Cantica Gaudia

Season of Epiphany: Wednesday Noonday Prayer

Opening: Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my strength and my redeemer.

Psalm: O God, you are my God; eagerly I seek you;
My soul thirsts for you, my flesh faints for you, as in a barren and dry land where there is no water.
Therefore I have gazed upon you in your holy place,
That I might behold your power and your glory.
For your loving-kindness is better than life itself;
My lips shall give you praise.
So will I bless you as long as I live
And lift up my hands in your Name.
My soul is content, as with marrow and fatness,
And my mouth praises you with joyful lips,
When I remember you upon my bed,
And meditate on you in the night watches.
For you have been my helper,
And under the shadow of your wings I will rejoice.
My soul clings to you;
Your right hand holds me fast.

Reading: But to all of these I answer, that the Father of lights, whose hand is not shortened, and who pours himself out abundantly, without partiality, wherever he finds space, like a ray of sunlight, and joyfully discloses himself to people on the footpaths and highways – this God does not hesitate or disdain to find his delight among the children of men.

The Lord’s Prayer: Holy One,
We honor your name.
Let the world know your justice
Here as everywhere.
Give us the food we need
For both the body and the soul.
Forgive us the wrongs we do
As we forgive the wrongs of others.
Keep us safe from the evil
At large or of our own making.
We trust you for you made us and
We are yours, now and always.  Amen.

Prayer: Lord, help me now to unclutter my life,
To organize myself in the direction of simplicity.
Lord, teach me to listen to my heart.
Lord, I give you these stirrings inside of me,
I give you my discontent,
I give you my restlessness,
I give you my doubt,
I give you my despair,
I give you all these longings I hold inside.
Help me to listen to these signs of change, of growth;
To listen seriously and follow where they lead
Through the breathtaking empty space of an open door.  Amen.

Going forth: Let us go forth, rejoicing in the power of the Spirit.  Amen.