19. For Rogation Days II

Collect:
II For Commerce and Industry
Almighty God, whose Son Jesus Christ in his earthly life shared our toil and hallowed our labor: Be present with thy people where they work; make those who carry on the industries and commerce of this land responsive to thy will; and give to us all a pride in what we do, and a just return for our labor; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

First Lesson: Ecclesiasticus 38:27-32
So with every engraver and designer who,
laboring night and day,
Fashions carved seals,
and whose concern is to vary the pattern.
His care is to produce a vivid impression,
and he keeps watch till be finishes his design.

So with the smith standing near his anvil,
forging crude iron.
The heat from the fire sears his flesh,
yet he toils away in the furnace heat.
The clang of the hammer deafens his ears,
his eyes are fixed on the tool he is shaping.
His care is to finish his work,
and he keeps watch till he perfects its detail.

So with the potter sitting at his labor,
revolving the wheel with his feet.
He is always concerned for his products,
and turns them out in quantity.

With his hands he molds the clay,
and with his feet softens it.
His care is for proper coloring,
and he keeps watch on the fire of his kiln.
All these men are skilled with hands,
each one an expert at his own task;

Without them no city could be lived in
and wherever they stay, they need not hunger.

Second Lesson: 1 Corinthians 3:10-14
By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should be careful how he builds. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man's work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward.

Psalm: 107:1-9

  1. Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, *
    and his mercy endures for ever.
  2. Let all those whom the LORD has redeemed proclaim *
    that he redeemed them from the hand of the foe.
  3. He gathered them out of the lands; *
    from the east and from the west,
    from the north and from the south.
  4. Some wandered in desert wastes; *
    they found no way to a city where they might dwell.
  5. They were hungry and thirsty; *
    their spirits languished within them.
  6. Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, *
    and he delivered them from their distress.
  7. He put their feet on a straight path *
    to go to a city where they might dwell.
  8. Let them give thanks to the LORD for his mercy *
    and the wonders he does for his children.
  9. For he satisfies the thirsty *
    and fills the hungry with good things.

Matthew 6:19-24
"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

"The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!

"No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money."

Collect & Psalm from the Book of Common Prayer
Other excerpts from the New International Bible

Various Occasions