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Preparation
O Lord, open our lips
and our mouth shall proclaim your praise.
Praise
Almighty God,
give us reverence for all creation
and respect for every person,
that we may mirror your likeness
in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Psalm 49.12-20
Those who have honour, but lack understanding,
are like the beasts that perish.
Such is the way of those who boast in themselves,
the end of those who delight in their own words.
Like a flock of sheep they are destined to die;
death is their shepherd;
they go down straight to the Pit.
Their beauty shall waste away,
and the land of the dead shall be their dwelling.
But God shall ransom my soul;
from the grasp of death will he take me.
Be not afraid if some grow rich
and the glory of their house increases,
For they will carry nothing away when they die,
nor will their glory follow after them.
Though they count themselves happy while they live
and praise you for your success,
They shall enter the company of their ancestors
who will nevermore see the light.
Glory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning, is now
and shall be for ever. Amen.
Reading
Mark 9.41-50
Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Truly I tell you, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you bear the name of Christ will by no means lose the reward.
‘If any of you put a stumbling-block before one of these little ones who believe in me, it would be better for you if a great millstone were hung around your neck and you were thrown into the sea. If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life maimed than to have two hands and to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire. And if your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame than to have two feet and to be thrown into hell. And if your eye causes you to stumble, tear it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and to be thrown into hell, where their worm never dies, and the fire is never quenched.
‘For everyone will be salted with fire. Salt is good; but if salt has lost its saltiness, how can you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another.’
Prayers of intercession
Let us pray to the Lord who calls us to follow him in holiness of life.
Cleanse the Church from all that may hinder the spread of the gospel. Give wisdom to discern where there is offence, and grace to set it right. Make your people strong in the power of prayer.
Give grace to all who work for good in the world and do not know that they are in your service. Enlighten them with the perfect knowledge of your majesty and with power to cast out evil and promote your kingdom.
Strengthen us in prayer, so that we may in our families and in all our lives be sustained by your continual presence. Guide us as we intercede for those known to us who are distressed and afflicted.
Comfort and relieve the sick, especially those who have asked for our prayers. Bless the Church’s ministry of healing. Grant perseverance to all who have become discouraged in prayer.
We remember before you those who have died. Though we see them no longer, unite us with them in our intercessions, that we may be one in your love.
We pray as those who seek to be faithful members of the kingdom of God.
Prayer for the week
Almighty God, the fountain of all wisdom,
you know our needs before we ask,
and our ignorance in asking:
have compassion on our weakness,
and give us those things
which for our unworthiness we dare not,
and for our blindness we cannot ask,
for the sake of your Son Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done;
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power and the glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.
The Grace
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
and the love of God,
and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit,
be with us all evermore. Amen.