Benedictus and Final Intercessory Prayers

O Lord, open our lips , and our mouths shall proclaim your praise . Blessed are you, sovereign God, creator of all, to you be glory and praise for ever You founded the earth in the beginning, and the heavens are the work of your hands . In the fullness of time you made us in your image, and in these last days you have spoken to us, in your Son Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh . As we rejoice in the gift of your presence among us, let the light of your love always shine in our hearts , your spirit ever renew our lives, and your praises ever be on our lips. Blessed be God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit . Blessed be God for ever . The night has passed, and the day lies open before us. Let us pray with one heart and mind As we rejoice in the gift of this new day, so may the light of your presence, O God, set our hearts on fire with love for you now and for ever . Amen . Psalm one hundred and forty three . Show me, O Lord , the way that I should walk in . Hear my prayer, O Lord, and in your faithfulness give ear to my supplications . Answer me in your righteousness . Enter not into judgment with your servant , for in your sight shall no one living be justified. For the enemy has pursued me, crushing my life to the ground , making me sit in darkness like those long dead . My spirit faints within me . My heart within me is desol ate . I remember the time past, I muse upon all your deeds . I consider the works of your hands . I stretch out my hands to you . My soul gasps for you like a thirsty land . O Lord, make haste to answer me, my spirit fails me . Hide not your face from me , lest I be like those who go down to the pit . Let me hear of your loving kindness in the morning, for in you I put my trust Show me the way I should walk in, for I lift up my soul to you . Deliver me, O Lord, from my enemies, for I flee to you for refuge. Teach me to do what pleases you, for you are my God . Let your kindly spirit lead me on a level path . Revive me, O Lord , for your name's sake. For your righteousness' sake, bring me out of trouble . In your faithfulness slay my enemies, and destroy all the adversaries of my soul . For truly I am your servant . Show me, O Lord, the way that I should walk in . Let us pray . Jesus, our companion, when we are driven to despair, help us through the friends and strangers we encounter on our path to know you as our refu The first reading is from the book of Joshua beg,inning at chapter 4, verse 1. When the entire nation had finished crossing over the Jordan, the Lord said to Joshua, Select twelve men from the people, one from each tribe, and command them: take twelve stones from here out of the middle of the Jordan, from the place where your priests' feet stood, carry them over with you, and lay them down in the place where you camp to night. Then Joshua summoned the twelve men from the Israelites, whom he had appointed, one from each tribe. Joshua said to them: Pass on before the ark of the Lord your God into the middle of the Jordan , and each of you take up a stone on his shoulder, one for each of the tribes of the Israelites, so that this may be a sign among you . When your children ask in time to come, what do these stones mean to you? Then you shall tell them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off in front of the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord. When it crossed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. So these stones shall be to the Israelites a memorial for ever . The Israelites did as Joshua commanded. They took up twelve stones out of the middle of the Jordan, according to the number of the tribes of the Israelites, as the Lord had told Joshua, carried them over with them to the place where they camped, and laid them down there. Joshua set up twelve stones in the middle of the Jordan, in the place where the feet of the priests bearing the Ark of the Covenant had stood, and they are there to this day . The priests who bore the ark remained standing in the middle of the Jordan until everything was finished that the Lord commanded Joshua to tell the people, according to all that Moses had commanded Joshua . The people crossed over in haste. As soon as all the people had finished crossing over, the ark of the Lord and the priests crossed over in front of the people . The Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh crossed over armed before the Israelites, as Moses had ordered them. About 40,000 armed for war crossed over before the Lord to the plains of Jericho for battle . On that day, the Lord exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel, and they stood in awe of him as they had stood in awe of Moses all the days of his life . The Lord said to Joshua, Command the priests who bear the Ark of the Covenant to come up out of the Jordan . Joshua therefore commanded the priests , Come up out of the Jordan . When the priests bearing the ark of the covenant of the Lord came up from the middle of the Jordan, the souls of the priests' feet touched dry ground, the waters of the Jordan returned to their place and overflowed on all its banks as before . The people came up out of the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and they camped in Gilgal on the eastern border of Jericho. Those twelve stones which they had taken out of the Jordan, Joshua set up in Gilgal , saying to the Israelites, When your children ask their parents in time to come, what do these stones mean, then you shall let your children know Israel crossed over the Jordan here on dry ground. For the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan for you until you crossed over, as the Lord your God did to the Red Sea , which he dried up for us until we crossed over it, so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the Lord is mighty, and so that you may fear the Lord your God for ever . When all the kings of the Amorites beyond the Jordan to the west, and all the kings of the Canaanites by the sea, heard that the Lord had dried up the waters of the Jordan for the Israelites until they had crossed over, their hearts fail ed, and there was no longer any spirit in them because of the Israelites . have given you as a light to the nations, and I have called you in righteousness . Thus says God, who created the heavens , who fashioned the earth and all that dwells in it , who gives breath to the people upon it , and spirit to those who walk in it . Righteousness . I have taken you by the hand and kept you . I have given you as a covenant to the people , a light to the nations, to open the eyes that are blind , to bring out the captives from the dungeon, from the prison, those who sit in darkness . I am the Lord, that is my name. My glory I give to no other . Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning , is now and shall be for ever . Amen . I have given you as a light to the nations , and I have called you in righteousness . The second reading is from the Gospel according to Luke, beginning at chapter 9, verse 51 . When the days drew near for Jesus to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem, and he sent messengers ahead of him. On their way, they entered a village of the Samaritans to make ready for him. But they did not receive him, because his face was set towards Jerusal em. When his disciples, James and John, saw it, they said, Lord, do you want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them? But he turned to them and rebuked them. Then they went on to another village . As they were going along the road, someone said to him, I will follow you wherever you go. And Jesus said to him, Foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests, but to the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head. To another he said, Follow me. But he said, Lord, first let me go and bury my father. But Jesus said to him, let the dead bury their own dead , but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God. And another said, I will follow you, Lord, but first let me say farewell to those at my home. Jesus said to him, No one who puts a hand to the plough and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God . I have crude my I told you by name When you walk through far , you shall not be b urned You promised, O God, to save us from our enemies, from the hands of all that hate us. Blessed be the Lord the God of Israel , who has come to his people and set them free . He has raised up for us a mighty Saviour , born of the house of his servant David . Through his holy prophets, God promised of old, to save us from our enemies, from the hands of all that hate us. To show mercy to our ancestors and to remember his holy covenant. This was the oath God swore to our father Abraham, to set us free from the hands of our enem ies , free to worship Him without fear, holy and righteous in his sight all the days of our life . And you, child, shall be called the prophet of the most high, for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way , to give his people knowledge of salvation , by the forgiveness of all their sins , in the tender compassion of our God , the dawn from on high shall break upon us , to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death , and to guide our feet into the way of peace . Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now and shall be for ever . Amen . You promised, O God, to save us from our enemies, from the hands of all that hate us . Let us pray to the Father . This morning and every morning, the Church invites us to spend time holding before God the day and its tasks, the world and its needs, the church and her life . And in our cycle of intercession, we are encouraged to pray today especially Especially for local government and community leaders , for all who provide local services , for those who work with young or elderly people . For schools, colleges, and universities . For emergency and rescue organiz ations . Teach us, O Lord, the way of your statutes , and lead us in the path of your commandments. Keep our nation under your care , and guide us in justice and truth . O Lord, deal graciously with your servants . Teach us discernment and knowledge . Let not the needy be forgotten , nor the hope of the poor be taken away . Guide the meek in judgment and teach your ways to the gentle . Lord remember your people , whom you have purchased and redeemed of old . Let us commend ourselves and all for whom we pray to the mercy and protection of God . O Lord from whom all good things come , grant to us your humble servants, that by your holy inspiration we may think those things that are good, and by your merciful guiding may perform the same, through our Lord Jesus Christ, who is alive and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God now and forever . Amen . As our Saviour taught us, so we pray . Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name , your kingdom come , your will be done on earth as in heav en . Give us to day our daily bread. Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us . Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours, now and for ever . Amen . The Lord bless us and preserve us from all evil, and keep us in eternal life. Amen . Let us bless the Lord. Thanks be to God .