Morning Prayer

Lent
Rend your hearts and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and repents of evil. Joel 2:13

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

Venite
The Antiphon:

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

The Lord is full of compassion and mercy: Come let us adore him.

The Lessons

Psalm 69

⁽¹⁾ Save me, O God! For the waters have come up to my neck. ⁽²⁾ I sink in deep mire, Where there is no standing; I have come into deep waters, Where the floods overflow me. ⁽³⁾ I am weary with my crying; My throat is dry; My eyes fail while I wait for my God. ⁽⁴⁾ Those who hate me without a cause Are more than the hairs of my head; They are mighty who would destroy me, Being my enemies wrongfully; Though I have stolen nothing, I still must restore it.

⁽⁵⁾ O God, You know my foolishness; And my sins are not hidden from You. ⁽⁶⁾ Let not those who wait for You, O Lord GOD of hosts, be ashamed because of me; Let not those who seek You be confounded because of me, O God of Israel. ⁽⁷⁾ Because for Your sake I have borne reproach; Shame has covered my face. ⁽⁸⁾ I have become a stranger to my brothers, And an alien to my mother's children;

⁽⁹⁾ Because zeal for Your house has eaten me up, And the reproaches of those who reproach You have fallen on me. ⁽¹⁰⁾ When I wept and chastened my soul with fasting, That became my reproach. ⁽¹¹⁾ I also made sackcloth my garment; I became a byword to them. ⁽¹²⁾ Those who sit in the gate speak against me, And I am the song of the drunkards.

⁽¹³⁾ But as for me, my prayer is to You, O LORD, in the acceptable time; O God, in the multitude of Your mercy, Hear me in the truth of Your salvation. ⁽¹⁴⁾ Deliver me out of the mire, And let me not sink; Let me be delivered from those who hate me, And out of the deep waters. ⁽¹⁵⁾ Let not the floodwater overflow me, Nor let the deep swallow me up; And let not the pit shut its mouth on me. ⁽¹⁶⁾ Hear me, O LORD, for Your lovingkindness is good; Turn to me according to the multitude of Your tender mercies.

⁽¹⁷⁾ And do not hide Your face from Your servant, For I am in trouble; Hear me speedily. ⁽¹⁸⁾ Draw near to my soul, and redeem it; Deliver me because of my enemies. ⁽¹⁹⁾ You know my reproach, my shame, and my dishonor; My adversaries are all before You. ⁽²⁰⁾ Reproach has broken my heart, And I am full of heaviness; I looked for someone to take pity, but there was none; And for comforters, but I found none.

⁽²¹⁾ They also gave me gall for my food, And for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink. ⁽²²⁾ Let their table become a snare before them, And their well-being a trap. ⁽²³⁾ Let their eyes be darkened, so that they do not see; And make their loins shake continually. ⁽³¹⁾ This also shall please the LORD better than an ox or bull, Which has horns and hooves. ⁽³²⁾ The humble shall see this and be glad; And you who seek God, your hearts shall live. ⁽³³⁾ For the LORD hears the poor, And does not despise His prisoners. ⁽³⁴⁾ Let heaven and earth praise Him, The seas and everything that moves in them.

⁽³⁵⁾ For God will save Zion And build the cities of Judah, That they may dwell there and possess it. ⁽³⁶⁾ Also, the descendants of His servants shall inherit it, And those who love His name shall dwell in it.

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.

Jeremiah Chapter 5

⁽¹⁾ Run to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem; See now and know; And seek in her open places If you can find a man, If there is anyone who executes judgment, Who seeks the truth, And I will pardon her. ⁽²⁾ Though they say, 'As the LORD lives,' Surely they swear falsely.' ⁽³⁾ O LORD, are not Your eyes on the truth? You have stricken them, But they have not grieved; You have consumed them, But they have refused to receive correction. They have made their faces harder than rock; They have refused to return. ⁽⁴⁾ Therefore I said, 'Surely these are poor. They are foolish; For they do not know the way of the LORD, The judgment of their God.

⁽⁵⁾ I will go to the great men and speak to them, For they have known the way of the LORD, The judgment of their God.' But these have altogether broken the yoke And burst the bonds. ⁽⁶⁾ Therefore a lion from the forest shall slay them, A wolf of the deserts shall destroy them; A leopard will watch over their cities. Everyone who goes out from there shall be torn in pieces, Because their transgressions are many; Their backslidings have increased. ⁽⁷⁾ How shall I pardon you for this? Your children have forsaken Me And sworn by those that are not gods. When I had fed them to the full, Then they committed adultery And assembled themselves by troops in the harlots' houses. ⁽⁸⁾ They were like well-fed lusty stallions; Every one neighed after his neighbor's wife.

⁽⁹⁾ Shall I not punish them for these things?' says the LORD. 'And shall I not avenge Myself on such a nation as this?

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Romans Chapter 2

⁽²⁵⁾ For circumcision is indeed profitable if you keep the law; but if you are a breaker of the law, your circumcision has become uncircumcision. ⁽²⁶⁾ Therefore, if an uncircumcised man keeps the righteous requirements of the law, will not his uncircumcision be counted as circumcision? ⁽²⁷⁾ And will not the physically uncircumcised, if he fulfills the law, judge you who, even with your written code and circumcision, are a transgressor of the law? ⁽²⁸⁾ For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh;

⁽²⁹⁾ but he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the Spirit, not in the letter; whose praise is not from men but from God. ⁽¹⁾ What advantage then has the Jew, or what is the profit of circumcision? ⁽²⁾ Much in every way! Chiefly because to them were committed the oracles of God. ⁽³⁾ For what if some did not believe? Will their unbelief make the faithfulness of God without effect? ⁽⁴⁾ Certainly not! Indeed, let God be true but every man a liar. As it is written: 'That You may be justified in Your words, And may overcome when You are judged.'

⁽⁵⁾ But if our unrighteousness demonstrates the righteousness of God, what shall we say? Is God unjust who inflicts wrath? (I speak as a man.) ⁽⁶⁾ Certainly not! For then how will God judge the world? ⁽⁷⁾ For if the truth of God has increased through my lie to His glory, why am I also still judged as a sinner? ⁽⁸⁾ And why not say, 'Let us do evil that good may come'? -- as we are slanderously reported and as some affirm that we say. Their condemnation is just.

⁽⁹⁾ What then? Are we better than they? Not at all. For we have previously charged both Jews and Greeks that they are all under sin. ⁽¹⁰⁾ As it is written: 'There is none righteous, no, not one; ⁽¹¹⁾ There is none who understands; There is none who seeks after God. ⁽¹²⁾ They have all turned aside; They have together become unprofitable; There is none who does good, no, not one.'

⁽¹³⁾ Their throat is an open tomb; With their tongues they have practiced deceit'; 'The poison of asps is under their lips'; ⁽¹⁴⁾ Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.' ⁽¹⁵⁾ Their feet are swift to shed blood; ⁽¹⁶⁾ Destruction and misery are in their ways;

⁽¹⁷⁾ And the way of peace they have not known.' ⁽¹⁸⁾ There is no fear of God before their eyes.'

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

John Chapter 5

⁽³⁰⁾ I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me. ⁽³¹⁾ If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not true. ⁽³²⁾ There is another who bears witness of Me, and I know that the witness which He witnesses of Me is true. ⁽³³⁾ You have sent to John, and he has borne witness to the truth.

⁽³⁴⁾ Yet I do not receive testimony from man, but I say these things that you may be saved. ⁽³⁵⁾ He was the burning and shining lamp, and you were willing for a time to rejoice in his light. ⁽³⁶⁾ But I have a greater witness than John's; for the works which the Father has given Me to finish -- the very works that I do -- bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me. ⁽³⁷⁾ And the Father Himself, who sent Me, has testified of Me. You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His form.

⁽³⁸⁾ But you do not have His word abiding in you, because whom He sent, Him you do not believe. ⁽³⁹⁾ You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me. ⁽⁴⁰⁾ But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life. ⁽⁴¹⁾ I do not receive honor from men.

⁽⁴²⁾ But I know you, that you do not have the love of God in you. ⁽⁴³⁾ I have come in My Father's name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive. ⁽⁴⁴⁾ How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God? ⁽⁴⁵⁾ Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father; there is one who accuses you -- Moses, in whom you trust.

⁽⁴⁶⁾ For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me. ⁽⁴⁷⁾ But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?'

The Gospel of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

The Second Song of Isaiah      Isaiah 55:6 to 11

Seek the Lord while he wills to be found;
call upon him when he draws near.
Let the wicked forsake their ways
and the evil ones their thoughts;
And let them turn to the Lord, and he will have compassion,
and to our God, for he will richly pardon.
For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
nor your ways my ways, says the Lord.
For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways,
and my thoughts than your thoughts.
For as rain and snow fall from the heavens
and return not again, but water the earth,
Bringing forth life and giving growth,
seed for sowing and bread for eating,
So is my word that goes forth from my mouth;
it will not return to me empty;
But it will accomplish that which I have purposed,
and prosper in that for which I sent it.
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.


A Song of Penitence Prayer of Manasseh 1 to 2, 4, 6 to 7, 11 to 15
O Lord and Ruler of the hosts of heaven,
God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,
and of all their righteous offspring:
You made the heavens and the earth,
with all their vast array.
All things quake with fear at your presence;
they tremble because of your power.
But your merciful promise is beyond all measure;
it surpasses all that our minds can fathom.
O Lord, you are full of compassion,
long-suffering, and abounding in mercy.
You hold back your hand;
you do not punish as we deserve.
In your great goodness, Lord,
you have promised forgiveness to sinners,
that they may repent of their sin and be saved.
And now, O Lord, I bend the knee of my heart,
and make my appeal, sure of your gracious goodness.
I have sinned, O Lord, I have sinned,
and I know my wickedness only too well.
Therefore I make this prayer to you:
Forgive me, Lord, forgive me.
Do not let me perish in my sin,
nor condemn me to the depths of the earth.
For you, O Lord, are the God of those who repent,
and in me you will show forth your goodness.
Unworthy as I am, you will save me,
in accordance with your great mercy,
and I will praise you without ceasing all the days of my life.
For all the powers of heaven sing your praises,
and yours is the glory to ages of ages. 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 in Lent
O God, whose glory it is always to have mercy: Be gracious to all who have gone astray from your ways, and bring them again with penitent hearts and steadfast faith to embrace and hold fast the unchangeable truth of your Word, Jesus Christ your Son; who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

Collect of the Day: Almighty God, whose most dear Son went not up to joy but first he suffered pain, and entered not into glory before he was crucified: Mercifully grant that we, walking in the way of the cross, may find it none other than the way of life and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord. 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.

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

May the God of hope fill us with all joy and peace in believing through the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Romans 15:13