Opening
God, come to my assistance. Lord, make haste to help me.
Hymn
Midway through the labor, Lord, We pause beneath Your gaze. The morning zeal has thinned a little; Steady us for the remaining ways. Christ who bore the heat of noonday, Stay beside the tasks we hold. Make our hands a quiet service, And our words both true and bold.
Original, Prayer on Fire
Psalm I
Antiphon
Unless you build the house, my labor is empty — stay with me.
Psalm 24 (23):7–10
Catholic Public Domain Version (public domain)
Psalm
Lift up your gates, you princes, and be lifted up, eternal gates. And the King of Glory shall enter. Who is this King of Glory? The Lord who is strong and powerful; the Lord powerful in battle. Lift up your gates, you princes, and be lifted up, eternal gates. And the King of Glory shall enter. Who is this King of Glory? The Lord of virtue. He himself is the King of Glory.
Glory Be
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.
Antiphon
Unless you build the house, my labor is empty — stay with me.
Psalm II
Antiphon
Keep my feet from stumbling and my heart from hardness.
Psalm 46 (45):2–3, 5–6
Catholic Public Domain Version (public domain)
Psalm
Our God is our refuge and strength, a helper in the tribulations that have greatly overwhelmed us. Because of this, we will not be afraid when the earth will be turbulent and the mountains will be transferred into the heart of the sea. The frenzy of the river rejoices the city of God. The Most High has sanctified his tabernacle. God is in its midst; it will not be shaken. God will assist it in the early morning.
Glory Be
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.
Antiphon
Keep my feet from stumbling and my heart from hardness.
Silence
Hold the psalm a little longer.
Reading
Romans 12:1–2
Catholic Public Domain Version (public domain)
And so, I beg you, brothers, by the mercy of God, that you offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God, with the subservience of your mind. And do not choose to be conformed to this age, but instead choose to be reformed in the newness of your mind, so that you may demonstrate what is the will of God: what is good, and what is well-pleasing, and what is perfect.
Responsory
Those who wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall walk and not faint. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
Intercessions
Bless the labor of this hour — the seen and the hidden — and let it become a quiet offering.
R. Lord, have mercy.
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name; thy kingdom come; thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.
Closing prayer
Father, in the middle of the day we return to you. Do not let us hurry past love. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.