Friday, May 26, 2023
Opening Prayer:
O Lord, you have said, “Seek my face.” My heart says to you, “Your face, Lord, do I seek.” Do not hide your face from me. Do not turn me away in anger. Teach me your ways, O Lord, that I may walk in your truth; unite my heart to fear your name.
Confession of Sin & Prayer for Grace
Lord God, in Christ you have adopted me as your beloved child. But I confess that deep inside my soul I doubt your love for me. Instead of being satisfied in your acceptance, I look for acceptance elsewhere. Instead of resting in your love, I am restless with fear, control, and worry. Forgive my lack of trust in your promises. Forgive my doubt of your great love. Let your perfect love cast out all fear, and free me to glorify and enjoy you fully. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Old Testament Reading: Joel 2
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 debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.
New Testament Reading: Revelation 22:6-21
Prayer of Adoration:
Lord Jesus, I adore you as the Alpha and Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end. I rejoice in your imminent return, when I will finally see clearly what I now only glimpse by faith. Come quickly, Lord Jesus!
Psalm Reading: Psalm 94
Prayer of Consecration
O Lord, thank you for the good news that you are a God of vengeance. I live in a world full of disorder and injustice, where evildoers boast in their wickedness and take advantage of the widow, the sojourner, and the fatherless. At times it feels as though you are silent, absent, unmoved by the evil in the world. But the truth is that nothing escapes your notice. You see and hear every injustice. You will rise up; you will bring every act to justice and every soul to account. Our great hope, when faced with evildoers, is that “the Lord our God will bring back on them their iniquity and wipe them out for their wickedness.” Let this promise serve as a warning to me; make me quick to repent and resolute to turn from all evil. Thank you that in your vengeance, there is hope of mercy through the Lord Jesus Christ. May I hide myself in Him, and be spared in the day of your recompense. Amen.
BENEDICTION
And now may the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with us now and always, until the day of Christ's return.