Morning Prayer for Thursday 7.16.26

Here is a link to our liturgy: Morning Prayer 7.16.26, Thursday in Proper 10 | Daily Office Network

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:02

Good morning and welcome. I'm Father Tom Roy, the Vicar of the Daily Office Network. I'm an ordained priest in the Episcopal Church in the Diocese of Minnesota. The Daily Office Network is a community of Christians who gather together on a daily basis to pray morning prayer. We use the Episcopal Church's Book of Common Prayer as our guide. We mix in artwork. We have a news story. There's a video at the end. All are welcome here where we do our best to exercise tolerance and decency with one another. Let's settle in and begin morning prayer. Today is Thursday. It is the 16th of July 2026. In the life of the church, if there's no recognized saint today, it is Thursday in proper 10. The Daily Office Network is podcasting. You can find us on Apple or Spotify by searching Daily Office Network as your keywords, or these are actually links here. You can copy them, post them in your browser, or come back when those links are live, and then I'm not displaying the page. Let's begin. Joshua said to the twelve men, Pass on before the ark of the Lord your God in the middle of the Jordan, and each of you take up a stone on his shoulder, one for each of the tribes of the Israelites, so that they may be a sign among you. Protected them on the 250th birthday celebration of the United States. Activists who criticized immigration and customs enforcement are locked up for doing the exact same thing. The U.S. still accepts this kind of behavior as part of its DNA. On paper, white nationalism is called one of the U.S.'s greatest terror threats, but in current practice, it is not treated that way, or else there would be some consequences for parading the banner of a failed insurgency against the Union and becoming and becoming a walking banner of harm to other citizens of the United States. In the photograph above, the Patriot Front members gather on July the 4th in D.C. hidden behind masks to conceal their identity and marching with U.S. Confederate and other flags. The Lord is in the Holy Temple. Let all the earth keep silence. And our mouth shall proclaim your praise.

SPEAKER_02 3:03

Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now and will be forever. Amen. Hallelujah. Come, let us sing to the Lord. Let us shout for joy to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before God's presence with thanksgiving and raise to the Lord a shout with songs. For you are a great God. You are great above all God. In your hand are the caverns of the earth, and the heights of the hills are yours also. The sea is yours, for you made it, and your hands have molded the dry land. Come, let us bow down and bend the knee and kneel before the Lord our Maker. For you are our God, and we are the people of your pastor and the sheep of your hand. Oh, that today we would hearken to your voice.

SPEAKER_00 4:20

Thank you, Eddie. Our psalm appointed for this morning, excuse me, is a portion of Psalm number 37, verses 1 through 18. Let's change things up a little bit this morning. Jacqueline, would you start?

SPEAKER_03 4:43

Do not fret yourself because of evildoers. Do not be jealous of those who do wrong.

SPEAKER_10 4:51

For they shall soon wither like the grass, and like the grass, green grass, fade away.

SPEAKER_03 5:00

Put your trust in the Lord and do good. Dwell in the land and feed on its riches.

SPEAKER_10 5:07

Take delight in the Lord, who shall give you your heart's desire.

SPEAKER_03 5:13

Commit your way to the Lord. Put your trust in the Lord who will bring it to pass.

SPEAKER_10 5:21

The Lord will make your righteousness as clear as the light and your just dealing as the noonday. Be still before the Lord. Wait patiently for the Lord. Do not fret yourself over the one who prospers, the one who succeeds in evil schemes.

SPEAKER_03 5:41

Refrain from anger, leave rage alone. Do not fret yourself, it only leads to evil.

SPEAKER_10 5:49

For evildoers shall be cut off, but those who wait upon the Lord shall possess the land.

SPEAKER_03 5:58

In a little while the wicked shall be no more. You shall search out their place, but they will not be there.

SPEAKER_10 6:07

But the lowly shall possess the land, they will delight in abundance of peace.

SPEAKER_03 6:14

The wicked plot against the righteous and gnash at them with their teeth.

SPEAKER_10 6:21

The Lord laughs at the wicked, knowing that their day will come.

SPEAKER_03 6:27

The wicked draw their sword and bend their bow to strike down the poor and needy, to slaughter those who are upright in their ways.

SPEAKER_10 6:38

Their shore swords shall go through their own heart, and their bow shall be broken.

SPEAKER_03 6:46

The little that the righteous has is better than the great riches of the wicked.

SPEAKER_10 6:53

For the power of the wicked shall be broken, but the Lord upholds the righteous.

SPEAKER_03 7:00

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now and will be forever.

SPEAKER_00 7:18

Thank you, Jacqueline, and thank you, Brother Tucker. It's a painting by James J. Tusso. We're quite familiar with his artwork. This one is from 1902. The Ark Passes Over Jordan. This is in a museum in New York City. Our first lesson comes from Joshua, chapter three, verse fourteen through chapter four, verse seven. Chad, would you lead this?

SPEAKER_06 8:00

When the people set out from their tents to cross over the Jordan, the priests bearing the Ark of the Covenant were in front of the people. Now the Jordan overflows all its banks throughout the time of harvest. So when those who bore the ark had come to the Jordan and the feet of the priests bearing the ark were dipped in the edge of the water, the waters flowing from above stood still, rising up in a single feet, to a decent. The sea that is the sea. When the bows flowing toward the sea of Israel, the dead sea were holy covenants. When the people crossed over opposite Israel, when all Israel were crossing over Jesus Christ, the priest is over the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord Christ in the middle of the Jordan until the impasse nation finished crossing over the Jordan. When the impasse nation had finished crossing over the Jordan, the Lord said to Joshua, select twelfth men from the people, from each tribe, and command them. Take twelve stones from here out of the middle of the Jordan from the place where the priest speaks to us. Then Joshua summoned the twelfth men from the Israelites. Joshua said to them, take a summon before the ark of the Lord your comes into the middle of the Jordan. And each of you take up a stone, one for each of the trees of the Israelites. So that this may be a stone among you. When your kingdom asked in time to come, what do these stones mean to you? Tell them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off in front of the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord when it crossed over the Jordan. The waters of the Jordan were cut off. So these stones shall be to the Israelites a memorial forever. The word of the Lord.

SPEAKER_00 10:19

Thanks be to God. Thank you, Chad. Our first canticle is the song of Moses. Martha, would you lead this?

SPEAKER_01 10:36

I will sing to the Lord, for he is lofty and uplifted. The horse and its rider as he hurled into the sea. The Lord is my strength and my refuge. The Lord has become my savior. This is my God, and I will praise him. The God of my people and I will exalt him. The Lord is a mighty warrior. Yahweh is his name. The chariots of Pharaoh and his army has he hurled into the sea. The finest of those who bear armor have been drawn in the Red Sea. The fathomless deep has overwhelmed them. They sank into the depths like a storm. The right hand, O Lord, is glorious in mighty. The right hand, O Lord, has overthrown the enemy. Who can be compared with you, O Lord, among the gods? Who is like you? Glorious in holiness, awesome in renown, and worker of wonders. You stretch forth your right hand and swallow them up. With your constant love, you led the people you redeemed. With your might you brought them in safety to your holy dwelling. You will bring them in and plant them on the mount of your possession. The resting place you have made for yourself, O Lord. The sanctuary, O Lord, that your hand has established. The Lord shall reign forever and forever. Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now and will be forever. Amen.

SPEAKER_00 12:39

Amen. Thank you, Martha. The gifts of the Holy Spirit are displayed at Christ Church in Redondo Beach, California. Each one of the cards has something written on it. Our second reading comes from Romans chapter twelve, verses one through eight. Paul, would you lead this?

SPEAKER_08 13:14

I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercy of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. For by the grace given to me I say to every one among you not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. For as in one body we have many members, and not all members have the same function, so we who are many are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another. We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us prophecy in proportion to faith, ministry in ministering, the teacher in teaching, the exhorter in exhortation, the giver in generosity, the leader in diligence, the compassionate in cheerfulness. The word of the Lord.

SPEAKER_00 14:46

Thanks be to God. Thank you, Paul. Our second canticle is Glory to God, glory in Excelsius. Jill, would you lead this one?

SPEAKER_07 15:00

Glory to God in the highest and peace to his people on earth. Lord God, Heavenly King, Almighty God and Father, we worship you, we give you thanks, we praise you for your glory. Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father, Lord God, Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world. Have mercy on us. You are seated at the right hand of the Father, receive our prayer. For you alone are the Holy One. You alone are the Lord. You alone are the most high. Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit and the glory of God the Father. Amen.

SPEAKER_00 15:43

Amen. Thank you, Jill. This is by Harold Copping. A woman anoints Jesus with water. Excuse me. Actually, it doesn't say water. A woman anoints anoints Jesus' head. It's probably oil. Our reading is from Matthew chapter 26, verses 1 through 16. Deacon Diana, would you lead this one?

SPEAKER_05 16:23

When Jesus had finished saying all these things, he said to his disciples, You know that after two days the Passover is coming, and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified. Then the chief priests and the elders and the people gathered in the palace of the high priest who was called Caiaphas, and they conspired to arrest Jesus by stealth and kill him. But they said, Not during the festival, or there may be a riot among the people. Now, while Jesus was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, a woman came to him with an alabaster jar, a very costly ointment, and she poured it on his head as he sat at the table. But when the disciples saw it, they were angry and said, Why this waste? For this ointment could have been sold for a large sum, and the money given to the poor. But Jesus, aware of this, said to them, Why do you trouble the woman? She has performed a good service for me, for you always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me. By pouring the ointment on my body, she has prepared me for burial. Truly I tell you, whenever this good news is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be told in remembrance of her. Then one of the twelve, who was called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, What will you give me if I betray him to you? They paid him thirty pieces of silver, and from that moment he began to look for an opportunity to betray Jesus. The word of the Lord.

SPEAKER_00 18:09

Thank you, Deacon. And now the Apostles' Creed. Marcia, would you lead us in the creed?

SPEAKER_12 18:22

I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus Christ, God's only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pile, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again, he ascended into heaven. He is seated at the right hand of the Father, and he will come again to judge the living and the dead. I believe the Holy Spirit, the Holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.

SPEAKER_00 19:10

Amen. Thank you, Marcia. And now the prayers begin with our Lord's Prayer. Tony Vitali, would you lead us in the Lord's Prayer and then we'll read the suffrages.

SPEAKER_09 19:25

Lord be with you. And also with you. Let us pray. Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us. Save us from the time of trial. Deliver us from evil. The kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours, now and forever. Amen.

SPEAKER_00 19:57

Save your people, Lord, and bless your inheritance.

SPEAKER_09 20:02

Governor and uphold them now and always.

SPEAKER_00 20:05

Day by day we bless you.

SPEAKER_09 20:08

We praise your name forever.

SPEAKER_00 20:11

Lord, keep us from all sin today.

SPEAKER_09 20:14

Have mercy on us, Lord. Have mercy.

SPEAKER_00 20:18

Lord, show us your love and mercy.

SPEAKER_09 20:21

We put our trust in you.

SPEAKER_00 20:23

And you, Lord, is our hope.

SPEAKER_09 20:26

We shall never hope in vain.

SPEAKER_00 20:29

Thank you, Tony. It's a stained glass wind a stained glass window by John Lafarge. It's at the Corning Museum of Glass in Corning, New York. It's very beautiful. I'm guessing it's also very expensive. Now two prayers: the collect of the day for a proper tin and a collect for guidance. Deacon Elizabeth, would you lead these two prayers?

SPEAKER_11 21:09

Sure. Our Lord, mercifully receive the prayers of your people who call upon you and grant that they may know and understand what things they ought to do and may also have grace and power faithfully to accomplish them. Through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. Heavenly Father, in you we live and move and have our being. We humbly pray you so to guide and govern us by your Holy Spirit, that in all the cares and occupations of our life, we may not forget you, but may remember that we are ever working in your sight through Jesus Christ. Our Lord. Amen.

SPEAKER_00 22:02

Amen. Thank you, Deacon. And now it's time to take a look at America's gun toll. Look at how many people were shot and killed in America last week with all the guns that we have. This is as of Monday, July the 13th. Our spotlight this week takes us to East St. Louis, Illinois. It's just the other side of St. Louis, Missouri. This is a news conference that was held by the state police in Illinois. And what appears to be targeted shooting of a family in East St. Louis, Illinois, at several different locations. Five people are dead and two others are wounded. Two suspects are in custody. And their ages, wait for this, are 15 and 16. From the reports, at least one of the shooters knew the victims or was related to them. In the photo above, this was released by the Illinois State Police at their news conference related to this incident. Both suspects are in custody. There's no danger to the public. But this was one where they went to like three or four different locations to find people and shoot them. And to be fifteen and sixteen and have access to those guns is just scary. Those killed by the gunfire in the United States last week it went up. Five of those people of the 292 were the ones above. The week before it had been 275, so it wasn't a huge increase, but there again, those are people. Brings our total year to date kill to six thousand eight hundred and ninety-five people in our country. Those who were injured in the United States last week by gunfire, five hundred and eighty-nine. That one went down. It had been six hundred and thirty the week before. The week before included the stats for the Fourth of July weekend as well. It brings our total year-to-date injured to twelve thousand seven hundred and ninety-one. And so we pray a prayer to end gun violence. O Lord our God, we pray for the victims of the other pandemic as gun violence ravages our homes, our streets, our businesses, our schools, even our houses of worship. We pray for the children who are killed and injured. We pray for their families, their classmates and school employees. We pray for teenagers who are gunned down before their lives have really started. And we pray for the police officers who keep fighting a never ending battle while trying to keep themselves and everyone else safe. We pray for an end to racial profiling and law enforcement. We pray for all of those who are depressed or mentally ill, wanting to hurt themselves or others in a nation where guns are everywhere. We pray for the victims of crime who are forced to defend themselves and their loved ones. And we pray for anti-violence activists and community leaders in a time when new methods of protest and reform must be created. Let your demands for justice and your cries for peace be heard, O Lord, in our legislative chambers and in our hearts. May your healing grace overtake this land through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen. We'll continue with the prayer for the mission of the Church. I'm going to ask Patricia to lead this, and then I'll bless the Lord and bless us.

SPEAKER_04 25:38

Almighty God, you sent your Son Jesus Christ to reconcile the world to yourself. We praise and bless you for those whom you have sent in the power of the Spirit to preach the gospel to all nations. We thank you that in all parts of the earth a community of love has been gathered together by their prayers and labors, and that in every place your servants call upon your name for the kingdom and the power and the glory are yours forever. Amen.

SPEAKER_00 26:09

Let us bless the Lord.

SPEAKER_04 26:10

Thanks be to God.

SPEAKER_00 26:13

Life is short, and we don't have much time to gladden the hearts of those who make this journey with us. So be swift to love and make haste to be kind. God's blessing be with you. Christ's peace be with you. The Spirit's outpouring be with you. Now and always. Amen.

SPEAKER_09 26:29

Amen.

SPEAKER_00 26:30

That's morning prayer for this Thursday. Thank you for coming to pray today. Wherever you go, take that love of Jesus that lives inside of you, the Jesus that you carry in your heart. Share that Jesus with the world. Show that Jesus to the world. Hope to see you back with us tomorrow safe and sound.