Praying the Hours

Also sometimes called the Divine Office or Fixed-Hour Prayer, praying the hours is an easily accessible way to turn and return our attention to God as a daily rhythm. Simplified from the monastic tradition, there are four prayer points—morning, mid-day, evening, and night—and a host of ways to engage.

Morning Prayer

O God, open our lips and we shall declare your praise.

God said, Let there be light, and there was light. And God saw that the light was good. This very day the Lord has acted! Let us rejoice.

New every morning is your love, great God of light, and all day long you are working for good in the world. Stir up in us desire to serve you, to live peacefully with our neighbors, and to devote this day to your Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ the Lord.

We praise you with joy, loving God, for your grace is better than life itself. You have sustained us through the darkness, and you bless us with life in this new day.

In the shadow of your wings we sing for joy and bless your holy name.

Amen.

Mid-day Prayer

O God, make speed to save us.  O Lord, make haste to help us. 

Accept our thanks and praise for all that you have done for us. We thank you for the splendor of the whole creation, for the beauty of this world, for the wonder of life, and for the mystery of love.

We thank you for the blessing of family and friends, and for the loving care that surrounds us on every side.

We thank you for setting us at tasks that demand our best efforts, and for leading us to accomplishments that satisfy and delight us. We thank you too for those disappointments and failures that lead us to acknowledge our dependence on you alone.

Above all, we thank you for your son Jesus, for the truth of his word and the example of his life. For his steadfast obedience by which he overcame temptation, for his dying through which he overcame death, and for his rising to life again in which we are raised to the life of your kingdom.

Amen.

Evening Prayer

From the rising of the sun to its setting, let the name of the Lord be praised. You, O Lord, are my lamp. My God, you make my darkness bright. Light and peace in Jesus Christ our Lord. Thanks be to God.

We praise and thank you, O God, for you are without beginning and without end. Through Christ you created the whole world; through Christ you preserve it.

You made the day for the works of light and the night for the refreshment of our minds and our bodies. Keep us now in Christ, grant us a peaceful evening, a night free from sin, and bring us at last to eternal life.

Through Christ and in the Holy Spirit, we offer you all glory, honor, and worship, now and forever.

Amen.

Night Prayer

Our souls greet you, Shepherd God. We have been led by your loving hand, and we proclaim with joy that you are our salvation. Reign in our hearts this night.

For thus says the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: In returning and rest you shall be saved, in quietness and in trust shall be your strength. Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you, therefore he will rise up to show mercy to you. For the Lord is a God of compassion; blessed are all those who wait for him.

Sovereign God, you have been our help during the day and you promise to be with us at night.

Receive this prayer as a sign of our trust in you. Save us from all evil, keep us from harm, and guide us in your way. We belong to you, Lord. Protect us by the power of your name, in Jesus Christ we pray.

Amen.