Daily Prayer for Monday, March 22, 2021

“Ride on!  Ride on in majesty!  Hark! all the tribes hosanna cry…”     
                            Henry Hart Milman, 1827

Preparation for worship
Sit in a relaxed position. Take a slow, deep breath (or 2 or 3 or as many as needed) until you feel your body, mind, and soul begin to relax and rest in the Spirit.  Take time to reflect as you move through this time of worship…

Opening Sentences                                                                 Psalm 118:26
Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest!

Prayer                                              Book of Common Worship, PC(USA), 2018
We praise you, O God,
for your redemption of the world through Jesus Christ,
who entered the holy city of Jerusalem in triumph
and was proclaimed Messiah and king
by those who spread garments and blankets along his way.
Let these branches be signs of his victory,
and grant that we who carry them
may follow him in the way of the cross,
that, dying and rising with him,
we may enter into your kingdom;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
now and forever.  Amen.

Hymn of the Day                            
Shalom, by Dan Forrest, performed by Choral friends of Beckenhorst Press, Greenville, SC.  Listen and pray.  

Reading of the Day                                                         Zechariah 9: 9-16
9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter Zion!
    Shout aloud, O daughter Jerusalem!
Lo, your king comes to you;
    triumphant and victorious is he,
humble and riding on a donkey,
    on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
10 He will cut off the chariot from Ephraim
    and the war-horse from Jerusalem;
and the battle bow shall be cut off,
    and he shall command peace to the nations;
his dominion shall be from sea to sea,
    and from the River to the ends of the earth.
11 As for you also, because of the blood of my covenant with you,
    I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit.
12 Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope;
    today I declare that I will restore to you double.
13 For I have bent Judah as my bow;
    I have made Ephraim its arrow.
I will arouse your sons, O Zion,
    against your sons, O Greece,
    and wield you like a warrior’s sword.
14 Then the Lord will appear over them,
    and his arrow go forth like lightning;
the Lord God will sound the trumpet
    and march forth in the whirlwinds of the south.
15 The Lord of hosts will protect them,
    and they shall devour and tread down the slingers;
they shall drink their blood like wine,
    and be full like a bowl,
    drenched like the corners of the altar.
16 On that day the Lord their God will save them
    for they are the flock of his people;
for like the jewels of a crown
    they shall shine on his land.
17 For what goodness and beauty are his!
    Grain shall make the young men flourish,
    and new wine the young women.

Prayers for self and others
Please pray today for those who are being affected by Covid-19 and by its side effects in our world, and of course for all those who have been affected by the devastating winter storms.   Please continue to pray for Marcy Szeliga and for Mark Sabala, both working as nurses with Covid patients. Give thanks to God for God’s power and love which works powerfully through our minds and hearts to bring goodness to the world.  Use this time to lift your joys, concerns, and hopes to God.

Benediction
Deep peace of the running wave to you.
Deep peace of the flowing air to you.
Deep peace of the quiet earth to you.
Deep peace of the shining stars to you.
Deep peace of the gentle night to you.
Moon and stars pour their healing light on you.
Deep peace of Christ,
of Christ the light of the world to you.
Deep peace of Christ to you.