Shane Raynor 3/18/26 Shane Raynor 3/18/26

Wed. evening Mar. 18

Opening response

Make haste, O God, to deliver me!
Make haste to help me, O LORD!

Hear my voice according to your lovingkindness.
O LORD, give me life according to your judgment.

Prayer of thanksgiving

Blessed are you, Lord God of our salvation, to you be glory and praise forever. In the darkness of our sin you have shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. Open our eyes to acknowledge your presence, that freed from the misery of sin and shame we may grow into your likeness from glory to glory.

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

I Must Tell Jesus

Words and Music: Elisha A. Hoffman (1839-1929)
Our Great Redeemer’s Praise (#383)

I must tell Jesus all of my trials;
I cannot bear these burdens alone;
In my distress He kindly will help me;
He ever loves and cares for His own.

Refrain:
I must tell Jesus!
I must tell Jesus!
I cannot bear my burdens alone;
I must tell Jesus!
I must tell Jesus!
Jesus can help me, Jesus alone.

I must tell Jesus all of my troubles;
He is a kind, compassionate friend;
If I but ask Him, He will deliver,
Make of my troubles quickly an end. [Refrain]

Tempted and tried, I need a great Savior,
One who can help my burdens to bear;
I must tell Jesus, I must tell Jesus;
He all my cares and sorrows will share. [Refrain]

O how the world to evil allures me!
O how my heart is tempted to sin!
I must tell Jesus, and He will help me
Over the world the vict'ry to win. [Refrain]

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.

Psalm 52

𝙍: I trust in the mercy of God forever and ever.

Why do you boast of evil, O mighty man?
The goodness of God endures continually.
Your tongue devises destruction,
like a sharp razor, you worker of deceit.
You love evil more than good,
and lying rather than speaking what is right.
You love all devouring words,
O you deceitful tongue.

But God will break you down forever;
He will snatch you away and pluck you from your home,
and uproot you from the land of the living.
The righteous will see and fear,
and will laugh at him, saying,
“Behold, the man
who did not make God his refuge,
but trusted in the abundance of his riches,
and sought refuge in his wickedness.”

But I am like a green olive tree
in the house of God;
I trust in the mercy of God
forever and ever.
I will give You thanks forever for what You have done.
In the presence of Your saints I will wait on Your name,
for it is good.

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 trust in the mercy of God forever and ever.

Psalm prayer

Faithful and steadfast God, nourish your people in this wicked world, and, through prayer and the Scriptures, give us our daily bread; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Psalm 91

𝙍: Keep me as the apple of Your eye.

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.”

Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler
and from the deadly pestilence.
He shall cover you with His pinions,
and under His wings shall you find refuge;
His faithfulness shall be your shield and buckler.
You shall not be afraid of the terror by night,
nor of the arrow that flies by day;
nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness,
nor of the destruction that strikes at noonday.
A thousand may fall at your side,
and ten thousand at your right hand,
but it will not come near you.
Only with your eyes shall you behold
and see the recompense of the wicked.

𝙍: Keep me as the apple of Your eye.

Because you have made the LORD, who is my refuge,
even the Most High, your dwelling,
no evil will befall you,
nor will any plague come near your tent;
for He will give His angels charge over you
to guard you in all your ways.
They will bear you up in their hands,
lest you strike your foot against a stone.
You will tread upon the lion and the adder;
the young lion and the serpent will you trample underfoot.

𝙍: Keep me as the apple of Your eye.

“Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore will I deliver him;
I will set him on high, because he has known My name.
He will call upon Me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble;
I will deliver him and honor him.
With long life will I satisfy him
and show him My salvation.”

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: Keep me as the apple of Your eye.

Psalm prayer

Keep us, good Lord, under the shadow of your mercy and, as you have bound us to yourself in love, leave us not who call upon your name, but grant us your salvation, made known in the cross of Jesus Christ our Lord.

Old Testament reading

Jeremiah 18:13-23

Therefore thus says the LORD:

Ask now among the nations,
who has heard such things?
The virgin of Israel
has done a very horrible thing.
Shall a man leave the snow of Lebanon,
which comes from the rock of the field?
Shall the cold flowing water that comes from another place
be forsaken?
Because My people have forgotten Me,
they have burned incense to vain gods
and they have stumbled in their ways
from the ancient paths,
to walk in bypaths,
not on a highway,
to make their land desolate,
and a perpetual hissing;
everyone who passes by shall be astonished
and shake his head.
I will scatter them before the enemy
as with an east wind;
I will show them the back and not the face
in the day of their calamity.

Then they said, “Come and let us devise plans against Jeremiah. For the law will not be lost from the priest, nor counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophet. Come and let us strike him with the tongue, and let us not give heed to any of his words.”

Give heed to me, O LORD,
and listen to the voice of those who contend with me.
Shall evil be recompensed for good?
For they have dug a pit for my soul.
Remember that I stood before You
to speak good for them,
and to turn away Your wrath from them.
Therefore, deliver up their children to the famine
and pour out their blood by the power of the sword;
and let their wives be bereaved of their children and become widows
and let their men be put to death;
let their young men be slain by the sword in battle.
Let a cry be heard from their houses,
when You bring a troop suddenly upon them;
for they have dug a pit to take me
and hidden snares for my feet.
Yet, LORD, You know
all their counsel against me to slay me.
Do not forgive their iniquity
nor blot out their sin from Your sight;
but let them be overthrown before You;
deal thus with them in the time of Your anger.

Silence may be kept.

New Testament reading

John 10:11-21

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. But he who is a hired hand, and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming, and leaves the sheep, and runs away. So the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them. The hired hand runs away because he is a hired hand, and does not care about the sheep.

“I am the good shepherd. I know My sheep and am known by My own. Even as the Father knows Me, so I know the Father. And I lay down My life for the sheep. I have other sheep who are not of this fold. I must also bring them, and they will hear My voice. There will be one flock and one shepherd. Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it up again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it up again. I received this command from My Father.”

Therefore there was a division again among the Jews because of these sayings. Many of them said, “He has a demon and is insane. Why do you listen to Him?”

Others said, “These are not the words of one who has a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”

Silence may be kept.

The Magnificat (The Song of Mary)

Luke 1:46-55

My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.
For He has regarded
the low estate of His servant.
For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed.
For He who is mighty has done great things for me,
and holy is His name.
His mercy is on those who fear Him
from generation to generation.
He has shown strength with His arm;
He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
He has pulled down the mighty from their thrones
and exalted those of low degree.
He has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich He has sent away empty.
He has helped His servant Israel,
in remembrance of His mercy,
as He spoke to our fathers,
to Abraham and to 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.

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:

Those preparing for baptism and confirmation
Those serving through leadership
Those looking for forgiveness
Those misled by the false gods of this present age
All who are hungry

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

Merciful Lord, absolve your people from their offenses, that through your bountiful goodness we may all be delivered from the chains of those sins which by our frailty we have committed; grant this, heavenly Father, for Jesus Christ's sake, our blessed Lord and Savior, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Amen.

The Lord’s Prayer

Trusting in the compassion of God, 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

May God our Redeemer show us compassion and love.
Amen.

Shane Raynor 3/17/26 Shane Raynor 3/17/26

Tue. evening Mar. 17

Opening response

Make haste, O God, to deliver me!
Make haste to help me, O LORD!

Hear my voice according to your lovingkindness.
O LORD, give me life according to your judgment.

Prayer of thanksgiving

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

O For a Heart to Praise My God

Words: Charles Wesley (1742)
Music: Thomas Haweis (1792)
Our Great Redeemer’s Praise (#314)

O for a heart to praise my God,
a heart from sin set free,
a heart that always feels Thy blood
so freely shed for me.

A heart resigned, submissive, meek,
my great Redeemer's throne,
where only Christ is heard to speak,
where Jesus reigns alone.

A humble, lowly, contrite heart,
believing, true, and clean,
which neither life nor death can part
from Christ who dwells within.

A heart in ev'ry thought renewed
and full of love divine,
perfect and right and pure and good,
a copy, Lord, of Thine.

Thy nature, gracious Lord, impart;
come quickly from above;
write Thy new name upon my heart,
Thy new best name of Love.

Confession of Sin

Come, Holy Spirit of God,
and search our hearts with the light of Christ.

Our Lord Jesus Christ said:

“The first of all the commandments is, ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”

Amen. Lord, have mercy.

After a period of reflection

Come, let us return to the Lord and say:

Lord our God, in our sin, we have avoided your call. Our faithfulness is like a morning cloud, and like the early dew, it goes away. Have mercy on us; deliver us from judgment; bind up our wounds and revive us; in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

cf Hosea 6

May Almighty God, who sent his Son into the world to save sinners, bring us his pardon and peace, now and forever.
Amen.

Psalm 80

Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel,
You who lead Joseph like a flock;
You who are enthroned between the cherubim, shine forth!
Before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh,
stir up Your strength,
and come and save us!

Restore us, O God,
and cause Your face to shine,
and we shall be saved!

O LORD God of Hosts,
how long will You be angry
with the prayers of Your people?
You have fed them with the bread of tears,
and given them tears to drink in great measure.
You have made us a source of contention to our neighbors,
and our enemies laugh among themselves.

Restore us, O God of Hosts,
and cause Your face to shine,
and we shall be saved.

You have brought a vine out of Egypt;
You have cast out the nations and planted it.
You cleared the ground for it;
it took deep root and filled the land.
The mountains were covered with its shadow
and the mighty cedars with its branches.
It sent out its branches to the sea
and its shoots to the Euphrates River.

Why have You broken down its walls,
so that all those who pass by the way pluck its fruit?
The boar from the woods ravages it,
and the insects of the field devour it.
Return, we beseech You, O God of Hosts;
look down from heaven and see;
have regard for this vine,
the shoot that Your right hand planted,

and for the son whom You made strong for Yourself.

It is burned with fire, it is cut down;
they perish at the rebuke of Your countenance.
Let Your hand be upon the man of Your right hand,
the son of man whom You made strong for Yourself.
Then we will not turn back from You;
give us life, and we will call upon Your name.

Restore us, O LORD God of Hosts;
cause Your face to shine,
and we shall be saved!

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

Faithful shepherd of your people, as we look for the light of your countenance, restore in us the image of your glory and graft us into the risen life of your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Psalm 82

𝙍: Arise, O God, judge the earth.

God has taken His place in the divine council;
He renders judgment among the gods.

“How long will you judge unjustly
and show partiality to the wicked?
Defend the poor and the fatherless;
do justice to the afflicted and the needy.
Rescue the poor and the needy;
deliver them from the hand of the wicked.

𝙍: Arise, O God, judge the earth.

“They have neither knowledge nor understanding;
they walk around in darkness;
all the foundations of the earth are shaken.”

I said, “You are gods,
sons of the Most High, all of you;
but you shall die like men,
and fall like one of the princes.”

Arise, O God, judge the earth;
for You shall inherit all the nations.

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: Arise, O God, judge the earth.

Psalm prayer

God our deliverer, when the foundations are shaken and justice has departed, defend the poor and needy and give your people strength to fight all wrong in the name of your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Old Testament reading

Jeremiah 18:1-12

The word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying: “Arise and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will cause you to hear My words.” Then I went down to the potter’s house, and there he was making something on the wheel. Yet the vessel that he made of clay was spoiled in the hand of the potter; so he made it again into another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it.

Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying: O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter? says the LORD. Behold, like the clay in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel. At one moment I may speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom to pluck up, and to pull down, and to destroy it. If that nation against which I have spoken turns from its evil, I will relent of the disaster that I thought to do to it. Or at another moment I may speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom to build and to plant it. If it does evil in My sight by not obeying My voice, then I will relent of the good with which I said I would bless it.

Now therefore speak to the men of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying: Thus says the LORD: Behold, I am shaping disaster against you and devising a plan against you. Repent now, everyone from his evil way, and make your ways and your deeds good. But they say, “There is no hope! But we will walk after our own devices, and each of us will do according to the stubbornness of his evil heart.”

Silence may be kept.

New Testament reading

John 10:1-10

“Truly, truly I say to you, he who does not enter by the door into the sheepfold, but climbs up some other way, is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name, and he leads them out. When he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them. And the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. Yet they will never follow a stranger, but will run away from him. For they do not know the voice of strangers.” Jesus told them this parable, but they did not understand what He was telling them.

Then Jesus said to them again, “Truly, truly I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the door. If anyone enters through Me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief does not come, except to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.

Silence may be kept.

The Magnificat (The Song of Mary)

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.

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 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:

Those preparing for baptism and confirmation
Those serving through leadership
Those looking for forgiveness
Those misled by the false gods of this present age
All who are hungry

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

Response

Lord of life
In your mercy, hear us.

Silence may be kept.

Collect of the day

The Lord’s Prayer

Trusting in the compassion of God, as our Savior taught us, so we pray

Conclusion

May God our Redeemer show us compassion and love.
Amen.

Shane Raynor 3/16/26 Shane Raynor 3/16/26

Mon. evening Mar. 16

Opening response

Make haste, O God, to deliver me!
Make haste to help me, O LORD!

Hear my voice according to your lovingkindness.
O LORD, give me life according to your judgment.

Prayer of thanksgiving

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

My Faith Looks Up to Thee

Words: Ray Palmer (1875)
Music: Lowell Mason (1831)
Our Great Redeemer’s Praise (#351)

My faith looks up to Thee,
Thou Lamb of Calvary,
Savior divine!
Now hear me while I pray,
take all my guilt away;
O let me from this day
be wholly Thine.

May Thy rich grace impart
strength to my fainting heart,
my zeal inspire;
as Thou hast died for me,
O may my love to Thee
pure, warm, and changeless be,
a living fire.

While life’s dark maze I tread,
and griefs around me spread,
be Thou my Guide;
bid darkness turn to day,
wipe sorrow’s tears away,
nor let me ever stray
from Thee aside.

When ends life's transient dream,
when death’s cold, sullen stream
shall o'er me roll,
blest Savior, then in love,
fear and distrust remove;
O bear me safe above,
a ransomed soul.

Confession of Sin

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

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

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.

Psalm 25

𝙍: Remember, O LORD, Your mercies and Your lovingkindness.

To You, O LORD,
I lift up my soul.

O my God, I trust in You;
let me not be ashamed;
let not my enemies triumph over me.
Let no one who waits on You
be ashamed;
let them be ashamed
who transgress without cause.

Show me Your ways, O LORD;
teach me Your paths.
Lead me in Your truth and teach me,
for You are the God of my salvation;
on You I wait all day long.
Remember, O LORD, Your mercies and Your lovingkindness,
for they are from of old.

𝙍: Remember, O LORD, Your mercies and Your lovingkindness.

Do not remember the sins of my youth
or my transgressions;
according to Your lovingkindness remember me,
for Your goodness’ sake, O LORD.

Good and upright is the LORD;
therefore He teaches sinners in the way.
He leads the humble in justice,
and teaches the humble His way.
All the paths of the LORD are lovingkindness and truth,
for those who keep His covenant and His decrees.

𝙍: Remember, O LORD, Your mercies and Your lovingkindness.

For Your name’s sake, O LORD, pardon my iniquity,
for it is great.

Who is the man who fears the LORD?
He will teach him the way that he should choose.
He will dwell at ease,
and his descendants will inherit the land.
The secret counsel of the LORD is with those who fear Him,
and He will make His covenant known to them.
My eyes are ever toward the LORD,
for He will pluck my feet out of the net.

𝙍: Remember, O LORD, Your mercies and Your lovingkindness.

Turn to me, and be gracious to me,
for I am lonely and afflicted.
The troubles of my heart have increased;
bring me out of my distresses.
Look on my affliction and my pain,
and forgive all my sins.
Consider my enemies, for they are many,
and with what violent hatred they hate.

Guard my soul, and deliver me;
do not let me suffer shame,
for I take refuge in You.
Let integrity and uprightness preserve me,
for I wait for You.

Redeem Israel, O God,
out of all its troubles.

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 mercies and Your lovingkindness.

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.

Psalm 28

𝙍: The LORD is my strength and my shield.

To You will I cry, O LORD my rock;
do not be silent to me,
lest, if You are silent to me,
I become like those who go down to the pit.
Hear the voice of my supplications
when I cry to You,
when I lift up my hands
toward Your most holy place.

𝙍: The LORD is my strength and my shield.

Do not take me away with the wicked
and with the workers of iniquity,
who speak peace with their neighbors
while mischief is in their hearts.
Repay them according to their deeds,
and according to the wickedness of their endeavors;
repay them according to the work of their hands;
render to them their due reward.

𝙍: The LORD is my strength and my shield.

Because they do not regard the works of the LORD,
nor the work of His hands,
He will destroy them
and not build them up.

Blessed be the LORD,
because He has heard the voice of my supplications.
The LORD is my strength and my shield;
my heart trusted in Him, and I was helped;
therefore my heart rejoices,
and with my song I will thank Him.

𝙍: The LORD is my strength and my shield.

The LORD is the strength of His people,
and He is the saving refuge of His anointed.
Save Your people
and bless Your inheritance;
shepherd them and bear them up 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: The LORD is my strength and my shield.

Psalm prayer

Hear us, Shepherd of your people, forgive us our sins and, in a world of pretenses, make us true in heart and mind; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Old Testament reading

Jeremiah 17:5-18

Thus says the LORD:

Cursed is the man who trusts in man
and makes flesh his strength,
and whose heart departs from the LORD.
For he will be like a bush in the desert
and will not see when good comes,
but will inhabit the parched places in the wilderness,
in a salt land and not inhabited.

Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD,
and whose hope is the LORD.
For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters,
and that spreads out its roots by the river,
and shall not fear when heat comes,
but its leaf shall be green,
and it shall not be anxious in the year of drought,
neither shall cease from yielding fruit.

The heart is more deceitful than all things
and desperately wicked;
who can understand it?

I, the LORD, search the heart,
I test the mind,
even to give to every man according to his ways,
and according to the fruit of his deeds.

As the partridge sits on eggs which it has not laid,
so is he who gets riches, but not justly;
it will forsake him in the midst of his days,
and in the end he will be a fool.

A glorious high throne from the beginning
is the place of our sanctuary.
O LORD, the Hope of Israel,
all who forsake You will be ashamed.
“Those who forsake Me will be written in the dust,
because they have forsaken the LORD,
the fountain of living waters.”

Heal me, O LORD, and I will be healed;
save me, and I will be saved,
for You are my praise.
Behold, they say to me,
“Where is the word of the LORD?
Let it come now!”
As for me, I have not hurried away from being a shepherd after You,
nor have I desired the woeful day;
You Yourself know that which came out of my lips was in Your presence.
Do not be a terror to me;
You are my hope in the day of disaster.
Let those who persecute me be humiliated,
but let me not be humiliated;
let them be dismayed,
but let me not be dismayed.
Bring upon them the day of evil,
and destroy them with double destruction.

Silence may be kept.

New Testament reading

John 9:18-41

But the Jews did not believe concerning him, that he had been blind and received his sight, until they called the parents of the one who had received his sight. They asked them, “Is this your son, whom you say was born blind? How then does he now see?”

His parents answered, “We know that this is our son and that he was born blind. But how he now sees, we do not know, or who opened his eyes, we do not know. He is of age. Ask him. He will speak for himself.” His parents said this, because they feared the Jews. For the Jews had already agreed that if anyone confessed that He was the Christ, he would be put out of the synagogue. Therefore his parents said, “He is of age. Ask him.”

So again they called the man who was blind and said to him, “Give glory to God. We know that this Man is a sinner.”

He said, “I do not know if He is a sinner. I know one thing: I was blind, but now I see.”

Then they said to him again, “What did He do to you? How did He open your eyes?”

He answered them, “I told you already, and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become His disciples?”

Then they insulted him and said, “You are His disciple, but we are Moses’ disciples. We know that God has spoken to Moses. As for this fellow, we do not know where He is from.”

The man answered, “Well, here is an amazing thing! You do not know where He is from, and yet He opened my eyes. We know that God does not listen to sinners. But if anyone is a worshipper of God and does His will, He hears him. Since the world began, it has never been heard that anyone opened the eyes of someone born blind. If this Man were not from God, He could do nothing.”

They answered him, “You were completely born in sin. Are you teaching us?” And they threw him out.

Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, and when He found him, He said, “Do you believe in the Son of God?”

He answered, “Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?”

Jesus said to him, “You have seen Him, and it is He who speaks with you.”

Then he said, “Lord, I believe.” And he worshipped Him.

Jesus said, “I came into this world for judgment, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may become blind.”

Some Pharisees who were with Him heard these words, and said to Him, “Are we also blind?”

Jesus said, “If you were blind, you would have no sin. But now you say, ‘We see.’ Therefore your sin remains.

Silence may be kept.

The Magnificat (The Song of Mary)

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.

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 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:

Those preparing for baptism and confirmation
Those serving through leadership
Those looking for forgiveness
Those misled by the false gods of this present age
All who are hungry

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

Response

Loving God, we look to you.
Receive our prayer.

Silence may be kept.

Collect of the day

The Lord’s Prayer

Trusting in the compassion of God, as our Savior taught us, so we pray

Conclusion

May God our Redeemer show us compassion and love.
Amen.