Wednesday 18 March 2015

19 March 2015

Collects

Prayers developed from the daily readings 

Thursday 19 March 2015
Morning Prayer


Psalm 45

This is an ode to a king’s wedding full of praise and descriptions of beauty, strength and wealth. The song calls to the princess bride to leave her people, bow to the king and receive the gifts of the kingdom.

Exodus 4: 1 – 23 (24-26)

Moses is on Mt Horeb conversing with God about his mission to the Pharaoh the free the Hebrews. “What if they don’t believe I really talked with you?” God gives him three signs – the staff turning to a snake, his hand turning leprous, and water from the river turning to blood. “But I’m not eloquent, says Moses.” God responds with the question, who gives the capacity for speech to any human? God will guide his words. Moses begs God, “Please send someone else”. So God says to Moses to go with Aaron. Aaron is fluent and work as a team.

Moses seeks permission from Jethro, his father-in-law to go back to Egypt and see his family. He leaves with his immediate family members for Egypt.

The Lord instructs Moses to go to Pharaoh and perform the signs and warns Moses that Pharaoh’s heart will be hard initially. Pharaoh’s first-born son will die.

Luke 19: 1 – 10

Jesus is in Jericho. In the crowd that gathers is Zacchaeus, a tax collector who is a man of small stature. He has to climb a tree to get a good view. As Jesus passes he notices Zacchaeus, asks him to come down and says that he will eat at his home. Zacchaeus makes an undertaking to give half his wealth to the poor and shows he has been honest by offering to give back 4 – fold to anyone who he has defrauded. Jesus comes to seek and save the lost. He is shown to be a righteous person, he might collect taxes, but he isn’t lost, his small stature is not evidence of sin. He is a true son of Abraham.


Collect for Morning Prayer

Gum in flower
Broken Hill NSW 2015
L Osburn
 Praise to you our Lord who loves us, forgives us, restores us and commissions us. Though we may have sinned greatly in the past, lack eloquence, be fearful or short in stature physically and socially you love us, call us and choose us. Help us to listen and to acknowledge your sovereignty so that we too may leave behind our past and serve you all our days through Jesus Christ Your Son our Lord. Amen.






Thursday 19 March 2015
Evening Prayer

Psalms 46 and 47

God is our strength and refuge and we are to be in awe of him: to be still and know that God is God.

The second psalm is a joyous song of praise beginning with clapping our hands. Our God is awesome ruler of everything, shielding us. God is to be exalted.

Jeremiah 38: 1 – 13

Jeremiah keeps prophesying that the city will fall, those in it will die and those who go out to the Babylonians will live. His actions are assessed as undermining the defences of the city. He is taken and thrown into a cistern where there is only mud, and left to die. An Ethiopian court official goes to the king and says – this isn’t the way to treat a prophet. Jeremiah is lifted from the cistern and taken back to the court of the guard.

Hebrews 13: 1 – 6

Love each other. Be hospitable. Remember prisoners and those being tortured. Honour marriage. Don’t put money first: be content with what you have for God will never leave us or forsake us. We can say confidently:
“The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can anyone do to me?”(v.6)

Collect for Evening Prayer

Cleft in a rock
The Pinnacles Broken Hill NSW
2015 L Osburn
O God our helper, our strength and refuge mobilise us to be your hands, and feet, strong backs and arms in this world. Help us to love each other, be hospitable especially to strangers, care for prisoners, end torture and honour the marriages of those around us so that we are the deliverers of your help and aid and none of your children need fear through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.






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