Shane Raynor 3/28/26 Shane Raynor 3/28/26

Sat. evening Mar 28

Opening response

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

Let your ways be known on earth,
and your salvation among the nations.

Prayer of thanksgiving

Blessed are you, Lord God of our salvation, to you be glory and praise forever. As we behold your Son, enthroned on the cross, stir up in us the fire of your love, that we may be cleansed from all our sins, and walk with you in newness of life, singing the praise of him who died for us and our salvation.

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

Alas! and Did My Savior Bleed?

Words: Isaac Watts (1707); ref. Ralph E. Hudson (1885)
Music: Ralph E. Hudson (1885)
Our Great Redeemer’s Praise (#564)

Alas, and did my Savior bleed?
And did my Sovereign die?
Would He devote that sacred head
For sinners such as I?

Was it for crimes that I have done
He groaned upon the tree?
Amazing pity! grace unknown!
And love beyond degree!

Refrain:
At the cross, at the cross where
I first saw the light,
And the burden of my heart rolled away,
It was there by faith I received my sight,
And now I am happy all the day!

Well might the sun in darkness hide,
And shut His glories in,
When Christ, the mighty Maker, died
For man, the creature’s sin. [Refrain]

But drops of grief can ne’er repay
The debt of love I owe;
Here, Lord, I give myself away,
’Tis all that I can do.

Confession of Sin

Seek the LORD while He may be found,
call upon Him while He is near.
Let the wicked forsake his way,
and the unrighteous man his thoughts;
and let him return to the LORD, and He will have mercy upon him,
and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.

cf Isaiah 55

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

Lord God, I have sinned against you; I have done what is evil in your sight. I am sorry and repent. Have mercy on me according to your lovingkindness. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. Renew a right spirit within me, and restore unto me the joy of your salvation, through Jesus Christ my Lord. Amen.

cf Psalm 51

May the Father of all mercies cleanse us from our sins, and restore us in his image to the praise and glory of his name, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

Blessed be the LORD,
because He has heard the voice of my supplications.
Therefore my heart rejoices,
and with my song I will thank Him.

cf Psalm 28:7,9

Psalm 128

𝙍: How great is Your goodness, O God.

Blessed is everyone who fears the LORD,
who walks in His ways.
For you shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands;
you shall be happy, and it shall go well with you.

𝙍: How great is Your goodness, O God.

Your wife will be like a fruitful vine
within your house,
your children like olive plants
around your table.
Behold, thus shall the man be blessed
who fears the LORD.

𝙍: How great is Your goodness, O God.

The LORD bless you from Zion,
and may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem
all the days of your life.
Indeed, may you see your children’s children.
Peace be upon Israel!

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: How great is Your goodness, O God.

Psalm prayer

O Christ, our true vine, may we your branches be ever fruitful in your service, and share your love and peace with all your children, in the power of the Spirit and to the glory of the Father.

Psalm 129

𝙍: The LORD redeems the life of His servants.

“Many a time have they afflicted me from my youth—”
let Israel now say —
“Many a time have they afflicted me from my youth;
yet they have not prevailed against me.
The plowers plowed upon my back;
they made long their furrows.”
The LORD is righteous;
He has cut the cords of the wicked.

𝙍: The LORD redeems the life of His servants.

Let all those who hate Zion
be put to shame and turned backward.
Let them be like grass on the housetops,
which withers before it grows up,
with which the reaper does not fill his hand,
nor the binder of sheaves his arms;
nor do those who pass by say,
“The blessing of the LORD be upon you;
we bless you in the name of the LORD!”

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 redeems the life of His servants.

Psalm prayer

Jesus our redeemer, you bore the cut of the lash for us and our salvation; help us to bear our sufferings and to share in the affliction of all who suffer for your holy name.

Psalm 130

𝙍: My soul waits for the Lord.

Out of the depths have I cried unto You, O LORD.
Lord, hear my voice!
Let Your ears be attentive
to the voice of my supplications!

If you, LORD, should mark iniquities,
O Lord, who could stand?
But there is forgiveness with You,
so that You may be feared.

𝙍: My soul waits for the Lord.

I wait for the LORD; my soul does wait,
and in His word do I hope.
My soul waits for the Lord
more than those who watch for the morning;
indeed, more than those who watch for the morning.

𝙍: My soul waits for the Lord.

O Israel, hope in the LORD!
For with the Lord there is mercy,
and with Him is abundant redemption.
And He will redeem Israel
from all his iniquities.

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 soul waits for the Lord.

Psalm prayer

Father, we commend to your faithful love those who are crying from the depths; help them to watch and pray through their time of darkness, in sure hope of the dawn of your forgiveness and redemption; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Old Testament reading

Jeremiah 25:1-14

The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, that was the first year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, which Jeremiah the prophet spoke to all the people of Judah and to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying: From the thirteenth year of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah, even to this day, these twenty-three years the word of the LORD has come to me, and I have spoken to you, rising early and speaking, but you have not listened.

The LORD has sent to you all His servants the prophets, rising early and sending them, but you have not listened nor inclined your ear to hear. They said, “Turn now again everyone from his evil way and from the evil of your deeds, and dwell in the land that the LORD has given to you and to your fathers forever and ever. And do not go after other gods to serve them and to worship them, and provoke Me not to anger with the works of your hands; and I will do you no harm.”

Yet you have not listened to Me, says the LORD, that you might provoke Me to anger with the works of your hands to your own harm.

Therefore thus says the LORD of Hosts: Because you have not obeyed My words, behold, I will send and take all the families of the north, says the LORD, and Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, My servant, and will bring them against this land and its inhabitants, and against all these surrounding nations; I will utterly destroy them, and make them an astonishment, a hissing, and perpetual desolations. Moreover I will take from them the voice of laughter and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones and the light of the candle. This whole land shall be a desolation and an astonishment, and these nations will serve the king of Babylon seventy years.

It shall come to pass when seventy years are finished that I will punish the king of Babylon and that nation, says the LORD, for their iniquity, and the land of the Chaldeans, and will make it perpetual desolations. I will bring upon that land all My words which I have pronounced against it, even all that is written in this book, which Jeremiah has prophesied against all the nations. For many nations and great kings will make slaves of them, even themselves. And I will recompense them according to their deeds and according to the works of their hands.

Silence may be kept.

New Testament reading

John 12:37-50

Though He had done so many signs before them, yet they did not believe in Him. This fulfilled the word spoken by Isaiah the prophet:

“Lord, who has believed our report,
and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?”

Therefore they could not believe. For Isaiah said again:

“He has blinded their eyes
and hardened their hearts,
lest they should see with their eyes
and perceive with their hearts and turn,
and I would heal them.”

Isaiah said this when he saw His glory and spoke of Him.

Yet many of the rulers also believed in Him. But because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they be put out of the synagogue. For they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.

Jesus cried out, “He who believes in Me believes not only in Me, but in Him who sent Me. He who sees Me sees Him who sent Me. I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should not remain in darkness.

“If anyone hears My words and does not believe, I do not judge him. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world. He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him. The word I have spoken will judge him on the last day. For I have not spoken on My own authority, but the Father who sent Me gave Me a command, what I should say and what I should speak. I know that His command is eternal life. Therefore what I say, I say as the Father tells me.”

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:

The persecuted Church
The oppressed peoples of the world
All who are lonely
All who are near death
All who are facing loss

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 and everlasting God, who in your tender love toward the human race sent your Son, our Savior Jesus Christ, to take upon him our flesh and to suffer death upon the cross:
grant that we may follow the example of his patience and humility, and also be made partakers of his resurrection; 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

Standing at the foot of the cross, 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 Christ, who bore our sins on the cross, set us free to serve him with joy.
Amen.

Shane Raynor 3/27/26 Shane Raynor 3/27/26

Fri. evening Mar. 27

Opening response

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

Let your ways be known on earth,
and your salvation among the nations.

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

Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus

Words: George Duffield, Jr. (1858)
Music: George J. Webb (1830)
Our Great Redeemer’s Praise (#477)

Stand up, stand up for Jesus,
ye soldiers of the cross;
lift high His royal banner,
it must not suffer loss.
From vict'ry unto vict'ry
His army shall He lead,
till ev'ry foe is vanquished,
and Christ is Lord indeed.

Stand up, stand up for Jesus,
the trumpet call obey;
forth to the mighty conflict,
in this His glorious day.
Ye that are brave now serve him
against unnumbered foes;
let courage rise with danger,
and strength to strength oppose.

Stand up, stand up for Jesus,
stand in His strength alone;
the arm of flesh will fail you,
ye dare not trust your own.
Put on the gospel armor,
each piece put on with prayer;
where duty calls or danger,
be never wanting there.

Stand up, stand up for Jesus,
the strife will not be long;
this day the noise of battle,
the next the victor's song.
To him who overcometh
a crown of life shall be;
they with the King of Glory
shall reign eternally.

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 31

𝙍: Into Your hand I commit my spirit.

In You, O LORD, do I seek refuge;
let me never be ashamed;
deliver me in Your righteousness.
Incline Your ear to me;
deliver me speedily;
be my rock of refuge,
a strong fortress to save me.
For You are my rock and my fortress;
for Your name’s sake, lead me and guide me.
Pull me out of the net that they have hidden for me,
for You are my strength.
Into Your hand I commit my spirit;
You have redeemed me, O LORD, God of truth.

𝙍: Into Your hand I commit my spirit.

I have hated those who regard worthless idols,
but I trust in the LORD.
I will be glad and rejoice in Your lovingkindness,
for You have seen my trouble;
You have known my soul in adversities,
and have not delivered me into the hand of the enemy;
You have set my feet in a broad place.

𝙍: Into Your hand I commit my spirit.

Be gracious to me, O LORD, for I am in distress;
my eye wastes away from grief,
yes, my soul and my body.
For my life is spent with grief,
and my years with sighing;
my strength fails because of my iniquity,
and my bones waste away.
I have become a reproach among all my enemies,
but especially among my neighbors,
and an object of dread to my acquaintances;
those who see me outside flee from me.
I am forgotten like a dead man, out of mind;
I am like a broken vessel.
For I hear the slander of many;
fear is on every side;
while they take counsel together against me,
they plot to take away my life.

𝙍: Into Your hand I commit my spirit.

But I trust in You, O LORD;
I say, “You are my God.”
My times are in Your hand;
deliver me from the hand of my enemies,
and from those who persecute me.
Make Your face shine upon Your servant;
save me by Your lovingkindness.
Do not let me be ashamed, O LORD,
for I have called upon You;
let the wicked be ashamed,
and let them go silently to Sheol.
Let the lying lips be put to silence,
which speak insolently
with pride and contempt against the righteous.

𝙍: Into Your hand I commit my spirit.

Oh, how great is Your goodness,
which You have laid up for those who fear You,
which You have prepared for those
who take refuge in You before the sons of men!
You will hide them in the shelter of Your presence
from the plots of man;
You will keep them secretly in a shelter
from contentious tongues.

Blessed be the LORD,
for He has shown me His marvelous lovingkindness
in a fortified city.
For I said in my haste,
“I am cut off from before Your eyes.”
Nevertheless You heard the voice of my supplications
when I cried out to You.

𝙍: Into Your hand I commit my spirit.

Oh, love the LORD, all you His saints!
The LORD preserves the faithful,
but fully repays the one who acts in pride.
Be strong, and He will strengthen your heart,
all you who wait for the LORD.

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: Into Your hand I commit my spirit.

Psalm prayer

Lord Jesus Christ, when scorn and shame besiege us, and hope is veiled in grief, hold us in your wounded hands and make your face shine on us again, for you are our Lord and God.

Old Testament reading

Jeremiah 24

The LORD showed, and behold, two baskets of figs were set before the temple of the LORD, after Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had carried away captive Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, and the officials of Judah, with the carpenters and smiths from Jerusalem, and brought them to Babylon. One basket had very good figs, even like the figs that are first ripe, and the other basket had very rotten figs, which were so rotten they could not be eaten.

Then the LORD said to me, “What do you see, Jeremiah?”

And I said, “Figs, the good figs, very good. And the rotten, very rotten, that are so rotten they cannot be eaten.”

Again the word of the LORD came to me, saying: Thus says the LORD the God of Israel: Like these good figs, so I will acknowledge those who are carried away captive of Judah, whom I have sent out of this place into the land of the Chaldeans for their good. For I will set My eyes upon them for good, and I will bring them again to this land. And I will build them up and not pull them down. And I will plant them and not pluck them up. I will give them a heart to know Me, that I am the LORD; and they will be My people, and I will be their God, for they will return to Me with their whole heart.

But as the rotten figs, which cannot be eaten, they are so rotten, says the LORD, so I will forsake Zedekiah the king of Judah and his officials, and the rest of Jerusalem who remain in this land, and those who dwell in the land of Egypt. And I will make them a horror and an evil to all the kingdoms of the earth, to be a reproach and a byword, a taunt and a curse, in all places wherever I shall drive them. I will send the sword, the famine, and the pestilence among them until they are consumed from off the land that I gave to them and to their fathers.

Silence may be kept.

New Testament reading

John 12:20-36

Now there were some Greeks among those who went up to worship at the feast. They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida of Galilee, and asked him, “Sir, we want to see Jesus.” Philip came and told Andrew, and in turn Andrew and Philip told Jesus.

Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Truly, truly I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone. But if it dies, it bears much fruit. He who loves his life will lose it. And he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. If anyone serves Me, he must follow Me. Where I am, there will My servant be also. If anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him.

“Now My soul is troubled. What shall I say? ‘Father, save Me from this hour’? Instead, for this reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify Your name.”

Then a voice came from heaven, saying, “I have glorified it, and will glorify it again.” The crowd that stood by and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, “An angel has spoken to Him.”

Jesus answered, “This voice came not for My sake, but for your sakes. Now judgment is upon this world. Now the ruler of this world will be cast out. And if I be lifted up from the earth, I will draw all men to Myself.” He said this to signify by what kind of death He would die.

The crowd answered Him, “We have heard from the law that the Christ remains forever. Why do You say, ‘The Son of Man must be lifted up’? Who is this Son of Man?”

Then Jesus said to them, “Yet a little while the light is with you. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you. He who walks in darkness does not know where he is going. While you have light, believe in the light that you may become sons of light.” Jesus said these things, and departed and hid Himself from them.

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:

The persecuted Church
The oppressed peoples of the world
All who are lonely
All who are near death
All who are facing loss

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

Most merciful God, who by the death and resurrection of your Son Jesus Christ delivered and saved the world: grant that by faith in him who suffered on the cross we may triumph in the power of his victory; 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

Standing at the foot of the cross, as our Savior taught us, so we pray

Conclusion

May Christ, who bore our sins on the cross, set us free to serve him with joy.
Amen.

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

Thu. evening Mar. 26

Opening response

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

Let your ways be known on earth,
and your salvation among the nations.

Prayer of thanksgiving

Blessed are you, Lord God of our salvation, to you be glory and praise forever. As we behold your Son, enthroned on the cross, stir up in us the fire of your love, that we may be cleansed from all our sins, and walk with you in newness of life singing the praise of him who died for us and our salvation.

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

Sweet Hour of Prayer

Words: William W. Walford (1772-1850)
Music: William B. Bradbury (1816-1868)
Our Great Redeemer’s Praise (#440)

Sweet hour of prayer! sweet hour of prayer!
that calls me from a world of care,
and bids me at my Father's throne
make all my wants and wishes known.
In seasons of distress and grief,
my soul has often found relief,
and oft escaped the tempter's snare
by thy return, sweet hour of prayer!

Sweet hour of prayer! sweet hour of prayer!
the joys I feel, the bliss I share
of those whose anxious spirits burn
with strong desires for thy return!
With such I hasten to the place
where God my Savior shows his face,
and gladly take my station there,
and wait for thee, sweet hour of prayer!

Sweet hour of prayer! sweet hour of prayer!
thy wings shall my petition bear
to him whose truth and faithfulness
engage the waiting soul to bless.
And since he bids me seek his face,
believe his word, and trust his grace,
I'll cast on him my every care,
and wait for thee, sweet hour of prayer!

Confession of Sin

Let us confess our sins against God and our neighbor.

Silence may be kept.

Most merciful God, we confess that we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done, and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We are truly sorry and we humbly repent. For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, have mercy on us and forgive us; that we may delight in your will, and walk in your ways, to the glory of your name. Amen.

Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us all our sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen us in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep us in eternal life.
Amen.

Psalm 42

As the deer pants for the water brooks,
so my soul pants for You, O God.
My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
When shall I come and appear before God?
My tears have been my food
day and night,
while they continually say to me,
“Where is your God?”
When I remember these things,
I pour out my soul within me.
For I would go with the throng of people,
and lead them in procession to the house of God,
with the voice of joy and praise,
a multitude keeping festival.

Why are you cast down, O my soul?
And why are you disquieted within me?
Hope in God,
for I shall again praise Him
for the help of His presence.

O my God, my soul is cast down within me;
therefore I remember You
from the land of Jordan,
and of Hermon, from Mount Mizar.
Deep calls to deep
at the thunder of Your waterfalls;
all Your waves and Your billows
have gone over me.

The LORD will command His lovingkindness in the daytime,
and in the night His song will be with me,
a prayer to the God of my life.

I will say to God, my rock,
“Why have You forgotten me?
Why do I go mourning
because of the oppression of the enemy?”
As a shattering of my bones,
my enemies reproach me,
while they say to me all day long,
“Where is your God?”

Why are you cast down, O my soul?
And why are you disquieted within me?
Hope in God;
for I shall again praise Him,
my salvation and my God.

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

Come, creator Spirit, source of life; sustain us when our hearts are heavy and our wells have run dry, for you are the Father’s gift, with him who is our living water, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Psalm 43

Vindicate me, O God,
and plead my cause against an ungodly people;
deliver me from the deceitful and unjust man!
For You are the God of my refuge;
why have You cast me off?
Why do I walk about mourning
because of the oppression of the enemy?
Oh send out Your light and Your truth;
let them lead me;
let them bring me to Your holy hill
and to Your dwelling.
Then I will go to the altar of God,
to God my exceeding joy,
and with the harp I will praise You,
O God, my God.

Why are you cast down, O my soul?
And why are you disquieted within me?
Hope in God;
for I shall again praise Him,
my salvation and my God.

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

Come, Holy Spirit, light and truth; bring us to the altar of life, and renew our joy and gladness in Jesus Christ our Lord.

Old Testament reading

Jeremiah 23:9-32

My heart is broken within me,
because of the prophets;
all my bones shake;
I am like a drunken man,
like a man overcome by wine,
because of the LORD,
and because of His holy words.
For the land is full of adulterers;
for the land mourns because of the curse.
The pleasant places of the wilderness have dried up.
And their course is evil
and their might is not right.

For both prophet and priest are profane;
indeed, in My house I have found their wickedness,
says the LORD.
Therefore their way will be as slippery ways to them;
they shall be driven into the darkness
and fall in it;
for I will bring disaster upon them,
even the year of their punishment,
says the LORD.

In addition, I have seen folly
in the prophets of Samaria.
They prophesied by Baal
and caused My people Israel to err.
I have seen also among the prophets of Jerusalem
a horrible thing.
They commit adultery and walk in lies.
They also strengthen the hands of evildoers,
so that no one repents from his wickedness.
All of them are as Sodom to Me
and her inhabitants as Gomorrah.

Therefore thus says the LORD of Hosts concerning the prophets:

“Behold, I will feed them with wormwood
and make them drink the water of gall,
for from the prophets of Jerusalem
profaneness has gone out into all the land.”

Thus says the LORD of Hosts:

Do not listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you.
They lead you into vanity;
they speak a vision of their own heart
and not out of the mouth of the LORD.
They still say to those who despise Me,
“The LORD has said, ‘You will have peace’ ”;
and they say to everyone who walks after the imagination of his own heart,
“No evil will come upon you.”
For who has stood in the counsel of the LORD
and has perceived and heard His word?
Who has given heed to His word and listened to it?
Behold, a whirlwind of the LORD
has gone forth in fury,
a tempestuous whirlwind.
It will fall tempestuously upon the head of the wicked.
The anger of the LORD will not turn back
until He has executed and performed
the thoughts of His heart.
In the latter days
you will understand it perfectly.
I have not sent these prophets,
yet they ran.
I have not spoken to them,
yet they prophesied.
But if they had stood in My counsel
and had caused My people to hear My words,
then they would have turned them from their evil way
and from the evil of their deeds.

Am I a God who is near,
says the LORD,
and not a God far off?
Can a man hide himself in secret places
so that I do not see him?
says the LORD.
Do I not fill heaven and earth?
says the LORD.

I have heard what the prophets have said who prophesy lies in My name, saying, “I had a dream, I had a dream!” How long shall this be in the heart of the prophets who prophesy lies? Indeed, they are prophets of the deceit of their own heart, who plan to cause My people to forget My name by their dreams, which they tell to their neighbor, as their fathers have forgotten My name for Baal. The prophet who has a dream, let him tell his dream. And he who has My word, let him speak My word faithfully. What is the chaff to the wheat? says the LORD. Is not My word like fire, says the LORD, and like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?

Therefore, behold, I am against the prophets, declares the LORD, who steal My words, each from his neighbor. Behold, I am against the prophets, declares the LORD, who use their tongues and say, “The LORD says.” Behold, I am against those who prophesy false dreams, says the LORD, and recount them and cause My people to err by their lies and reckless boasting. Yet I did not send them or command them. Therefore they shall not profit this people at all, says the LORD.

Silence may be kept.

New Testament reading

John 12:12-19

On the next day a great crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. They took branches of palm trees, and went out to meet Him, and cried out:

“Hosanna!
‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’
The King of Israel!”

Then Jesus, having found a young donkey, sat on it. As it is written:

“Fear not, daughter of Zion;
behold, your King is coming,
sitting on a donkey’s colt.”

His disciples did not understand these things at first. But when Jesus was glorified, they remembered that these things were written about Him and that they had done these things to Him.

Now the crowd that was with Him when He called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead bore witness. The crowd went and met Him for this reason: They heard that He had performed this sign. So the Pharisees said among themselves, “See, you are gaining nothing! Look, the world has followed Him!”

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:

The persecuted Church
The oppressed peoples of the world
All who are lonely
All who are near death
All who are facing loss

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

Response

Father, hear our prayer,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

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 Christ, who bore our sins on the cross, set us free to serve him with joy.
Amen.