Praying Advent: Day 15
Praise
Lauds (Traditional hour: dawn/waking up)Laudate, omnes gentes, laudate Dominum! [Sing praises, all people, sing praises to the Lord!]We greet the new day by praising the Creator.
Opening:
Praise the Lord, O my soul:Praise God’s holy name.
Scripture
Sing aloud, O daughter Zion;shout, O Israel!Rejoice and exult with all your heart,O daughter Jerusalem!The Lord has taken away the judgments against you,he has turned away your enemies.The king of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst;you shall fear disaster no more.On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem:Do not fear, O Zion;do not let your hands grow weak.The Lord, your God, is in your midst,a warrior who gives victory;he will rejoice over you with gladness,he will renew you in his love;he will exult over you with loud singingas on a day of festival.I will remove disaster from you,so that you will not bear reproach for it.I will deal with all your oppressorsat that time.And I will save the lameand gather the outcast,and I will change their shame into praiseand renown in all the earth.At that time I will bring you home,at the time when I gather you;for I will make you renowned and praisedamong all the peoples of the earth,when I restore your fortunesbefore your eyes, says the Lord.
-Zephaniah 3:14-20 NRSV
Meditation
Pray for each person as they receive communion. Imagine who you would like to see at church next week. Invite them to church today.
Prayers
Come, Emmanuel, come dwell with me.Hope of the world and Word of life:Come, Emmanuel, come dwell with me.
Going Out
Praise the Lord, O my soul:Praise God’s holy name.
Prayer form adapted from:1Daily prayer for all seasons. (2014). New York, N.Y.: Church Publishing.