17 March 2015

Collects

Prayers developed from the daily readings 

Tuesday 17 March 2015

Morning Prayer

Psalm 40

The psalmist tells the whole congregation of how God delivered him from desolation and being stuck. He sings a new song of praise telling of God’s innumerable deeds.

God listens even when no sacrifice is offered. God wants us to fulfil the Law and do God’s will.

The psalmist asks for more aid: past sins assail him and people want to take his life, to hurt and ridicule him. He prays for those who do God’s will and repeats the request for deliverance.

Exodus 2

Moses is born and at three months is placed in a pitch-covered basket in the reeds by the Nile. Pharaoh’s daughter comes and finds the basket. Moses’s sister offers to arrange a nurse for the baby and the Pharaoh’s daughter pays wages for the nurse. When Moses is older he goes to live with Pharaoh’s daughter and she calls him her son.

As an adult Moses kills an Egyptian who is beating a Hebrew. He tries to mediate in a fight between two Hebrews and they challenge him since he killed the Egyptian. Pharaoh finds out about the killing and Moses flees to Midian. In Midian he defends the right of the seven daughters of the priest to draw water from the well for their flocks. Moses is invited to the priest’s house and eventually marries a daughter, Zipporah and has a son, Gershom. After some time the Pharaoh dies. God is watching and remembering the Hebrews.

Luke 18: 15 – 30

Jesus allows infants to be brought to him to be touched and blessed. Infants, those who have earned nothing and feely receive. Then the wealthy young ruler comes running to kneel at Jesus’ feet. He has worked to earn a place in the kingdom but cannot let go of serving his wealth acquisition and management: his need to earn a future. Only God will be able to “get him into the kingdom”. Then the disciples worry because they too have given up everything, they too are trying to earn their place in the kingdom. Jesus tells them that those who leave everything behind for the sake of the kingdom will get back more now, and in the life to come than they can imagine.

Collect for Morning Prayer

Leaping from the pier
Busselton WA
2014 L Osburn

 O God deliverer of the world only you can overcome our past sins and our current fears. You know what we have done, what we fear and the circumstances of our lives. You know that some of us are suffering oppression. Some of us struggle to give up our focus on wealth acquisition. Some of us fear for our future and work to make it secure. Challenge us today to change our focus. Encourage us to serve others. Encourage us to receive your grace freely as infants receive from us so that we may experience your freedom, your deliverance and inherit your Kingdom through Jesus Christ Your Son our Lord. Amen.

Tuesday 17 March 2015

Evening Prayer

Psalms 42 and 43

The psalmist longs for God. In deep distress his soul thirsts for God. He recalls the times in the past he has been part of the celebrations. He is in the depths of despair, oppressed by an enemy. The psalmist tells his soul to hope in God for a time of praise will come – God is our help.

Again ungodly people oppress the psalmist. God’s light and truth are requested. They will lead us back to worship, to joy and praise. The psalmist tells his soul to hope in God. A time of praise will come – God is our help.

Jeremiah 36: 20 – 32

The scroll with all Jeremiah’s prophecies is left in the king’s secretary’s chambers while the secretary and officials go to King Jehoiakim and report. The king orders the scroll be brought to him and read. As the lines are read he has them cut from the scroll and thrown into the fire. The writing perturbs neither the King nor the people close to him. Jehoiakim orders that Jeremiah and Baruch be seized.  Jeremiah, in hiding meanwhile instructs Baruch to rewrite the scroll. Jeremiah prophesies a humiliating death for Jehoiakim and the end of his dynasty.

Hebrews 12: 12 – 24

The writer compares being a Christian to being someone in a race who is tired and lame. We need to care for each other, and to stick with the prize at the end of the race and not give it up for a short-term need – like Esau gave up his birth right for a bowl of food. To what are we racing? Is it to Mt Sinai and the Old Testament or to Mt Zion, the New Testament and saving grace of Christ? In the old, our sins require constant sacrifice. In the new Jesus has washed them away and is the perpetual sacrifice. We can choose our path.

Collect for Evening Prayer

A bowl of food, a glass of wine
Harrietville Vic 2015 L Osburn

Holy and generous God, you have set a whole kingdom before us. Be with us this night and help us to focus on you. Remind us that not one of your promises can be destroyed. Bring us to focus on the future for which Jesus already paid and not to sell ourselves for “a bowl of food”, so that we love and serve you, and care for each other

through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

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