Wednesday 6 July 2016

7 July 2016

Collects

Prayers developed from the daily readings 

Thursday 7 July 2016
Morning Prayer

Psalm 19

The sky in silence, every day and every night shows us that God is magnificent. God’s commandments are magnificent. They are right, they delight the heart, they are simple, they are more precious than gold. And the commandments warn us – but can we ever truly detect all our own faults? David asks for help so that he does not commit presumptuous sins*. He finishes with:

“Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you, O Lord my rock and my redeemer.”

2 Chronicles 23: 18 – 24: 14

While Jehoiada the priest is alive King Joash (whose reign is 40 years) is faithful and rules well. He orders a tax be levied throughout Judah for the restoration of the temple. At first his orders are not followed but he convinces the Levites and they set up a chest before the temple. The restorations began. Jehoiada dies an old man.

John 4: 16 – 26

Jesus and the Samaritan woman at the well continue their conversation. He tells her to call her husband and come back. She tells the truth – that she has no husband. He says that she is honest, has had many husbands and is now in a relationship with someone else’s husband. She admits this is so and recognises Jesus as a prophet. She then talks with him about where one is to worship God – the idea that God belongs to a place. He explains that all our understandings will change, that the Jews are the path to salvation but God is spirit and the time will come when we will worship in spirit and truth anywhere and everywhere. She then says that she knows about the Messiah who, when he comes will proclaim all things to the people. Jesus says, “I am he” (v. 26).

Collect for Morning Prayer


Juvenile female crimson rosellas
Harrietville Vic  L Osburn
God of love and guidance, you guided and taught King David, provided young King Joash with a trusted mentor Jehoiada and sent your Son Jesus to guide people of all nations to you and to truth. Guide us this day in all we do, so that we use our abilities and energies in our families and communities to do your will, and bring your peace and love to all through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord. Amen.


Thursday 7 July 2016
Evening Prayer

Psalm 119: 1 – 16

This portion of the psalm celebrates those who know and follow the laws of God. The psalmist asks to be taught and to be assisted to follow these laws.

“I will delight in your statutes; I will not forget your word” (v 16).

Ezekiel 17

Ezekiel uses a riddle and an allegory of the two eagles. It tells the saga of the exile of the King to Babylon and the failure of the caretaker King Zedekiah, to honour the treaty made with the Babylonians. As far as Ezekiel’s prophecy is concerned Zedekiah’s breaking of the treaty is despising God’s oath and breaking God’s covenant. Babylon will respond and Zedekiah will find himself destroyed. God will choose another, from the house of David to be the anointed one and bring all creatures, not just the Jews, under God’s care.

Galatians 3: 27 – 4: 7

Paul makes it clear that once we are baptised in the spirit and we are clothed in Christ we are heirs to God’s promise to Abraham. There is no division Jew/Greek, slave/free or man/woman. Just like little children who are heirs to a great house, while we are little we have no say; we have to be obedient to the rules. So the rules, the Mosaic Law is there. But God sent his son to redeem us and we are now adopted as God’s children. Because we are God’s children we have received the Spirit of Jesus in our hearts so we can call God “Daddy”.


Collect for Evening Prayer

Ice melts in the warm sun
Mt Hotham Victoria  L Osburn
Loving generous God you know that we humans struggle and make some daft decisions. But loving us you sent your Son and Holy Spirit so that we can be yours, can seek your face, can have our hearts filled with the courage of your Spirit. We thank you that you have adopted us. Help us now sit with you a while and feel your love infuse us and warm us so that we, knowing how precious it is, pass on your love to others through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, and the power of your Holy Spirit in our hearts. Amen.


*Presumptuous sins are:
1.     When we do know better
2.     When we deliberately plan to do it or keep nurturing the thought about doing it, or have built up a habit of a particular sin
3.     Sinning to show total disregard for God
4.     Thinking that we are immune from a particular type of sin because we are strong or “able to manage it”. This is risky.
And, “I’ll repent tomorrow…” presumes a tomorrow.
From
Rev. C. H. Spurgeon 1857


Please leave a comment or feedback.

No comments: