Thursday, January 20






Matthew 21:18-27


18 Now in the morning as he returned into the city,
he hungered.
19 And when he saw a fig tree in the way,
he came to it, and found nothing thereon,
but leaves only, and said unto it,
Let no fruit grow on thee henceforward for ever.
And presently the fig tree withered away.
20 And when the disciples saw it,
they marvelled, saying,
How soon is the fig tree withered away!
21 Jesus answered and said unto them,
Verily I say unto you,
If ye have faith, and doubt not,
ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree,
but also if ye shall say unto this mountain,
Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea;
it shall be done.
22 And all things,
whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer,
believing,
ye shall receive.
23 And when he was come into the temple,
the chief priests and the elders of the people came unto him as he was teaching,
and said,
By what authority doest thou these things?
and who gave thee this authority?
24 And Jesus answered and said unto them,
I also will ask you one thing,
which if ye tell me,
I in like wise will tell you by what authority I do these things.
25 The baptism of John,
whence was it?
from heaven,
or of men?
And they reasoned with themselves,
saying, If we shall say,
From heaven; he will say unto us,
Why did ye not then believe him?
26 But if we shall say,
Of men; we fear the people;
for all hold John as a prophet.
27 And they answered Jesus, and said,
We cannot tell.
And he said unto them,
Neither tell I you by what authority I do these things.


Today's Prayer...


Dear Father in heaven,

We thank you that you are our Father and that we may
have you with us. We thank you that we can know you
are leading us by your hand.
Give us your Spirit of understanding so that we may always
see your mighty and powerful hand guiding us on all our ways.
Help us where we fall short. Help us, for we are weak and are
often in situations where we cannot help ourselves.
But you are strong.
You give light to our hearts.
Through the Savior, Jesus Christ,
we can direct our lives cheerfully, joyfully,
and patiently toward the great goal set before us your children,
and before the whole world.


In the Name of the Most Holy we
pray in Jesus' Name

Amen

Friday, January 21






Psalm 46:1-7


1 God is our refuge and strength,
a very present help in trouble.
2 Therefore will not we fear,
though the earth be removed,
and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea;
3 Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled,
though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof.
Selah.
4 There is a river,
the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God,
the holy place of the tabernacles of the most High.
5 God is in the midst of her;
she shall not be moved:
God shall help her,
and that right early.
6 The heathen raged,
the kingdoms were moved:
he uttered his voice,
the earth melted.
7 The Lord of hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our refuge.
Selah.




Today's Prayer...


Dear Father in heaven,

We rejoice that you are our Father.
We rejoice that you rule and guide each of us so that our path
in life leads to what is good and genuine and we do not get stuck
in this or that concern. Lead us, renew us, and again and again
free us to go forward, finding new courage and joy for ourselves
and for our fellowmen. Then we can praise you, your strength
and power can be revealed to us, your heaven come down to earth,
and your will be done on earth. Here on earth your help shall come
to the poor, the weak, the lowly, the sick, and the suffering.
May your name be praised!
We rejoice in your name.


In the Name of the Most Holy we
pray in Jesus' Name

Amen

Saturday, January 22






1 Chronicles 29:11- 17


11 Thine, O Lord is the greatness,
and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty:
for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine;
thine is the kingdom, O Lord, and thou art exalted as head above all.
12 Both riches and honour come of thee,
and thou reignest over all;
and in thine hand is power and might;
and in thine hand it is to make great,
and to give strength unto all.
13 Now therefore, our God,
we thank thee, and praise thy glorious name.
14 But who am I, and what is my people,
that we should be able to offer so willingly after this sort?
for all things come of thee, and of thine own have we given thee.
15 For we are strangers before thee, and sojourners,
as were all our fathers: our days on the earth are as a shadow,
and there is none abiding.
16 O Lord our God, all this store that we have prepared to
build thee an house for thine holy name cometh of thine hand,
and is all thine own.
17 I know also, my God,
that thou triest the heart, and hast pleasure in uprightness.
As for me, in the uprightness of mine heart I have willingly offered all these things:
and now have I seen with joy thy people, which are present here,
to offer willingly unto thee.




Today's Prayer...


Dear Father in heaven,

Grant us the inner quiet we need so that we may come into
your presence and hear you speak, forgetting all the things
that try to force themselves upon us. May we experience your
true and living support. Keep our hearts glad and thankful for
everything, even in grief, anxiety, and suffering.
In this thankfulness we can remain with you, and Jesus Christ can help us,
Jesus, whom you have given as our support and helper in all
that most deeply concerns us.
We entrust ourselves to you.
Keep us in your Spirit.


In the Name of the Most Holy we
pray in Jesus' Name

Amen

Sunday, January 23






2 Corinthians 8:8 - 15


8 I speak not by commandment,
but by occasion of the forwardness of others,
and to prove the sincerity of your love.
9 For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor,
that ye through his poverty might be rich.
10 And herein I give my advice:
for this is expedient for you, who have begun before,
not only to do, but also to be forward a year ago.
11 Now therefore perform the doing of it;
that as there was a readiness to will,
so there may be a performance also out of that which ye have.
12 For if there be first a willing mind,
it is accepted according to that a man hath,
and not according to that he hath not.
13 For I mean not that other men be eased,
and ye burdened:
14 But by an equality,
that now at this time your abundance may be a supply for their want,
that their abundance also may be a supply for your want:
that there may be equality:
15 As it is written,
He that had gathered much had nothing over;
and he that had gathered little had no lack.




Today's Prayer...


Dear Father in heaven,

We thank you for giving our hearts hope for your kingdom,
the kingdom of God. We thank you that again and again we
may draw strength from this hope, find new youthfulness and
courage, and discover how powerfully, though hidden,
your kingdom is already approaching.
Protect this vision and help us when we fail.
All will come right.
Whatever happens, we are in your hands,
and no one shall snatch this joy from our hearts.


In the Name of the Most Holy we
pray in Jesus' Name

Amen

Monday, January 24






Proverbs 18:4 - 10


4 The words of a man's mouth are as deep waters,
and the wellspring of wisdom as a flowing brook.
5 It is not good to accept the person of the wicked,
to overthrow the righteous in judgment.
6 A fool's lips enter into contention,
and his mouth calleth for strokes.
7 A fool's mouth is his destruction,
and his lips are the snare of his soul.
8 The words of a talebearer are as wounds,
and they go down into the innermost parts of the belly.
9 He also that is slothful in his work is
brother to him that is a great waster.
10 The name of the Lord is a strong tower:
the righteous runneth into it, and is safe.



Today's Prayer...


Lord our God,

We thank you for giving us your love,
for letting us draw nearer to what is right and good.
May your Spirit penetrate everywhere,
overcoming what is false and helping people everywhere
to understand the true nature of your justice.
Guard us on all our ways.
Protect us when our bodies and our lives are worn down
by sickness and distress of every kind.
Grant us your help according to
your truth and righteousness.


In the Name of the Most Holy we
pray in Jesus' Name

Amen