Good morning.
Today is Wednesday,
December 16,
2020.
O Lord,
Let my soul rise up to meet you as the day rises to meet the sun.
Glory to God,
The three-in-one creator,
Redeemer,
And sustainer,
As it was in the beginning,
Is now,
And will be forever.
Amen.
Come,
Let us sing to the Lord.
Let us shout for joy to the rock of our salvation.
Remind yourself that you are in God's presence.
Notice how God may be speaking to you today.
Let yourself stop and ponder any word or phrase that catches your attention or moves your heart,
And then let your heart simply respond to God in prayer.
Please repeat these words.
The Lord is my light and my salvation.
Whom shall I fear?
Luke 1,
Verses 41 through 45.
As soon as Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting,
The child leaped in her womb,
And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.
In a loud voice,
She exclaimed,
Blessed are you among women,
And blessed is the fruit of your womb.
But why am I so favored that the mother of the Messiah should come to me?
The moment your greeting reached my ears,
The child in my womb leaped for joy.
Blessed is she who believed that what our God said to her would be accomplished.
Please repeat these words.
The Lord is my light and my salvation.
Whom shall I fear?
God who created the world,
You create and recreate our lives over and over again.
You are the one who brings order out of chaos.
You are the one who brings something out of nothing.
Recreate us today.
Make us new by the power of your spirit.
Bring order to our chaos once again,
Because we,
Like Mary,
Believe and are blessed.
I invite you now in a moment of silence to hold someone's name before God.
Bless all who call on you,
Almighty God,
From the rising of the sun to its setting.
May the light of Christ go before us and behind us,
Beneath us and above us,
On our right and on our left.
When we rise and when we lie down,
May the light of Christ be with us.
May the light of Christ be in us.
We pray in the name of Jesus who taught us to pray.
Our Father which art in heaven,
Eternal God,
Earth maker,
Pain bearer,
Life giver,
Source of all that is and all that shall be,
Not only Father but Mother of us all.
May the hallowing of your name echo through the universe.
May the way of your justice be followed by the peoples of the world.
May your heavenly will be done by all created beings.
May your commonwealth of peace and freedom sustain our hope and come on earth.
With the bread we need for today,
Feed us.
In the hurts we absorb from one another,
Forgive us.
In times of temptation and test,
Strengthen us.
From trials too great to endure,
Spare us.
From the grip of all that is evil,
Free us.
For you reign in the glory of the power that is love,
Now and forever.
Amen.
And now my friends,
May the peace of the Lord Jesus Christ go with you wherever he may send you today.
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.
Go in peace.
