Tuesday evening December 6
Wednesday evening
Monday evening
Preparation
Opening response
Favor us, Lord, and deliver us.
Lord, come quickly and help us.
Reveal among us the light of your presence
that we may behold your power and glory.
Prayer of thanksgiving
Blessed are you, Sovereign God,
creator of light and darkness,
to you be glory and praise forever.
As evening falls, you renew your promise
to reveal among us the light of your presence.
May your word be a lantern to our feet
and a light upon our path
that we may behold your coming among us.
Strengthen us in our stumbling weakness
and free our tongues to sing your praise.
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
Come, Thou Omniscient Son of Man
Charles Wesley
Come, thou omniscient Son of man,
Display thy sifting power;
Come with thy Spirit's winnowing fan,
And throughly purge thy floor.
The chaff of sin, the accursed thing,
Far from our souls be driven!
The wheat into thy garner bring,
And lay us up for heaven.
Look through us with thine eyes of flame,
The clouds and darkness chase;
And tell me what by sin I am,
And what I am by grace.
Whatever offends thy glorious eyes,
Far from our hearts remove;
As dust before the whirlwind flies,
Disperse it by thy love.
Then let us all thy fullness know,
From every sin set free;
Saved, to the utmost saved below,
And perfected by thee.
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.
The Word of God
Psalm 11
Refrain:
The Lord’s throne is in heaven.
I have taken refuge in the Lord.
So how can you say to me,
“Flee to the hills like a bird
because the wicked
have already bent their bows;
they’ve already strung their arrows;
they are ready to secretly shoot
those whose heart is right”?
When the very bottom of things falls out,
what can a righteous person possibly accomplish?
But the Lord is in his holy temple.
The Lord! His throne is in heaven.
His eyes see—
his vision examines all of humanity.
The Lord examines
both the righteous and the wicked;
his very being hates anyone who loves violence.
God will rain fiery coals and sulfur on the wicked;
their cups will be filled
with nothing but a scorching hot wind
because the Lord is righteous!
He loves righteous deeds.
Those whose heart is right will see God’s face.
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’s throne is in heaven.
Psalm prayer
God of heaven,
when the foundations are shaken
and there is no escape,
test us, but not to destruction,
look on the face of your anointed
and heal us in Jesus Christ your Son.
Psalm 12
Refrain:
You, Lord, will keep us, protecting us from this generation forever.
Help, Lord, because the godly are all gone;
the faithful have completely disappeared
from the human race!
Everyone tells lies to everyone else;
they talk with slick speech and divided hearts.
Let the Lord cut off all slick-talking lips
and every tongue that brags and brags,
that says, “We’re unbeatable with our tongues!
Who could get the best of us with lips like ours?”
But the Lord says,
“Because the poor are oppressed,
because of the groans of the needy,
I’m now standing up.
I will provide the help they are gasping for.”
The Lord’s promises are pure,
like silver that’s been refined in an oven,
purified seven times over!
You, Lord, will keep us,
protecting us from this generation forever.
The wicked roam all over the place,
while depravity is praised by human beings.
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, Lord, will keep us, protecting us from this generation forever.
Psalm prayer
Lord, when faith is faint
and speech veils our intentions,
restore us by your word of power and purity,
both now and forever.
Psalm 13
Refrain:
I love the Lord because he hears my requests for mercy.
How long will you forget me, Lord? Forever?
How long will you hide your face from me?
How long will I be left to my own wits,
agony filling my heart? Daily?
How long will my enemy keep defeating me?
Look at me!
Answer me, Lord my God!
Restore sight to my eyes!
Otherwise, I’ll sleep the sleep of death,
and my enemy will say, “I won!”
My foes will rejoice over my downfall.
But I have trusted in your faithful love.
My heart will rejoice in your salvation.
Yes, I will sing to the Lord
because he has been good to me.
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:
I love the Lord because he hears my requests for mercy.
Psalm prayer
Jesus Christ, Son of God,
who passed through the dark sleep of death,
remember those who cry to you
in shame and silence and defeat
and raise them to your risen life,
for you are alive and reign forever.
Old Testament reading
Isaiah 30:19-33
People in Zion, who live in Jerusalem, you will weep no longer. God will certainly be merciful to you. Hearing the sound of your outcry, God will answer you. Though the Lord gives you the bread of distress and the water of oppression, your teacher will no longer hide, but you will see your teacher. If you stray to the right or the left, you will hear a word that comes from behind you: “This is the way; walk in it.” You will defile your silver-plated idols and your gold-covered priestly vest, and you will scatter them like menstrual rags. “Get out,” you will say to them.
God will provide rain for the seed you sow in the ground, and the food the ground produces will be rich and abundant. On that day, your cattle will graze in large pastures. The oxen and donkeys that are working the ground will eat tasty feed spread for them with shovel and fork.
On every lofty mountain, and on every high hill, streams will run with water on the day of the great massacre, when the towers fall. The light of the moon will be like the light of the sun, and the light of the sun will be seven times brighter—like the light of seven days—on the day that the Lord bandages the people’s brokenness and heals the wounds inflicted by his blows.
Look there! The Lord is coming from far away;
his anger blazing, his smoke-cloud thick.
His lips are full of fury;
his tongue is like a devouring fire.
His breath is like a raging river that reaches up to the neck,
to shake the nations with a sieve of destruction,
and to put a misleading rein on the people’s jaws.
There will be singing for you
as on the night that people celebrate a festival.
The heart will be joyful as it is when one goes with a flute
to the Lord’s mountain,
to the rock of Israel.
The Lord will unleash his majestic voice
and display his crushing arm
in furious anger, with a flame of consuming fire,
in stormy rain and hail.
The Lord’s voice will terrify Assyria;
with a rod he will smite it.
And every crack that is made in the foundation wall,
which the Lord will bring down upon him,
will be accompanied by timbrels and lyres.
The Lord will raise his arm and fight against Assyria in battle. His place for burning was arranged long ago;
it is indeed made ready for a king.
God has made its wood pile wide and deep,
fire and wood in abundance.
The breath of the Lord, like a stream of brimstone, ignites it.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
Matthew 14:13-36
When Jesus heard about John, he withdrew in a boat to a deserted place by himself. When the crowds learned this, they followed him on foot from the cities. When Jesus arrived and saw a large crowd, he had compassion for them and healed those who were sick. That evening his disciples came and said to him, “This is an isolated place and it’s getting late. Send the crowds away so they can go into the villages and buy food for themselves.”
But Jesus said to them, “There’s no need to send them away. You give them something to eat.”
They replied, “We have nothing here except five loaves of bread and two fish.”
He said, “Bring them here to me.” He ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass. He took the five loaves of bread and the two fish, looked up to heaven, blessed them and broke the loaves apart and gave them to his disciples. Then the disciples gave them to the crowds. Everyone ate until they were full, and they filled twelve baskets with the leftovers. About five thousand men plus women and children had eaten.
Right then, Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go ahead to the other side of the lake while he dismissed the crowds. When he sent them away, he went up onto a mountain by himself to pray. Evening came and he was alone. Meanwhile, the boat, fighting a strong headwind, was being battered by the waves and was already far away from land. Very early in the morning he came to his disciples, walking on the lake. When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified and said, “It’s a ghost!” They were so frightened they screamed.
Just then Jesus spoke to them, “Be encouraged! It’s me. Don’t be afraid.”
Peter replied, “Lord, if it’s you, order me to come to you on the water.”
And Jesus said, “Come.”
Then Peter got out of the boat and was walking on the water toward Jesus. But when Peter saw the strong wind, he became frightened. As he began to sink, he shouted, “Lord, rescue me!”
Jesus immediately reached out and grabbed him, saying, “You man of weak faith! Why did you begin to have doubts?” When they got into the boat, the wind settled down.
Then those in the boat worshipped Jesus and said, “You must be God’s Son!”
When they had crossed the lake, they landed at Gennesaret. When the people who lived in that place recognized him, they sent word throughout that whole region, and they brought to him everyone who was sick. Then they begged him that they might just touch the edge of his clothes. Everyone who touched him was cured.
Silence may be kept.
Gospel canticle
The Magnificat (The Song of Mary)
Refrain:
Lord Jesus, you are the one who is to come, the one whom we await with longing hearts.
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:
Lord Jesus, you are the one who is to come, the one whom we await with longing hearts.
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 church, that she may be ready for the coming of Christ
The leaders of the church
The nations, that they may be subject to the rule of God
Those who are working for justice in the world
The broken, that they may find God’s healing
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
O Lord, raise up, we pray, your power
and come among us,
and with great might succor us;
that whereas, through our sins and wickedness
we are grievously hindered
in running the race that is set before us,
your bountiful grace and mercy
may speedily help and deliver us;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
to whom with you and the Holy Spirit,
be honor and glory, now and forever.
Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer
Awaiting his coming in glory, 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
May the Lord, when he comes, find us watching and waiting.
Amen.