Daily Prayers for September 4

O Lord, let my soul rise up to meet you

as the day rises to meet the sun.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,

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.

Song “Come, Thou Fount”

Open our lives wide : to taste and see that you are good.

Psalm 19:7 – 10

The law of the Lord is perfect and revives the soul : the testimony of the Lord is sure and gives wisdom to the innocent.

The statutes of the Lord are just and rejoice the heart : the commandment of the Lord is clear and gives light to the eyes.

The fear of the Lord is clean and endures for ever : the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.

More to be desired are they than gold, more than much fine gold : sweeter far than honey, than honey in the comb.

Open our lives wide : to taste and see that you are good.

Esther 4:4 – 17 Matthew 5:17 – 20

Open our lives wide : to taste and see that you are good.

In his book Life Together, Dietrich Bonhoeffer says this to us: “Innumerable times a whole Christian community has broken down because it had sprung from a wish dream. The serious Christian, set down for the first time in a Christian community, is likely to bring with him a very definite idea of what Christian life together should be and to try to realize it. But God’s grace speedily shatters such dreams. By sheer grace, God will not permit us to live even for a brief period in a dream world. The sooner this shock of disillusionment comes to an individual and to a community, the better for both.”

Prayers for Others

Our Father

Lord, give us the imagination to dream and catch glimpses of the life you intend for us to live. Show us how our individual lives are entwined with those around us, and help us to live so truly together that we embody your good news in this world. Amen.

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you : wherever he may send you;

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.