Saturday 30 December 2023 DAILY LECTIONARY

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Saturday 30 December 2023 
DAILY LECTIONARY

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1 Kings 17:17-24

After this the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, became
ill; his illness was so severe that there was no breath left in him.
She then said to Elijah, ‘What have you against me, O man of God?
You have come to me to bring my sin to remembrance, and to cause the
death of my son!’ But he said to her, ‘Give me your son.’ He
took him from her bosom, carried him up into the upper chamber where
he was lodging, and laid him on his own bed. He cried out to the Lord,
‘O Lord my God, have you brought calamity even upon the widow with
whom I am staying, by killing her son?’ Then he stretched himself
upon the child three times, and cried out to the Lord, ‘O Lord my
God, let this child’s life come into him again.’ The Lord listened
to the voice of Elijah; the life of the child came into him again, and
he revived. Elijah took the child, brought him down from the upper
chamber into the house, and gave him to his mother; then Elijah said,
‘See, your son is alive.’ So the woman said to Elijah, ‘Now I
know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in your
mouth is truth.’
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3 John 1-15

The elder to the beloved Gaius, whom I love in truth.
 Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in
good health, just as it is well with your soul. I was overjoyed when
some of the friends* arrived and testified to your faithfulness to the
truth, namely, how you walk in the truth. I have no greater joy than
this, to hear that my children are walking in the truth.

 Beloved, you do faithfully whatever you do for the friends,* even
though they are strangers to you; they have testified to your love
before the church. You will do well to send them on in a manner worthy
of God; for they began their journey for the sake of Christ,*
accepting no support from non-believers.* Therefore we ought to
support such people, so that we may become co-workers with the truth.
 I have written something to the church; but Diotrephes, who likes to
put himself first, does not acknowledge our authority. So if I come, I
will call attention to what he is doing in spreading false charges
against us. And not content with those charges, he refuses to welcome
the friends,* and even prevents those who want to do so and expels
them from the church.

 Beloved, do not imitate what is evil but imitate what is good.
Whoever does good is from God; whoever does evil has not seen God.
Everyone has testified favourably about Demetrius, and so has the
truth itself. We also testify for him,* and you know that our
testimony is true.
 I have much to write to you, but I would rather not write with pen
and ink; instead I hope to see you soon, and we will talk together
face to face.

 Peace to you. The friends send you their greetings. Greet the
friends there, each by name.
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John 4:46-54

Then he came again to Cana in Galilee where he had changed the water
into wine. Now there was a royal official whose son lay ill in
Capernaum. When he heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he
went and begged him to come down and heal his son, for he was at the
point of death. Then Jesus said to him, ‘Unless you* see signs and
wonders you will not believe.’ The official said to him, ‘Sir,
come down before my little boy dies.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Go; your
son will live.’ The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him
and started on his way. As he was going down, his slaves met him and
told him that his child was alive. So he asked them the hour when he
began to recover, and they said to him, ‘Yesterday at one in the
afternoon the fever left him.’ The father realized that this was the
hour when Jesus had said to him, ‘Your son will live.’ So he
himself believed, along with his whole household. Now this was the
second sign that Jesus did after coming from Judea to Galilee.
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Morning Psalms: Psalm 20, 21

Psalm 20

The Lord answer you in the day of trouble!
   The name of the God of Jacob protect you! 
May he send you help from the sanctuary,
   and give you support from Zion. 
May he remember all your offerings,
   and regard with favour your burnt sacrifices.
          Selah 

May he grant you your heart’s desire,
   and fulfil all your plans. 
May we shout for joy over your victory,
   and in the name of our God set up our banners.
May the Lord fulfil all your petitions. 

Now I know that the Lord will help his anointed;
   he will answer him from his holy heaven
   with mighty victories by his right hand. 
Some take pride in chariots, and some in horses,
   but our pride is in the name of the Lord our God. 
They will collapse and fall,
   but we shall rise and stand upright. 

Give victory to the king, O Lord;
   answer us when we call.

Psalm 21

In your strength the king rejoices, O Lord,
   and in your help how greatly he exults! 
You have given him his heart’s desire,
   and have not withheld the request of his lips.
          Selah 
For you meet him with rich blessings;
   you set a crown of fine gold on his head. 
He asked you for life; you gave it to him—
   length of days for ever and ever. 
His glory is great through your help;
   splendour and majesty you bestow on him. 
You bestow on him blessings for ever;
   you make him glad with the joy of your presence. 
For the king trusts in the Lord,
   and through the steadfast love of the Most High he shall not be
moved.

Your hand will find out all your enemies;
   your right hand will find out those who hate you. 
You will make them like a fiery furnace
   when you appear.
The Lord will swallow them up in his wrath,
   and fire will consume them. 
You will destroy their offspring from the earth,
   and their children from among humankind. 
If they plan evil against you,
   if they devise mischief, they will not succeed. 
For you will put them to flight;
   you will aim at their faces with your bows. 

Be exalted, O Lord, in your strength!
   We will sing and praise your power.
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Evening Psalms: Psalm 23, 27

Psalm 23

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. 
   He makes me lie down in green pastures;
he leads me beside still waters;* 
   he restores my soul.*
He leads me in right paths*
   for his name’s sake. 

Even though I walk through the darkest valley,*
   I fear no evil;
for you are with me;
   your rod and your staff—
   they comfort me. 

You prepare a table before me
   in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil;
   my cup overflows. 
Surely* goodness and mercy* shall follow me
   all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord
   my whole life long.

Psalm 27

The Lord is my light and my salvation;
   whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold* of my life;
   of whom shall I be afraid? 

When evildoers assail me
   to devour my flesh—
my adversaries and foes—
   they shall stumble and fall. 

Though an army encamp against me,
   my heart shall not fear;
though war rise up against me,
   yet I will be confident. 

One thing I asked of the Lord,
   that will I seek after:
to live in the house of the Lord
   all the days of my life,
to behold the beauty of the Lord,
   and to inquire in his temple. 

For he will hide me in his shelter
   in the day of trouble;
he will conceal me under the cover of his tent;
   he will set me high on a rock. 

Now my head is lifted up
   above my enemies all around me,
and I will offer in his tent
   sacrifices with shouts of joy;
I will sing and make melody to the Lord. 

Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud,
   be gracious to me and answer me! 
‘Come,’ my heart says, ‘seek his face!’
   Your face, Lord, do I seek. 
   Do not hide your face from me. 

Do not turn your servant away in anger,
   you who have been my help.
Do not cast me off, do not forsake me,
   O God of my salvation! 
If my father and mother forsake me,
   the Lord will take me up. 

Teach me your way, O Lord,
   and lead me on a level path
   because of my enemies. 
Do not give me up to the will of my adversaries,
   for false witnesses have risen against me,
   and they are breathing out violence. 

I believe that I shall see the goodness of the Lord
   in the land of the living. 
Wait for the Lord;
   be strong, and let your heart take courage;
   wait for the Lord!
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