Praying Advent: Day 18
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
I am the Lord, and there is no other;besides me there is no god.I arm you, though you do not know me,
so that they may know, from the rising of the sunand from the west, that there is no one besides me;I am the Lord, and there is no other.
I form light and create darkness,I make weal and create woe;I the Lord do all these things.
Shower, O heavens, from above,and let the skies rain down righteousness;
let the earth open, that salvation may spring up,and let it cause righteousness to sprout up also;I the Lord have created it.
Woe to you who strive with your Maker,earthen vessels with the potter!
Does the clay say to the one who fashions it, ‘What are you making?’or ‘Your work has no handles’?
Woe to anyone who says to a father, ‘What are you begetting?’or to a woman, ‘With what are you in labour?’
Thus says the Lord,the Holy One of Israel, and its Maker:
Will you question me about my children,or command me concerning the work of my hands?
I made the earth,and created humankind upon it;
it was my hands that stretched out the heavens,and I commanded all their host.
I have aroused Cyrus in righteousness,and I will make all his paths straight;
he shall build my cityand set my exiles free,
not for price or reward,says the Lord of hosts.
Thus says the Lord:
The wealth of Egypt and the merchandise of Ethiopia,and the Sabeans, tall of stature,
shall come over to you and be yours,they shall follow you;they shall come over in chains and bow down to you.
They will make supplication to you, saying,‘God is with you alone, and there is no other;there is no god besides him.’
Truly, you are a God who hides himself,O God of Israel, the Saviour.
All of them are put to shame and confounded,the makers of idols go in confusion together.
But Israel is saved by the Lordwith everlasting salvation;
you shall not be put to shame or confoundedto all eternity.
For thus says the Lord,
who created the heavens(he is God!),
who formed the earth and made it(he established it;
he did not create it a chaos,he formed it to be inhabited!):
I am the Lord, and there is no other.
I did not speak in secret,in a land of darkness;
I did not say to the offspring of Jacob,‘Seek me in chaos.’
I the Lord speak the truth,I declare what is right.
Assemble yourselves and come together,draw near, you survivors of the nations!
They have no knowledge—those who carry about their wooden idols,
and keep on praying to a godthat cannot save.
Declare and present your case;let them take counsel together!
Who told this long ago?Who declared it of old?
Was it not I, the Lord?There is no other god besides me,
a righteous God and a Saviour;there is no one besides me.
Turn to me and be saved,all the ends of the earth!For I am God, and there is no other.
By myself I have sworn,from my mouth has gone forth in righteousnessa word that shall not return:
‘To me every knee shall bow,every tongue shall swear.’
Only in the Lord, it shall be said of me,are righteousness and strength;
all who were incensed against himshall come to him and be ashamed.
In the Lord all the offspring of Israelshall triumph and glory.
so that they may know, from the rising of the sunand from the west, that there is no one besides me;I am the Lord, and there is no other.
I form light and create darkness,I make weal and create woe;I the Lord do all these things.
Shower, O heavens, from above,and let the skies rain down righteousness;
let the earth open, that salvation may spring up,and let it cause righteousness to sprout up also;I the Lord have created it.
Woe to you who strive with your Maker,earthen vessels with the potter!
Does the clay say to the one who fashions it, ‘What are you making?’or ‘Your work has no handles’?
Woe to anyone who says to a father, ‘What are you begetting?’or to a woman, ‘With what are you in labour?’
Thus says the Lord,the Holy One of Israel, and its Maker:
Will you question me about my children,or command me concerning the work of my hands?
I made the earth,and created humankind upon it;
it was my hands that stretched out the heavens,and I commanded all their host.
I have aroused Cyrus in righteousness,and I will make all his paths straight;
he shall build my cityand set my exiles free,
not for price or reward,says the Lord of hosts.
Thus says the Lord:
The wealth of Egypt and the merchandise of Ethiopia,and the Sabeans, tall of stature,
shall come over to you and be yours,they shall follow you;they shall come over in chains and bow down to you.
They will make supplication to you, saying,‘God is with you alone, and there is no other;there is no god besides him.’
Truly, you are a God who hides himself,O God of Israel, the Saviour.
All of them are put to shame and confounded,the makers of idols go in confusion together.
But Israel is saved by the Lordwith everlasting salvation;
you shall not be put to shame or confoundedto all eternity.
For thus says the Lord,
who created the heavens(he is God!),
who formed the earth and made it(he established it;
he did not create it a chaos,he formed it to be inhabited!):
I am the Lord, and there is no other.
I did not speak in secret,in a land of darkness;
I did not say to the offspring of Jacob,‘Seek me in chaos.’
I the Lord speak the truth,I declare what is right.
Assemble yourselves and come together,draw near, you survivors of the nations!
They have no knowledge—those who carry about their wooden idols,
and keep on praying to a godthat cannot save.
Declare and present your case;let them take counsel together!
Who told this long ago?Who declared it of old?
Was it not I, the Lord?There is no other god besides me,
a righteous God and a Saviour;there is no one besides me.
Turn to me and be saved,all the ends of the earth!For I am God, and there is no other.
By myself I have sworn,from my mouth has gone forth in righteousnessa word that shall not return:
‘To me every knee shall bow,every tongue shall swear.’
Only in the Lord, it shall be said of me,are righteousness and strength;
all who were incensed against himshall come to him and be ashamed.
In the Lord all the offspring of Israelshall triumph and glory.
-Isaiah 45:5-25 NRSV
Meditation
Gather with your faith community for a short time of prayer 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.