Good Morning, Lord!
I Am Baptized
3 Do you not
know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into
his death? 4 We were buried therefore with him by baptism into
death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of
the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. 5 For if we have
been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him
in a resurrection like his. (Rom. 6:3-5 ESV)
Make the sign of the cross as you say, “In the name of the
Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.”
A Morning Prayer
O Lord my God, I would kneel before you in lowly adoration
before I set out to face the tasks and interests of another day. I thank you
for the blessed assurance that I do not face these things alone or in my
strength, but that you are with me always and that you build me up in your
grace. I thank you that my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ was fully human and
faced the full experience of humanity and mortality with all of its joys and
futility. I thank you for the angels and the great cloud of witnesses that surround
me, ever lifting me, with all your people, in prayer before your heavenly
throne. I thank you for the saints who have gone before me in faith – prophets,
apostles, martyrs, men, women, friends, and family who all walked this world by
faith in Jesus. I rejoice, O God, that you have called me to be member of your
Church – the body of Christ made of all believers. Let the awareness of this
holy fellowship follow me wherever I go, cheering me in loneliness, protecting
me company, strengthening me against temptation, and encouraging me to do what
is right, guided by Christ’s love.
Let your power, O Christ, be in us all, to share the world’s
suffering and redress its wrongs, holding forth the powerful message of your
cross and empty tomb. Amen.[1]
I Believe …
I believe that Jesus Christ, true God, begotten of the
Father from eternity, and also true man, born of the Virgin Mary, is my Lord,
who has redeemed me, a lost and condemned person, purchased and won me from all
sins, from death, and from the power of the devil; not with gold or silver, but
with His holy, precious blood and with His innocent suffering and death, that I
may be His own and live under Him in His kingdom and serve Him in everlasting
righteousness, innocence, and blessedness, just as He is risen from the dead,
lives and reigns to all eternity. This is most certainly true.
Question for Meditation
What does this reading teach you about Jesus, what He said
and did, or what He wants His followers to believe? What does it teach you
about God’s love and forgiveness?
What does this reading lead you to be thankful for?
What behavior, thought, or attitude does this reading
challenge? What sin does it lead you to confess?
How might you pray for God to have a richer impact on your
life through this reading?
Prayer
Pray about the
creation. This certainly includes things like pollution and proper care for
creation, but it also includes growing seasons, the bounty of the earth, food
for the hungry, and every aspect of bodily life.
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
forever and ever. Amen.
Benediction
The LORD will keep you from all evil; he will keep your
life. The LORD will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth
and forevermore. (Ps. 121:7-8 ESV)
[1] This prayer is adapted
from John Baillie, A Diary of Private Prayer, 1949 – a morning prayer for the
22nd day of the month. Baillie wrote wonderful prayers for the
morning and evening of each day of the month. They have inspired, educated, and
assisted many in their prayer lives. It was updated in 2014 by Susanna Wright.
That edition is available from Amazon here.
I personally prefer the 1949 edition with the older style of language. Those
can still be found if you search for it.
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