Opening response
Make haste, O God, to deliver me!
Make haste to help me, O LORD!
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
I Stand Amazed in the Presence
Confession of Sin
When we cry to the LORD in our trouble,
He will save us from our distress.
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 give thanks to the LORD for His goodness,
and for His wonderful works to all people!
Let us offer sacrifices of thanksgiving,
and declare God’s works with rejoicing.
cf Psalm 107
Psalm 119:89-104
𝙍: Revive me, O God, according to Your lovingkindness.
Forever, O LORD, Your word
is established in heaven.
Your faithfulness endures to all generations;
You have established the earth, and it stands.
They continue this day according to Your ordinances,
for all things are Your servants.
If Your law had not been my delight,
I would then have perished in my affliction.
𝙍: Revive me, O God, according to Your lovingkindness.
I will never forget Your precepts,
for by them You have given me life.
I am Yours; save me,
for I have sought Your precepts.
The wicked lie in wait to destroy me,
but I will consider Your testimonies.
I have seen a limit to all perfection,
but Your commandment is exceedingly broad.
𝙍: Revive me, O God, according to Your lovingkindness.
Oh, how I love Your law!
It is my meditation all the day.
Your commandments make me wiser than my enemies,
for they are ever with me.
I have more understanding than all my teachers,
for Your testimonies are my meditation.
I understand more than the ancients,
because I keep Your precepts.
I have restrained my feet from every evil way,
that I may keep Your word.
𝙍: Revive me, O God, according to Your lovingkindness.
I have not departed from Your judgments,
for You have taught me.
How sweet are Your words to my taste,
sweeter than honey to my mouth!
Through Your precepts I get understanding;
therefore I hate every false way.
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: Revive me, O God, according to Your lovingkindness
Psalm prayer
Faithful God, let your word be the treasure of our hearts, that we may delight in your truth and walk in the glorious liberty of your Son Jesus Christ.
Old Testament reading
Ecclesiastes 11, 12
Send out your grain on the waters by ship,
for after many days you will find financial return.
Give a portion to seven, or even eight, investments,
for you do not know what calamity might occur on earth.
If the clouds are full,
they empty rain on the land;
and if a tree falls to the north or south,
in the place where the tree falls, there it will lie.
He who observes the wind will not sow,
and he who observes the clouds will not reap.
Just as you do not know the path of the wind,
or how the bones grow to fullness in the womb of a woman with child;
so you do not know the work of God
who makes everything.
In the morning sow your seed,
and at evening do not let your hands rest;
for you do not know which activity will find success,
this or that,
or whether both alike will be good.
Light is sweet,
and it is pleasant for the eyes to see the sun.
Even if a man lives many years,
let him rejoice in them all;
but let him remember
that the days of darkness will be many.
All that comes is vanity.
Rejoice, O young man, in your youth,
and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth.
Walk in the ways of your heart
and in the sight of your eyes;
but know that for all these things
God will bring you into judgment.
Remove anxiety from your heart,
and put away distress from your body,
for youth and the dawn of life are vanity.
Remember your Creator
in the days of your youth,
before the difficult days come
and the years draw near when you say,
“I have no pleasure in these days and years”;
before the sun and the light,
the moon and the stars are darkened,
and the clouds leave after the rain;
in the day when those watching the house tremble,
and the strong men are bent over,
and the grinding teeth cease because they are few,
and those looking through the windows have dimmed eyes;
and the doors on the street are shut,
and the sound of grinding teeth is less;
and awakened, one gets up at the sound of a bird,
and the melodious songs are faint from diminished hearing;
when they fear heights,
even the terrors along the road;
the almond tree blossoms white,
and the grasshopper is burdened down,
and the aphrodisiac caper-berry plant fails,
because a person is going to his eternal home,
and the mourners are throughout the streets;
before the silver cord is snapped,
and the golden bowl is smashed,
and the jar by the spring is broken
and the wheel at the cistern is crushed,
and the dust returns to the earth as it was,
and the life breath returns to God who gave it.
“Vanity of vanities,” says the Teacher,
“everything is vanity!”
In addition to being wise, the Teacher still taught the people knowledge, by weighing, studying, and arranging many proverbs. Qoheleth sought to find pleasing words, and to write words of truth plainly.
The words of the wise are like iron-tipped goads, and like well-driven nails are the collected sayings that are given by one shepherd. Beyond these, my son, be warned.
There is no end of making many books, and much study is a weariness of the body.
This is the end of the matter;
all has been heard.
Now fear God and keep His commandments,
for this is the duty of all mankind.
For God will bring every deed into judgment,
with every secret thing,
whether good or evil.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
2 Timothy 2:1-7
So you, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. Share the things that you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses with faithful men who will be able to teach others also. Endure hard times as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No soldier on active duty entangles himself with civilian affairs, that he may please the enlisting officer. Anyone who competes as an athlete is not rewarded without competing legally. The farmer who labors should be first to partake of the crops. Consider what I am saying, and may the Lord grant you understanding in all things.
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 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
Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning: help us so to hear them, to read, mark, learn and inwardly digest them that, through patience, and the comfort of your holy word, we may embrace and for ever hold fast the hope of everlasting life, which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ, 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, 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
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.