The Daily Readings for MONDAY, July 10, 2017

Acts 9:23-25 - Saul Escapes from Damascus

Opening Sentence

I was glad when they said to me, "Let us go to the house of the Lord." Psalm 122:1

Morning Prayer

Oh Lord, most heavenly Father, Almighty and everlasting God, who has safely brought me to the beginning of this day; I give you thanks for my creation, preservation, and all the blessings of my life. Grant that this day I fall into no sin, neither run into any kind of danger; but that all my doings, being governed by your will, may be righteous in your sight. Through Christ our Lord, I pray. Amen.

Confession and Forgiveness

O Holy One, we call to you and name you as eternal, ever-present, and boundless in love. Yet there are times, O God, when we fail to recognize you in the dailyness of our lives. Sometimes shame clenches tightly around our hearts, and we hide our true feelings. Sometimes fear makes us small, and we miss the chance to speak from our strength. Sometimes doubt invades our hopefulness, and we degrade our own wisdom.

Holy God, in the daily round from sunrise to sunset, remind us again of your holy presence hovering near us and in us. Free us from shame and self-doubt. Help us to see you in the moment-by-moment possibilities to live honestly, to act courageously, and to speak from our wisdom. Amen.

Today's Readings

The First Reading is taken from 1 Samuel 15:1-3, 15:7-23

Samuel said to Saul, "The LORD sent me to anoint you king over his people Israel; now therefore listen to the words of the LORD. Thus says the LORD of hosts, 'I will punish the Amalekites for what they did in opposing the Israelites when they came up out of Egypt. Now go and attack Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have; do not spare them, but kill both man and woman, child and infant, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.'" Saul defeated the Amalekites, from Havilah as far as Shur, which is east of Egypt. He took King Agag of the Amalekites alive, but utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword. Saul and the people spared Agag, and the best of the sheep and of the cattle and of the fatlings, and the lambs, and all that was valuable, and would not utterly destroy them; all that was despised and worthless they utterly destroyed. The word of the LORD came to Samuel: "I regret that I made Saul king, for he has turned back from following me, and has not carried out my commands." Samuel was angry; and he cried out to the LORD all night. Samuel rose early in the morning to meet Saul, and Samuel was told, "Saul went to Carmel, where he set up a monument for himself, and on returning he passed on down to Gilgal." When Samuel came to Saul, Saul said to him, "May you be blessed by the LORD; I have carried out the command of the LORD." But Samuel said, "What then is this bleating of sheep in my ears, and the lowing of cattle that I hear?" Saul said, "They have brought them from the Amalekites; for the people spared the best of the sheep and the cattle, to sacrifice to the LORD your God; but the rest we have utterly destroyed." Then Samuel said to Saul, "Stop! I will tell you what the LORD said to me last night." He replied, "Speak." Samuel said, "Though you are little in your own eyes, are you not the head of the tribes of Israel? The LORD anointed you king over Israel. And the LORD sent you on a mission, and said, 'Go, utterly destroy the sinners, the Amalekites, and fight against them until they are consumed.' Why then did you not obey the voice of the LORD? Why did you swoop down on the spoil, and do what was evil in the sight of the LORD?" Saul said to Samuel, "I have obeyed the voice of the LORD, I have gone on the mission on which the LORD sent me, I have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and I have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. But from the spoil the people took sheep and cattle, the best of the things devoted to destruction, to sacrifice to the LORD your God in Gilgal." And Samuel said, "Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Surely, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams. For rebellion is no less a sin than divination, and stubbornness is like iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, he has also rejected you from being king."

The Second Reading is taken from Acts 9:19-31

and after taking some food, he regained his strength. For several days he was with the disciples in Damascus, and immediately he began to proclaim Jesus in the synagogues, saying, "He is the Son of God." All who heard him were amazed and said, "Is not this the man who made havoc in Jerusalem among those who invoked this name? And has he not come here for the purpose of bringing them bound before the chief priests?" Saul became increasingly more powerful and confounded the Jews who lived in Damascus by proving that Jesus was the Messiah. After some time had passed, the Jews plotted to kill him, but their plot became known to Saul. They were watching the gates day and night so that they might kill him; but his disciples took him by night and let him down through an opening in the wall, lowering him in a basket. When he had come to Jerusalem, he attempted to join the disciples; and they were all afraid of him, for they did not believe that he was a disciple. But Barnabas took him, brought him to the apostles, and described for them how on the road he had seen the Lord, who had spoken to him, and how in Damascus he had spoken boldly in the name of Jesus. So he went in and out among them in Jerusalem, speaking boldly in the name of the Lord. He spoke and argued with the Hellenists; but they were attempting to kill him. When the believers learned of it, they brought him down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus. Meanwhile the church throughout Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and was built up. Living in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it increased in numbers.

The Holy Gospel is written in Luke 23:44-56

It was now about noon, and darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon, while the sun's light failed; and the curtain of the temple was torn in two. Then Jesus, crying with a loud voice, said, "Father, into your hands I commend my spirit." Having said this, he breathed his last. When the centurion saw what had taken place, he praised God and said, "Certainly this man was innocent." And when all the crowds who had gathered there for this spectacle saw what had taken place, they returned home, beating their breasts. But all his acquaintances, including the women who had followed him from Galilee, stood at a distance, watching these things. Now there was a good and righteous man named Joseph, who, though a member of the council, had not agreed to their plan and action. He came from the Jewish town of Arimathea, and he was waiting expectantly for the kingdom of God. This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then he took it down, wrapped it in a linen cloth, and laid it in a rock-hewn tomb where no one had ever been laid. It was the day of Preparation, and the sabbath was beginning. The women who had come with him from Galilee followed, and they saw the tomb and how his body was laid. Then they returned, and prepared spices and ointments. On the sabbath they rested according to the commandment.

Morning Psalms

Psalm 1 Beatus vir qui non abiit
1   Happy are they who have not walked in the counsel of the wicked, nor lingered in the way of sinners, nor sat in the seats of the scornful!
2   Their delight is in the law of the LORD, and they meditate on his law day and night.
3   They are like trees planted by streams of water, bearing fruit in due season, with leaves that do not wither; everything they do shall prosper.
4   It is not so with the wicked; they are like chaff which the wind blows away.
5   Therefore the wicked shall not stand upright when judgment comes, nor the sinner in the council of the righteous.
6   For the LORD knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked is doomed.

Psalm 2 Quare fremuerunt gentes?
1   Why are the nations in an uproar? Why do the peoples mutter empty threats?
2   Why do the kings of the earth rise up in revolt, and the princes plot together, against the LORD and against his Anointed?
3   Let us break their yoke, they say; let us cast off their bonds from us.
4   He whose throne is in heaven is laughing; the Lord has them in derision.
5   Then he speaks to them in his wrath, and his rage fills them with terror.
6   I myself have set my king . upon my holy hill of Zion
7   Let me announce the decree of the LORD: he said to me, "You are my Son; this day have I begotten you.
8   Ask of me, and I will give you the nations for your inheritance and the ends of the earth for your possession.
9   You shall crush them with an iron rod and shatter them like a piece of pottery."
10   And now, you kings, be wise; be warned, you rulers of the earth.
11   Submit to the LORD with fear, and with trembling bow before him;
12   Lest he be angry and you perish; for his wrath is quickly kindled.
13   Happy are they all who take refuge in him!

Psalm 3 Domine, quid multiplicati
1   LORD, how many adversaries I have! how many there are who rise up against me!
2   How many there are who say of me, "There is no help for him in his God."
3   But you, O LORD, are a shield about me; you are my glory, the one who lifts up my head.
4   I call aloud upon the LORD, and he answers me from his holy hill;
5   I lie down and go to sleep; I wake again, because the LORD sustains me.
6   I do not fear the multitudes of people who set themselves against me all around.
7   Rise up, O LORD; set me free, O my God; surely, you will strike all my enemies across the face, you will break the teeth of the wicked.
8   Deliverance belongs to the LORD. Your blessing be upon your people!

Evening Psalms

Psalm 4 Cum invocarem
1   Answer me when I call, O God, defender of my cause; you set me free when I am hard-pressed; have mercy on me and hear my prayer.
2   You mortals, how long will you dishonor my glory; how long will you worship dumb idols and run after false gods?
3   Know that the LORD does wonders for the faithful; when I call upon the LORD, he will hear me.
4   Tremble, then, and do not sin; speak to your heart in silence upon your bed.
5   Offer the appointed sacrifices and put your trust in the LORD.
6   Many are saying, "Oh, that we might see better times!" Lift up the light of your countenance upon us, O LORD.
7   You have put gladness in my heart, more than when grain and wine and oil increase.
8   I lie down in peace; at once I fall asleep; for only you, LORD, make me dwell in safety.

Psalm 7 Domine, Deus meus
1   O LORD my God, I take refuge in you; save and deliver me from all who pursue me;
2   Lest like a lion they tear me in pieces and snatch me away with none to deliver me.
3   O LORD my God, if I have done these things: if there is any wickedness in my hands,
4   If I have repaid my friend with evil, or plundered him who without cause is my enemy;
5   Then let my enemy pursue and overtake me, trample my life into the ground, and lay my honor in the dust.
6   Stand up, O LORD, in your wrath; rise up against the fury of my enemies.
7   Awake, O my God, decree justice; let the assembly of the peoples gather round you.
8   Be seated on your lofty throne, O Most High; O LORD, judge the nations.
9   Give judgment for me according to my righteousness, O LORD, and according to my innocence, O Most High.
10   Let the malice of the wicked come to an end, but establish the righteous; for you test the mind and heart, O righteous God.
11   God is my shield and defense; he is the savior of the true in heart.
12   God is a righteous judge; God sits in judgment every day.
13   If they will not repent, God will whet his sword; he will bend his bow and make it ready.
14   He has prepared his weapons of death; he makes his arrows shafts of fire.
15   Look at those who are in labor with wickedness, who conceive evil, and give birth to a lie.
16   They dig a pit and make it deep and fall into the hole that they have made.
17   Their malice turns back upon their own head; their violence falls on their own scalp.
18   I will bear witness that the LORD is righteous; I will praise the Name of the LORD Most High.

The Nicene Creed

We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen.

We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, of one Being with the Father. Through him all things were made. For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven: by the power of the Holy Spirit he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary, and was made man. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried. On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures; he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end.

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son. With the Father and the Son he is worshiped and glorified. He has spoken through the Prophets. We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church. We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.

Prayer of the Day

Dear God, I know you are with me now. I know you are with me any time I call on you, or even think about you. Let me remember, every minute of every day, that you are with me, watching me, ready to help, protecting my soul even when the things of this world give me pain.

Let my every minute be lived in your presence. Let my every action be an offering of love to you. Let my every word be a prayer. Amen.

To Speak in Sympathy

Lord God, I pray that you will give me the strength to speak up for the woebegotten and those isolated in any way, even when no other person will; let me refrain from the unkind silence created in a hard heart, the unkind silence that clouds the bright sunshine of human sympathy and truth. Give me strength to be the first to speak the tender word of healing and friendship; make your Spirit powerful in my heart, that I may not remain silent when Christian love requires that something be said. And give me a sense of purpose, that I might actively forge the bonds of love among my brothers and sisters in Christ; this I ask in His name, Amen.

A Prayer for Mission

O God, you have made of one blood all the peoples of the earth, and sent your blessed Son to preach peace to those who are far off and to those who are near: Grant that people everywhere may seek after you and find you; bring the nations into your fold; pour out your Spirit upon all flesh; and hasten the coming of your kingdom; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Charles Jenkins & Fellowship Chicago give
us something to get our blood flowing for
the week ahead. “This means war!”

This Means War
Lyrics

I got joy in my soul
God is in control
I got Satan on my trail
But I'm singing all is well
He's attacking everyday
But I'm watching while I pray
No matter the attack
I won't turn back
This means war . . .

Refrain:
I plead the blood, I plead, I plead the blood
There's power in the blood (I plead, I plead the blood)
Healing in the blood (I plead, I plead the blood)
Power in the blood (I plead, I plead the blood)

I've been in the storm and the rain
But the blood still stays the same
Whatever's going wrong
My war clothes are on
I might be in a daze
But you can't have my praise
No matter the attack
I won't turn back
This means war . . .

Music and Lyrics by
Josh Osborne, Matthew Jenkins, Zachery Miller Crowell

Alleluia! Christ has risen.
Christ has risen indeed. Alleluia!

Closing Prayer

And finally, grant me O Lord, I pray, the lamp of charity which never fails, that it may burn in me and shed its light on those around me, and that by its brightness I may share a vision of that holy City, where dwells the true and never-failing Light, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The New Revised Standard Version Bible may be quoted and/or reprinted up to and inclusive of five hundred (500) verses without express written permission of the publisher, provided the verses quoted do not amount to a complete book of the Bible or account for fifty percent (50%) of the total work in which they are quoted.