Thu. evening Feb. 26
Opening response
Make haste, O God, to deliver me!
Make haste to help me, O LORD!
Hear my voice according to your lovingkindness.
O LORD, give me life according to your judgment.
Prayer of thanksgiving
Blessed are you, Lord God of our salvation, to you be glory and praise forever. In the darkness of our sin you have shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. Open our eyes to acknowledge your presence, that freed from the misery of sin and shame we may grow into your likeness from glory to glory.
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
Wonderful Words of Life
Words and Music: Philip P. Bliss (1874)
Our Great Redeemer’s Praise (#429)
Sing them over again to me,
wonderful words of life;
let me more of their beauty see,
wonderful words of life;
words of life and beauty,
teach me faith and duty.
Refrain:
Beautiful words, wonderful words,
wonderful words of life.
Beautiful words, wonderful words,
wonderful words of life.
Christ, the blessed one, gives to all
wonderful words of life;
sinner, list to the loving call,
wonderful words of life;
all so freely given,
wooing us to heaven. [Refrain]
Sweetly echo the gospel call,
wonderful words of life;
offer pardon and peace to all,
wonderful words of life;
Jesus, only Savior,
sanctify forever. [Refrain]
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 137
𝙍: Pray for the peace of Jerusalem.
By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down and wept
when we remembered Zion.
Upon the willows in the midst of it
we hung our harps.
For there, those who carried us away captive required of us songs,
and our plunderers, mirth,
saying, “Sing us one of the songs of Zion!”
𝙍: Pray for the peace of Jerusalem.
How shall we sing the song of the LORD
in a foreign land?
If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
let my right hand forget its cunning!
If I do not remember you,
let my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth,
if I prefer not Jerusalem
above my highest joy.
𝙍: Pray for the peace of Jerusalem.
Remember, O LORD, against the Edomites
the day of Jerusalem,
who said, “Raze it, raze it,
to its foundation!”
O daughter of Babylon, destined to be destroyed,
blessed shall he be who rewards you
as you have served us!
Blessed shall he be who takes
your little ones and dashes them against the rocks!
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: Pray for the peace of Jerusalem.
Psalm prayer
God of our pilgrimage, you sent your Son to our strange land to bring us home to you; give us your songs to sing, that even in our exile we may be filled with the breath of the Spirit of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Psalm 138
𝙍: Your mercy, O LORD, endures forever.
I will give You thanks, O LORD, with all my heart;
before the gods will I sing Your praise.
I will bow down toward Your holy temple
and give thanks to Your name
for Your lovingkindness and for Your truth,
for You have magnified above all things
Your name and Your word.
On the day I called, You answered me,
and made me bold with strength of soul.
𝙍: Your mercy, O LORD, endures forever.
All the kings of the earth shall give you thanks, O LORD,
when they hear the words of Your mouth.
Yes, they shall sing of the ways of the LORD,
for great is the glory of the LORD.
Though the LORD is exalted, yet has He regard for the lowly,
but the proud He knows from afar.
𝙍: Your mercy, O LORD, endures forever.
Though I walk in the midst of trouble,
You will preserve me;
You will stretch Your hand out against the wrath of my enemies,
and Your right hand will deliver me.
The LORD will fulfill that which concerns me;
Your mercy, O LORD, endures forever;
forsake not the works of Your hands.
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: Your mercy, O LORD, endures forever.
Psalm prayer
Lord our God, supreme over all things, look upon the humble and lowly and put new strength into our souls to complete your purpose for us in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Psalm 142
𝙍: Bring my soul out of prison, that I may give thanks to Your name.
I cry out to the LORD with my voice;
with my voice to the LORD do I make my supplication.
I pour out my complaint before Him;
I declare my trouble before Him.
When my spirit was overwhelmed within me,
then You knew my path.
In the way wherein I walk,
they have secretly set a snare for me.
Look to the right and see,
for there is no one who acknowledges me;
there is no refuge for me;
no one cares for my soul.
𝙍: Bring my soul out of prison, that I may give thanks to Your name.
I cried out to You, O LORD;
I said, “You are my refuge,
my portion in the land of the living.”
Attend unto my cry,
for I am brought very low;
deliver me from my persecutors,
for they are stronger than me.
Bring my soul out of prison,
that I may give thanks to Your name;
the righteous shall surround me,
for You shall deal bountifully with 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.
𝙍: Bring my soul out of prison, that I may give thanks to Your name.
Psalm prayer
God of compassion, you regard the forsaken and give hope to the crushed in spirit; hear those who cry to you in distress and bring your ransomed people to sing your glorious praise, now and forever.
Old Testament reading
Jeremiah 6:9-21
Thus says the LORD of Hosts:
They will thoroughly glean
the remnant of Israel as a vine.
Turn back your hand
as a grape gatherer into the baskets.
To whom shall I speak and give warning
that they may hear?
Behold, their ears are closed,
and they cannot listen.
Behold, the word of the LORD is a reproach to them;
they have no delight in it.
Therefore I am full of the fury of the LORD;
I am weary with holding in.
I will pour it out upon the children in the street
and upon the assembly of young men together;
for even the husband with the wife shall be taken,
the aged with him who is full of days.
Their houses shall be turned to others,
with their fields and wives together;
for I will stretch out My hand
upon the inhabitants of the land,
says the LORD.
For from the least of them even to the greatest of them,
everyone is given to covetousness.
And from the prophet even to the priest,
everyone deals falsely.
They have healed also the brokenness
of the daughter of My people superficially,
saying, “Peace, peace,”
when there is no peace.
Were they ashamed when they had committed abomination?
They were not at all ashamed,
nor could they blush.
Therefore they shall fall among those who fall;
at the time that I punish them they shall be cast down,
says the LORD.
Thus says the LORD:
Stand in the ways and see,
and ask for the old paths
where the good way is and walk in it,
and you shall find rest for your souls.
But they said, “We will not walk in it.”
Also I set watchmen over you, saying,
“Listen to the sound of the trumpet.”
But they said, “We will not listen.”
Therefore hear, O nations,
and know, O congregation,
what is among them.
Hear, O earth.
Behold, I will bring calamity on this people,
even the fruit of their thoughts,
because they have not listened to My words,
nor to My law, but rejected it.
To what purpose does incense from Sheba come to Me,
and the sweet cane from a far country?
Your burnt offerings are not acceptable,
nor are your sacrifices sweet to Me.
Therefore thus says the LORD:
Behold, I will lay stumbling blocks before this people,
and the fathers and the sons together will fall upon them.
The neighbor and his friend will perish.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
John 6:1-15
After these things Jesus went across the Sea of Galilee, which is the Sea of Tiberias. And a great crowd followed Him, because they saw His signs which He did for the sick. Then Jesus went up on a mountain, and He sat there with His disciples. Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was near.
When Jesus looked up and saw a great crowd coming to Him, He said to Philip, “Where shall we buy bread that these may eat?” He said this to test him, for He Himself knew what He would do.
Philip answered Him, “Two hundred denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for each of them to receive but a little.”
One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to Him, “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two small fish. But what are they among so many?”
Jesus said, “Make the people sit down.” Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, numbering about five thousand. Jesus then took the loaves, and when He had given thanks, He distributed them to the disciples, and the disciples to those who were sitting down; and likewise, they distributed the fish, as much as they wanted.
When they were filled, He told His disciples, “Collect the fragments that remain, that nothing may be lost.” So they collected them and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves which were left over by those who had eaten.
When those men saw the sign which He had done, they then said, “This is truly the Prophet who is to come into the world.” Therefore, knowing that they would come and take Him by force to make Him king, Jesus departed again to a mountain by Himself alone.
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:
Those preparing for baptism and confirmation
Those serving through leadership
Those looking for forgiveness
Those misled by the false gods of this present age
All who are hungry
Other intercessions and supplications may be offered as the Holy Spirit leads.
Response
Lord of life
In your mercy, hear us.
Silence may be kept.
Collect of the day
Almighty God, whose Son Jesus Christ fasted forty days in the wilderness, and was tempted as we are, yet without sin: give us grace to discipline ourselves in obedience to your Spirit; and, as you know our weakness, so may we know your power to save; 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
Trusting in the compassion of God, 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 our Redeemer show us compassion and love.
Amen.