August 14, 2009

Lord God the creator of all things, Your Spirit moved over the face of the waters at the dawn of creation. You gather the seas into their places and direct the courses of the rivers. We praise you for the gift of water. Now our land is dry and barren, thirsting for life-giving rain Send rain upon the earth so that it will bring forth life. May we use only the water we each need and let us take care of and give encouragement to all those whose livelihood depends on the produce of the land. Amen
From Bishop Joseph Grech,

1 Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven,
whose sin is put out of sight!
2 Yes, what joy for those whose record the Lord has cleared of guilt,
whose lives are lived in complete honesty!
3 When I refused to confess my sin,
my body wasted away, and I groaned all day long.
4 Day and night your hand of discipline was heavy on me.
My strength evaporated like water in the summer heat.
5 Finally, I confessed all my sins to you and stopped trying to hide my guilt.
I said to myself, “I will confess my rebellion to the Lord.”
And you forgave me! All my guilt is gone.
Psalm 32 New Living Translation

Readings for today from the Daily Lectionary
(click on underlined link to go directly to the reading)
1 Samuel 31:1-13 – Acts 15:12-21 – Mark 5:21-43