2 July 2015
Collects
Prayers
developed from the daily readings
Thursday 2 July 2015
Morning
Prayer
Psalms 5 and 6
This
first psalm asks for God to hear the prayers of the victim of harmful lies. God
has no time for wickedness. The psalmist will go to the temple knowing that he
too is not yet righteous and needs help to stay on the path. The psalmist takes
the problem to God and does not retaliate. Instead he asks for all who take
refuge in the Lord to experience joy and protection and exult and bless the
Lord.
Debilitating
and terrifying illness has struck the psalmist. It is shaking the psalmist’s
faith. God is asked to respond lovingly. The psalmist stands against evil and
proclaims the Lord’s swift response.
1 Samuel 23: 19 – 24: 7
Some people report David’s location to King Saul. They
offer their help in capturing David. Saul blesses them and asks them to
double-check David’s haunts, come back and then Saul will search.
David is in the wilderness and hears that Saul is
coming. Saul and his men are on one side of a mountain, David and his on the
other. Saul is closing in. A messenger comes to Saul reporting a Philistine
raid in another place. Saul ceases the hunt for David and responds instead to
the raid. The mountain is named “The Rock of Escape”.
When Saul returns, David and his men are in another
part of the wilderness. Saul comes to a place where there is a cave and goes in
to relieve himself not knowing that David and his men are inside the cave. The
men tell David that here is the day God has given him his enemy. David
stealthily approaches Saul and cuts a corner of his cloak.
David feels immediate remorse. He refuses to harm the
person anointed by God to be king. He scolds his men and does not permit them
to attack Saul.
Acts 15: 1 – 11
Paul
and Barnabas in are in Antioch. Some people come from Judea and say that unless
the people of other nations are circumcised according to Mosaic Law they cannot
be saved. They debate with Paul and Barnabas who decide to go to Jerusalem.
They are welcomed and the people promoting the new rule are Pharisees who are
Christians.
After
considerable discussion Paul addresses them all and says that he was selected
by God to take the message to the other nations. God knows the human heart, God
cleansed their spirits, gave them the Holy Spirit and doing so made no
distinction between them and us. So this requirement, to obey all parts of Mosaic
Law, which the circumcised Jews cannot fulfil anyway, is putting God to the
test. We believe that we will be saved through the grace of Jesus and so will
all people.
Collect for
Morning Prayer
Sometimes we go slower than the speed limit Lake Mulwala NSW July 2015 L Osburn |
God of
wisdom, grace and mercy, you give us wonderful examples of faithful lives in
the scriptures. Guide us today when we are challenged by wickedness, enemies or
internal disputes to follow the examples we have been given: to admit our own
faults, to listen to our hearts, to seek information and to consult before
making any final moves or statements, so that we proclaim by our actions, that
we stand against evil and trust in your swift response through Jesus Christ
your Son our Lord and the power of your Holy Spirit in our hearts. Amen.
Thursday 2 July April 2015
Evening
Prayer
Psalms 7 and 8
In
the first psalm, someone who was an ally has been harmed and the blame is being
focused on the psalmist. The psalmist seeks God’s protection, calls on God to
search him out and judge. The psalmist is also aware that the snares the wicked
set can turn against them. The psalmist is confident in a right relationship
with God and is willing to repent. The psalmist promises to praise God when
rescued.
God’s
majesty is praised. Every human sound is praise to God. And the psalmist
marvels at that. How is it that humans have such a special place when we
consider the expanse of the heavens? The psalm ends in awe, wonder and praise.
Sirach 43: 1 – 12
This section describes the splendour of the sun, the
moon the stars and rainbows. It call us to give praise to the one who created
all this, for the benefits to us like knowing times for seasons and festivals,
and for them being in their appointed places never relaxing from their work.
Galatians 1: 1 – 10
Paul’s
letter to the Galatians begins strongly telling them that they are have been
led astray and the gospel he proclaimed to them is the correct message.
Collect for
Evening Prayer
Black swans on the empty lake Lake Mulwala NSW July 2015 L Osburn |
O Lord how
splendid is your creation and your eternal love for us? Hear our heart felt
praise and thanksgiving for the wonders of your hands, the salvation you gave
us through Christ so that we may repent and be confident in your forgiveness and
take your message into the entire world through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord
and Saviour. Amen.
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