It took a year to read the Bible, then almost 9 months to read the Apocrypha. Now, I'm going to try to offer reflections on the Narrative Lectionary. But, I won't be posting daily--at least, for a while.

Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Daily Prayer, Wednesday, May 15, 2013

I will sing to the Lord as long as I live;

I will sing praise to my God while I have being.
May my meditation be pleasing to him, for I rejoice in th Lord.
Bless the Lord, O my soul. Praise the Lord!

Morning
Invitatory Psalm 100
Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth.
Worship the Lord with gladness;
come into his presence with singing.

Know that the Lord is God.
It is he that made us, and we are his;
we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
  and his courts with praise.
Give thanks to him, bless his name.
For the Lord is good;
his steadfast love endures forever,
  and his faithfulness to all generations.

Psalm 12
Help, O Lord, for there is no longer anyone who is godly;
   the faithful have disappeared from humankind.
They utter lies to each other;
   with flattering lips and a double heart they speak.
May the Lord cut off all flattering lips,
   the tongue that makes great boasts,
those who say, “With our tongues we will prevail;
   our lips are our own—who is our master?”
“Because the poor are despoiled,
   because the needy groan, I will now rise up,” says the Lord;
   “I will place them in the safety for which they long.”
The promises of the Lord are promises that are pure,
   silver refined in a furnace on the ground,
       purified seven times.
You, O Lord, will protect us;
   you will guard us from this generation forever.
On every side the wicked prowl,
   as vileness is exalted among humankind.

Psalm 13
How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever?
How long will you hide your face from me?
How long must I bear pain in my soul,
   and have sorrow in my heart all day long?
How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?
Consider and answer me, O Lord my God!
Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep the sleep of death,
and my enemy will say,
   “I have prevailed”;
my foes will rejoice because I am shaken.
But I trusted in your steadfast love;
my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.
I will sing to the Lord, because he has dealt bountifully with me.

Psalm 17
Hear a just cause, O Lord; attend to my cry;
give ear to my prayer from lips free of deceit.
From you let my vindication come;
let your eyes see the right.
If you try my heart,
if you visit me by night,
if you test me,
   you will find no wickedness in me;
   my mouth does not transgress.

As for what others do,
   by the word of your lips
   I have avoided the ways of the violent.
My steps have held fast to your paths;
my feet have not slipped.

I call upon you, for you will answer me, O God;
incline your ear to me, hear my words.
Wondrously show your steadfast love,
   O savior of those who seek refuge
       from their adversaries at your right hand.
Guard me as the apple of the eye;
hide me in the shadow of your wings,
from the wicked who despoil me,
   my deadly enemies who surround me.
….

Rise up, O Lord, confront them, overthrow them!
By your sword deliver my life from the wicked,
   from mortals—by your hand, O Lord
   — from mortals whose portion in life is in this world.
….
As for me, I shall behold your face in righteousness;
when I awake I shall be satisfied, beholding your likeness.

Daily Lectionary Reading, Acts 2:1-13
When Pentecost Day arrived, they were all together in one place. 2 Suddenly a sound from heaven like the howling of a fierce wind filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 They saw what seemed to be individual flames of fire alighting on each one of them. 4 They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages as the Spirit enabled them to speak. 5 There were pious Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem. 6 When they heard this sound, a crowd gathered. They were mystified because everyone heard them speaking in their native languages. 7 They were surprised and amazed, saying, “ Look, aren’t all the people who are speaking Galileans, every one of them? 8 How then can each of us hear them speaking in our native language? 9 Parthians, Medes, and Elamites; as well as residents of Mesopotamia, Judea, and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the regions of Libya bordering Cyrene; and visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts to Judaism), 11 Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the mighty works of God in our own languages! ” 12 They were all surprised and bewildered. Some asked each other, “ What does this mean? ” 13 Others jeered at them, saying, “ They’re full of new wine! ” [Common English Bible]

Prayer for Today: God, fill us with your Holy Spirit so that we are empowered to speak to others who need to know about your works. F

ill us with your Holy Spirit so that we can understand each other.

Midday Psalm 119:17-24
Deal bountifully with your servant,
   so that I may live and observe your word.
Open my eyes, so that I may behold
   wondrous things out of your law.
I live as an alien in the land;
   do not hide your commandments from me.
My soul is consumed with longing
   for your ordinances at all times.
You rebuke the insolent, accursed ones,
   who wander from your commandments;
take away from me their scorn and contempt,
    for I have kept your decrees.
Even though princes sit plotting against me,
    your servant will meditate on your statutes.
Your decrees are my delight, they are my counselors.

Evening
Psalm 18
I love you, O Lord, my strength.
The Lord is my rock, my fortress,
   and my deliverer, my God,
   my rock in whom I take refuge, my shield,
   and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised,
   so I shall be saved from my enemies.
The cords of death encompassed me;
the torrents of perdition assailed me;
the cords of Sheol entangled me;
the snares of death confronted me.
In my distress I called upon the Lord;
to my God I cried for help.

From his temple he heard my voice,
   and my cry to him reached his ears.
….

He reached down from on high, he took me;
he drew me out of mighty waters.
He delivered me from my strong enemy,
   and from those who hated me;
   for they were too mighty for me.
….

With the loyal you show yourself loyal;
with the blameless you show yourself blameless;
with the pure you show yourself pure;
   and with the crooked you show yourself perverse.
For you deliver a humble people,
   but the haughty eyes you bring down.

It is you who light my lamp;
the Lord, my God, lights up my darkness.
By you I can crush a troop,
   and by my God I can leap over a wall.
….

You have given me the shield of your salvation,
   and your right hand has supported me;
your help has made me great.
You gave me a wide place for my steps under me,
and my feet did not slip.
….
The Lord lives!
Blessed be my rock,
   and exalted be the God of my salvation,
   the God who gave me vengeance
        and subdued peoples under me;
        who delivered me from my enemies;
indeed, you exalted me above my adversaries;
you delivered me from the violent.
For this I will extol you, O Lord, among the nations,
   and sing praises to your name.
...

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