Morning Prayer

Saturday 23rd May 2020

THE PREPARATION

O Lord, open our lips

And our mouth shall proclaim your praise.

Blessèd are you, Sovereign God, ruler and judge of all,

to you be praise and glory for ever!
[In the darkness of this age that is passing away,
may the glory of your kingdom which the saints enjoy
surround our steps as we journey on.]
May we reflect the light of your glory this day
and so be made ready to come into your presence,
Father, Son and Holy Spirit:
Blessèd be God for ever!

The following is said:

Our life is hid with Christ in God.

O come, let us worship.

Morning Prayer continues with the opening canticle.

THE OPENING CANTICLE: A SONG OF GOD’S PRAISE

1 O God, you are my God; early I seek you;*

my soul thirsts for you, my flesh faints for you,
   as in a barren and dry land where there is no water;
2 Therefore I have gazed upon you
   in your holy place,*
that I might behold your power and your glory.
3 For your loving-kindness is better than life itself;*
my lips shall give you praise.
4 I will bless you as long as I live*
and lift up my hands in your name.
5 My soul is content,
   as with marrow and fatness,*
and my mouth praises you with joyful lips.
6 When I remember you upon my bed,*
and meditate on you in the night watches.
7 For you have been my helper,*
and under the shadow of your wings I will rejoice.
8 My soul clings to you;*
your right hand holds me fast.
Glory be to the Father Psalm 63. 1-8
 and to the Son and to
the Holy Spirit
As it was in the
beginning, is now, and
shall be forever. Amen

A HYMN may be sung.

THE OPENING PRAYER may be said.

The night has passed and the day lies open before us;
let us pray with one heart and mind:

(Silence may be kept)

As we rejoice in the gift of this new day,

so may the light of your presence, O God,
set our hearts on fire with love for you;
now and for ever. Amen.

THE WORD OF GOD

THE PSALMODY

Psalm 139
1 Lord, you have searched me out and known me;*
you know my sitting down and my rising up;
   you discern my thoughts from afar.
2 You trace my journeys and my resting-places*
and are acquainted with all my ways.
3 Indeed, there is not a word on my lips,*
but you, O Lord, know it altogether.
4 You press upon me behind and before*
and lay your hand upon me.
5 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;*
it is so high that I cannot attain to it.
6 Where can I go then from your Spirit?*
where can I flee from your presence?
7 If I climb up to heaven, you are there;*
if I make the grave my bed, you are there also.
8 If I take the wings of the morning*
and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
9 Even there your hand will lead me*
and your right hand hold me fast.
10 If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will cover me,*
and the light around me turn to night’,
11 Darkness is not dark to you;
    the night is as bright as the day;*
darkness and light to you are both alike.
12 For you yourself created my inmost parts;*
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
13 I will thank you because I am marvellously made;*
your works are wonderful and I know it well.
14 My body was not hidden from you,*
while I was being made in secret
   and woven in the depths of the earth.
15 Your eyes beheld my limbs, yet unfinished in the womb;
   all of them were written in your book;*
they were fashioned day by day,
   when as yet there was none of them.
16 How deep I find your thoughts, O God!*
how great is the sum of them!
17 If I were to count them,
   they would be more in number than the sand;*
to count them all,
   my life span would need to be like yours.
[18 O that you would slay the wicked, O God!*
You that thirst for blood, depart from me.
19 They speak despitefully against you;*
your enemies take your name in vain.
20 Do I not hate those, O Lord, who hate you?*
and do I not loathe those who rise up against you?
21 I hate them with a perfect hatred;*
they have become my own enemies.]
22 Search me out, O God, and know my heart;*
try me and know my restless thoughts.
23 Look well whether there be any wickedness in me*
and lead me in the way that is everlasting.

Lord,
who created and fashioned us,
who knows us and searches us out,
who abides with us through light and dark:
help us to know your presence in this life
and, in the life to come, still to be with you;
where you are alive and reign,
God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Each psalm, or group of psalms, may end with:

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit
As it was in the beginning, is now, and shall be forever. Amen

If there are two SCRIPTURE READINGS, the first may be read here, or both may be
read after the second canticle.

THE SECOND CANTICLE:

A SONG OF THE BRIDE

Refrain: God makes righteousness and praise*

blossom before all the nations.

1 I will greatly rejoice in the Lord,*

my soul shall exult in my God; 2 Who has clothed me with the garments of
salvation,*
and has covered me with the cloak of integrity, 3 As a bridegroom decks himself with
a garland,*
and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. 4 For as the earth puts forth her
blossom,*
and as seeds in the garden spring up, 5 So shall God make righteousness and
praise*
blossom before all the nations. 6 For Zion’s sake, I will not keep silent,*
and for Jerusalem’s sake, I will not rest, 7 Until her deliverance shines out like the
dawn,*
and her salvation as a burning torch. 8 The nations shall see your deliverance,*
and all rulers shall see your glory; 9 Then you shall be called by a new name*
which the mouth of God will give. 10 You shall be a crown of glory
   in the hand of the Lord,*
a royal diadem in the hand of your God.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit
From Isaiah 61 &
As it was in the beginning, is now, and shall be forever.
62
Amen

God makes righteousness and praise*

blossom before all the nations.

THE SCRIPTURE READING(S)

Luke 7:18-35

Jesus and John the Baptist

18 
John’s disciples told him about all these things. Calling two of them, 19 he sent them
to the Lord to ask, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone
else?”
20 
When the men came to Jesus, they said, “John the Baptist sent us to you to ask,
‘Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?’”
21 
At that very time Jesus cured many who had diseases, sicknesses and evil spirits,
and gave sight to many who were blind. 22 So he replied to the messengers, “Go
back and report to John what you have seen and heard: The blind receive sight, the
lame walk, those who have leprosy[a] are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are
raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor. 23 Blessed is anyone who does
not stumble on account of me.”
24 
After John’s messengers left, Jesus began to speak to the crowd about John:
“What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed swayed by the wind? 25 If
not, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? No, those who wear
expensive clothes and indulge in luxury are in palaces. 26 But what did you go out to
see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. 27 This is the one about
whom it is written:

“‘I will send my messenger ahead of you,

    who will prepare your way before you.’[b]
28 
I tell you, among those born of women there is no one greater than John; yet the
one who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.”
29 
(All the people, even the tax collectors, when they heard Jesus’ words,
acknowledged that God’s way was right, because they had been baptized by John.
30 
But the Pharisees and the experts in the law rejected God’s purpose for
themselves, because they had not been baptized by John.)
31 
Jesus went on to say, “To what, then, can I compare the people of this generation?
What are they like? 32 They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling out
to each other:

“‘We played the pipe for you,

    and you did not dance;
we sang a dirge,
    and you did not cry.’
33 
For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and you say, ‘He
has a demon.’ 34 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Here is a
glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’ 35 But wisdom is
proved right by all her children.”

A RESPONSORY may be said.

I will sing for ever of your love, O Lord;

   my lips shall proclaim your faithfulness.
I will sing for ever of your love, O Lord;
   my lips shall proclaim your faithfulness.

The heavens bear witness to your wonders;

My lips shall proclaim your faithfulness.
The assembly of your saints proclaims your truth.
I will sing for ever of your love, O Lord.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son,

   and to the Holy Spirit.
I will sing for ever of your love, O Lord;
   my lips shall proclaim your faithfulness.

THE GOSPEL CANTICLE: BENEDICTUS (38)

1 Blessèd be the Lord, the God of Israel,*

for he has come to his people and set them free.
2 He has raised up for us a mighty Saviour,*
born of the house of his servant, David.
3 Through his holy prophets, he promised of old*
that he would save us from our enemies,
   from the hands of all that hate us;
4 He promised to show mercy to our forebears,*
and to remember his holy covenant.
5 This was the oath he swore to our father, Abraham,*
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
6 Free to worship him without fear,*
holy and righteous in his sight,
    all the days of our life.
7 You, my child,
    shall be called the prophet of the Most High,*
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
8 To give his people knowledge of salvation*
by the forgiveness of all their sins.
9 In the tender compassion of our God*
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
10 To shine on those who dwell in darkness
    and the shadow of death,*
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the
beginning, is now, and shall be forever. Amen

Shine on us, O God, who dwell in darkness,*

Refrain: and guide us into the way of peace.

The refrain is repeated after the canticle.

THE PRAYERS

In the power of the Spirit and in union with Christ,

let us pray to the Father.
You guide your Church in the way of truth:
stir up among us the gifts of your grace. R.

Holy Wisdom fills the whole of creation:

by your Spirit, renew the face of the earth. R.

We are temples of the Spirit:

confirm our lives in the service of the gospel. R.

Your anointing restores wholeness to a broken world:

give healing to the sick, freedom to captives
and hope to the dying. R.

Nothing in all creation can separate us from your love:

receive into your keeping
those who have departed this life. R.

As we rejoice in the power of his Spirit,

may God grant us today the faith of the apostles,
the boldness of the prophets
and the strength of the martyrs. Amen

THE COLLECT of the day, or one of the following.

Merciful God, you have prepared for those who love you
such good things as pass our understanding:
pour into our hearts such love towards you
that we, loving you above all things,
may obtain your promises, which exceed all that we can desire;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen

THE LORD’S PRAYER may be said.

[As we await the fulfilment of the promise of glory,

let us pray for the coming of the Kingdom:]

Our Father, who art in heaven,

hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done;
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those
   who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
but deliver us from evil.
[For thine is the kingdom,
   the power, and the glory,
for ever and ever.] Amen.
THE CONCLUSION

THE BLESSING

The Lord bless us, and preserve us from all evil,

and keep us in eternal life. Amen.

Let us bless the Lord.

Thanks be to God.