Come, let us sing to the Lord; let us shout for joy to the Rock of our salvation.

Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving and raise a loud shout to him with psalms.

For the Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods.

In his hand are the caverns of the earth, and the heights of the hills are his also. The sea is his, for he made it, and his hands have molded the dry land.

Come, let us bow down, and bend the knee, and kneel before the Lord our Maker.

For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his hand. Oh, that today you would hearken to his voice!

63:1   O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you;
    my soul thirsts for you;
  my flesh faints for you,
    as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.
2   So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary,
    beholding your power and glory.
3   Because your steadfast love is better than life,
    my lips will praise you.
4   So I will bless you as long as I live;
    in your name I will lift up my hands.
5   My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food,
    and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips,
6   when I remember you upon my bed,
    and meditate on you in the watches of the night;
7   for you have been my help,
    and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy.
8   My soul clings to you;
    your right hand upholds me.
9   But those who seek to destroy my life
    shall go down into the depths of the earth;
10   they shall be given over to the power of the sword;
    they shall be a portion for jackals.
11   But the king shall rejoice in God;
    all who swear by him shall exult,
    for the mouths of liars will be stopped.

6   Wail, for the day of the LORD is near;
    as destruction from the Almighty it will come!
7   Therefore all hands will be feeble,
    and every human heart will melt.
8   They will be dismayed:
    pangs and agony will seize them;
    they will be in anguish like a woman in labor.
  They will look aghast at one another;
    their faces will be aflame.
9   Behold, the day of the LORD comes,
    cruel, with wrath and fierce anger,
  to make the land a desolation
    and to destroy its sinners from it.
10   For the stars of the heavens and their constellations
    will not give their light;
  the sun will be dark at its rising,
    and the moon will not shed its light.
11   I will punish the world for its evil,
    and the wicked for their iniquity;
  I will put an end to the pomp of the arrogant,
    and lay low the pompous pride of the ruthless.
12   I will make people more rare than fine gold,
    and mankind than the gold of Ophir.
13   Therefore I will make the heavens tremble,
    and the earth will be shaken out of its place,
  at the wrath of the LORD of hosts
    in the day of his fierce anger.

18 For you have not come to what may be touched, a blazing fire and darkness and gloom and a tempest 19 and the sound of a trumpet and a voice whose words made the hearers beg that no further messages be spoken to them. 20 For they could not endure the order that was given, “If even a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned.” 21 Indeed, so terrifying was the sight that Moses said, “I tremble with fear.” 22 But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, 23 and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, 24 and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.

25 See that you do not refuse him who is speaking. For if they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape if we reject him who warns from heaven. 26 At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” 27 This phrase, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of things that are shaken—that is, things that have been made—in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain. 28 Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, 29 for our God is a consuming fire.

22 After this Jesus and his disciples went into the Judean countryside, and he remained there with them and was baptizing. 23 John also was baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because water was plentiful there, and people were coming and being baptized 24 (for John had not yet been put in prison).

25 Now a discussion arose between some of John’s disciples and a Jew over purification. 26 And they came to John and said to him, “Rabbi, he who was with you across the Jordan, to whom you bore witness—look, he is baptizing, and all are going to him.” 27 John answered, “A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven. 28 You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, ‘I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before him.’ 29 The one who has the bride is the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom’s voice. Therefore this joy of mine is now complete. 30 He must increase, but I must decrease.”

Our Father, who art in heaven, Hallowed be Thy Name.
Spend a moment now to be aware of God's gifts and thank Him.

Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
What would you like to ask God to heal and restore in our world?

Give us this day our daily bread,
Talk to God about your needs and bring your worry to Him.

And forgive us our debts
Take a moment to reflect on how your actions or inactions have cost others and God.

As we forgive our debtors.
Ask God for the grace to forgive as you have been forgiven. What steps can you take toward reconciliation?

Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil,
Talk to God about your fears and unburden yourself to Him. He perfectly cares for you.

For Yours is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever.

Amen.