Tue. evening Dec. 30
Opening response
Make haste, O God, to deliver me!
Make haste to help me, O LORD!
You laid the foundation of the earth
and the heavens are the work of your hands.
Prayer of thanksgiving
Blessed are you, Sovereign God, our light and our salvation, to you be glory and praise forever. To dispel the darkness of our night, you sent forth your Son, the firstborn of all creation, to be the Christ, the light of the world. Rejoicing in the mystery of the Word made flesh, we acclaim him Emmanuel, as all creation sings to you:
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 Come, All Ye Faithful
Words: Latin hymn attr. John F. Wade (1751)
Music: John F. Wade’s Cantus Diversi (1751)
Our Great Redeemer’s Praise (#174)
O come, all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant,
O come ye, O come ye to Bethlehem!
Come, and behold Him, born the King of angels!
Refrain:
O come, let us adore Him;
O come, let us adore Him;
O come, let us adore Him, Christ, the Lord!
God of God, Light of Light,
lo, He abhors not the virgin's womb;
very God, begotten not created; [Refrain]
Sing, choirs of angels; sing in exultation;
sing, all ye citizens of heaven above!
Glory to God, all glory in the highest! [Refrain]
Yea, Lord, we greet Thee, born this happy morning;
Jesus, to Thee be all glory given!
Word of the Father, now in flesh appearing! [Refrain]
Confession of Sin
The LORD is merciful and gracious,
slow to anger and abounding in mercy.
He has not dealt with us according to our sins,
nor recompensed us according to our iniquities.
For as the heavens are high above the earth,
so great is his mercy toward those who fear Him.
Silence is kept for reflection.
Holy God,
Holy and strong,
Holy and immortal,
have mercy upon us.
As far as the east is from the west,
so far has He removed our transgressions from us.
As a father pities his children,
so the LORD pities those who fear Him.
Bless the LORD, O my soul;
and all that is within me, bless His holy name.
Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all His benefits.
Psalm 65
𝙍: Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all the earth!
Praise awaits You, O God, in Zion,
and to You shall vows be performed.
O You who hear prayer,
to You shall all flesh come.
Iniquities prevail against me;
as for our transgressions, You will provide atonement for them.
Blessed is the man You choose and allow to approach You,
that he may dwell in Your courts.
We shall be satisfied with the goodness of Your house,
Your holy temple.
𝙍: Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all the earth!
By awesome deeds You answer us in righteousness,
O God of our salvation,
You who are the hope of all the ends of the earth,
and of the farthest seas;
who established the mountains by His strength,
who is girded with might.
You still the roaring of the seas,
the roaring of their waves,
and the tumult of the peoples.
They also who dwell in the faraway places
are in awe at Your signs;
You make the going out of the morning and the evening shout for joy.
𝙍: Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all the earth!
You visit the earth and water it;
You greatly enrich it;
the river of God is full of water;
You provide their grain,
for so You have prepared it.
You water its furrows abundantly;
You settle its ridges;
You make it soft with showers;
You bless its growth.
You crown the year with Your goodness,
and Your paths drip with fatness.
They drip on the pastures of the wilderness,
and the hills gird themselves with rejoicing.
The pastures are clothed with flocks;
the valleys also are covered with grain;
they shout for joy, yes, they also sing.
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: Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all the earth!
Psalm prayer
May the richness of your creation, Lord, and the mystery of your providence lead us to that heavenly city, where all peoples will bring their wealth, forsake their sins and find their true joy, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Psalm 84
𝙍: Blessed are those who dwell in Your house.
How lovely is Your dwelling place,
O LORD of Hosts!
My soul longs and even yearns
for the courtyards of the LORD;
my heart and my flesh cry out
for the living God.
Even the sparrow has found a home,
and the swallow a nest for herself,
where she may lay her young,
at Your altars,
O LORD of Hosts, my King and my God.
Blessed are those who dwell in Your house;
they will still be praising You.
𝙍: Blessed are those who dwell in Your house.
Blessed is the man whose strength is in You,
in whose heart are the paths to Zion.
As they pass through the Valley of Baca,
they make it a spring;
the early rain also covers it with pools.
They go from strength to strength;
every one of them appears in Zion before God.
𝙍: Blessed are those who dwell in Your house.
O LORD God of Hosts, hear my prayer;
give ear, O God of Jacob!
Behold our shield, O God,
and look upon the face of Your anointed.
For a day in Your courtyards is better
than a thousand elsewhere.
𝙍: Blessed are those who dwell in Your house.
I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
than dwell in the tents of wickedness.
For the LORD God is a sun and shield;
the LORD will give grace and glory;
no good thing will He withhold
from those who walk uprightly.
O LORD of Hosts,
blessed is the man who trusts in You.
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: Blessed are those who dwell in Your house.
Psalm prayer
Lord God, sustain us in this vale of tears with the vision of your grace and glory, that, strengthened by the bread of life, we may come to your eternal dwelling place; in the power of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Old Testament reading
Isaiah 59:1-15a
Behold, the hand of the LORD is not so short that it cannot save,
nor is His ear so dull that it cannot hear.
But your iniquities have made a separation between
you and your God,
and your sins have hidden His face from you
so that He will not hear.
For your hands are defiled with blood
and your fingers with iniquity;
your lips have spoken lies,
your tongue has muttered perverseness.
No one calls for justice,
nor does anyone plead for truth.
They trust in vanity and speak lies;
they conceive mischief and bring forth iniquity.
They hatch adders’ eggs
and weave the spider’s web;
he who eats of their eggs dies,
and that which is crushed breaks out into a viper.
Their webs shall not become garments,
nor shall they cover themselves with their works;
their works are works of iniquity,
and an act of violence is in their hands.
Their feet run to evil,
and they make haste to shed innocent blood;
their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity;
devastation and destruction are in their paths.
The way of peace they do not know,
and there is no justice in their ways;
they have made their paths crooked;
whoever walks in them does not know peace.
Therefore, justice is far from us,
and righteousness does not overtake us;
we hope for light, and behold, darkness,
and for brightness, but we walk in gloom.
We grope along the wall like the blind,
and we grope as if we had no eyes;
we stumble at noonday as in the night;
among those who are vigorous, we are as dead men.
We all roar like bears
and mourn sadly like doves;
we look for justice, but there is none;
for salvation, but it is far from us.
For our transgressions are multiplied before You,
and our sins testify against us;
for our transgressions are with us.
And as for our iniquities, we know them:
transgressing, and lying against the LORD,
and departing away from our God,
speaking oppression and revolt,
conceiving and uttering from the heart words of falsehood.
Justice is turned backward,
and righteousness stands far off;
for truth is fallen in the street,
and equity cannot enter.
Truth is lacking,
and he who departs from evil makes himself a prey.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
John 1:19-28
Now this is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” He confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.”
They asked him, “Who then? Are you Elijah?”
He said, “I am not.”
“Are you the Prophet?”
He answered, “No.”
They said to him then, “Who are you? Tell us so that we may give an answer to those who sent us. What do you say concerning yourself?”
John said, “I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’ just as the prophet Isaiah said.”
Now those who were sent were from the Pharisees. They asked him, “Why do you baptize then, if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?”
John answered them, “I baptize with water, but One stands among you, whom you do not know. This is He who comes after me, who is preferred before me, the strap of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie.”
These things took place in Bethany beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing.
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 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
Lord, hear your people
and answer our prayers.
Silence may be kept.
Collect of the day
Almighty God, who wonderfully created us in your own image and yet more wonderfully restored us through your Son Jesus Christ: grant that, as he came to share in our humanity, so we may share the life of his divinity; who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer
Rejoicing in the presence of God here among us, 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, who has called us out of darkness into his marvelous light, bless us and fill us with peace.
Amen.