Wednesday evening October 24

Thursday evening
Tuesday evening

Preparation

Opening response

Favor us, Lord, and deliver us.

Lord, come quickly and help us.

Prayer of thanksgiving

Blessed are you, Lord God, creator of day and night:

to you be praise and glory forever.

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.

That this evening may be holy, good and peaceful,

let us pray with one heart and mind.

Silence is kept.

As our evening prayer rises before you, O God,

so may your mercy come down upon us

to cleanse our hearts

and set us free to sing your praise

now and forever.

Amen.

Hymn

God of All Power, and Truth, and Grace

Charles Wesley

God of all power, and truth, and grace,

Which shall from age to age endure,

Whose word, when heaven and earth shall pass,

Remains and stands for ever sure.

That I thy mercy may proclaim,

That all mankind thy truth may see,

Hallow thy great and glorious name,

And perfect holiness in me.

Thy sanctifying Spirit pour,

To quench my thirst, and make me clean;

Now, Father, let the gracious shower

Descend, and make me pure from sin.

Purge me from every sinful blot;

My idols all be cast aside;

Cleanse me from every sinful thought,

From all the filth of self and pride.

Give me a new, a perfect heart,

From doubt, and fear, and sorrow free;

The mind which was in Christ impart,

And let my spirit cleave to thee.

Confession of sin

Let us admit to God the sin which always confronts us.

A time of silence and self-examination may be kept.

Almighty God,

patient and of great goodness:

I confess to you,

I confess with my whole heart

my neglect and forgetfulness of your commandments,

my wrong doing, thinking, and speaking;

the hurts I have done to others,

and the good I have left undone.

O God, forgive me, for I have sinned against you;

and raise me to newness of life;

through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen.

May the God of love and power

forgive us and free us from our sins,

heal and strengthen us by his Spirit,

and raise us to new life in Christ our Lord.

Amen.

The Word of God

Psalm 11

Refrain:

The Lord! His throne is in heaven.

I have taken refuge in the Lord.

So how can you say to me,

“Flee to the hills like a bird

because the wicked

have already bent their bows;

they’ve already strung their arrows;

they are ready to secretly shoot

those whose heart is right”?

When the very bottom of things falls out,

what can a righteous person possibly accomplish?

But the Lord is in his holy temple.

The Lord! His throne is in heaven.

His eyes see—

his vision examines all of humanity.

The Lord examines

both the righteous and the wicked;

his very being hates anyone who loves violence.

God will rain fiery coals and sulfur on the wicked;

their cups will be filled

with nothing but a scorching hot wind

because the Lord is righteous!

He loves righteous deeds.

Those whose heart is right will see God’s face.

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:

The Lord! His throne is in heaven.

Psalm prayer

God of heaven,

when the foundations are shaken

and there is no escape,

test us, but not to destruction,

look on the face of your anointed

and heal us in Jesus Christ your Son.

Psalm 12

Refrain:

You, Lord, will keep us, protecting us from this generation forever.

Help, Lord, because the godly are all gone;

the faithful have completely disappeared

from the human race!

Everyone tells lies to everyone else;

they talk with slick speech and divided hearts.

Let the Lord cut off all slick-talking lips

and every tongue that brags and brags,

that says, “We’re unbeatable with our tongues!

Who could get the best of us with lips like ours?”

But the Lord says,

“Because the poor are oppressed,

because of the groans of the needy,

I’m now standing up.

I will provide the help they are gasping for.”

The Lord’s promises are pure,

like silver that’s been refined in an oven,

purified seven times over!

You, Lord, will keep us,

protecting us from this generation forever.

The wicked roam all over the place,

while depravity is praised by human beings.

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, Lord, will keep us, protecting us from this generation forever.

Psalm prayer

Lord, when faith is faint

and speech veils our intentions,

restore us by your word of power and purity,

both now and forever.

Psalm 13

Refrain:

I love the Lord because he hears my requests for mercy.

How long will you forget me, Lord? Forever?

How long will you hide your face from me?

How long will I be left to my own wits,

agony filling my heart? Daily?

How long will my enemy keep defeating me?

Look at me!

Answer me, Lord my God!

Restore sight to my eyes!

Otherwise, I’ll sleep the sleep of death,

and my enemy will say, “I won!”

My foes will rejoice over my downfall.

But I have trusted in your faithful love.

My heart will rejoice in your salvation.

Yes, I will sing to the Lord

because he has been good to me.

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 love the Lord because he hears my requests for mercy.

Psalm prayer

Jesus Christ, Son of God,

who passed through the dark sleep of death,

remember those who cry to you

in shame and silence and defeat

and raise them to your risen life,

for you are alive and reign forever.

Old Testament reading
Ecclesiastes 3:1-15

There’s a season for everything

and a time for every matter under the heavens:

a time for giving birth and a time for dying,

a time for planting and a time for uprooting what was planted,

a time for killing and a time for healing,

a time for tearing down and a time for building up,

a time for crying and a time for laughing,

a time for mourning and a time for dancing,

a time for throwing stones and a time for gathering stones,

a time for embracing and a time for avoiding embraces,

a time for searching and a time for losing,

a time for keeping and a time for throwing away,

a time for tearing and a time for repairing,

a time for keeping silent and a time for speaking,

a time for loving and a time for hating,

a time for war and a time for peace.

What do workers gain from all their hard work? I have observed the task that God has given human beings. God has made everything fitting in its time, but has also placed eternity in their hearts, without enabling them to discover what God has done from beginning to end.

I know that there’s nothing better for them but to enjoy themselves and do what’s good while they live. Moreover, this is the gift of God: that all people should eat, drink, and enjoy the results of their hard work. I know that whatever God does will last forever; it’s impossible to add to it or take away from it. God has done this so that people are reverent before him. Whatever happens has already happened, and whatever will happen has already happened before. And God looks after what is driven away.

Silence may be kept.

New Testament reading
John 17:20-26

“I’m not praying only for them but also for those who believe in me because of their word. I pray they will be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. I pray that they also will be in us, so that the world will believe that you sent me. I’ve given them the glory that you gave me so that they can be one just as we are one. I’m in them and you are in me so that they will be made perfectly one. Then the world will know that you sent me and that you have loved them just as you loved me.

“Father, I want those you gave me to be with me where I am. Then they can see my glory, which you gave me because you loved me before the creation of the world.

“Righteous Father, even the world didn’t know you, but I’ve known you, and these believers know that you sent me. I’ve made your name known to them and will continue to make it known so that your love for me will be in them, and I myself will be in them.”

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

Prayers may include the following concerns:

The social services

All who work in the criminal justice system

Victims and perpetrators of crime

The work of aid agencies throughout the world

Those living in poverty or under oppression

Other intercessions and supplications may be offered as the Holy Spirit leads.

Response

God of grace,

hear our prayer.

Silence may be kept.

Collect of the day

Grant, we beseech you, merciful Lord,

to your faithful people pardon and peace,

that they may be cleansed from all their sins

and serve you with a quiet mind;

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.