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 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

Lord, We Believe and Wait the Hour

Charles Wesley

Lord, we believe and wait the hour,
Which all thy great salvation brings;
The Spirit of love, and health, and power
Shall come and make us priests and kings,
Thou wilt perform thy faithful word:
“The servant shall be as his Lord.”

The promise stands forever sure,
And we shall in thine image shine,
Partakers of a nature pure,
Holy, angelical, divine;
In Spirit joined to thee, the Son,
And thou art with thy Father one.

Faithful and true we now receive,
The promise ratified by thee;
To thee the when and how we leave,
In time and in eternity;
We only hang upon thy word,
“The servant shall be as his Lord.”

Confession of sin

The LORD is merciful and gracious,
slow to anger, and abundant in loving kindness.
He has not dealt with us according to our sins,
nor repaid us for our iniquities.
For as the heavens are high above the earth,
so great is his loving kindness towards those who fear him.

Silence is kept for reflection.

Holy God,
Holy and strong,
Holy and immortal,
have mercy upon us.

As far as the east is from the west,
so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
Like a father has compassion on his children,
so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him.
Praise the LORD, my soul!
All that is within me, praise his holy name!
Praise the LORD, my soul,
and don’t forget all his benefits.

Psalm 59

𝙍: You, O God, are my fortress.

Deliver me from my enemies, O my God;
protect me from those who rise against me.
Deliver me from workers of iniquity,
and save me from men of bloodshed.
See how they lie in wait for me.
Fierce men conspire against me
for no transgression or sin of my own, O LORD.
For no fault of my own,
they move swiftly to attack me.
Arise to help me, and take notice.
O LORD God of Hosts, the God of Israel,
rouse Yourself to punish all the nations;
show no mercy to the wicked traitors.

They return in the evening, snarling like dogs
and prowling around the city.
See what they spew from their mouths—
sharp words from their lips:
“For who can hear us?”
But You, O LORD, laugh at them;
You scoff at all the nations.

I will keep watch for You, O my strength,
because You, O God, are my fortress.
My God of loving devotion will come to meet me;
God will let me stare down my foes. 𝙍

Do not kill them,
or my people will forget.
Scatter them by Your power,
and bring them down,
O Lord, our shield.
By the sins of their mouths
and the words of their lips,
let them be trapped in their pride,
in the curses and lies they utter.
Consume them in wrath;
consume them till they are no more,
so it may be known to the ends of the earth
that God rules over Jacob. 𝙍

They return in the evening,
snarling like dogs
and prowling around the city.
They scavenge for food,
and growl if they are not satisfied.

But I will sing of Your strength
and proclaim Your loving devotion in the morning.
For You are my fortress,
my refuge in times of trouble.
To You, O my strength, I sing praises,
for You, O God, are my fortress,
my God of loving devotion.

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.

𝙍: You, O God, are my fortress.

Psalm prayer

Strong and merciful God,
stand with the oppressed
against the triumph of evil
and the complacency of your people,
and establish in Jesus Christ
your new order of generosity and joy,
for he is alive and reigns now and forever.

Psalm 60

𝙍: I will sing of the loving devotion of the LORD forever.

You have rejected us, O God;
You have broken us;
You have been angry;
restore us!
You have shaken the land
and torn it open.
Heal its fractures,
for it is quaking.
You have shown Your people hardship;
we are staggered from the wine You made us drink.

You have raised a banner for those who fear You,
that they may flee the bow.

Respond and save us with Your right hand,
that Your beloved may be delivered. 𝙍

God has spoken from His sanctuary:
“I will triumph!
I will parcel out Shechem
and apportion the Valley of Succoth.
Gilead is Mine, and Manasseh is Mine;
Ephraim is My helmet, Judah is My scepter.
Moab is My washbasin;
upon Edom I toss My sandal;
over Philistia I shout in triumph.” 𝙍

Who will bring me to the fortified city?
Who will lead me to Edom?
Have You not rejected us, O God?
Will You no longer march out, O God, with our armies?
Give us aid against the enemy,
for the help of man is worthless.
With God we will perform with valor,
and He will trample our enemies.

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.

𝙍: I will sing of the loving devotion of the LORD forever.

Psalm prayer

Risen Christ,
you claim your own among the nations;
mend what is broken in us, loving Savior;
do not forsake us when we fail,
but in your service grant us daring and love;
for your name’s sake.

Psalm 67

May God be gracious to us and bless us,
and cause His face to shine upon us,
that Your ways may be known on earth,
Your salvation among all nations.

Let the peoples praise You, O God;
let all the peoples praise You.
Let the nations be glad and sing for joy,
for You judge the peoples justly
and lead the nations of the earth.

Let the peoples praise You, O God;
let all the peoples praise You.

The earth has yielded its harvest;
God, our God, blesses us.
God blesses us,
that all the ends of the earth shall fear Him.

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.

Psalm prayer

In the face of Jesus Christ
your light and glory have blazed forth,
O God of all the nations;
with all your people,
may we make known your grace
and walk in the ways of peace;
for your name’s sake.

Old Testament reading

Ezekiel 39:21-29

I will display My glory among the nations, and all the nations will see the judgment that I execute and the hand that I lay upon them. From that day forward the house of Israel will know that I am the LORD their God. And the nations will know that the house of Israel went into exile for their iniquity, because they were unfaithful to Me. So I hid My face from them and delivered them into the hands of their enemies, so that they all fell by the sword. I dealt with them according to their uncleanness and transgressions, and I hid My face from them.

Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: Now I will restore Jacob from captivity and will have compassion on the whole house of Israel, and I will be jealous for My holy name. They will forget their disgrace and all the treachery they committed against Me, when they dwell securely in their land, with no one to frighten them. When I bring them back from the peoples and gather them out of the lands of their enemies, I will show My holiness in them in the sight of many nations. Then they will know that I am the LORD their God, when I regather them to their own land, not leaving any of them behind after their exile among the nations. And I will no longer hide My face from them, for I will pour out My Spirit on the house of Israel, declares the Lord GOD.”

Silence may be kept.

New Testament reading

Mark 1:21-28

Then Jesus and His companions went to Capernaum, and right away Jesus entered the synagogue on the Sabbath and began to teach. The people were astonished at His teaching, because He taught as one who had authority, and not as the scribes.

Suddenly a man with an unclean spirit cried out in the synagogue: “What do You want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!”

But Jesus rebuked the spirit. “Be silent!” He said. “Come out of him!” At this, the unclean spirit threw the man into convulsions and came out with a loud shriek.

All the people were amazed and began to ask one another, “What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him!” And the news about Jesus spread quickly through the whole region of Galilee.

Silence may be kept.

The Magnificat (The Song of Mary)

Luke 1:46-55

𝙍: My spirit rejoices in you, O God; my soul proclaims your greatness.

My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior!
For He has looked with favor on the humble state of His servant.
From now on all generations will call me blessed.
For the Mighty One has done great things for me.
Holy is His name.
His mercy extends to those who fear Him,
from generation to generation.
He has performed mighty deeds with His arm;
He has scattered those who are proud
in the thoughts of their hearts.
He has brought down rulers from their thrones,
but has exalted the humble.
He has filled the hungry with good things,
but has sent the rich away empty.
He has helped His servant Israel,
remembering to be merciful,
as He promised to our fathers,
to Abraham and his descendants forever.

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.

𝙍: My spirit rejoices in you, O God; my soul proclaims your greatness.

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.
He was conceived by the Holy Spirit
and born of the Virgin Mary.
He 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,
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He 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.

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

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, 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.
For thine is the kingdom,
and the power, and the glory,
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.