Day 154 | Thursday, 20 August 2020

Day 154 - Audio Version

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Day 154  |  Thursday, 20 August 2020

 A Beginning: God's Love
 “New every morning is God's love, poured out upon us, washing away the past, shining hope upon our path, awakening joy deep within, renewing the earth. Great is God's faithfulness,
God's mercy never ends.”

 A Prayer of Invocation:
“Gracious God, you are the fount of every blessing. As a deer longs for flowing streams, so our souls long for you. As a tree planted by the water continues to bear fruit despite the heat and lack of rain, so we seek to be sustained through the droughts of our lives. May we draw near and drink deeply from your living water this day. Amen.”

 A Prayer of Confession:
“Loving God, you know me. You know the inner thoughts of which I am ashamed and the visible deeds I regret. You know my struggle to live faithfully: being generous to those in need; being forgiving to those who have hurt me; being patient when there is so much to do; taking time for prayer in the midst of busyness; being loving, when judging and criticizing are my first thoughts.
Loving God, you know me, love me, forgive me, trust me, and I stand in awe at your amazing grace. Keep me on the path of Christ and lead me to deep joy and abundant gratitude. In his name. Amen.”

 A Prayer of Adoration:
“Lord God, we come to adore you. You are our Creator, and you granted us being. Without you we could not be. Before we were born, before time began, you were. When time is finished, when the universe is no more, you will still be. Nothing can take your power from you. Nothing can limit or overcome your love. And in your presence, we can only be silent before the mystery of your being, for no words of ours can do justice to your glory. Amen.”

 A Prayer of Thanksgiving:
“Gracious God, you have given us all things. You have given us minds for thinking, hearts for feeling, a soul for connecting with you. We are thankful for the blessing of material things, for family and friends. We are more thankful for the gift of life, which, in your grace, you have given us so that we might be in relationship with you. May we not sacrifice our souls to what is plentiful on this earth, but to your call for our ministry together. Thanks be to you, O Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer. Let us adore you always! Amen.”

 A Blessing:
Romans 8:37-39
“We are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
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 Quotation:
“I am convinced one of the joys of heaven will be discovering the hidden ways that God, in his sovereignty, acted in our lives on earth to protect us and guide us so as to bring glory to his name, in spite of our frailty.” -Billy Graham
 
Today: States that are being stretched to the limits with COVID-19