as you take care of us. Amen.

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Psalm and Prayer of the Day June 30

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Psalm 146

1 Praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord, O my soul!
2 I will praise the Lord as long as I live;
    I will sing praises to my God all my life long.

3 Do not put your trust in princes,
    in mortals, in whom there is no help.
4 When their breath departs, they return to the earth;
    on that very day their plans perish.

5 Happy are those whose help is the God of Jacob,
    whose hope is in the Lord their God,
6 who made heaven and earth,
    the sea, and all that is in them;
who keeps faith forever;
7     who executes justice for the oppressed;
    who gives food to the hungry.

The Lord sets the prisoners free;
8     the Lord opens the eyes of the blind.
The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down;
    the Lord loves the righteous.
9 The Lord watches over the strangers;
    he upholds the orphan and the widow,
    but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.

10 The Lord will reign forever,
    your God, O Zion, for all generations.
Praise the Lord!

God of our salvation, as we welcome a new day heaven and earth sing your praise.  Cause us to live and grow in faith so that we may bear good fruit for the glory of your holy realm; through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen.

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Psalm and Prayer of the Day June 29

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Psalm 57

Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me,
    for in you my soul takes refuge;
in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge,
    until the destroying storms pass by.
2 I cry to God Most High,
    to God who fulfills his purpose for me.
3 He will send from heaven and save me,
    he will put to shame those who trample on me.Selah
God will send forth his steadfast love and his faithfulness.

4 I lie down among lions
    that greedily devour[a] human prey;
their teeth are spears and arrows,
    their tongues sharp swords.

5 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens.
    Let your glory be over all the earth.

6 They set a net for my steps;
    my soul was bowed down.
They dug a pit in my path,
    but they have fallen into it themselves.Selah
7 My heart is steadfast, O God,
    my heart is steadfast.
I will sing and make melody.
8     Awake, my soul!
Awake, O harp and lyre!
    I will awake the dawn.
9 I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the peoples;
    I will sing praises to you among the nations.
10 For your steadfast love is as high as the heavens;
    your faithfulness extends to the clouds.

11 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens.
    Let your glory be over all the earth.

Prayer
We cry to you, O God Most High, burdened by the cares of this world.  Today we pray for those who will struggle to feed themselves and their families, who will grieve the loss of loved ones, who will receive a difficult diagnosis, who will lose a friend.  We pray for those who will suffer from injustice yet again and for those who perpetrate it.  We pray for those seeking after you with hearts full of hope and for those whose hearts have little room for anyone but themselves.  Help us to navigate this world and this life with your wisdom and your grace.  Even as we take refuge in the shadow of your wings, help us also to live courageously in the light of your love.  Amen.
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Sermon Podcast – June 28, 2020 – Compassionate Welcome

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Preached by Rev. Lou Ellen Hartley. Based on Matthew 10:40-42.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Psalm and Prayer of the Day June 25

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Psalm 36

1 Transgression speaks to the wicked
    deep in their hearts;
there is no fear of God
    before their eyes.
2 For they flatter themselves in their own eyes
    that their iniquity cannot be found out and hated.
3 The words of their mouths are mischief and deceit;
    they have ceased to act wisely and do good.
4 They plot mischief while on their beds;
    they are set on a way that is not good;
    they do not reject evil.

5 Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens,
    your faithfulness to the clouds.
6 Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains,
    your judgments are like the great deep;
    you save humans and animals alike, O Lord.

7 How precious is your steadfast love, O God!
    All people may take refuge in the shadow of your wings.
8 They feast on the abundance of your house,
    and you give them drink from the river of your delights.
9 For with you is the fountain of life;
    in your light we see light.

10 O continue your steadfast love to those who know you,
    and your salvation to the upright of heart!
11 Do not let the foot of the arrogant tread on me,
    or the hand of the wicked drive me away.
12 There the evildoers lie prostrate;
    they are thrust down, unable to rise.

Prayer

Holy God, your love is higher than the heavens and your grace is wider than the sea.  Awaken our hearts to the joy of your presence and open our lips to sing your praise.  Today we thank you for….(personal thanksgiving).  Today we pray for the needs in our lives and in the world…(personal intercession). Amen

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Psalm and Prayer of the Day

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Psalm 15

O Lord, who may abide in your tent?
Who may dwell on your holy hill?
2 Those who walk blamelessly, and do what is right,
and speak the truth from their heart;
3 who do not slander with their tongue,
and do no evil to their friends,
nor take up a reproach against their neighbors;
4 in whose eyes the wicked are despised,
but who honor those who fear the Lord;
who stand by their oath even to their hurt;
5 who do not lend money at interest,
and do not take a bribe against the innocent.
Those who do these things shall never be moved.

Prayer

Eternal God,
you never fail to give us each day all that we ever need, and even more.  Give us such joy in living and such peace in serving Christ, that we may gratefully make use of all your blessings, and joyfully seek our risen Lord in everyone we meet.  In Jesus Christ we pray, Amen.

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Psalm and Prayer of the Day

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Psalm 123

To you I lift up my eyes,
    O you who are enthroned in the heavens!
2 As the eyes of servants
    look to the hand of their master,
as the eyes of a maid
    to the hand of her mistress,
so our eyes look to the Lord our God,
    until he has mercy upon us.

3 Have mercy upon us, O Lord, have mercy upon us,
    for we have had more than enough of contempt.
4 Our soul has had more than its fill
    of the scorn of those who are at ease,
    of the contempt of the proud.

Prayer

Eternal God, we rejoice in the gift of life, which we have received by your grace, and the new life you give in Jesus Christ.  Especially we thank you for
the love of our families…
the affection of our friends…
strength and abilities to serve your purpose today…
this community in which we live…
opportunities to give as we have received…
(Other prayers of thanksgiving.)

God of grace, we offer our prayers for the needs of others and commit ourselves to serve them even as we have been served in Jesus Christ.  Especially we pray for
those closest to us, families, friends, neighbors…
refugee and homeless men, women, and children…
the outcast and the persecuted…
those from whom we are estranged…
the church in Africa…
(Other prayers of intercession.)
In Christ we pray, Amen.

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