Wed. evening Apr. 1
Opening response
Make haste, O God, to deliver me!
Make haste to help me, O LORD!
Let your ways be known on earth,
and your salvation among the nations.
Prayer of thanksgiving
Blessed are you, Lord God of our salvation, to you be glory and praise forever. As we behold your Son, enthroned on the cross, stir up in us the fire of your love, that we may be cleansed from all our sins, and walk with you in newness of life, singing the praise of him who died for us and our salvation.
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
More Love to Thee, O Christ
Words: Elizabeth P. Prentiss (1869)
Music: William H. Doane (1870)
Our Great Redeemer’s Praise (#588)
More love to Thee, O Christ,
More love to Thee!
Hear Thou the prayer I make
On bended knee;
This is my earnest plea:
More love, O Christ, to Thee,
More love to Thee,
More love to Thee!
Once earthly joy I craved,
Sought peace and rest;
Now Thee alone I seek,
Give what is best;
This all my prayer shall be:
More love, O Christ, to Thee,
More love to Thee,
More love to Thee!
Then shall my latest breath
Whisper Thy praise;
This be the parting cry
My heart shall raise;
This still its prayer shall be:
More love, O Christ, to Thee,
More love to Thee,
More love to Thee!
Confession of Sin
Seek the LORD while He may be found,
call upon Him while He is near.
Let the wicked forsake his way,
and the unrighteous man his thoughts;
and let him return to the LORD, and He will have mercy upon him,
and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.
cf Isaiah 55
A time of silence and self-examination may be kept.
Lord God, I have sinned against you; I have done what is evil in your sight. I am sorry and repent. Have mercy on me according to your lovingkindness. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. Renew a right spirit within me, and restore unto me the joy of your salvation, through Jesus Christ my Lord. Amen.
cf Psalm 51
May the Father of all mercies cleanse us from our sins, and restore us in his image to the praise and glory of his name, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Blessed be the LORD,
because He has heard the voice of my supplications.
Therefore my heart rejoices,
and with my song I will thank Him.
cf Psalm 28:7,9
Psalm 88
𝙍: You are my refuge, my portion in the land of the living.
O LORD, God of my salvation,
I cry out day and night before You.
Let my prayer come before You;
incline Your ear to my cry.
For my soul is full of troubles,
and my life draws near to Sheol.
I am counted with those who go down to the pit;
I am like a man without strength,
abandoned among the dead,
like the slain who lie in the grave,
whom You remember no more,
and who are cut off from Your hand.
𝙍: You are my refuge, my portion in the land of the living.
You have laid me in the depths of the pit,
in the dark and deep regions.
Your wrath lies heavy upon me,
and You have afflicted me with all Your waves.
You have removed my acquaintances far from me;
You have made me an abomination to them;
I am shut in and I cannot get out;
my eyes grow dim from affliction.
𝙍: You are my refuge, my portion in the land of the living.
LORD, I have called daily upon You;
I have stretched out my hands to You.
Will You work wonders for the dead?
Shall the dead arise and praise You?
Will Your lovingkindness be declared in the grave,
or your faithfulness in Abaddon?
Will Your wonders be known in the darkness,
or Your righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?
𝙍: You are my refuge, my portion in the land of the living.
But to You have I cried out, O LORD,
and in the morning my prayer comes before You.
O LORD, why do You cast my soul away?
Why do You hide Your face from me?
Afflicted and close to death since my youth,
I suffer Your terrors; I am helpless.
Your fierce wrath has swept over me;
Your terrors have destroyed me.
They surround me all day long like a flood;
they encircled me altogether.
Lover and friend have You removed far from me;
My acquaintances have become darkness.
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, my portion in the land of the living.
Psalm prayer
In the depths of our isolation we cry to you, Lord God; give light in our darkness and bring us out of the prison of our despair through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Old Testament reading
Isaiah 63:1-9
“Who is this who comes from Edom
with dyed garments from Bozrah?
This one who is glorious in His apparel,
traveling in the greatness of His strength?”
“It is I who speak in righteousness,
mighty to save.”
“Why is Your apparel red,
and Your garments like him who treads in the wine vat?”
“I have trodden the winepress alone;
and from the peoples there was no one with Me.
For I will tread them in My anger,
and trample them in My fury,
and their blood shall be sprinkled upon My garments,
and I will stain all My raiment.
For the day of vengeance is in My heart,
and My year of redemption has come.
I looked and there was no one to help,
and I was astonished, and there was no one to uphold;
therefore, My own arm brought salvation to Me;
and My fury upheld Me.
I will tread down the peoples in My anger
and make them drunk in My fury,
and I will pour out their lifeblood on the earth.”
I will mention the steadfast love of the LORD
and the praises of the LORD,
according to all that the LORD has bestowed on us,
and the great goodness toward the house of Israel,
which He has bestowed on them
according to His mercy,
and according to the multitude of His kindnesses.
For He said, “Surely they are My people,
sons who will not lie.”
So He became their Savior.
In all their affliction He was afflicted,
and the angel of His presence saved them;
in His love and in His mercy He redeemed them;
and He lifted them and carried them
all the days of old.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
Revelation 14:18-15:4
Yet another angel who had authority over fire came out from the altar. He cried with a loud voice to him who had the sharp sickle, saying, “Thrust in your sharp sickle and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth, for her grapes are fully ripe.” The angel thrust his sickle into the earth and gathered the vintage of the earth, and threw it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. The winepress was trampled outside the city, and blood came out of the winepress, up to the horses’ bridles, for one hundred and eighty-six miles.
I saw another great and marvelous sign in heaven: seven angels having the seven last plagues, for in them the wrath of God is complete. And I saw what looked like a sea of glass mixed with fire, and those who have the victory over the beast, over his image and over his mark and over the number of his name, standing on the sea of glass, having harps of God. They sang the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying:
“Great and marvelous are Your works,
Lord God Almighty!
Just and true are Your ways,
O King of saints!
Who shall not fear You, O Lord,
and glorify Your name?
For You alone are holy.
All nations shall come
and worship before You,
for Your judgments have been revealed.”
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 persecuted Church
The oppressed peoples of the world
All who are lonely
All who are near death
All who are facing loss
Other intercessions and supplications may be offered as the Holy Spirit leads.
Response
Father, hear our prayer,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Silence may be kept.
Collect of the day
Almighty and everlasting God, who in your tender love toward the human race sent your Son, our Savior Jesus Christ, to take upon him our flesh and to suffer death upon the cross: grant that we may follow the example of his patience and humility, and also be made partakers of his resurrection; 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
Standing at the foot of the cross, 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 Christ, who bore our sins on the cross, set us free to serve him with joy.
Amen.