PRAYER FOR THIS MORNING (FRIDAY, AUGUST 14)
Saint Maximilian Kolbe
Prayer for the Morning
Come, let us seek the Lord!
Glory to the Father, and to the Son,
and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia!
HYMN
God’s martyr, who the course has run
Behind the Father’s only Son,
O victor, conqu’ring all your foes,
Who now the joys of heaven knows,
O favor us with gifts of prayer
To cleanse us from the faults we bear.
Ward evil off, that plague of strife;
Repel all tedium from life.
Your frame is freed from chains at last;
Now loose the chains that hold us fast;
The bonds to worldliness undone
By love of God’s beloved Son.
PSALM 27:1-4, 13-14
No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. (Jn 15:13)
Saint Maximilian, sustained by his deep love for the Blessed Virgin Mary, found courage in Christ’s cross to lay down his life for a fellow concentration camp prisoner.
The Lord is my light and my help;
whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life;
before whom shall I shrink?
When evil-doers draw near
to devour my flesh,
it is they, my enemies and foes,
who stumble and fall.
Though an army encamp against me
my heart would not fear.
Though war break out against me
even then would I trust.
There is one thing I ask of the Lord,
for this I long,
to live in the house of the Lord,
all the days of my life,
to savor the sweetness of the Lord,
to behold his temple.
I am sure I shall see the Lord’s goodness
in the land of the living.
Hope in him, hold firm and take heart.
Hope in the Lord!
Glory to the Father….
Word of God (2 Corinthians 1:3-5)
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and God of all encouragement, who encourages us in our every affliction, so that we may be able to encourage those who are in any affliction with the encouragement with which we ourselves are encouraged by God. For as Christ’s sufferings overflow to us, so through Christ does our encouragement also overflow.
I will make your reward very great!
(Gn 15:1)
CANTICLE OF ZECHARIAH
Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,/ for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (Mt 5:10)
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel;
he has come to his people and set them free.
He has raised up for us a mighty savior,
born of the house of his servant David.
Through his holy prophets he promised of old
that he would save us from our enemies,
from the hands of all who hate us.
He promised to show mercy to our fathers
and to remember his holy covenant.
This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham:
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
free to worship him without fear,
holy and righteous in his sight
all the days of our life.
You, my child, shall be called the prophet
of the Most High;
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
to give his people knowledge of salvation
by the forgiveness of their sins.
In the tender compassion of our God
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
to shine on those who dwell in darkness
and the shadow of death,
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.
Glory to the Father…
INTERCESSIONS
With the martyrs who have given their lives for Christ, let us praise our Savior, the faithful witness:
R/We acclaim you, O Christ!
Through the martyrs who freely laid down their lives in bearing witness to the faith,
– grant us the spirit of true freedom. R/
Through the martyrs who shed their blood in confessing your name,
– make us strong in faith. R/
Through the martyrs who followed you in the way of the cross,
– strengthen us in time of trial. R/
Through the martyrs who washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb,
– enable us to overcome the temptations of this world. R/
(Personal intentions)
Our Father….
O God of the living, through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, you gave Saint Maximilian the grace to follow your Son in laying down his life for another. By his example, inspire many to take up the cross for the salvation of the world, through the same Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
