Altar Server Prayer: Father in heaven, Your Son Jesus Christ showed his
love for you by serving his brothers and sisters in need. I now
ask you to give me your help I serve you and your people Open my mouth to
praise you in word and song. Open my ears to hear your word. Open my hand to do
your work well. Take from me all evil and distracting thoughts.
Help me to know
what I should do and do it well. Help me to serve reverently at your Holy
Altar and give you praise and glory now and for ever. Amen
The angel brought me to
the entrance of the Temple, where a stream came out from under the Temple
threshold and flowed eastwards, since the Temple faced east. The water flowed
from under the right side of the Temple, south of the altar. He took me out by
the north gate and led me right round outside as far as the outer east gate
where the water flowed out on the right-hand side. He said, ‘This water flows
east down to the Arabah and to the sea; and flowing into the sea it makes its
waters wholesome. Wherever the river flows, all living creatures teeming in it
will live. Fish will be very plentiful, for wherever the water goes it brings
health, and life teems wherever the river flows. Along the river, on either
bank, will grow every kind of fruit tree with leaves that never wither and
fruit that never fails; they will bear new fruit every month, because this
water comes from the sanctuary. And their fruit will be good to eat and the
leaves medicinal.’
The waters of a river give joy to God’s city, the holy place where the Most High dwells.
Just before the Jewish
Passover Jesus went up to Jerusalem, and in the Temple he found people selling
cattle and sheep and pigeons, and the money changers sitting at their counters
there. Making a whip out of some cord, he drove them all out of the Temple,
cattle and sheep as well, scattered the money changers’ coins, knocked their
tables over and said to the pigeon-sellers, ‘Take all this out of here and stop
turning my Father’s house into a market.’ Then his disciples remembered the
words of scripture: Zeal for your house will devour me. The Jews intervened and said, ‘What sign can you show
us to justify what you have done?’ Jesus answered, ‘Destroy this sanctuary, and
in three days I will raise it up.’ The Jews replied, ‘It has taken forty-six
years to build this sanctuary: are you going to raise it up in three days?’ But
he was speaking of the sanctuary that was his body, and when Jesus rose from
the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed the
scripture and the words he had said.
Father in heaven you love all your creatures. You gave us life through the water by our baptism. My Father you are the living spring, the source of our being. True Father, water is life it is the main source of our existence. Give us life for wherever the river flows, all living creatures in it will live. For wherever the water goes it brings health, and life. Your holy place is your Temple. Father from your sanctuary flows the stream of life that never fails, help us Father that we may bear good fruits.
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