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, to Thee My Soul I Lift

Charles Wesley

Father, to thee my soul I lift;
My soul on thee depends,
Convinced that every perfect gift
From thee alone descends.

Mercy and grace are thine alone,
And power and wisdom too;
Without the Spirit of thy Son
We nothing good can do.

Thou all our works in us hast wrought,
Our good is all divine;
The praise of every virtuous thought
And righteous word is thine.

From thee, through Jesus, we receive
The power on thee to call,
In whom we are, and move and live:
Our God is all in all.

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 24

𝙍: The LORD of Hosts—He is the King of Glory.

The earth is the LORD’s, and the fullness thereof,
the world and all who dwell therein.
For He has founded it upon the seas
and established it upon the waters. 𝙍

Who may ascend the hill of the LORD?
Who may stand in His holy place?
He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
who does not lift up his soul to an idol
or swear deceitfully.
He will receive blessing from the LORD
and vindication from the God of his salvation.
Such is the generation of those who seek Him,
who seek Your face, O God of Jacob. 𝙍

Lift up your heads, O gates!
Be lifted up, O ancient doors,
that the King of Glory may enter!
Who is this King of Glory?
The LORD strong and mighty,
the LORD mighty in battle.
Lift up your heads, O gates!
Be lifted up, O ancient doors,
that the King of Glory may enter!
Who is He, this King of Glory?
The LORD of Hosts—
He is the King of Glory.

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: The LORD of Hosts—He is the King of Glory.

Psalm prayer

O Lord of hosts,
purify our hearts
that the King of glory may come in,
your Son, Jesus our redeemer.

Psalm 25

𝙍: Remember, O LORD, Your compassion and loving devotion.

To You, O LORD, I lift up my soul;
in You, my God, I trust.
Do not let me be put to shame;
do not let my enemies exult over me.
Surely none who wait for You will be put to shame;
but those who are faithless without cause will be disgraced.

Show me Your ways, O LORD;
teach me Your paths.
Guide me in Your truth and teach me,
for You are the God of my salvation;
all day long I wait for You.
Remember, O LORD, Your compassion and loving devotion,
for they are from age to age. 𝙍

Remember not the sins of my youth,
nor my rebellious acts;
remember me according to Your loving devotion,
because of Your goodness, O LORD.

Good and upright is the LORD;
therefore He shows sinners the way.
He guides the humble in what is right
and teaches them His way.

All the LORD’s ways are loving and faithful
to those who keep His covenant and His decrees. 𝙍

For the sake of Your name, O LORD,
forgive my iniquity, for it is great.
Who is the man who fears the LORD?
He will instruct him in the path chosen for him.
His soul will dwell in prosperity,
and his descendants will inherit the land.
The LORD confides in those who fear Him,
and reveals His covenant to them.
My eyes are always on the LORD,
for He will free my feet from the mesh. 𝙍

Turn to me and be gracious,
for I am lonely and afflicted.
The troubles of my heart increase;
free me from my distress.
Consider my affliction and trouble,
and take away all my sins.
Consider my enemies, for they are many,
and they hate me with vicious hatred.

Guard my soul and deliver me;
let me not be put to shame,
for I take refuge in You.
May integrity and uprightness preserve me,
because I wait for You.

Redeem Israel, O God,
from all its distress.

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: Remember, O LORD, Your compassion and loving devotion.

Psalm prayer

Free us, God of mercy,
from all that keeps us from you;
relieve the misery of the anxious and the ashamed
and fill us with the hope of peace;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Old Testament reading

1 Chronicles 22:2-19

So David gave orders to gather the foreigners in the land of Israel, from whom he appointed stonecutters to prepare finished stones for building the house of God.

David provided a large quantity of iron to make the nails for the doors of the gateways and for the fittings, together with more bronze than could be weighed and more cedar logs than could be counted; for the Sidonians and Tyrians had brought a large quantity of cedar logs to David.

And David said, “My son Solomon is young and inexperienced, and the house to be built for the LORD must be exceedingly magnificent—famous and glorious throughout all lands. Therefore I must make preparations for it.” So David made lavish preparations before his death.

Then David called for his son Solomon and instructed him to build a house for the LORD, the God of Israel.

“My son,” said David to Solomon, “it was in my heart to build a house for the Name of the LORD my God, but this word of the LORD came to me: ‘You have shed much blood and waged great wars. You are not to build a house for My Name because you have shed so much blood on the ground before Me. But a son will be born to you who will be a man of rest. I will give him rest from all his enemies on every side; for his name will be Solomon, and I will grant to Israel peace and quiet during his reign. He is the one who will build a house for My Name. He will be My son, and I will be his Father. And I will establish the throne of his kingdom over Israel forever.’

Now, my son, may the LORD be with you, and may you succeed in building the house of the LORD your God, as He said you would. Above all, may the LORD give you insight and understanding when He puts you in command over Israel, so that you may keep the Law of the LORD your God. Then you will succeed, if you carefully follow the statutes and ordinances that the LORD commanded Moses for Israel. Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged.

Now behold, I have taken great pains to provide for the house of the LORD—100,000 talents of gold, 1,000,000 talents of silver, and bronze and iron too great to be weighed. I have also provided timber and stone, and you may add to them.

You also have many workers: stonecutters, masons, carpenters, and men skilled in every kind of work— in gold and silver, bronze and iron—craftsmen beyond number. Now begin the work, and may the LORD be with you.”

Then David ordered all the leaders of Israel to help his son Solomon: “Is not the LORD your God with you, and has He not granted you rest on every side? For He has given the inhabitants of the land into my hand, and the land has been subdued before the LORD and His people. Now set your heart and soul to seek the LORD your God. Get started building the sanctuary of the LORD God, so that you may bring the ark of the covenant of the LORD and the holy articles of God into the temple that will be built for the Name of the LORD.”

Silence may be kept.

New Testament reading

Mark 10:46-52

And as Jesus and His disciples were leaving Jericho with a large crowd, a blind beggar named Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, was sitting beside the road. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

Many people admonished him to be silent, but he cried out all the louder, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.”

So they called the blind man. “Take courage!” they said. “Get up! He is calling for you.”

Throwing off his cloak, Bartimaeus jumped up and came to Jesus.

“What do you want Me to do for you?” Jesus asked.

“Rabboni,” said the blind man, “let me see again.”

“Go,” said Jesus, “your faith has healed you.” And immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road.

Silence may be kept.

The Magnificat (The Song of Mary)

Luke 1:46-55

𝙍: God proves his love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

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: God proves his love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

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:

Our homes, families, friends and all whom we love
Those whose time is spent caring for others
Those who are close to death
Those who have lost hope
The worship of the church

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

Response

Lord, hear your people
and answer our prayers.

Silence may be kept.

Collect of the day

God, who in generous mercy sent the Holy Spirit
upon your church in the burning fire of your love:
grant that your people may be fervent
in the fellowship of the gospel
that, always abiding in you,
they may be found steadfast in faith and active in service;
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.