Opening response

Make haste, O God, to deliver us.
Hurry, O LORD, to help us.

Hear our voice, Lord, according to your faithful love,
according to your judgment give us life.

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

All Things Are Possible to Him

Charles Wesley

All things are possible to him
That can in Jesus' name believe:
Lord, I no more thy truth blaspheme;
Thy truth I lovingly receive;
I can, I do believe in thee
All things are possible to me.

When thou the work of faith hast wrought,
I here shall in thine image shine,
Nor sin in deed or word or thought:
Let men exclaim, and fiends repine,
They can not break the firm decree,
All things are possible to me.

Thy mouth, O Lord, hath spoke, hath sworn,
That I shall serve thee without fear,
Shall find the pearl which others spurn,
Holy and pure and perfect here;
The servant, as his Lord shall be,
All things are possible to me.

All things are possible to God,
To Christ, the power of God in man,
To me, when I am all renewed,
When I in Christ am formed again,
And witness, from all sin set free,
All things are possible to me.

Confession of sin

When we cry out to the LORD in our trouble,
he will bring us out of 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 loving devotion,
and his wonders to the sons of men.

Let us offer sacrifices of thanksgiving
and declare God’s works with rejoicing.

cf Psalm 107

Psalm 61

𝙍: You are my refuge, O Lord, a tower of strength against the enemy.

Hear my cry, O God;
attend to my prayer.
From the ends of the earth I call out to You
whenever my heart is faint.
Lead me to the rock
that is higher than I.
For You have been my refuge,
a tower of strength against the enemy.
Let me dwell in Your tent forever
and take refuge in the shelter of Your wings. 𝙍

For You have heard my vows, O God;
You have given me the inheritance
reserved for those who fear Your name.

Increase the days of the king’s life;
may his years span many generations.
May he sit enthroned in God’s presence forever;
appoint Your loving devotion
and Your faithfulness to guard him.
Then I will ever sing praise to Your name
and fulfill my vows day by day.

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: You are my refuge, O Lord, a tower of strength against the enemy.

Psalm prayer

Risen Christ,
as you knew the discipline of suffering
and the victory that brings us salvation,
so grant us your presence in our weakness
and a place in your unending kingdom
now and forevermore.

Psalm 62

𝙍: Rest in God alone, O my soul.

In God alone my soul finds rest;
my salvation comes from Him.
He alone is my rock and my salvation.
He is my fortress;
I will never be shaken.

How long will you threaten a man?
Will all of you throw him down
like a leaning wall
or a tottering fence?
They fully intend to cast him down from his lofty perch;
they delight in lies;
with their mouths they bless,
but inwardly they curse.

Rest in God alone, O my soul,
for my hope comes from Him.
He alone is my rock and my salvation;
He is my fortress; I will not be shaken. 𝙍

My salvation and my honor rest on God, my strong rock;
my refuge is in God.
Trust in Him at all times, O people;
pour out your hearts before Him.
God is our refuge.

Lowborn men are but a vapor,
the exalted but a lie.
Weighed on the scale, they go up;
together they are but a vapor.
Place no trust in extortion,
or false hope in stolen goods.
If your riches increase,
do not set your heart upon them.

God has spoken once;
I have heard this twice:
that power belongs to God,
and loving devotion to You, O Lord.
For You will repay each man
according to his deeds.

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: Rest in God alone, O my soul.

Psalm prayer

God, teach us to seek security,
not in money or theft,
not in human ambition or malice,
not in our own ability or power,
but in you, the only God,
our rock and our salvation.

Psalm 64

𝙍: Let the righteous rejoice in the LORD.

Hear, O God, my voice of complaint;
preserve my life from dread of the enemy.
Hide me from the scheming of the wicked,
from the mob of workers of iniquity,
who sharpen their tongues like swords
and aim their bitter words like arrows,
ambushing the innocent in seclusion,
shooting suddenly, without fear.

They hold fast to their evil purpose;
they speak of hiding their snares.
“Who will see them?” they say.
They devise injustice and say,
“We have perfected a secret plan.”
For the inner man and the heart are mysterious. 𝙍

But God will shoot them with arrows;
suddenly they will be wounded.
They will be made to stumble,
their own tongues turned against them.
All who see will shake their heads.
Then all mankind will fear
and proclaim the work of God;
so they will ponder what He has done.

Let the righteous rejoice in the LORD
and take refuge in Him;
let all the upright in heart exult.

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: Let the righteous rejoice in the LORD.

Psalm prayer

Cut through the malice of our hearts, redeeming God,
with the Spirit’s sword,
wound the pride of our rebellion
with the grace that makes righteous
and bring near the day of Christ,
when love shall reign in joy;
for he is alive and reigns, now and forever.

Old Testament reading

Jeremiah 11:18-12:6

And the LORD informed me, so I knew.
Then You showed me their deeds.
For I was like a gentle lamb led to slaughter;
I did not know that they had plotted against me:
“Let us destroy the tree with its fruit;
let us cut him off from the land of the living,
that his name may be remembered no more.”

O LORD of Hosts, who judges righteously,
who examines the heart and mind,
let me see Your vengeance upon them,
for to You I have committed my cause.

Therefore this is what the LORD says concerning the people of Anathoth who are seeking your life and saying, “You must not prophesy in the name of the LORD, or you will die by our hand.” So this is what the LORD of Hosts says: “I will punish them. Their young men will die by the sword, their sons and daughters by famine. There will be no remnant, for I will bring disaster on the people of Anathoth in the year of their punishment.”

Righteous are You, O LORD,
when I plead before You.
Yet about Your judgments
I wish to contend with You:

Why does the way of the wicked prosper?
Why do all the faithless live at ease?
You planted them, and they have taken root.
They have grown and produced fruit.
You are ever on their lips,
but far from their hearts.
But You know me, O LORD;
You see me and test my heart toward You.
Drag away the wicked like sheep to the slaughter
and set them apart for the day of carnage.
How long will the land mourn
and the grass of every field be withered?
Because of the evil of its residents,
the animals and birds have been swept away,
for the people have said,
“He cannot see what our end will be.”

“If you have raced with men on foot
and they have worn you out,
how can you compete with horses?
If you stumble in a peaceful land,
how will you do in the thickets of the Jordan?
Even your brothers—
your own father’s household—
even they have betrayed you;
even they have cried aloud against you.
Do not trust them,
though they speak well of you.

Silence may be kept.

New Testament reading

John 7:53-8:11

Then each went to his own home.

But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.

Early in the morning He went back into the temple courts. All the people came to Him, and He sat down to teach them. The scribes and Pharisees, however, brought to Him a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before them and said, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such a woman. So what do You say?”

They said this to test Him, in order to have a basis for accusing Him. But Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground with His finger.

When they continued to question Him, He straightened up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to cast a stone at her.” And again He bent down and wrote on the ground.

When they heard this, they began to go away one by one, beginning with the older ones, until only Jesus was left, with the woman standing there. Then Jesus straightened up and asked her, “Woman, where are your accusers? Has no one condemned you?”

“No one, Lord,” she answered.

“Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Now go and sin no more.”

Silence may be kept.

The Magnificat (The Song of Mary)

Luke 1:46-55

𝙍: Come, let us return to the Lord, for our God will freely pardon.

My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior!
For He has looked with favor on the humble state of His servant.
From now on all generations will call me blessed.
For the Mighty One has done great things for me.
Holy is His name.
His mercy extends to those who fear Him,
from generation to generation.
He has performed mighty deeds with His arm;
He has scattered those who are proud
in the thoughts of their hearts.
He has brought down rulers from their thrones,
but has exalted the humble.
He has filled the hungry with good things,
but has sent the rich away empty.
He has helped His servant Israel,
remembering to be merciful,
as He promised to our fathers,
to Abraham and 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.

𝙍: Come, let us return to the Lord, for our God will freely pardon.

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.

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

In faith we pray
We pray to you, our God.

Silence may be kept.

Collect of the day

Almighty God,
whose most dear Son went not up to joy but first he suffered pain,
and entered not into glory before he was crucified:
mercifully grant that we, walking in the way of the cross,
may find it none other than the way of life and peace;
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 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 God our Redeemer show us compassion and love.
Amen.