Morning Prayer

Easter
You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. Acts 1:8

Confession of Sin
Most merciful God,
I confess that I have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what I have done, and by what I have left undone. I have not loved you with my whole heart; I have not loved my neighbors as myself. I am truly sorry and I humbly repent. For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, have mercy on me and forgive me; that I may delight in your will, and walk in your ways, to the glory of your Name. Amen.

Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us all our sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen us in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep us in eternal life. Amen

The Invitatory and Psalter

Lord, open our lips. And our mouth shall proclaim your praise
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen   Alleluia


From Easter to Pentecost, Christ the Passover  can be used in place of the Venite or Jubilate.

Christ the Passover  1 Corinthians 5:7 to 8; Romans 6:9 to 11; 1 Corinthians 15:20 to 22
Alleluia.
Christ our Passover has been sacrificed for us;
  therefore let us keep the feast,
Not with old leaven, the leaven of malice and evil,
  but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. Alleluia.

Christ being raised from the dead will never die again;
  death no longer has dominion over him.
The death that he died, he died to sin, once for all;
  but the life he lives, he lives to God.
So also consider yourselves dead to sin,
  and alive to God in Jesus Christ our Lord. Alleluia.

  the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.
For since by a man came death,
  by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead.
For as in Adam all die,
  so in Christ shall all be made alive. Alleluia.

Venite
The Antiphon:

ⓘ   A short, reflective sentence recited alongside a psalm to deepen our understanding of the readings.

Thanks be to God, who gives us victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 15:57

The Lessons

Psalm 89

⁽¹⁾ I will sing of the mercies of the LORD forever; With my mouth will I make known Your faithfulness to all generations. ⁽²⁾ For I have said, 'Mercy shall be built up forever; Your faithfulness You shall establish in the very heavens.' ⁽³⁾ I have made a covenant with My chosen, I have sworn to My servant David: ⁽⁴⁾ Your seed I will establish forever, And build up your throne to all generations.' ' Selah

⁽⁵⁾ And the heavens will praise Your wonders, O LORD; Your faithfulness also in the assembly of the saints. ⁽⁶⁾ For who in the heavens can be compared to the LORD? Who among the sons of the mighty can be likened to the LORD? ⁽⁷⁾ God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, And to be held in reverence by all those around Him. ⁽⁸⁾ O LORD God of hosts, Who is mighty like You, O LORD? Your faithfulness also surrounds You.

⁽⁹⁾ You rule the raging of the sea; When its waves rise, You still them. ⁽¹⁰⁾ You have broken Rahab in pieces, as one who is slain; You have scattered Your enemies with Your mighty arm. ⁽¹¹⁾ The heavens are Yours, the earth also is Yours; The world and all its fullness, You have founded them. ⁽¹²⁾ The north and the south, You have created them; Tabor and Hermon rejoice in Your name.

⁽¹³⁾ You have a mighty arm; Strong is Your hand, and high is Your right hand. ⁽¹⁴⁾ Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne; Mercy and truth go before Your face. ⁽¹⁵⁾ Blessed are the people who know the joyful sound! They walk, O LORD, in the light of Your countenance. ⁽¹⁶⁾ In Your name they rejoice all day long, And in Your righteousness they are exalted.

⁽¹⁷⁾ For You are the glory of their strength, And in Your favor our horn is exalted. ⁽¹⁸⁾ For our shield belongs to the LORD, And our king to the Holy One of Israel.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.

Ezekiel Chapter 4

⁽¹⁾ You also, son of man, take a clay tablet and lay it before you, and portray on it a city, Jerusalem. ⁽²⁾ Lay siege against it, build a siege wall against it, and heap up a mound against it; set camps against it also, and place battering rams against it all around. ⁽³⁾ Moreover take for yourself an iron plate, and set it as an iron wall between you and the city. Set your face against it, and it shall be besieged, and you shall lay siege against it. This will be a sign to the house of Israel. ⁽⁴⁾ Lie also on your left side, and lay the iniquity of the house of Israel upon it. According to the number of the days that you lie on it, you shall bear their iniquity.

⁽⁵⁾ For I have laid on you the years of their iniquity, according to the number of the days, three hundred and ninety days; so you shall bear the iniquity of the house of Israel. ⁽⁶⁾ And when you have completed them, lie again on your right side; then you shall bear the iniquity of the house of Judah forty days. I have laid on you a day for each year. ⁽⁷⁾ Therefore you shall set your face toward the siege of Jerusalem; your arm shall be uncovered, and you shall prophesy against it. ⁽⁸⁾ And surely I will restrain you so that you cannot turn from one side to another till you have ended the days of your siege.

⁽⁹⁾ Also take for yourself wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet, and spelt; put them into one vessel, and make bread of them for yourself. During the number of days that you lie on your side, three hundred and ninety days, you shall eat it. ⁽¹⁰⁾ And your food which you eat shall be by weight, twenty shekels a day; from time to time you shall eat it. ⁽¹¹⁾ You shall also drink water by measure, one-sixth of a hin; from time to time you shall drink. ⁽¹²⁾ And you shall eat it as barley cakes; and bake it using fuel of human waste in their sight.'

⁽¹³⁾ Then the LORD said, 'So shall the children of Israel eat their defiled bread among the Gentiles, where I will drive them.' ⁽¹⁴⁾ So I said, 'Ah, Lord GOD! Indeed I have never defiled myself from my youth till now; I have never eaten what died of itself or was torn by beasts, nor has abominable flesh ever come into my mouth.' ⁽¹⁵⁾ Then He said to me, 'See, I am giving you cow dung instead of human waste, and you shall prepare your bread over it.' ⁽¹⁶⁾ Moreover He said to me, 'Son of man, surely I will cut off the supply of bread in Jerusalem; they shall eat bread by weight and with anxiety, and shall drink water by measure and with dread,

⁽¹⁷⁾ that they may lack bread and water, and be dismayed with one another, and waste away because of their iniquity.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Hebrews Chapter 6

⁽¹⁾ Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, ⁽²⁾ of the doctrine of baptisms, of laying on of hands, of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. ⁽³⁾ And this we will do if God permits. ⁽⁴⁾ For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit,

⁽⁵⁾ and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, ⁽⁶⁾ if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame. ⁽⁷⁾ For the earth which drinks in the rain that often comes upon it, and bears herbs useful for those by whom it is cultivated, receives blessing from God; ⁽⁸⁾ but if it bears thorns and briars, it is rejected and near to being cursed, whose end is to be burned.

⁽⁹⁾ But, beloved, we are confident of better things concerning you, yes, things that accompany salvation, though we speak in this manner. ⁽¹⁰⁾ For God is not unjust to forget your work and labor of love which you have shown toward His name, in that you have ministered to the saints, and do minister. ⁽¹¹⁾ And we desire that each one of you show the same diligence to the full assurance of hope until the end, ⁽¹²⁾ that you do not become sluggish, but imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Luke Chapter 9

⁽⁵¹⁾ Now it came to pass, when the time had come for Him to be received up, that He steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem, ⁽⁵²⁾ and sent messengers before His face. And as they went, they entered a village of the Samaritans, to prepare for Him. ⁽⁵³⁾ But they did not receive Him, because His face was set for the journey to Jerusalem. ⁽⁵⁴⁾ And when His disciples James and John saw this, they said, 'Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them, just as Elijah did?'

⁽⁵⁵⁾ But He turned and rebuked them, and said, 'You do not know what manner of spirit you are of. ⁽⁵⁶⁾ For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men's lives but to save them.' And they went to another village. ⁽⁵⁷⁾ Now it happened as they journeyed on the road, that someone said to Him, 'Lord, I will follow You wherever You go.' ⁽⁵⁸⁾ And Jesus said to him, 'Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.'

⁽⁵⁹⁾ Then He said to another, 'Follow Me.' But he said, 'Lord, let me first go and bury my father.' ⁽⁶⁰⁾ Jesus said to him, 'Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and preach the kingdom of God.' ⁽⁶¹⁾ And another also said, 'Lord, I will follow You, but let me first go and bid them farewell who are at my house.' ⁽⁶²⁾ But Jesus said to him, 'No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.'

The Gospel of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

The Song of the Redeemed       Revelation 15:3 to 4  
O ruler of the universe, Lord God,
great deeds are they that you have done,
  surpassing human understanding.
Your ways are ways of righteousness and truth,
 O King of all the ages.

Who can fail to do you homage, Lord,
and sing the praises of your Name?
  for you only are the Holy One.
All nations will draw near
and fall down before you,
  because your just and holy works have been revealed.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
  as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.

The First Song of Isaiah       Isaiah 12:2 to 6
 
Surely, it is God who saves me;
  I will trust in him and not be afraid.
For the Lord is my stronghold
and my sure defense,
  and he will be my Savior.
Therefore you shall draw water with rejoicing
  from the springs of salvation.
And on that day you shall say,
  Give thanks to the Lord and call upon his Name;
Make his deeds known among the peoples;
  see that they remember that his Name is exalted.
Sing the praises of the Lord,
for he has done great things,
  and this is known in all the world.
Cry aloud, inhabitants of Zion, ring out your joy,
  for the great one in the midst of you is the Holy One of Israel.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
 as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.


The Apostles' Creed
I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only son, our Lord.
  He was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary.
  He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried.
  He descended to the dead.
  On the third day he rose again.
  He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
  He will come again to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
  the holy catholic Church,
  the communion of saints,
  the forgiveness of sins,
  the resurrection of the body,
  and the life everlasting. Amen.

The Prayers

The Lord's Prayer   Traditional
Suffrages A

Seasonal Collect:  Seventh Sunday of Easter: The Sunday after Ascension Day
O God, the King of glory, you have exalted your only Son Jesus Christ with great triumph to your kingdom in heaven: Do not leave us comfortless, but send us your Holy Spirit to strengthen us, and exalt us to that place where our Savior Christ has gone before; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, in glory everlasting. Amen.

Collect of the Day: O God, the King eternal, whose light divides the day from the night and turns the shadow of death into the morning: Drive far from us all wrong desires, incline our hearts to keep your law, and guide our feet into the way of peace; that, having done your will with cheerfulness while it was day, we may, when night comes, rejoice to give you thanks; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

A Prayer for Mission: Almighty and everlasting God, by whose Spirit the whole body of your faithful people is governed and sanctified: Receive our supplications and prayers which we offer before you for all members of your holy Church, that in their vocation and ministry they may truly and devoutly serve you; through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

Personal Prayers and Reflection

This is a time to pause, consider and listen. Pray for yourself and others. When you lack the words


Closing Prayers   Thanksgiving

Conclude with the following
Let Us Bless the Lord, Thanks be to God

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with us all evermore. Amen. 2 Corinthians 13:14