Thursday evening August 25
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
In the Midst Do Thou Appear
Charles Wesley
In the midst do thou appear,
Lord, reveal thy presence here!
Sanctify us now, and bless;
Breathe thy Spirit, give thy peace.
While we walk with God in light,
God our hearts doth still unite,
Sweetly each with each combined
In the bonds of duty joined.
Father, still our faith increase:
Cleanse from all unrighteousness,
Thee the unholy cannot see;
Make, oh make us meet for thee!
Mutual love the token be,
Lord, that we belong to thee,
Only love to us be given,
Lord we ask no other heaven.
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 138
Refrain:
Your faithful love lasts forever, Lord!
I give thanks to you with all my heart, Lord.
I sing your praise before all other gods.
I bow toward your holy temple
and thank your name
for your loyal love and faithfulness
because you have made your name and word
greater than everything else.
On the day I cried out, you answered me.
You encouraged me with inner strength.
Let all the earth’s rulers give thanks to you, Lord,
when they hear what you say.
Let them sing about the Lord’s ways
because the Lord’s glory is so great!
Even though the Lord is high,
he can still see the lowly,
but God keeps his distance from the arrogant.
Whenever I am in deep trouble,
you make me live again;
you send your power against my enemies’ wrath;
you save me with your strong hand.
The Lord will do all this for my sake.
Your faithful love lasts forever, Lord!
Don’t let go of what your hands
have made.
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:
Your faithful love lasts forever, Lord!
Psalm prayer
Lord our God, supreme over all things,
look upon the humble and lowly
and put new strength into our souls
to complete your purpose for us
in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Psalm 140
Refrain:
Protect me from the power of the wicked, Lord!
Rescue me from evil people, Lord!
Guard me from violent people
who plot evil things in their hearts,
who pick fights every single day!
They sharpen their tongues like a snake’s;
spider poison is on their lips.
Protect me from the power of the wicked, Lord!
Guard me from violent people
who plot to trip me up!
Arrogant people have laid a trap for me with ropes.
They’ve spread out a net alongside the road.
They’ve set snares for me.
I tell the Lord, “You are my God!
Listen to my request for mercy, Lord!”
My Lord God, my strong saving help—
you’ve protected my head on the day of battle.
Lord, don’t give the wicked what they want!
Don’t allow their plans to succeed,
or they’ll exalt themselves even more!
Let the heads of the people surrounding me
be covered with the trouble their own lips caused!
Let burning coals fall on them!
Let them fall into deep pits and never get out again!
Let no slanderer be safe in the land.
Let calamity hunt down violent people—and quickly!
I know that the Lord will take up the case of the poor
and will do what is right for the needy.
Yes, the righteous will give thanks to your name,
and those who do right will live in your presence.
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:
Protect me from the power of the wicked, Lord!
Psalm prayer
Glorious Savior,
rescue us from the subtle evils that are too strong for us,
from poisonous words and the spirit of war;
by your judgment overthrow the forces of violence,
that all the world may join to worship you
in thanksgiving and peace,
now and forever.
Psalm 141
Refrain:
Set a guard over my mouth, Lord.
I cry out to you, Lord: Come to me—quickly!
Listen to my voice when I cry out to you!
Let my prayer stand before you like incense;
let my uplifted hands be like the evening offering.
Set a guard over my mouth, Lord;
keep close watch over the door that is my lips.
Don’t let my heart turn aside to evil things
so that I don’t do wicked things with evildoers,
so I don’t taste their delicacies.
Instead, let the righteous discipline me;
let the faithful correct me!
Let my head never reject that kind of fine oil,
because my prayers are always against the deeds of the wicked.
Their leaders will fall from jagged cliffs,
but my words will be heard because they are pleasing.
Our bones have been scattered at the mouth of the grave,
just like when the ground is broken up and plowed.
But my eyes are on you, my Lord God.
I take refuge in you; don’t let me die!
Protect me from the trap they’ve set for me;
protect me from the snares of the evildoers.
Let the wicked fall into their own nets—all together!—
but let me make it through safely.
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:
Set a guard over my mouth, Lord.
Psalm prayer
Lord God, our protector and guide,
who made us knowing both good and evil,
help us to desire all that is good,
that the offering of our lives may be acceptable to you;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Old Testament reading
Proverbs 27:1-22
Don’t brag about tomorrow,
for you don’t know what a day will bring.
Let another person praise you, and not your own mouth;
a stranger, and not your own lips.
A stone is heavy and sand weighs much,
but the nuisance of fools is heavier than both.
Wrath is cruel and anger is a flood,
but who can withstand jealousy?
A public correction is better than hidden love.
Trustworthy are the bruises of a friend;
excessive are the kisses of an enemy.
Someone who is full refuses honey,
but anything bitter tastes sweet to a hungry person.
Like a bird wandering from its nest,
so is one who wanders from home.
Oil and incense make the heart glad,
and the sweetness of friends comes from their advice.
Don’t desert your friend or a friend of your family;
don’t go to your relative’s house when disaster strikes.
Better a neighbor nearby than a relative far away.
Be wise, my child, and make my heart glad,
so I can answer those who insult me.
Prudent people see evil and hide;
the simpleminded go right to it and get punished.
Take the garment of the person who secures a loan for a stranger;
take his pledge for a foreigner.
Greeting a neighbor with a loud voice early in the morning
will be viewed as a curse.
The constant dripping on a rainy day
and a contentious woman are alike;
anyone who can control her
can control the wind
or pick up oil in his hand.
As iron sharpens iron,
so friends sharpen each other’s faces.
Those who tend a fig tree will eat its fruit,
and those who look after their master will be honored.
As water reflects the face,
so the heart reflects one person to another.
The grave and the underworld are never satisfied;
and people’s eyes are never satisfied.
A crucible is for silver and a furnace for gold,
so are people in the presence of someone who praises them.
Even if you grind fools in a mortar,
even grinding them along with the grain,
their folly won’t be driven from them.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
Mark 9:2-13
Six days later Jesus took Peter, James, and John, and brought them to the top of a very high mountain where they were alone. He was transformed in front of them, and his clothes were amazingly bright, brighter than if they had been bleached white. Elijah and Moses appeared and were talking with Jesus. Peter reacted to all of this by saying to Jesus, “Rabbi, it’s good that we’re here. Let’s make three shrines—one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” He said this because he didn’t know how to respond, for the three of them were terrified.
Then a cloud overshadowed them, and a voice spoke from the cloud, “This is my Son, whom I dearly love. Listen to him!” Suddenly, looking around, they no longer saw anyone with them except Jesus.
As they were coming down the mountain, he ordered them not to tell anyone what they had seen until after the Human One had risen from the dead. So they kept it to themselves, wondering, “What’s this ‘rising from the dead’?” They asked Jesus, “Why do the legal experts say that Elijah must come first?”
He answered, “Elijah does come first to restore all things. Why was it written that the Human One would suffer many things and be rejected? In fact, I tell you that Elijah has come, but they did to him whatever they wanted, just as it was written about him.”
Silence may be kept.
Gospel canticle
The Magnificat (The Song of Mary)
Refrain:
You show mercy to everyone, from one generation to the next, who honors you as God.
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:
You show mercy to everyone, from one generation to the next, who honors you as God.
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 called your Church to bear witness
that you were in Christ reconciling the world to yourself:
help us to proclaim the good news of your love,
that all who hear it may be drawn to you;
through him who was lifted up on the cross,
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.