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

Father, God We Glorify

Charles Wesley

Father, God, we glorify
Thy love to Adam’s seed;
Love that gave thy Son to die,
And raised him from the dead:
Him, for our offenses slain,
That we all might pardon find,
Thou hast brought to life again,
The Savior of mankind.

By thy own right hand of power
Thou hast exalted him,
Sent the mighty Conqueror
Thy people to redeem:
King of saints, and Prince of Peace,
Him thou hast for sinners given,
Sinners from their sins to bless,
And lift them up to heaven.

Father, God, to us impart
The gift unspeakable;
Now in every waiting heart
Thy glorious Son reveal:
Quickened with our living Lord,
Let us in thy Spirit rise,
Rise to all thy life restored,
And bless thee in the skies.

Confession of sin

Let us confess our sins to God.

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

My God, for love of you
I desire to hate and forsake all sins
by which I have ever displeased you;
and I resolve by the help of your grace
to commit them no more;
and to avoid all opportunities of sin.
Help me to do this,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

The Lord enrich us with his grace,
and nourish us with his blessing;
the Lord defend us in trouble and keep us from all evil;
the Lord accept our prayers,
and absolve us from our offenses,
for the sake of Jesus Christ, our Savior.
Amen.

Psalm 4

𝙍: I will lie down and sleep in peace.

Answer me when I call,
O God of my righteousness!
You have relieved my distress;
show me grace and hear my prayer.

How long, O men, will my honor be maligned?
How long will you love vanity and seek after lies ?
Know that the LORD has set apart the godly for Himself;
the LORD hears when I call to Him.

Be angry, yet do not sin;
on your bed, search your heart and be still. 𝙍

Offer the sacrifices of the righteous
and trust in the LORD.

Many ask, “Who can show us the good?”
Shine the light of Your face upon us, O LORD.
You have filled my heart with more joy
than when grain and new wine abound.
I will lie down and sleep in peace,
for You alone, O LORD, make me dwell 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.

𝙍: I will lie down and sleep 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 7

𝙍: Vindicate me, O LORD, according to my righteousness and integrity.

O LORD my God, I take refuge in You;
save me and deliver me from all my pursuers,
or they will shred my soul like a lion
and tear me to pieces with no one to rescue me.

O LORD my God, if I have done this,
if injustice is on my hands,
if I have rewarded my ally with evil,
if I have plundered my foe without cause,
then may my enemy pursue me and overtake me;
may he trample me to the ground
and leave my honor in the dust. 𝙍

Arise, O LORD, in Your anger;
rise up against the fury of my enemies.
Awake, my God, and ordain judgment.
Let the assembled peoples gather around You;
take Your seat over them on high.
The LORD judges the peoples;
vindicate me, O LORD,
according to my righteousness and integrity.
Put an end to the evil of the wicked,
but establish the righteous,
O righteous God who searches hearts and minds. 𝙍

My shield is with God,
who saves the upright in heart.
God is a righteous judge
and a God who feels indignation each day.
If one does not repent,
God will sharpen His sword;
He has bent and strung His bow.
He has prepared His deadly weapons;
He ordains His arrows with fire.

Behold, the wicked man travails with evil;
he conceives trouble and births falsehood.
He has dug a hole and hollowed it out;
he has fallen into a pit of his own making.
His trouble recoils on himself,
and his violence falls on his own head.

I will thank the LORD for His righteousness
and sing praise to the name of the LORD Most High.

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: Vindicate me, O LORD, according to my righteousness and integrity.

Psalm prayer

Lord, your justice turns evil on itself:
move us to examine our hearts
and repent of all duplicity;
for the sake of Jesus Christ,
our Judge and righteous Savior.

Old Testament reading

1 Chronicles 10:1-11:9

Now the Philistines fought against Israel, and the men of Israel fled before them, and many fell slain on Mount Gilboa.

The Philistines followed hard after Saul and his sons, and they killed Saul’s sons Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malchishua. When the battle intensified against Saul, the archers overtook him and wounded him.

Then Saul said to his armor-bearer, “Draw your sword and run it through me, or these uncircumcised men will come and torture me!”

But his armor-bearer was terrified and refused to do it. So Saul took his own sword and fell on it.

When his armor-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he too fell on his own sword and died. So Saul died together with his three sons and all his house.

When all the Israelites in the valley saw that the army had fled and that Saul and his sons had died, they abandoned their cities and ran away. So the Philistines came and occupied their cities.

The next day, when the Philistines came to strip the dead, they found Saul and his sons fallen on Mount Gilboa. They stripped Saul, cut off his head, took his armor, and sent messengers throughout the land of the Philistines to proclaim the news in the temple of their idols and among their people. They put his armor in the temple of their gods and hung his head in the temple of Dagon.

When the people of Jabesh-gilead heard about everything the Philistines had done to Saul, all their men of valor set out and retrieved the bodies of Saul and his sons and brought them to Jabesh. And they buried their bones under the oak in Jabesh and fasted seven days.

So Saul died for his unfaithfulness to the LORD, because he did not keep the word of the LORD and even consulted a medium for guidance, and he failed to inquire of the LORD. So the LORD put him to death and turned the kingdom over to David son of Jesse.

Then all Israel came together to David at Hebron and said, “Here we are, your own flesh and blood. Even in times past, while Saul was king, you were the one who led Israel out and brought them back. And the LORD your God said, ‘You will shepherd My people Israel, and you will be ruler over them.’ ”

So all the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron, where David made a covenant with them before the LORD. And they anointed him king over Israel, according to the word of the LORD through Samuel.

Then David and all the Israelites marched to Jerusalem (that is, Jebus), where the Jebusites inhabited the land.

The people of Jebus said to David, “You will never get in here.”

Nevertheless, David captured the fortress of Zion (that is, the City of David).

Now David had said, “Whoever is the first to strike down a Jebusite will become chief commander.”

And Joab son of Zeruiah went up first, and he became the chief.

So David took up residence in the fortress; that is why it was called the City of David. He built up the city around it, from the supporting terraces to the surrounding wall, while Joab restored the rest of the city.

And David became greater and greater, for the LORD of Hosts was with him.

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 media and the arts
Farming and fishing
Commerce and industry
Those whose work is unfulfilling, stressful or fraught with danger
All who are unemployed

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

Response

Father, by your Spirit
Bring in your kingdom.

Silence may be kept.

Collect of the day

Almighty God,
whose only Son has opened for us
a new and living way into your presence:
give us pure hearts and steadfast wills
to worship you in spirit and in truth;
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.