Wednesday, Fourth Week of Lent

Leader: O Lord, open my lips. All: And my mouth shall declare your praise.
Come let us worship Christ the Lord who for our sake endured temptation and suffering.

Psalm 103:1-13

Antiphon:  Bless the Lord, my soul; never forget all he has done for you.

My soul, give thanks to the Lord,
all my being, bless his holy name.
My soul, give thanks to the Lord
and never forget all his blessings.

It is he who forgives all your guilt,
who heals every one of your ills,
who redeems your life from the grave,
who crowns you with love and compassion,
who fills your life with good things,
renewing your youth like an eagle’s.

The Lord does deeds of justice,
gives judgment for all who are oppressed.
He made known his ways to Moses
and his deeds to Israel’s sons.

The Lord is compassion and love,
slow to anger and rich in mercy.
His wrath will come to an end;
he will not be angry for ever.
He does not treat us according to our sins
nor repay us according to our faults.

For as the heavens are high above the earth
so strong is his love for those who fear him.
As far as the east is from the west
so far does he remove our sins.

As a father has compassion on his sons,
the Lord has pity on those who fear him.

Glory to the Father...

Antiphon:  Bless the Lord, my soul; never forget all he has done for you.

Reading: From a letter by St. Maximus the Confessor

God’s will is to save us, and nothing pleases him more than our coming back to him with true repentance. The heralds of truth and the ministers of divine grace have told us this from the beginning, repeating it in every age. Indeed, God’s desire for our salvation is the primary and preeminent sign of his infinite goodness. It was precisely in order to show that there is nothing closer to God’s heart that the divine Word of God the Father, with untold condescension, lived among us in the flesh, and did, suffered, and said all that was necessary to reconcile us to God the Father, when we were at enmity with him, and to restore us to the life of blessedness from which we had been exiled. He healed our physical infirmities by miracles; he freed us from our sins, many and grievous as they were, by suffering and dying, taking them upon himself as if he were answerable for them, sinless though he was. He also taught us in many different ways that we should wish to imitate him by our own kindness and genuine love for one another.

Pray either the Canticle of Zechariah or the Canticle of Mary. You can find them here.
Antiphon for the Canticle of Zechariah:   Whoever hears my words, says the Lord, and believes in him who sent me, has eternal life.
Antiphon for the Canticle of Mary:  By myself, says the Lord, I can do nothing. I judge as I am told to judge, and my sentence is just.

Intercessions

May we hear your words and believe in you.
Lord, hear our prayer!
Help us not to seek our own wills.
Lord, hear our prayer!
Bring those who have died into your kingdom.
Lord, hear our prayer!

Dear Jesus,
Help us to do the Father's will. May we never forget the great things you have done for us. We ask the Father for this in your name in union with the Holy Spirit. Amen.