Daily Prayers for September 2
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 bow down and bend the knee : let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.
Song “Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence”
Let your justice roll down like waters, Lord : but float us on your grace.
Psalm 9:13 – 15, 19 – 20
Have pity on me, O Lord : see the misery I suffer from those who hate me, O you who lift me up from the gate of death;
so that I may tell of all your praises and rejoice in your salvation : in the gates of the city of Zion.
The ungodly have fallen into the pit they dug : and in the snare they set is their own foot caught.
Rise up, O Lord, let not the ungodly have the upper hand : let them be judged before you.
Put fear upon them, O Lord : let the ungodly know they are but mortal.
Let your justice roll down like waters, Lord : but float us on your grace.
Esther 2:5 – 8, 15 – 23 Matthew 5:1 – 10
Let your justice roll down like waters, Lord : but float us on your grace.
Jean Vanier, founder of the L’Arche communities, said, “-Jesus came to bring the good news to the poor, not to those who serve the poor! I think we can only truly experience the presence of God, meet -Jesus, receive the good news, in and through our own poverty, because the kingdom of God belongs to the poor, the poor in spirit, the poor who are crying out for love.”
Prayers for Others
Our Father
Lord, even the seraphim and cherubim hide their faces in your presence as they declare your praise. Help us mere mortals to humbly dethrone ourselves and bow before you, that in our weakness we might know your good news and forever sing your glory. 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.
Daily Prayers for September 1
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 bow down and bend the knee : let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.
Song “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot”
Broken, we kneel; humbled, we cry : help, -Jesus! Raise us gently on high.
Psalm 6:1 – 4
Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger : do not punish me in your wrath.
Have pity on me, Lord, for I am weak : heal me, Lord, for my bones are racked.
My spirit shakes with terror : how long, O Lord, how long?
Turn, O Lord, and deliver me : save me for your mercy’s sake.
Broken, we kneel; humbled, we cry : help, -Jesus! Raise us gently on high.
Esther 1:1 – 4, 10 – 19 Matthew 4:18 – 25
Broken, we kneel; humbled, we cry : help, -Jesus! Raise us gently on high.
Seventh-century monk and bishop Isaac of Syria said, “Do not fall into despair because of your stumblings, for you should not consider them incurable. There is indeed a healer: he who on the cross asked for mercy on those who were crucifying him, who pardoned murderers as he hung on the cross. Christ came on behalf of sinners, to heal the brokenhearted and to bind up their wounds.”
Prayers for Others
Our Father
Lord, you are a God who heals and calls forth life. Keep us from the pitfalls of self-pity and despair, lest we ridicule your grace and power, and forsake our own healing. 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.
Daily Prayers for August 31
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 “I Will Trust in the Lord”
In our words and in our lives : may your will be done.
Psalm 146:1 – 3
Hallelujah! Praise the Lord, O my soul! : I will praise the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.
Put not your trust in rulers, nor in any child of earth : for there is no help in them.
When they breathe their last, they return to earth : and in that day their thoughts perish.
In our words and in our lives : may your will be done.
2 Sam-uel 24:1 – 2, 10 – 25 Romans 12:1 – 8
In our words and in our lives : may your will be done.
Salvadoran Archbishop Oscar Romero said this shortly before his assassination: “I am going to speak to you simply as a pastor, as one who, together with his -people, has been learning the beautiful but harsh truth that the Christian faith does not cut us off from the world but immerses us in it; the church is not a fortress set apart from the city. The church follows -Jesus, who lived, worked, struggled and died in the midst of a city, in the polis.”
Prayers for Others
Our Father
Lord, help us not to conform to the patterns of this world but to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. Give us a new imagination so that we might live in ways that do not compute to the logic of materialism and militarism. Make us into holy nonconformists so that we might see the kingdoms of this world transformed into your glorious kingdom. 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.
Becoming the Answer to Our Prayers: A Few Ideas
1. Build a little chapel or prayer room in your home or in the woods and start using it.
2. Do something that doesn’t fit the status quo.
3. Forgive a politician, pastor, parent, or friend who wronged you.
4. Serve at a free clinic for persons who are uninsured.
5. Let your yes be yes and your no be no.
Daily Prayers for August 30
In 1964, Fannie Lou Hamer and Ruby D. Robinson led the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party in their campaign to be seated at the Democratic National Convention, saying that they and thousands of African-Americans like them were “sick and tired of being sick and tired.”
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 “This Little Light of Mine”
We look to you in hope, O Lord : rain down your justice on us all.
Psalm 145:14 – 18
The Lord is faithful in all his words : and merciful in all his deeds.
The Lord upholds all those who fall : he lifts up those who are bowed down.
The eyes of all wait upon you, O Lord : and you give them their food in due season.
You open wide your hand : and satisfy the needs of every living creature.
The Lord is righteous in all his ways : and loving in all his works.
We look to you in hope, O Lord : rain down your justice on us all.
2 Sam-uel 23:1 – 7, 13 – 17 Romans 11:25 – 36
We look to you in hope, O Lord : rain down your justice on us all.
Listen to the words of Fannie Lou Hamer in the midst of the civil rights struggle: “We have to realize just how grave the problem is in the United States today, and I think the sixth chapter of Ephesians, the eleventh and twelfth verses help us to know what it is we are up against. It says, ‘Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood but against principalities, against powers, and against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.’ This is what I think about when I think of my own work in the fight for freedom.”
Prayers for Others
Our Father
Sweet Lord, save us. Heal all that is broken in our lives, in our streets, and in our 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.
Daily Prayers for August 29
John the Baptist (c. 30)
John the Baptist was the son of Zechariah, a priest in the Jerusalem temple, and Elizabeth, a cousin of Mary the mother of -Jesus. John’s parents were advanced in years and had prayed to have a child, yet had not conceived. But an angel of the Lord appeared to Zechariah and told him his wife would bear a son named John, “great in the sight of the Lord” and “filled with the Holy Spirit.” Five months later, the same angel appeared to Mary and told her of the coming birth of -Jesus. When Mary visited her cousin Elizabeth, Elizabeth’s baby “leaped in her womb” a prophetic sign that John would be filled with the Holy Spirit all of his life. John lived in the wilderness of Judea until he was thirty, then began his public career preaching repentance. When -Jesus came to him to be baptized, John recognized him as the Messiah and said, “It is I who need baptism from you.” John often is referred to as the Precursor to -Jesus; he foretold the coming of the Messiah and prepared the way for -Jesus. His preaching encouraged many believers to follow Christ; in fact, Andrew and John learned of Christ through John’s ministry.
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 bow down and bend the knee : let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.
Song “Come, Ye Sinners”
Forgive me, Lord, where I have gone astray : guide me on the King’s highway.
Psalm 143:4 – 8
My spirit faints within me : my heart within me is desolate.
I remember the time past; I muse upon all your deeds : I consider the works of your hands.
I spread out my hands to you : my soul gasps to you like a thirsty land.
O Lord, make haste to answer me; my spirit fails me : do not hide your face from me or I shall be like those who go down to the Pit.
Let me hear of your loving-kindness in the morning, for I put my trust in you : show me the road that I must walk, for I lift up my soul to you.
Forgive me, Lord, where I have gone astray : guide me on the King’s highway.
2 Sam-uel 18:9 – 33 Romans 11:13 – 24
Forgive me, Lord, where I have gone astray : guide me on the King’s highway.
A reading from the gospel according to John: “Now this was John’s testimony when the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask him who he was. He did not fail to confess, but confessed freely, ‘I am not the Messiah.’ They asked him, ‘Then who are you? Are you Elijah?’ He said, ‘I am not.’ ‘Are you the Prophet?’ He answered, ‘No.’ Finally they said, ‘Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?’ John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, ‘I am the voice of one calling in the desert, “Make straight the way for the Lord.” ’ ”
Prayers for Others
Our Father
Merciful God, you must grieve over our broken earth as King David mourned the death of his disobedient son, Absalom. Break our own hearts with the things that break yours. Make us voices in the wilderness that cry out for your kingdom to come on earth. 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.
Daily Prayers for August 28
Augustine of Hippo (354 – 430)
One of the greatest influences on the theology of Western Christianity, Augustine wanted from a young age to understand the meaning of life and the nature of good and evil. As a teacher, he sought answers to these questions through the best philosophy of his day. Although his mother, Monica, had instructed him in the Christian faith, he was not originally drawn to the tradition, but later found a depth and wisdom in Christianity to explain the question of evil and good. The famous story of Augustine’s conversion involves an experience in a garden in Milan. Torn between living a life of chastity and remembering his former life of sin, he prayed for forgiveness and immediately heard the voice of a child singing from a neighboring house, “Take up and read!” He picked up a book of St. Paul’s epistles left nearby, and the words he found there changed him forever. After his baptism, Augustine moved to North Africa to pursue a monastic life, but he was urged by the church to become ordained and was later made bishop of Hippo, where he served for thirty-five years. Augustine has rightly been criticized for silencing some important voices in his own day and passing on a harmful view of the body. He was not perfect, but he himself insisted that grace is the heart of our faith.
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 “It Is Well with My Soul”
Late have I loved you, O Beauty ever ancient, ever new : late have I loved you!
Psalm 132:14 – 19
For the Lord has chosen Zion : he has desired her for his habitation:
“This shall be my resting place for ever : here will I dwell, for I delight in her.
I will surely bless her provisions : and satisfy her poor with bread.
I will clothe her priests with salvation : and her faithful -people will rejoice and sing.
There will I make the horn of David flourish : I have prepared a lamp for my Anointed.
As for his enemies, I will clothe them with shame : but as for him, his crown will shine.”
Late have I loved you, O Beauty ever ancient, ever new : late have I loved you!
2 Sam-uel 12:15 – 31 Romans 11:1 – 12
Late have I loved you, O Beauty ever ancient, ever new : late have I loved you!
Augustine of Hippo said, “Let us leave a little room for reflection in our lives, room too for silence. Let us look within ourselves and see whether there is some delightful hidden place inside where we can be free of noise and argument. Let us hear the Word of God in stillness and perhaps we will then come to understand it.”
Prayers for Others
Our Father
Teach us to listen, Lord. Quiet the noise of our lives so we can hear your voice. 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.
Daily Prayers for August 27
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 bow down and bend the knee : let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.
Song “When the Saints Go Marching In”
May we become the church we pray for : and glimpse the New Jerusalem now.
Psalm 122:6 – 9
Pray for the peace of Jerusalem : “May they prosper who love you.
Peace be within your walls : and quietness within your towers.
For my brethren and companions’ sake : I pray for your prosperity.
Because of the house of the Lord our God : I will seek to do you good.”
May we become the church we pray for : and glimpse the New Jerusalem now.
2 Sam-uel 12:1 – 14 Romans 10:14 – 21
May we become the church we pray for : and glimpse the New Jerusalem now.
In his book City of God, Augustine of Hippo wrote, “The heavenly city, while it sojourns on earth, calls citizens out of all nations and gathers together a society of pilgrims of all languages. In its pilgrim state the heavenly city possesses peace by faith; and by this faith it lives.”
Prayers for Others
Our Father
Steadfast God, perhaps one of the greatest mysteries is why you continue to entrust the work of your kingdom into our clumsy hands. But we are forever grateful that you do not want to change the world without us. May we become the church you dream of. 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.
Daily Prayers for August 26
In 1920, the United States Congress ratified its nineteenth amendment to the Constitution, guaranteeing women the right to vote.
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 “Be Thou My Vision”
Help us, Lord, to see as you see : and to change what is into what ought to be.
Psalm 119:137 – 38, 142 – 44
You are righteous, O Lord : and upright are your judgments.
You have issued your decrees : with justice and in perfect faithfulness.
Your justice is an everlasting justice : and your law is the truth.
Trouble and distress have come upon me : yet your commandments are my delight.
The righteous-ness of your decrees is everlasting : grant me understanding, that I may live.
Help us, Lord, to see as you see : and to change what is into what ought to be.
2 Sam-uel 11:1 – 27 Romans 10:1 – 13
Help us, Lord, to see as you see : and to change what is into what ought to be.
A reading from Paul’s letter to the Galatians: “You are all children of God through faith, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, neither slave nor free, neither male nor female, for you are all one in Christ -Jesus.”
Prayers for Others
Our Father
Creator God, with joy and thanksgiving we celebrate that you made humans in your image, both male and female. We thank you especially today for those women in our lives through whom we have caught glimpses of your love. 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.
Daily Prayers for August 25
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 bow down and bend the knee : let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.
Song “Take My Life and Let It Be”
O God, you are my God : I will serve you my whole life long.
Psalm 119:49 – 52
Remember your word to your servant : because you have given me hope.
This is my comfort in my trouble : that your promise gives me life.
The proud have derided me cruelly : but I have not turned from your law.
When I remember your judgments of old : O Lord, I take great comfort.
O God, you are my God : I will serve you my whole life long.
2 Sam-uel 9:1 – 13 Romans 9:19 – 33
O God, you are my God : I will serve you my whole life long.
Church father and “golden-mouthed” preacher John Chrysostom said this in the fourth century: “Our spirit should be quick to reach out toward God, not only when it is engaged in meditation; at other times also, when it is carrying out its duties, caring for the needy, performing works of charity, or giving generously in the ser-vice of others. Our spirit should long for God and call him to mind, so that these works may be seasoned with the salt of God’s love, and so make a pleasing offering to the Lord of the universe.”
Prayers for Others
Our Father
God, help us to show kindness and unrivaled hospitality as the natural extension of our commitment to you. Use us to bring hope and comfort to the abandoned and forsaken corners of your creation. 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.
Daily Prayers for August 24
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 bow down and bend the knee : let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.
Song “Servant Song”
Lord, give us grace to serve you : as we wash one another’s dishes.
Psalm 116:14 – 17
O Lord, I am your servant : I am your servant and the child of your handmaid; you have freed me from my bonds.
I will offer you the sacrifice of thanksgiving : and call upon the name of the Lord.
I will fulfill my vows to the Lord : in the presence of all his -people,
in the courts of the Lord’s house : in the midst of you, O Jerusalem. Hallelujah!
Lord, give us grace to serve you : as we wash one another’s dishes.
2 Sam-uel 7:18 – 29 Romans 9:1 – 18
Lord, give us grace to serve you : as we wash one another’s dishes.
Dorotheus of Gaza, monk and abbot of the sixth century, penned these words: “Each one according to his means should take care to be at one with everyone else, for the more one is united to his neighbor, the more he is united with God.”
Prayers for Others
Our Father
King of Kings, King David was not ashamed to call himself your servant. Open our eyes to discover the joy of serving others. Let us do small things with great love today. 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.
