Psalm 146
1 Praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord, O my soul!
2 I will praise the Lord as long as I live;
I will sing praises to my God all my life long.
3 Do not put your trust in princes,
in mortals, in whom there is no help.
4 When their breath departs, they return to the earth;
on that very day their plans perish.
5 Happy are those whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the Lord their God,
6 who made heaven and earth,
the sea, and all that is in them;
who keeps faith forever;
7 who executes justice for the oppressed;
who gives food to the hungry.
The Lord sets the prisoners free;
8 the Lord opens the eyes of the blind.
The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down;
the Lord loves the righteous.
9 The Lord watches over the strangers;
he upholds the orphan and the widow,
but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.
10 The Lord will reign forever,
your God, O Zion, for all generations.
Praise the Lord!
Prayer:
Because of your attention and blessing, we have so much to be thankful for. Today we thank you for your Son whom you sent to teach us your ways and bring us closer to you and one another.
We thank you for the love we receive and the love we share…
for the loving support of friends and family…
for the opportunity to live today serving your purpose….
We pray for those who are in particular need today, ourselves and others. We pray for
the church as we work for peace between individuals and groups…
those who suffer from unjust laws and systems…
those who write laws and enforce laws….
those who have power over others that they will not abuse their power…
for those who are grieving…
for those who are ill…
O gracious Lord, receive our prayers. Amen.