The Watchword for the Week (from the Moravian Daily Texts)
Forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:13-14
Loving God, from the busyness of this day,
Call us into your presence.
From the distractions of our lives,
Call us into your presence.
From the slumber into which our faith can fall,
Call us into your presence.
From the temptation of being trapped by the memories of yesterday,
Call us into your presence.
Psalm 126
When God restored the fortunes of Zion,
we were like those who dream.
Then our mouth was filled with laughter,
and our tongue with shouts of joy;
then it was said among the nations,
“God has done great things for them.”
God has done great things for us,
and we rejoiced.
Restore our fortunes, O God,
like the watercourses in the Negeb.
May those who sow in tears
reap with shouts of joy.
Those who go out weeping,
bearing the seed for sowing,
shall come home with shouts of joy,
carrying their sheaves.
Confession of Sin
So that our hearts might be cleansed, we lift to God the sins which keep us from reaching the goal of a full relationship with God. Together, let us confess our sins:
Your ways are marvelous, O God. Your law is perfect, and your grace is boundless. We humbly ask for your forgiveness for the times when we have ignored your good intentions for us and instead have followed a short-sighted and misguided way of living. Forgive us for allowing the wistful memories of yesterday to cloud our vision for your work among us today. Give us the courage to set our faces toward the future. We ask that you create in us a clean heart, O God. Renew a true and right spirit within us with which we can stand before you without guilt or shame. Do not cast us away as we might deserve, but restore unto us the comforting presence of your Holy Spirit. Give us joyful hearts to serve your Church.
Christ came into the world not to condemn the world but that the world might be saved through Him. We are forgiven, and we have the promise of eternal life. Rejoice and give God praise.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning is now and ever shall be, world without end, Amen.
Take time to read today’s Daily Texts. If you do not have a copy of the Daily Texts, you will find today’s texts posted in the margin on your page’s right side (at the bottom of the page if you are on a mobile phone). God speaks to us through the inspiration of scripture, so approach the opportunity to read the texts as a privilege, eagerly anticipating what might be conveyed to you today. How might today’s Word make a part of your life new again? When you have finished praying, continue as follows.
With one voice, we pray together:
Creator of all humanity, we call you Holy and seek to worship you all the days of our lives. We pray that the ways of your heavenly kingdom may be made real in the world that surrounds us. May the bread that we need for today be made available for us and all who are hungry, and may you forgive us just as we are able to forgive those who have sinned against us. In the time of moral testing, may we listen first for your voice calling to us, instead of the call of the world; take from us the self-centeredness of our society. This world, and all that is in it, always has been and always will be yours, Amen.
Lord awaken us,
To see your presence with us in each moment.
Lord, open our hearts,
To see the suffering of others.
Lord, open our eyes,
To see how we can serve you this day.
Lord help us,
To see the value that we have in your great kingdom on earth.
Lord, open our souls,
To accept the grace that you have already extended to us.
Lord, make us aware
of how we can share your grace with those around us.
Lord awaken us,
To see the places that you are even now taking us.
Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body, and be thankful. Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.
And whatever we do in word or deed, may we do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father. AMEN.