Morning Prayer

Advent
Watch, for you know not when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or in the morning; lest he come suddenly and find you asleep. Mark 13:35, 36

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

Venite
The Antiphon:

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

Our King and Savior now draws near: Come, let us adore him.

The Lessons

Psalm 37

⁽¹⁾ Do not fret because of evildoers, Nor be envious of the workers of iniquity. ⁽²⁾ For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, And wither as the green herb. ⁽³⁾ Trust in the LORD, and do good; Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness. ⁽⁴⁾ Delight yourself also in the LORD, And He shall give you the desires of your heart.

⁽⁵⁾ Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass. ⁽⁶⁾ He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light, And your justice as the noonday. ⁽⁷⁾ Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for Him; Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, Because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass. ⁽⁸⁾ Cease from anger, and forsake wrath; Do not fret -- it only causes harm.

⁽⁹⁾ For evildoers shall be cut off; But those who wait on the LORD, They shall inherit the earth. ⁽¹⁰⁾ For yet a little while and the wicked shall be no more; Indeed, you will look carefully for his place, But it shall be no more. ⁽¹¹⁾ But the meek shall inherit the earth, And shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace. ⁽¹²⁾ The wicked plots against the just, And gnashes at him with his teeth.

⁽¹³⁾ The Lord laughs at him, For He sees that his day is coming. ⁽¹⁴⁾ The wicked have drawn the sword And have bent their bow, To cast down the poor and needy, To slay those who are of upright conduct. ⁽¹⁵⁾ Their sword shall enter their own heart, And their bows shall be broken. ⁽¹⁶⁾ A little that a righteous man has Is better than the riches of many wicked.

⁽¹⁷⁾ For the arms of the wicked shall be broken, But the LORD upholds the righteous. ⁽¹⁸⁾ The LORD knows the days of the upright, And their inheritance shall be forever.

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.

Amos Chapter 9

⁽¹⁾ I saw the Lord standing by the altar, and He said: 'Strike the doorposts, that the thresholds may shake, And break them on the heads of them all. I will slay the last of them with the sword. He who flees from them shall not get away, And he who escapes from them shall not be delivered. ⁽²⁾ Though they dig into hell, From there my hand shall take them; Though they climb up to heaven, From there I will bring them down; ⁽³⁾ And though they hide themselves on top of Carmel, From there I will search and take them; Though they hide from My sight at the bottom of the sea, From there I will command the serpent, and it shall bite them; ⁽⁴⁾ Though they go into captivity before their enemies, From there I will command the sword, And it shall slay them. I will set My eyes on them for harm and not for good.'

⁽⁵⁾ The Lord GOD of hosts, He who touches the earth and it melts, And all who dwell there mourn; All of it shall swell like the River, And subside like the River of Egypt. ⁽⁶⁾ He who builds His layers in the sky, And has founded His strata in the earth; Who calls for the waters of the sea, And pours them out on the face of the earth -- The LORD is His name. ⁽⁷⁾ Are you not like the people of Ethiopia to Me, O children of Israel?' says the LORD. 'Did I not bring up Israel from the land of Egypt, The Philistines from Caphtor, And the Syrians from Kir? ⁽⁸⁾ Behold, the eyes of the Lord GOD are on the sinful kingdom, And I will destroy it from the face of the earth; Yet I will not utterly destroy the house of Jacob,' Says the LORD.

⁽⁹⁾ For surely I will command, And will sift the house of Israel among all nations, As grain is sifted in a sieve; Yet not the smallest grain shall fall to the ground. ⁽¹⁰⁾ All the sinners of My people shall die by the sword, Who say, 'The calamity shall not overtake nor confront us.'

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Revelation Chapter 2

⁽⁸⁾ And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write, ' These things says the First and the Last, who was dead, and came to life: ⁽⁹⁾ I know your works, tribulation, and poverty (but you are rich); and I know the blasphemy of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. ⁽¹⁰⁾ Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life. ⁽¹¹⁾ He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death.' '

⁽¹²⁾ And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write, ' These things says He who has the sharp two-edged sword: ⁽¹³⁾ I know your works, and where you dwell, where Satan's throne is. And you hold fast to My name, and did not deny My faith even in the days in which Antipas was My faithful martyr, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells. ⁽¹⁴⁾ But I have a few things against you, because you have there those who hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols, and to commit sexual immorality. ⁽¹⁵⁾ Thus you also have those who hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate.

⁽¹⁶⁾ Repent, or else I will come to you quickly and will fight against them with the sword of My mouth. ⁽¹⁷⁾ He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give some of the hidden manna to eat. And I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written which no one knows except him who receives it.' '

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Matthew Chapter 23

⁽¹³⁾ But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in. ⁽¹⁴⁾ Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows' houses, and for a pretense make long prayers. Therefore you will receive greater condemnation. ⁽¹⁵⁾ Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel land and sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves. ⁽¹⁶⁾ Woe to you, blind guides, who say, 'Whoever swears by the temple, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple, he is obliged to perform it.'

⁽¹⁷⁾ Fools and blind! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that sanctifies the gold? ⁽¹⁸⁾ And, 'Whoever swears by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gift that is on it, he is obliged to perform it.' ⁽¹⁹⁾ Fools and blind! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that sanctifies the gift? ⁽²⁰⁾ Therefore he who swears by the altar, swears by it and by all things on it.

⁽²¹⁾ He who swears by the temple, swears by it and by Him who dwells in it. ⁽²²⁾ And he who swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God and by Him who sits on it. ⁽²³⁾ Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone. ⁽²⁴⁾ Blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!

⁽²⁵⁾ Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence. ⁽²⁶⁾ Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also.

The Gospel of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.


The Song of Moses    Exodus 15:1 to 6, 11 to 13, 17 to 18

I will sing to the Lord, for he is lofty and uplifted;
the horse and its rider has he hurled into the sea.
The Lord is my strength and my refuge;
the Lord has become my Savior.
This is my God and I will praise him,
the God of my people and I will exalt him.
The Lord is a mighty warrior;
Yahweh is his Name.
The chariots of Pharoah and his army has he hurled into the sea;
the finest of those who bear armor have been drowned in the Red Sea.
The fathomless deep has overwhelmed them;
they sank into the depths like a stone.
Your right hand, O Lord, is glorious in might;
your right hand, O Lord, has overthrown the enemy.
Who can be compared with you, O Lord, among the gods?
who is like you, glorious in holiness,
awesome in renown, and worker of wonders?
You stretched forth your right hand;
the earth swallowed them up.
With your constant love you led the people you redeemed;
with your might you brought them in safety to
your holy dwelling.
You will bring them in and plant them
on the mount of your possession,
The resting-place you have made for yourself, O Lord,
the sanctuary, O Lord, that your hand has established.
The Lord shall reign forever and forever.
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 Third Song of Isaiah       Isaiah 60:1 to 3, 11a, 14c, 18 to 19
Arise, shine, for your light has come,
and the glory of the Lord has dawned upon you.
For behold, darkness covers the land;
deep gloom enshrouds the peoples.
But over you the Lord will rise,
and his glory will appear upon you.
Nations will stream to your light,
and kings to the brightness of your dawning.
Your gates will always be open;
by day or night they will never be shut.
They will call you, The City of the Lord,
The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.
Violence will no more be heard in your land,
ruin or destruction within your borders.
You will call your walls, Salvation,
and all your portals, Praise.
The sun will no more be your light by day;
by night you will not need the brightness of the moon.
The Lord will be your everlasting light,
and your God will be your glory.
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:  Second Sunday of Advent
Merciful God, who sent your messengers the prophets to preach repentance and prepare the way for our salvation: Give us grace to heed their warnings and forsake our sins, that we may greet with joy the coming of Jesus Christ our Redeemer; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Collect of the Day: Heavenly Father, in you we live and move and have our being: We humbly pray you so to guide and govern us by your Holy Spirit, that in all the cares and occupations of our life we may not forget you, but may remember that we are ever walking in your sight; 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