Sunday evening September 26

Monday evening
Saturday evening

Preparation

Opening response

Favor us, Lord, and deliver us.

Lord, come quickly and 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

Expand Thy Wings, Celestial Dove

Charles Wesley

Expand thy wings, celestial Dove,

And, brooding over my nature's night,

Call forth the ray of heavenly love;

Let there in my dark soul be light;

And fill the illustrated abyss

With glorious beams of endless bliss.

“Let there be light,” again command,

And light there in our hearts shall be,

We then through faith shall understand

Thy great mysterious majesty;

And, by the shining of thy grace,

Behold in Christ thy glorious face.

Father of everlasting grace,

Be mindful of thy changeless word;

We worship toward that holy place

In which thou dost thy name record,

Dost make thy gracious nature known,

That living temple of thy Son.

Thou dost with sweet complacence see

The temple filled with light divine;

And art thou not well pleased with me,

Who, turning to that heavenly shrine,

Through Jesus to thy throne apply,

Through Jesus for acceptance cry?

With all who for redemption groan,

Father, in Jesus’ name I pray,

And still we cry and wrestle on,

Till mercy take our sins away:

Hear from thy dwelling place in heaven,

And now pronounce our sins forgiven.

Confession of sin

When we cry out to the Lord in our distress,

he will save us from our desperate circumstances.

God will bring us out of darkness

and out of the shadow of death.

Lord, have mercy.

Christ, have mercy.

Lord, have mercy.

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

May the Father forgive us

by the death of his Son

and strengthen us

to live in the power of the Spirit

all our days.

Amen.

Let us thank the Lord for his faithful love,

and his wondrous works for all people.

Let us offer thanksgiving sacrifices

and declare what God has done in songs of joy.

cf Psalm 107

The Word of God

Psalm 120

Refrain:

Lord, deliver me from lying lips.

I cried out to the Lord when I was in trouble

(and he answered me):

“Lord, deliver me from lying lips

and a dishonest tongue!”

What more will be given to you,

what more will be done to you,

you dishonest tongue?

Just this: a warrior’s sharpened arrows,

coupled with burning coals from a wood fire!

Oh, I’m doomed

because I have been an immigrant in Meshech,

because I’ve made my home among Kedar’s tents.

I’ve lived far too long

with people who hate peace.

I’m for peace,

but when I speak, they are for war.

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.

Refrain:

Lord, deliver me from lying lips.

Psalm prayer

God of consolation,

look on us, pilgrims in a strange land;

preserve us from slander and deceit,

show us the truth

and give to our souls the peace of Christ.

Psalm 121

Refrain:

The Lord will protect us from all evil.

I raise my eyes toward the mountains.

Where will my help come from?

My help comes from the Lord,

the maker of heaven and earth.

God won’t let your foot slip.

Your protector won’t fall asleep on the job.

No! Israel’s protector

never sleeps or rests!

The Lord is your protector;

the Lord is your shade right beside you.

The sun won’t strike you during the day;

neither will the moon at night.

The Lord will protect you from all evil;

God will protect your very life.

The Lord will protect you on your journeys—

whether going or coming—

from now until forever from now.

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.

Refrain:

The Lord will protect us from all evil.

Psalm prayer

Lord, ever watchful and faithful,

we look to you to be our defense

and we lift our hearts to know your help;

through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Old Testament reading
Exodus 24

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Come up to the Lord, you and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of Israel’s elders, and worship from a distance. Only Moses may come near to the Lord. The others shouldn’t come near, while the people shouldn’t come up with him at all.”

Moses came and told the people all the Lord’s words and all the case laws. All the people answered in unison, “Everything that the Lord has said we will do.” Moses then wrote down all the Lord’s words. He got up early in the morning and built an altar at the foot of the mountain. He set up twelve sacred stone pillars for the twelve tribes of Israel. He appointed certain young Israelite men to offer entirely burned offerings and slaughter oxen as well-being sacrifices to the Lord. Moses took half of the blood and put it in large bowls. The other half of the blood he threw against the altar. Then he took the covenant scroll and read it out loud for the people to hear. They responded, “Everything that the Lord has said we will do, and we will obey.”

Moses then took the blood and threw it over the people. Moses said, “This is the blood of the covenant that the Lord now makes with you on the basis of all these words.”

Then Moses and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy elders of Israel went up, and they saw Israel’s God. Under God’s feet there was what looked like a floor of lapis-lazuli tiles, dazzlingly pure like the sky. God didn’t harm the Israelite leaders, though they looked at God, and they ate and drank.

The Lord said to Moses, “Come up to me on the mountain and wait there. I’ll give you the stone tablets with the instructions and the commandments that I’ve written in order to teach them.”

So Moses and his assistant Joshua got up, and Moses went up God’s mountain. Moses had said to the elders, “Wait for us here until we come back to you. Aaron and Hur will be here with you. Whoever has a legal dispute may go to them.”

Then Moses went up the mountain, and the cloud covered the mountain. The Lord’s glorious presence settled on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it for six days. On the seventh day the Lord called to Moses from the cloud. To the Israelites, the Lord’s glorious presence looked like a blazing fire on top of the mountain. Moses entered the cloud and went up the mountain. Moses stayed on the mountain for forty days and forty nights.

Silence may be kept.

New Testament reading
Matthew 9:1-8

Boarding a boat, Jesus crossed to the other side of the lake and went to his own city. People brought to him a man who was paralyzed, lying on a cot. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the man who was paralyzed, “Be encouraged, my child, your sins are forgiven.”

Some legal experts said among themselves, “This man is insulting God.”

But Jesus knew what they were thinking and said, “Why do you fill your minds with evil things? Which is easier—to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? But so you will know that the Human One has authority on the earth to forgive sins”—he said to the man who was paralyzed—“Get up, take your cot, and go home.” The man got up and went home. When the crowds saw what had happened, they were afraid and praised God, who had given such authority to human beings.

Silence may be kept.

Gospel canticle
The Magnificat (The Song of Mary)

Refrain:

You show mercy to everyone, from one generation to the next, who honors you as God.

With all my heart I glorify the Lord!

In the depths of who I am I rejoice in God my savior.

He has looked with favor on the low status of his servant.

Look! From now on, everyone will consider me highly favored

because the mighty one has done great things for me.

Holy is his name.

He shows mercy to everyone,

from one generation to the next,

who honors him as God.

He has shown strength with his arm.

He has scattered those with arrogant thoughts and proud inclinations.

He has pulled the powerful down from their thrones

and lifted up the lowly.

He has filled the hungry with good things

and sent the rich away empty-handed.

He has come to the aid of his servant Israel,

remembering his mercy,

just as he promised to our ancestors,

to Abraham and to Abraham’s descendants forever.

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.

Refrain:

You show mercy to everyone, from one generation to the next, who honors you as God.

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,

who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,

born of the Virgin Mary,

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,

is seated at the right hand of the Father,

and 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.

Prayers

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 universal church

Bishops, superintendents and all who lead the church

The leaders of the nations

The natural world and the resources of the earth

All who are in any kind of need

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

Response

In faith we pray

We pray to you, our God.

Silence may be kept.

Collect of the day

Almighty God,

you have made us for yourself,

and our hearts are restless till they find their rest in you:

pour your love into our hearts and draw us to yourself,

and so bring us at last to your heavenly city

where we shall see you face to face;

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 in heaven,

hallowed be your name,

your kingdom come,

your will be done,

on earth as in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.

Forgive us our sins

as we forgive those who sin against us.

Lead us not into temptation

but deliver us from evil.

For the kingdom, the power,

and the glory are yours

now and 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.