PRAYER FOR THIS MORNING (FRIDAY, DECEMBER 18)
Prayer for the Morning
The promised One shall come and rule over us
in peace: come, let us adore him!
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
The God of whom the prophets told,
when truth in signs and visions came,
we now in Christ by faith behold
and hear his word and know his Name.
His grace alone our confidence,
his Spirit’s power about our ways,
a wall of fire our sure defense,
his covenant our song of praise.
Rejoice! for Christ shall come again,
with peace and righteousness restored:
from sea to sea our King shall reign,
and all be holy to the Lord.
PSALM 127
Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord,/ when I will raise up a righteous shoot to David. (Jer 23:5)
God promised to build an everlasting house for David. In sleep, Joseph, of the house of David, receives word of the promise’s astonishing fulfillment: his intended wife has not been unfaithful but has been the faithful instrument in God’s plan to save the world through the gift of the Son she has conceived by the Holy Spirit.
If the Lord does not build the house,
in vain do its builders labor;
if the Lord does not watch over the city,
in vain does the watchman keep vigil.
In vain is your earlier rising,
your going later to rest,
you who toil for the bread you eat:
when he pours gifts on his beloved while they slumber.
Truly sons are a gift from the Lord,
a blessing, the fruit of the womb.
Indeed the sons of youth
are like arrows in the hand of a warrior.
O the happiness of the man
who has filled his quiver with these arrows!
He will have no cause for shame
when he disputes with his foes in the gateways.
Glory to the Father….
Word of God (2 Samuel 7:12-14a, 16)
I will raise up your heir after you, sprung from your loins, and I will make his kingdom firm. It is he who shall build a house for my name. And I will make his royal throne firm forever. I will be a father to him, and he shall be a son to me. Your house and your kingdom shall endure forever before me; your throne shall stand firm forever.
A shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse,/
and from his roots a bud shall blossom. (Is 11:1)
CANTICLE OF ZECHARIAH
As king he shall reign and govern wisely,/ he shall do what is just and right in the land. (Jer 23:5)
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
Let us pray to the promised Son of David:
R/Come and reward your people’s hope!
You are of the house and line of David:
– reward the people of the first covenant who kept alive the memory of God’s promise. R/
You are the gift of God’s love to those who waited long in faith:
– strengthen our faith as we look forward to the celebration of your coming. R/
You have opened to us the Father’s house, where there are many dwelling places:
– bring us to the home you have prepared for us. R/
(Personal intentions)
Our Father….
Lord Jesus Christ, you are the long-awaited ruler of the earth. Through the example and intercession of Mary and Joseph, prepare our hearts to receive you with joy and to serve you faithfully, who live and reign with the Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
