Thursday evening December 20
Friday evening
Wednesday evening
Preparation
Opening response
Favor us, Lord, and deliver us.
Lord, come quickly and help us.
Reveal among us the light of your presence
that we may behold your power and glory.
Prayer of thanksgiving
Blessed are you, Sovereign God,
creator of light and darkness,
to you be glory and praise forever.
As evening falls, you renew your promise
to reveal among us the light of your presence.
May your word be a lantern to our feet
and a light upon our path
that we may behold your coming among us.
Strengthen us in our stumbling weakness
and free our tongues to sing your praise.
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
Blest Be Our Everlasting Lord
Charles Wesley
Blest be our everlasting Lord,
Our Father, God, and King!
Thy sovereign goodness we record,
Thy glorious power we sing.
By thee the victory is given:
The majesty divine,
Wisdom and might, and earth and heaven,
And all therein are thine.
The kingdom, Lord, is thine alone,
Who dost thy right maintain,
And high on thine eternal throne,
Over men and angels reign.
Riches, as seemeth good to thee,
Thou dost, and honor give;
And kings their power and dignity
Out of thy hand receive.
Thou hast on us the grace bestowed,
Thy greatness to proclaim;
And therefore now thank we our God,
And praise thy glorious name.
Thy glorious name, thy nature’s powers,
Thou hast to man made known;
And all the Deity is ours,
Through thy incarnate Son.
Confession of sin
When we cry out to the Lord in our distress,
he will save us from our desperate circumstances.
God will bring us out of darkness
and out of the shadow of death.
Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
A time of silence and self-examination may be kept.
May the Father forgive us
by the death of his Son
and strengthen us
to live in the power of the Spirit
all our days.
Amen.
Let us thank the Lord for his faithful love,
and his wondrous works for all people.
Let us offer thanksgiving sacrifices
and declare what God has done in songs of joy.
cf Psalm 107
The Word of God
Psalm 4
Refrain:
I will lie down and fall asleep in peace.
Answer me when I cry out, my righteous God!
Set me free from my troubles!
Have mercy on me!
Listen to my prayer!
How long, you people,
will my reputation be insulted?
How long will you continue
to love what is worthless
and go after lies?
Know this: the Lord takes
personal care of the faithful.
The Lord will hear me
when I cry out to him.
So be afraid, and don’t sin!
Think hard about it in your bed
and weep over it!
Bring righteous offerings,
and trust the Lord!
Many people say,
“We can’t find goodness anywhere.
The light of your face has left us, Lord!”
But you have filled my heart with more joy
than when their wheat and wine are everywhere!
I will lie down and fall asleep in peace
because you alone, Lord, let me live in safety.
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 will lie down and fall asleep in peace.
Psalm prayer
Give us today, O God,
a glad heart and a clear conscience,
that when we come to this day’s end
we may rest in peace with Christ our Lord.
Psalm 9
Refrain:
The Lord rules forever and always!
I will thank you, Lord, with all my heart;
I will talk about all your wonderful acts.
I will celebrate and rejoice in you;
I will sing praises to your name, Most High.
When my enemies turn and retreat,
they fall down and die right in front of you
because you have established justice
for me and my claim,
because you rule from the throne,
establishing justice rightly.
You’ve denounced the nations,
destroyed the wicked.
You’ve erased their names for all time.
Every enemy is wiped out,
like something ruined forever.
You’ve torn down their cities—
even the memory of them is dead.
But the Lord rules forever!
He assumes his throne
for the sake of justice.
He will establish justice in the world rightly;
he will judge all people fairly.
The Lord is a safe place for the oppressed—
a safe place in difficult times.
Those who know your name trust you
because you have not abandoned
any who seek you, Lord.
Sing praises to the Lord, who lives in Zion!
Proclaim his mighty acts among all people!
Because the one who avenges bloodshed
remembers those who suffer;
the Lord hasn’t forgotten their cries for help.
Have mercy on me, Lord!
Just look how I suffer
because of those who hate me.
But you are the one who brings me back
from the very gates of death
so I can declare all your praises,
so I can rejoice in your salvation
in the gates of Daughter Zion.
The nations have fallen
into the hole they themselves made!
Their feet are caught
in the very net they themselves hid!
The Lord is famous for the justice he has done;
it’s his own doing that the wicked are trapped.
Let the wicked go straight to the grave,
the same for every nation that forgets God.
Because the poor won’t be forgotten forever,
the hope of those who suffer won’t be lost for all time.
Get up, Lord! Don’t let people prevail!
Let the nations be judged before you.
Strike them with fear, Lord.
Let the nations know they are only human.
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 rules forever and always!
Psalm prayer
Remember, Lord, all who cry to you
from death’s dark gates;
do not forget those whom the world forgets,
but raise your faithful ones to Zion’s gate,
with your all-conquering Son,
Jesus Christ our Lord.
Old Testament reading
Zephaniah 1:1-2:3
The Lord’s word that came to Zephaniah, Cushi’s son, Gedaliah’s grandson, Amariah’s great-grandson, and Hezekiah’s great-great-grandson in the days of Judah’s King Josiah, Amon’s son.
I will wipe out everything from the earth, says the Lord.
I will destroy humanity and the beasts;
I will destroy the birds in the sky and the fish in the sea.
I will make the wicked into a heap of ruins;
I will eliminate humanity from the earth, says the Lord.
I will stretch out my hand against Judah
and against all the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
I will eliminate what’s left of Baal from this place
and the names of the priests of foreign gods,
those bowing down to the forces of heaven on the rooftops,
those swearing by the Lord along with those swearing by Milcom,
those turning away from the Lord,
those who don’t seek the Lord and don’t pursue him.
Hush before the Lord God,
for the day of the Lord is near!
The Lord has established a sacrifice;
he has made holy those he has summoned.
On the day of the Lord’s sacrifice,
I will punish the princes, the king’s sons,
and all those wearing foreign clothes.
I will punish the one leaping on the threshold on that day,
those filling the house of their master with violence and deceit.
On that day—says the Lord—
an outcry will resound from the Fish Gate,
wailing from the second quarter,
a loud crash from the hills.
The ones who grind the grain will wail;
all the merchants will be silenced.
I will eliminate all those weighing out silver.
At that time, I will search Jerusalem with lamps;
I will punish the men growing fat on the sediment in their wine,
those saying to themselves, The Lord won’t do good or evil.
Their wealth will be looted and their houses destroyed.
They will rebuild houses, but not live in them;
they will plant vineyards, but not drink the wine.
The great day of the Lord is near;
it is near and coming very quickly.
The sound of the day of the Lord is bitter.
A warrior screams there.
That day is a day of fury,
a day of distress and anxiety,
a day of desolation and devastation,
a day of darkness and gloominess,
a day of clouds and deep darkness,
a day for blowing the trumpet and alarm against their invincible cities
and against their high towers.
I will make humanity suffer;
they will walk like the blind
because they sinned against the Lord.
Their blood will be poured out like dust
and their intestines like manure.
Moreover, their silver and their gold won’t be able to deliver them
on the day of the Lord’s fury.
His jealousy will devour the entire land with fire;
he will make an end,
a truly horrible one,
for all the inhabitants of the land.
Gather together and assemble yourselves, shameless nation,
before the decision is made—the day vanishes like chaff—
before the burning anger of the Lord comes against you,
before the day of the Lord’s anger comes against you.
Seek the Lord, all you humble of the land who practice his justice;
seek righteousness;
seek humility.
Maybe you will be hidden on the day of the Lord’s anger.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
Matthew 17:22-27
When the disciples came together in Galilee, Jesus said to them, “The Human One is about to be delivered over into human hands. They will kill him. But he will be raised on the third day.” And they were heartbroken.
When they came to Capernaum, the people who collected the half-shekel temple tax came to Peter and said, “Doesn’t your teacher pay the temple tax?”
“Yes,” he said.
But when they came into the house, Jesus spoke to Peter first.“What do you think, Simon? From whom do earthly kings collect taxes, from their children or from strangers?”
“From strangers,” he said.
Jesus said to him, “Then the children don’t have to pay. But just so we don’t offend them, go to the lake, throw out a fishing line and hook, and take the first fish you catch. When you open its mouth, you will find a shekel coin. Take it and pay the tax for both of us.”
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 church, that she may be ready for the coming of Christ
The leaders of the church
The nations, that they may be subject to the rule of God
Those who are working for justice in the world
The broken, that they may find God’s healing
Other intercessions and supplications may be offered as the Holy Spirit leads.
Response
In faith we pray
We pray to you, our God.
Silence may be kept.
Collect of the day
O Lord Jesus Christ,
who at your first coming sent your messenger
to prepare your way before you:
grant that the ministers and stewards of your mysteries
may likewise so prepare and make ready your way
by turning the hearts of the disobedient to the wisdom of the just,
that at your second coming to judge the world
we may be found an acceptable people in your sight;
for you are alive and reign with the Father
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever.
Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer
Awaiting his coming in glory, 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
May the Lord, when he comes, find us watching and waiting.
Amen.