Thursday evening July 28
Friday evening
Wednesday evening
Preparation
Opening response
O God, make speed to save us.
O Lord, make haste to help us.
Prayer of thanksgiving
Blessed are you, Lord God, creator of day and night:
to you be praise and glory for ever.
As darkness falls you renew your promise
to reveal among us the light of your presence.
By the light of Christ, your living Word,
dispel the darkness of our hearts
that we may walk as children of light
and sing your praise throughout the world.
Blessed be God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Blessed be God forever.
Hymn
Christ, Whose Glory Fills The Skies
Charles Wesley
Christ, whose glory fills the skies,
Christ, the true, the only light,
Sun of Righteousness, arise!
Triumph over the shades of night;
Dayspring from on high, be near;
Daystar, in my heart appear.
Dark and cheerless is the morn
Unaccompanied by thee;
Joyless is the day's return,
Till thy mercy's beams I see;
Till they inward light impart,
Glad my eyes, and warm my heart.
Visit then this soul of mine;
Pierce the gloom of sin and grief;
Fill me, Radiancy Divine;
Scatter all my unbelief;
More and more thyself display,
Shining to the perfect day.
Confession of sin
Come, Holy Spirit of God,
and search our hearts with the light of Christ.
Our Lord Jesus Christ said:
The first commandment is this:
‘Israel, listen! Our God is the one Lord,
and you must love the Lord your God with all your heart,
with all your being, with all your mind,
and with all your strength.’
The second is this: ‘You must love your neighbor as yourself.’
No other commandment is greater than these.
All the Law and the Prophets depend on these two commandments.
Amen. Lord, have mercy.
After a period of reflection
Come, let us return to the Lord and say:
Lord our God,
in our sin we have avoided your call.
Our love for you is like a morning cloud,
like the dew that goes away early.
Have mercy on us;
deliver us from judgment;
bind up our wounds and revive us;
in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
cf Hosea 6
May almighty God,
who sent his Son into the world to save sinners,
bring us his pardon and peace, now and forever.
Amen.
The Word of God
Psalm 61
Refrain:
You are my refuge, Lord, a tower of strength in the face of the enemy.
God, listen to my cry;
pay attention to my prayer!
When my heart is weak,
I cry out to you from the very ends of the earth.
Lead me to the rock that is higher than I am
because you have been my refuge,
a tower of strength in the face of the enemy.
Please let me live in your tent forever!
Please let me take refuge
in the shelter of your wings!
Because you, God, have heard my promises;
you’ve given me the same possession
as those who honor your name.
Add days to the king’s life!
Let his years extend for many generations!
Let him be enthroned forever before God!
Make it so love and faithfulness watch over him!
Then I will sing praises to your name forever,
and I will do what I promised every single day.
Glory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning is now
and will be forever. Amen.
Refrain:
You are my refuge, Lord, a tower of strength in the face of the enemy.
Psalm prayer
Risen Christ,
as you knew the discipline of suffering
and the victory that brings us salvation,
so grant us your presence in our weakness
and a place in your unending kingdom
now and forevermore.
Psalm 62
Refrain:
I must find rest in God only, because my hope comes from him!
Only in God do I find rest;
my salvation comes from him.
Only God is my rock and my salvation—
my stronghold!—I won’t be shaken anymore.
How long will all of you attack others;
how long will you tear them down
as if they were leaning walls or broken-down fences?
The only desire of this people
is to bring others down low;
they delight in deception.
With their mouths they bless,
but inside they are cursing.
Oh, I must find rest in God only,
because my hope comes from him!
Only God is my rock and my salvation—
my stronghold!—I will not be shaken.
My deliverance and glory depend on God.
God is my strong rock.
My refuge is in God.
All you people: Trust in him at all times!
Pour out your hearts before him!
God is our refuge!
Human beings are nothing but a breath.
Human beings are nothing but lies.
They don’t even register on a scale;
taken all together they are lighter than a breath!
Don’t trust in violence;
don’t set false hopes in robbery.
When wealth bears fruit,
don’t set your heart on it.
God has spoken one thing—
make it two things—
that I myself have heard:
that strength belongs to God,
and faithful love comes from you, my Lord—
and that you will repay
everyone according to their deeds.
Glory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning is now
and will be forever. Amen.
Refrain:
I must find rest in God only, because my hope comes from him!
Psalm prayer
God, teach us to seek security,
not in money or theft,
not in human ambition or malice,
not in our own ability or power,
but in you, the only God,
our rock and our salvation.
Psalm 64
Refrain:
Let the righteous rejoice in the Lord.
Listen to me when I complain, God!
Protect my life from the enemy’s terror!
Hide me from the secret plots of wicked people;
hide me from the schemes of evildoers
who sharpen their tongues like swords.
They aim their arrow—a cruel word—
from their hiding places
so as to shoot an innocent person.
They shoot without warning and without fear.
They encourage themselves with evil words.
They plan on laying traps in secret.
“Who will be able to see them?” they ask.
“Let someone try to expose our crimes!
We’ve devised a perfect plot!
It’s deep within the human mind and heart.”
But God will shoot them with an arrow!
Without warning, they will be wounded!
The Lord will make them trip over their own tongues;
everyone who sees them will just shake their heads.
Then all people will honor God,
will announce the act of God,
will understand it was God’s work.
Let the righteous rejoice in the Lord;
let them take refuge in him;
let everyone whose heart is in the right place give praise!
Glory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning is now
and will be forever. Amen.
Refrain:
Let the righteous rejoice in the Lord.
Psalm prayer
Cut through the malice of our hearts, redeeming God,
with the Spirit’s sword,
wound the pride of our rebellion
with the grace that makes righteous
and bring near the day of Christ,
when love shall reign in joy;
for he is alive and reigns, now and forever.
Old Testament reading
Ezekiel 43:1-12
Then he led me to the east gate, where the glory of Israel’s God was coming in from the east. Its sound was like the sound of a mighty flood, and the earth was lit up with his glory. What appeared when I looked was like what I had seen when he came to destroy the city, and also like what I saw at the Chebar River, and I fell on my face. Then the Lord’s glory came into the temple by way of the east gate. A wind picked me up and brought me to the inner courtyard, and there the Lord’s glory filled the temple. A man was standing next to me, but the voice that I heard came from inside the temple. He said to me, Human one, this is the place for my throne and the place for the soles of my feet, where I will dwell among the Israelites forever. The house of Israel will never again defile my holy name, neither they nor their kings, with their disloyalties and with their kings’ corpses at the shrines. When they set their plazas with mine and their doorposts next to mine, the wall was between us. They defiled my holy name with their detestable practices, so I consumed them in my anger. Now let them remove their disloyalties and their kings’ corpses from me, and I will dwell among them forever.
You, human one, describe the temple to the house of Israel. Let them be humiliated because of their guilt when they think about its design. When they feel humiliated by all that they have done, make known to them the shape of the temple and its adornment, its exits and its entrances, its entire plan and all of its regulations. Write them down in their sight so that they may observe all of its entire plan and all its regulations and perform them.
These are the instructions for the temple: the top of the mountain, as well as its boundaries all around, are most holy. These are the instructions for the temple.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
Mark 1:29-45
After leaving the synagogue, Jesus, James, and John went home with Simon and Andrew. Simon’s mother-in-law was in bed, sick with a fever, and they told Jesus about her at once. He went to her, took her by the hand, and raised her up. The fever left her, and she served them.
That evening, at sunset, people brought to Jesus those who were sick or demon-possessed. The whole town gathered near the door. He healed many who were sick with all kinds of diseases, and he threw out many demons. But he didn’t let the demons speak, because they recognized him.
Early in the morning, well before sunrise, Jesus rose and went to a deserted place where he could be alone in prayer. Simon and those with him tracked him down. When they found him, they told him, “Everyone’s looking for you!”
He replied, “Let’s head in the other direction, to the nearby villages, so that I can preach there too. That’s why I’ve come.” He traveled throughout Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and throwing out demons.
A man with a skin disease approached Jesus, fell to his knees, and begged, “If you want, you can make me clean.”
Incensed, Jesus reached out his hand, touched him, and said, “I do want to. Be clean.” Instantly, the skin disease left him, and he was clean. Sternly, Jesus sent him away, saying, “Don’t say anything to anyone. Instead, go and show yourself to the priest and offer the sacrifice for your cleansing that Moses commanded. This will be a testimony to them.” Instead, he went out and started talking freely and spreading the news so that Jesus wasn’t able to enter a town openly. He remained outside in deserted places, but people came to him from everywhere.
Silence may be kept.
Gospel canticle
The Magnificat (The Song of Mary)
Refrain:
God, you have done great things and holy is your name.
With all my heart I glorify the Lord!
In the depths of who I am I rejoice in God my savior.
He has looked with favor on the low status of his servant.
Look! From now on, everyone will consider me highly favored
because the mighty one has done great things for me.
Holy is his name.
He shows mercy to everyone,
from one generation to the next,
who honors him as God.
He has shown strength with his arm.
He has scattered those with arrogant thoughts and proud inclinations.
He has pulled the powerful down from their thrones
and lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things
and sent the rich away empty-handed.
He has come to the aid of his servant Israel,
remembering his mercy,
just as he promised to our ancestors,
to Abraham and to Abraham’s descendants forever.
Luke 1:46-55
Glory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning is now
and will be forever. Amen.
Refrain:
God, you have done great things and holy is your name.
Brief silence.
The Apostle’s Creed
Let us unite in this historic confession of the Christian faith:
I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and will come again to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.
Prayers
Thanksgiving and intercession
Thanksgiving may be made for the day.
Intercessions are offered
for peace
for individuals and their needs
Response
Lord, in your mercy
hear our prayer.
Silence may be kept.
Collect of the day
Almighty God,
who sent your Holy Spirit
to be the life and light of your church:
open our hearts to the riches of your grace,
that we may bring forth the fruit of the Spirit
in love and joy and peace;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever.
Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer
As our Savior taught us, so we pray
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours
now and forever.
Amen.
Conclusion
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.