Family Prayer
In the Morning
These devotions follow the basic structure of the Daily Office of the Church and are particularly appropriate for families with young children.
The Reading and the Collect may be read by one person, and the other parts said in unison, or in some other convenient manner.
Opening Sentence
O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall show forth your praise.
PSALM 51:15
The Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth keep silence before him.
HABAKKUK 2:20
The Psalm
Psalm 51:10-12
Miserere mei, Deus
10 Create in me a clean heart, O God,*
and renew a right spirit within me.
11 Cast me not away from your presence,*
and take not your holy Spirit from me.
12 O give me the comfort of your help again,*
and sustain me with your willing Spirit.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit; *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
A READING FROM HOLY SCRIPTURE
1 PETER 1:3
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
Sirach 4:1-19
Duties toward the Poor and the Oppressed
My son, deprive not the poor of his living,
and do not keep needy eyes waiting.
2 Do not grieve the one who is hungry,
nor anger a man in want.
3 Do not add to the troubles of an angry mind,
nor delay your gift to a beggar.
4 Do not reject an afflicted suppliant,
nor turn your face away from the poor.
5 Do not avert your eye from the needy,
nor give a man occasion to curse you;
6 for if in bitterness of soul he calls down a curse upon you,
his Creator will hear his prayer.
7 Make yourself beloved in the congregation;
bow your head low to a great man.
8 Incline your ear to the poor,
and answer him peaceably and gently.
9 Deliver him who is wronged from the hand of the wrongdoer;
and do not be fainthearted in judging a case.
10 Be like a father to orphans,
and instead of a husband to their mother;
you will then be like a son of the Most High,
and he will love you more than does your mother.
The Rewards of Wisdom
11 Wisdom exalts her sons
and gives help to those who seek her.
12 Whoever loves her loves life,
and those who seek her early will be filled with joy.
13 Whoever holds her fast will obtain glory,
and the Lord will bless the place she enters.
14 Those who serve her will minister to the Holy One;
the Lord loves those who love her.
15 He who obeys her will judge the nations,
and whoever gives heed to her will dwell secure.
16 If he has faith in her he will obtain her;
and his descendants will remain in possession of her.
17 For at first she will walk with him on tortuous paths,
she will bring fear and cowardice upon him,
and will torment him by her discipline
until she trusts him,
and she will test him with her ordinances.
18 Then she will come straight back to him and gladden him,
and will reveal her secrets to him.
19 If he goes astray she will forsake him,
and hand him over to his ruin.
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.
Intercessions
A hymn or canticle may be used.
Prayers may be offered for ourselves and others.
The Lord's Prayer
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy Name,
thy kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those
who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
and the power, and the glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.
The Collect
O Lord, our heavenly Father, almighty and everlasting God, you have brought us safely to the beginning of this day: Defend us by your mighty power, that we may not fall into sin nor run into any danger; and that, guided by your Spirit, we may do what is righteous in your sight; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Wednesday after the Last Sunday after Pentecost: Christ the King
Almighty and everlasting God, whose will it is to restore all things in your well-beloved Son, the King of kings and Lord of lords: Mercifully grant that the peoples of the earth, divided and enslaved by sin, may be freed and brought together under his most gracious rule; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
A COLLECT FOR GRACE
O Lord, our heavenly Father, almighty and everlasting God, you have brought us safely to the beginning of this day: Defend us by your mighty power, that we may not fall into sin nor run into any danger; and that, guided by your Spirit, we may do what is righteous in your sight; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
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