Prayers for Here and Now   Morning Prayer, Midday Prayer and Evensong in two minutes

Prayers for Here and Now   Morning Prayer, Midday Prayer and Evensong in two minutes

Here are short versions of the daily prayers said in this church. You can read them and pray them out loud here and now. When you do this you will be keeping company with all the Christians and saints who have said these same prayers here for many centuries. When you pray here, you pray with them and become part of their good company. When you pray you are also speaking for all your contemporaries, saying for them those things which they are not able to say for themselves.

If there are two or more of you, one of you can read the first line (in plain type) and the other reads the second line (in italic) and then read alternate lines. A prayer in italics can be read by both (or all) of you together.

Morning Prayer can be read anytime in the morning. Midday Prayer can be read any time between 11am and 3pm. Evensong can be read any time after 3pm.

Each set starts with two psalms and a canticle, which are followed by prayers. You can add your own prayers, in silence if you like, or you could say any of prayers set for the days of the week (Intercessions for Here and Now).

Read slowly. Each sentence, and each full stop, has its own moment. Imagine you are walking along with a small child in one hand and someone much older than yourself in the other. Read at their pace so they can take in what they are hearing.

Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them

Morning Prayer in Two Minutes

In the abundance of your mercy I will come into your house.

In your holy temple and in awe, I will worship you

Praise ye the Lord

The Lord’s name be praised

O Come, let us sing unto the Lord, let us heartily rejoice in the strength of our salvation

Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving and shew ourselves glad in him with psalms

For the Lord is a great God, and a great king above all gods.

In his hand are all the corners of the earth and the strength of the hills is his also.

The sea is his and he made it, and his hands prepared the dry land.

O Come let us worship and fall down and kneel before the Lord our maker

For he is the Lord our God and we are the people of his pasture and the sheep his hand.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen

(Psalm 95)

 

Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he hath visited and redeemed his people

And raised up a mighty salvation for us in the house of his servant David

As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets which have been since the world began;

That we should be saved from our enemies and from the hands of all that hate us

To perform the mercy promised to our forefather Abraham, that he would give us,

That, we being delivered out of the hands of our enemies, might serve him without fear in holiness and righteousness all the days of our life.

(Benedictus)

God be merciful unto us, and bless us, and shew us the light of his countenance, and be merciful unto us

That thy way may be known upon earth, thy saving health among all nations.

Let all the people praise thee, O God, let all the people praise thee.

O Let the nations rejoice and be glad, for thou shalt judge the folk righteously, and govern the nations upon earth.

Let the people praise thee, O God, yea, let all the people praise thee

Then shall the earth bring forth her increase, and God, even our own God, shall give us his blessing

God shall bless us, and all the ends of the earth shall fear him

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit

As it was in the beginning, is now, and shall be forever. Amen

(Psalm 67)

O Lord, open thou our lips

And our mouth shall shew forth thy praise

O God, make speed to save us

O Lord make haste to help us

O Lord, let thy mercy lighten upon us

And grant us thy salvation

O Lord, save the Queen

And mercifully hear us when we call upon thee

Endue thy ministers with righteousness

And make thy chosen people joyful

O Lord, save thy people

And bless thy inheritance

Give peace in our time, O Lord

Because there is none other that fighteth for us, but only thou, O God

O God, make clean our hearts within us

And take not thy Holy Spirit from us.

[A moment’s silence. Add whatever other prayers you like]

Our Father, who art in heaven

Hallowed by thy Name

Thy Kingdom come

Thy will be done on earth as in heaven

Give us this day our daily bread

And give us our trespasses as we forgive them that trespass against us

And lead us not into temptation

But deliver us from evil

For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, forever and ever 

O Lord, our heavenly Father, almighty and everlasting God,

Who hast safely brought us to the beginning of this day,

Defend us in the same with thy mighty power

And grant that this day we fall into no sin, neither run into any kind of danger,

But that all our doings may be ordered by thy governance,

To do always that is righteous in thy sight,

Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ

And the love of God

And the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with us all evermore.  Amen.

 

Midday Prayer in Two Minutes

 

Go your way into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise.

Be thankful unto him and speak good of his name.

Praise ye the Lord

The Lord’s name be praised

O Be joyful in the Lord all ye lands; serve the Lord with gladness and come before his presence with a song.

Be ye sure that the Lord he is God; it is he that hath made us and not we ourselves. We are his people and the sheep of his pasture

O Go your way into his gates with thanksgiving and into his courts with praise; be thankful unto him and speak good of his name

For the Lord is gracious, his mercy is everlasting and his truth endureth from generation to generation

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen

(Psalm 100)

We praise thee, O God; we acknowledge thee to be the Lord

All the earth doth worship thee, the Father everlasting 

To thee all angels cry aloud, the heavens and all the powers therein

To thee cherubim and seraphim continually do cry, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of Sabaoth

Heaven and earth are full of the majesty of thy glory.

The glorious company of the apostles praise thee,

The goodly company of the prophets praise thee,

The noble army of martyrs praise thee,

The holy Church throughout all the world doth acknowledge thee,

The Father of an infinite majesty

Thine honourable, true and only Son,

Also the Holy Spirit the comforter.

Thou art the king of glory, O Christ.

Thou art the everlasting Son of the Father.

When thou tookest upon thee to deliver man thou didst not abhor the virgin’s womb.

When thou haddest overcome the sharpest of death thou didst open the kingdom of heaven to all believers. 

Thou sittest at the right hand of God in the glory of the Father.

We believe that thou will come to be our judge.

We therefore pray thee, help thy servants, whom thou hast redeemed by thy precious blood.

Make them to be numbered with thy saints in glory everlasting.

O Lord, save thy people and bless thy heritage.

Govern them and lift them up forever.

Day by day we magnify thee,

And we worship thy name ever world without end.

Vouchsafe, O Lord, to keep us this day without sin.

O Lord, have mercy upon us, have mercy upon us.

O Lord, let thy mercy lighten upon us, as our trust is in thee.

O Lord, in thee have I trusted, let me never be confounded.

(Te Deum Laudamus)

O Sing unto the Lord a new song; sing unto the Lord all the whole earth.

Sing unto the Lord and praise his name; be telling of his salvation from day to day.

Declare his honour unto the heathen and his wonders unto all people.

For the Lord is great and cannot worthily be praised; he is more to be feared than all the gods.

As for the gods of the heathen, they are but idols. It is the Lord that made the heavens.

Glory and worship are before him; power and honour are in his sanctuary.

Ascribe unto the Lord, O ye nations, ascribe unto the Lord worship and power.

Ascribe unto the Lord the honour due unto his name; bring presents and come into his courts.

O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness; let the whole earth stand in awe of him.

Tell it out among the heathen that the Lord is King, it is he that hath made the round world so fast that it cannot be moved and how he shall judge the people righteously.

Let the heavens rejoice and let the earth be glad. Let the sea make a noise all that therein is.

Let the field be joyful and all that is in it; then shall all the trees of the wood rejoice before the Lord.

For he cometh with righteousness to judge the world and the people with his truth.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

(Psalm 96)

O Lord, open thou our lips

And our mouth shall shew forth thy praise

O God make speed to save us

O Lord make haste to help us

O Lord let thy mercy lighten upon us

And grant us thy salvation

O Lord save the Queen

And mercifully hear us when we call upon thee

Endue thy ministers with righteousness

And make thy chosen people joyful

O Lord save thy people

And bless thy inheritance

Give peace in our time, O Lord

Because there is none other that fighteth for us, but only thou, O God

O God make clean our hearts within us

And take not thy Holy Spirit from us

[A moment’s silence. Add whatever other prayers you like]

Our Father, who art in heaven

Hallowed by thy Name

Thy Kingdom come

Thy Will be done, on earth as in heaven

Give us this day our daily bread

And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us

And lead us not into temptation

But deliver us from evil

For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, forever and ever. Amen.  

O God, who art the author of peace and lover of concord,

In knowledge of whom standeth our eternal life, whose service is perfect freedom,

Defend us thy humble servants in all assaults of our enemies, that we,

Surely trusting in thy defence, may not fear the power of any adversary,

Through the might of Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.

May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ

And the love of God

And the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with us all evermore.  Amen.


Evensong in Two Minutes

I was glad when they said unto me, O Come let us go unto the house of the Lord.

Our feet shall stand in thy gates Jerusalem

Praise ye the Lord

The Lord’s name be praised

O Sing unto the Lord a new song,  for he hath done marvellous things

With his own right hand and with his holy arm hath he gotten himself the victory.

The Lord declared his salvation; his righteousness hath he openly shewed in the sight of the heathen

He hath remembered his mercy and truth towards the house of Israel and all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God

Shew yourself joyful unto the Lord all you lands: sing, rejoice and give thanks.

Praise the Lord upon the harp; sing to the harp with a psalm of thanksgiving

With trumpets also and shawms, O shew yourself joyful before the Lord the king.

Let the floods clap their hands, and let the hills be joyful together before the Lord, for He cometh to judge the earth.

With righteousness shall he judge the world and the people with equity.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

(Psalm 98)

My Soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.

For he hath regarded the lowly state of his hand maiden

For behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed

For he that is mighty hath magnified me, and holy his name.

And his mercy is on them that fear him, throughout all generations

He hath shewed strength with his arm; he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts

He hath put down the mighty from their seats and hath exalted the humble and meek.

He hath filled the hungry with good things; the rich he hath sent empty away.

He remembering his mercy hath holpen his servant Israel as he promised to our forefathers, Abraham and his seed forever

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit

As it was in the beginning, is now, and shall be forever. Amen

(Magnificat)

God be merciful unto us, and bless us, and shew us the light of his countenance, and be merciful unto us

That thy way may be known upon earth, thy saving health among all nations.

Let all the people praise thee, O God, let all the people praise thee.

O Let the nations rejoice and be glad, for thou shalt judge the folk righteously, and govern the nations upon earth.

Let the people praise thee, O God, yea, let all the people praise thee

Then shall the earth bring forth her increase, and God, even our own God, shall give us his blessing

God shall bless us, and all the ends of the earth shall fear him

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit

As it was in the beginning, is now, and shall be forever. Amen

(Psalm 67)

O Lord, open thou our lips

And our mouth shall shew forth thy praise

O God make speed to save us

O Lord make haste to help us

O Lord let thy mercy lighten upon us

And grant us thy salvation

O Lord save the Queen

And mercifully hear us when we call upon thee

Endue thy ministers with righteousness

And make thy chosen people joyful

O Lord save thy people

And bless thy inheritance

Give peace in our time, O Lord

Because there is none other that fighteth for us, but only thou O God

O God make clean our hearts within us

And take not thy Holy Spirit from us.

[A moment’s silence. Add whatever other prayers you like]

Our Father, who art in heaven

Hallowed by thy Name

Thy Kingdom come

Thy Will be done on earth as in heaven

Give us this day our daily bread

And give us our trespasses as we forgive them that trespass against us

And lead us not into temptation

But deliver us from evil

For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, forever and ever. Amen. 

Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace according to thy Word

For mine eyes have seen thy salvation

Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people

To be a light to lighten the gentiles, and to be the glory of thy people Israel

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit

As it was in the beginning is now ever shall be, world without end. Amen

(Nunc Dimittis)

Lighten our Darkness, O Lord,

And by thy great mercy defend us from all perils and dangers of this night,

For the love of the thy only Son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ

May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ

And the love of God

And the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with us all evermore.  Amen