Thursday 18 February 2010<!--StartFragment-->
<p class="MsoNormal">DAILY LECTIONARY</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Email Evangelism, forward to a friend: http://www.dailylectionary.org</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">******************************************************************</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Habakkuk 3:1-18<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">A prayer of the prophet Habakkuk according to Shigionoth.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">O Lord, I have heard of your renown,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and I stand in awe, O Lord, of your work.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">In our own time revive it;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>in our own time make it known;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>in wrath may you remember mercy.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">God came from Teman,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>the Holy One from Mount Paran.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun:
yes"> </span>Selah</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">His glory covered the heavens,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and the earth was full of his praise.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The brightness was like the sun;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>rays came forth from his hand,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>where his power lay hidden.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Before him went pestilence,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and plague followed close behind.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">He stopped and shook the earth;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>he looked and made the nations tremble.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The eternal mountains were shattered;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>along his ancient pathways</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>the everlasting hills sank low.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I saw the tents of Cushan under affliction;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>the tent-curtains of the land of Midian trembled.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Was your wrath against the rivers,* O Lord?</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Or your anger against the rivers,*</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>or your rage against the sea,*</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">when you drove your horses,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>your chariots to victory?</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">You brandished your naked bow,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>sated* were the arrows at your command.*</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun:
yes"> </span>Selah</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>You split the earth with rivers.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The mountains saw you, and writhed;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>a torrent of water swept by;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">the deep gave forth its voice.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>The sun* raised high its hands;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">the moon* stood still in its exalted place,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>at the light of your arrows speeding by,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>at the gleam of your flashing spear.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">In fury you trod the earth,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>in anger you trampled nations.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">You came forth to save your people,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>to save your anointed.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">You crushed the head of the wicked house,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>laying it bare from foundation to roof.*</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun:
yes"> </span>Selah</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">You pierced with their* own arrows the head* of his warriors,*</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>who came like a whirlwind to scatter us,*</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>gloating as if ready to devour the poor who were in hiding.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">You trampled the sea with your horses,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>churning the mighty waters.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I hear, and I tremble within;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>my lips quiver at the sound.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Rottenness enters into my bones,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and my steps tremble* beneath me.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I wait quietly for the day of calamity</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>to come upon the people who attack us.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Though the fig tree does not blossom,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and no fruit is on the vines;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">though the produce of the olive fails</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and the fields yield no food;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">though the flock is cut off from the fold</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and there is no herd in the stalls,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">yet I will rejoice in the Lord;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I will exult in the God of my salvation.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">******************************************************************</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Philippians 3:12-21</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Not that I have already obtained this or have already reached the goal;* but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Beloved,* I do not consider that I have made it my own;* but this one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on towards the goal for the prize of the heavenly* call of God in Christ Jesus. Let those of us then who are mature be of the same mind; and if you think differently about anything, this too God will reveal to you. Only let us hold fast to what we have attained.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Brothers and sisters,* join in imitating me, and observe those who live according to the example you have in us. For many live as enemies of the cross of Christ; I have often told you of them, and now I tell you even with tears. Their end is destruction; their god is the belly; and their glory is in their shame; their minds are set on earthly things. But our citizenship* is in heaven, and it is from there that we are expecting a Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. He will transform the body of our humiliation* so that it may be conformed to the body of his glory,* by the power that also enables him to make all things subject to himself.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">******************************************************************</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">John 17:1-8</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">After Jesus had spoken these words, he looked up to heaven and said, ‘Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son so that the Son may glorify you, since you have given him authority over all people,* to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. And this is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. I glorified you on earth by finishing the work that you gave me to do. So now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had in your presence before the world existed.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>‘I have made your name known to those whom you gave me from the world. They were yours, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. Now they know that everything you have given me is from you; for the words that you gave to me I have given to them, and they have received them and know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">******************************************************************</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Morning Psalms: Psalm 37:1-18</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Psalm 37:1-18</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Do not fret because of the wicked;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>do not be envious of wrongdoers,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">for they will soon fade like the grass,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and wither like the green herb.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Trust in the Lord, and do good;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>so you will live in the land, and enjoy security.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Take delight in the Lord,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and he will give you the desires of your heart.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Commit your way to the Lord;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>trust in him, and he will act.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">He will make your vindication shine like the light,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and the justice of your cause like the noonday.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Be still before the Lord, and wait patiently for him;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>do not fret over those who prosper in their way,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>over those who carry out evil devices.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Do not fret—it leads only to evil.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">For the wicked shall be cut off,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>but those who wait for the Lord shall inherit the land.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Yet a little while, and the wicked will be no more;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>though you look diligently for their place, they will not be there.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">But the meek shall inherit the land,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and delight in abundant prosperity.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The wicked plot against the righteous,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and gnash their teeth at them;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">but the Lord laughs at the wicked,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>for he sees that their day is coming.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The wicked draw the sword and bend their bows</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>to bring down the poor and needy,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>to kill those who walk uprightly;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">their sword shall enter their own heart,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and their bows shall be broken.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Better is a little that the righteous person has</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>than the abundance of many wicked.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">For the arms of the wicked shall be broken,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>but the Lord upholds the righteous.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The Lord knows the days of the blameless,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and their heritage will abide for ever;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">******************************************************************</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Evening Psalms: Psalm 37:19-42</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Psalm 37:19-42</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">they are not put to shame in evil times,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>in the days of famine they have abundance.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">But the wicked perish,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and the enemies of the Lord are like the glory of the pastures;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>they vanish—like smoke they vanish away.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The wicked borrow, and do not pay back,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>but the righteous are generous and keep giving;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">for those blessed by the Lord shall inherit the land,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>but those cursed by him shall be cut off.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Our steps* are made firm by the Lord,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>when he delights in our* way;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">though we stumble,* we* shall not fall headlong,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>for the Lord holds us* by the hand.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I have been young, and now am old,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>or their children begging bread.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">They are ever giving liberally and lending,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and their children become a blessing.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Depart from evil, and do good;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>so you shall abide for ever.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">For the Lord loves justice;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>he will not forsake his faithful ones.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The righteous shall be kept safe for ever,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>but the children of the wicked shall be cut off.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The righteous shall inherit the land,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and live in it for ever.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The mouths of the righteous utter wisdom,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and their tongues speak justice.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The law of their God is in their hearts;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>their steps do not slip.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The wicked watch for the righteous,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and seek to kill them.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The Lord will not abandon them to their power,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>or let them be condemned when they are brought to trial.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Wait for the Lord, and keep to his way,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and he will exalt you to inherit the land;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>you will look on the destruction of the wicked.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I have seen the wicked oppressing,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and towering like a cedar of Lebanon.*</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Again I* passed by, and they were no more;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>though I sought them, they could not be found.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Mark the blameless, and behold the upright,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>for there is posterity for the peaceable.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">But transgressors shall be altogether destroyed;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>the posterity of the wicked shall be cut off.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>he is their refuge in the time of trouble.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The Lord helps them and rescues them;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>he rescues them from the wicked, and saves them,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>because they take refuge in him.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">******************************************************************</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
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