Preparation
O Lord, open our lips
and our mouth shall proclaim your praise.
Praise
God of constant mercy,
who sent your Son to save us:
remind us of your goodness,
increase your grace within us,
that our thankfulness may grow,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Psalm 90.13-17
Turn again, O Lord; how long will you delay?
Have compassion on your servants.
Satisfy us with your loving-kindness in the morning,
that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.
Give us gladness for the days you have afflicted us,
and for the years in which we have seen adversity.
Show your servants your works,
and let your glory be over their children.
May the gracious favour of the Lord our God be upon us;
prosper our handiwork; O prosper the work of our hands.
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
Matthew 24.42-51
Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Keep awake therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. But understand this: if the owner of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour.
‘Who then is the faithful and wise slave, whom his master has put in charge of his household, to give the other slaves their allowance of food at the proper time? Blessed is that slave whom his master will find at work when he arrives. Truly I tell you, he will put that one in charge of all his possessions. But if that wicked slave says to himself, “My master is delayed”, and he begins to beat his fellow-slaves, and eats and drinks with drunkards, the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour that he does not know. He will cut him in pieces and put him with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
Reflection
How often do you experience feelings of regret? Those feelings which are often accompanied by the vivid recall of some embarrassing moment in your past, sometimes your distant past. Your regrets may be associated with memories of cruel words or actions inflicted upon you … or by you! They may have involved instances of betrayal and disloyalty or, perhaps, moments when your wisdom or integrity proved to be lacking. Surely there can be very few people in the world who can say that they are living with no regrets. Such people must be very special, very fortunate, or very hard-hearted and insensitive.
Today’s reading warns us that we should: Keep awake … for you do not known on what day your Lord is coming. And, if we do not keep awake and pay attention to the lessons of our past we will ultimately be condemned to weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Of course, it is not healthy or productive for us to be obsessed with our past, although we do need to learn the lessons it has to offer. The world in which we live is dynamic and ever-changing. If we fail to engage with society at large, we run the danger of becoming critical and judgemental to such a degree that we become increasingly distanced from our call to share the Good News of Jesus Christ with all.
Human beings do not have the ability to see into the future. Just as we cannot predict the mundane ups and downs of daily life, so we cannot predict the moment when we will be called to account for the lives we have led … before God himself.
God offers those who are faithful the ultimate reward of eternal life; those who hear the word and fail to follow its teachings and precepts will be cast out to the place where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth for that same eternity.
Let us pray that we might learn the lessons of our flawed lives. Let us pray that we might not become obsessed with the past but use our experiences, and mistakes, to inform a faithful future. Let us pray that we might, in God’s good time, come to know his forgiveness and the joy of eternal life in his nearer presence.
Prayers of intercession
In the power of the Spirit and in union with Christ, let us pray to the Father.
Lord, we watch and wait for your dawning Kingdom. Teach us to walk in the way of your Son. Gladden the hearts of your people.
Lord, we watch and wait for your reign of peace. We pray for those areas of the world torn apart by strife and violence. May all nations lay aside the way of darkness and put on the armour of light.
Lord, we watch and wait in your saving presence. Be in our communities, places of work and all centres of education and learning. Draw us to seek the good of all.
Lord, be with all who watch and wait by the side of someone they love. We pray for all who are alone, fearful and anxious. May the hope and joy of your Kingdom sustain all who in their darkest hours.
Lord, we watch and wait for your coming in glory. Preserve us at the hour of our death. May your holy angels carry the faithful departed to your eternal home.
Prayer for the week
God of glory,
touch our lips with the fire of your Spirit,
that we with all creation
may rejoice to sing your praise;
through 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.
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