Wednesday evening March 8
Photo by Snapwire via Pexels.
Opening response
Hurry, God, to deliver us.
LORD, come quickly to help us.
Hear our voice according to your loving kindness.
Revive us, LORD, according to your ordinances.
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
Abba, Father, Hear Thy Child
Charles Wesley
Abba, Father, hear thy child,
Late in Jesus reconciled;
Hear, and all the graces shower,
All the joy, and peace, and power;
All my Savior asks above,
All the life and heaven of love.
Lord, I will not let thee go
Till the blessing thou bestow:
Hear my Advocate divine;
Lo! To his my suit I join;
Joined to his, it cannot fail;
Bless me; for I will prevail.
Heavenly Father, Life divine,
Change my nature into thine;
Move, and spread throughout my soul,
Actuate, and fill the whole:
Be it I no longer now
Living in the flesh, but thou.
Holy Ghost, no more delay;
Come, and in thy temple stay:
Now thine inward witness bear,
Strong, and permanent, and clear:
Spring of life, thyself impart;
Rise eternal in my heart
Confession of sin
Seek the LORD while he may be found.
Call on him while he is near.
Let the wicked forsake their ways,
and the unrighteous their thoughts.
Let them return to the LORD, and he will have mercy on them,
to our God, for he will freely pardon.
cf Isaiah 55
A time of silence and self-examination may be kept.
Lord God,
we have sinned against you;
we have committed evil in your sight.
We are sorry and repent.
Have mercy on us according to your faithful love.
Wash us completely clean of our guilt; purify us from our sin.
Put a new, faithful spirit deep inside us,
and return the joy of your salvation to us
through Jesus Christ our 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 our petitions.
Therefore our hearts greatly rejoice.
With our song we will thank him.
cf Psalm 28:7,9
Psalm 3
Refrain:
You, LORD, are a shield around me.
LORD, how my adversaries have increased!
Many are those who rise up against me.
Many there are who say of my soul,
“There is no help for him in God.” Selah.
But you, LORD, are a shield around me,
my glory, and the one who lifts up my head.
I cry to the LORD with my voice,
and he answers me out of his holy hill. Selah.
I laid myself down and slept.
I awakened, for the LORD sustains me.
I will not be afraid of tens of thousands of people
who have set themselves against me on every side.
Arise, LORD!
Save me, my God!
For you have struck all of my enemies on the cheek bone.
You have broken the teeth of the wicked.
Salvation belongs to the LORD.
May your blessing be on your people. Selah.
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.
Refrain:
You, LORD, are a shield around me.
Psalm prayer
Shield us, Lord, from all evil,
and lift us from apathy and despair,
that even when we are terrified,
we may trust your power to save;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Psalm 51
Refrain:
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit.
Have mercy on me, God, according to your loving kindness.
According to the multitude of your tender mercies, blot out my transgressions.
Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity.
Cleanse me from my sin.
For I know my transgressions.
My sin is constantly before me.
Against you, and you only, I have sinned,
and done that which is evil in your sight,
so you may be proved right when you speak,
and justified when you judge.
Behold, I was born in iniquity.
My mother conceived me in sin.
Behold, you desire truth in the inward parts.
You teach me wisdom in the inmost place.
Purify me with hyssop, and I will be clean.
Wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
Let me hear joy and gladness,
that the bones which you have broken may rejoice.
Hide your face from my sins,
and blot out all of my iniquities.
Create in me a clean heart, O God.
Renew a right spirit within me.
Don’t throw me from your presence,
and don’t take your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation.
Uphold me with a willing spirit.
Then I will teach transgressors your ways.
Sinners will be converted to you.
Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God, the God of my salvation.
My tongue will sing aloud of your righteousness.
Lord, open my lips.
My mouth will declare your praise.
For you don’t delight in sacrifice, or else I would give it.
You have no pleasure in burnt offering.
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit.
O God, you will not despise a broken and contrite heart.
Do well in your good pleasure to Zion.
Build the walls of Jerusalem.
Then you will delight in the sacrifices of righteousness,
in burnt offerings and in whole burnt offerings.
Then they will offer bulls on your altar.
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.
Refrain:
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit.
Psalm prayer
Take away, good Lord, the sin that corrupts us;
give us the sorrow that heals
and the joy that praises
and restore by grace your own image within us,
that we may take our place among your people;
in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Old Testament reading
Genesis 44:18-34
Then Judah came near to him, and said, “Oh, my lord, please let your servant speak a word in my lord’s ears, and don’t let your anger burn against your servant; for you are even as Pharaoh. My lord asked his servants, saying, ‘Have you a father, or a brother?’ We said to my lord, ‘We have a father, an old man, and a child of his old age, a little one; and his brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother; and his father loves him.’ You said to your servants, ‘Bring him down to me, that I may set my eyes on him.’ We said to my lord, ‘The boy can’t leave his father, for if he should leave his father, his father would die.’ You said to your servants, ‘Unless your youngest brother comes down with you, you will see my face no more.’ When we came up to your servant my father, we told him the words of my lord. Our father said, ‘Go again and buy us a little food.’ We said, ‘We can’t go down. If our youngest brother is with us, then we will go down: for we may not see the man’s face, unless our youngest brother is with us.’ Your servant, my father, said to us, ‘You know that my wife bore me two sons. One went out from me, and I said, “Surely he is torn in pieces;” and I haven’t seen him since. If you take this one also from me, and harm happens to him, you will bring down my grey hairs with sorrow to Sheol.’ Now therefore when I come to your servant my father, and the boy is not with us; since his life is bound up in the boy’s life; it will happen, when he sees that the boy is no more, that he will die. Your servants will bring down the grey hairs of your servant, our father, with sorrow to Sheol. For your servant became collateral for the boy to my father, saying, ‘If I don’t bring him to you, then I will bear the blame to my father forever.’ Now therefore, please let your servant stay instead of the boy, my lord’s slave; and let the boy go up with his brothers. For how will I go up to my father, if the boy isn’t with me?—lest I see the evil that will come on my father.”
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
Hebrews 2:10-18
For it became him, for whom are all things and through whom are all things, in bringing many children to glory, to make the author of their salvation perfect through sufferings. For both he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified are all from one, for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brothers, saying,
“I will declare your name to my brothers.
Amongst the congregation I will sing your praise.”
Again, “I will put my trust in him.” Again, “Behold, here I am with the children whom God has given me.” Since then the children have shared in flesh and blood, he also himself in the same way partook of the same, that through death he might bring to nothing him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and might deliver all of them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. For most certainly, he doesn’t give help to angels, but he gives help to the offspring of Abraham. Therefore he was obligated in all things to be made like his brothers, that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make atonement for the sins of the people. For in that he himself has suffered being tempted, he is able to help those who are tempted.
Silence may be kept.
The Magnificat (The Song of Mary)
Luke 1:46-55
Refrain:
Come, let us return to the LORD,
for our God will freely pardon.
My soul magnifies the Lord.
My spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior,
for he has looked at the humble state 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.
Holy is his name.
His mercy is for generations and generations on those who fear him.
He has shown strength with his arm.
He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
He has put down princes from their thrones,
and has exalted the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things.
He has sent the rich away empty.
He has given help to Israel, his servant, that he might remember mercy,
as he spoke to our fathers,
to Abraham and his offspring 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.
Refrain:
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
Father, hear our prayer,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Silence may be kept.
Collect of the day
Almighty God,
you show to those who are in error the light of your truth,
that they may return to the way of righteousness:
grant to all those who are admitted
into the fellowship of Christ’s religion,
that they may reject those things
that are contrary to their profession,
and follow all such things as are agreeable to the same;
through our Lord 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
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.
Tuesday evening March 7
Photo by Masha Raymers via Pexels.
Opening response
Hurry, God, to deliver us.
LORD, come quickly to help us.
Hear our voice according to your loving kindness.
Revive us, LORD, according to your ordinances.
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
Stupendous Height of Heavenly Love
Charles Wesley
Stupendous height of heavenly love,
Of pitying tenderness divine;
It brought the Saviour from above,
It caused the springing day to shine;
The Sun of Righteousness to appear,
And gild our gloomy hemisphere.
God did in Christ himself reveal,
To chase our darkness by his light,
Our sin and ignorance dispel,
Direct our wandering feet, aright:
And bring our souls, with pardon blest,
To realms of everlasting rest.
Come, then, O Lord, thy light impart,
The faith that bids our terrors cease;
Into thy love direct our heart,
Into thy way of perfect peace:
And cheer the souls, of death afraid,
And guide them through the dreadful shade.
Answer thy mercy's whole design,
My God incarnated for me.
My spirit make thy radiant shrine,
My Light and full Salvation be;
And through the shades of death unknown,
Conduct me to thy dazzling throne.
Confession of sin
Let us admit to God the sin which always confronts us.
A time of silence and self-examination may be kept.
Almighty God,
patient and of great goodness:
I confess to you,
I confess with my whole heart
my neglect and forgetfulness of your commandments,
my wrong doing, thinking, and speaking;
the hurts I have done to others,
and the good I have left undone.
O God, forgive me, for I have sinned against you;
and raise me to newness of life;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
May the God of love and power
forgive us and free us from our sins,
heal and strengthen us by his Spirit,
and raise us to new life in Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Psalm 52
Why do you boast of mischief, mighty man?
God’s loving kindness endures continually.
Your tongue plots destruction,
like a sharp razor, working deceitfully.
You love evil more than good,
lying rather than speaking the truth. Selah.
You love all devouring words,
you deceitful tongue.
God will likewise destroy you forever.
He will take you up, and pluck you out of your tent,
and root you out of the land of the living. Selah.
The righteous also will see it, and fear,
and laugh at him, saying,
“Behold, this is the man who didn’t make God his strength,
but trusted in the abundance of his riches,
and strengthened himself in his wickedness.”
But as for me, I am like a green olive tree in God’s house.
I trust in God’s loving kindness forever and ever.
I will give you thanks forever, because you have done it.
I will hope in your name, for it is good,
in the presence of your saints.
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.
Psalm prayer
Father of lights,
raise us with Christ to your eternal city,
that, with kings and nations,
we may wait in the midst of your temple
and see your glory forever and ever.
Psalm 53
Refrain:
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom.
The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.”
They are corrupt, and have done abominable iniquity.
There is no one who does good.
God looks down from heaven on the children of men,
to see if there are any who understood,
who seek after God.
Every one of them has gone back.
They have become filthy together.
There is no one who does good, no, not one.
Have the workers of iniquity no knowledge,
who eat up my people as they eat bread,
and don’t call on God?
There they were in great fear, where no fear was,
for God has scattered the bones of him who encamps against you.
You have put them to shame,
because God has rejected them.
Oh that the salvation of Israel would come out of Zion!
When God brings back his people from captivity,
then Jacob shall rejoice,
and Israel shall be glad.
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.
Refrain:
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom.
Psalm prayer
Without you, O God, nothing is real,
all things are open to corruption
and we are deadened by deceit;
do not abandon us to our folly,
but give us hearts that seek you
and, at the last, joy in your heavenly city;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Psalm 54
Refrain:
God is my helper. The Lord is the one who sustains my soul.
Save me, God, by your name.
Vindicate me in your might.
Hear my prayer, God.
Listen to the words of my mouth.
For strangers have risen up against me.
Violent men have sought after my soul.
They haven’t set God before them. Selah.
Behold, God is my helper.
The Lord is the one who sustains my soul.
He will repay the evil to my enemies.
Destroy them in your truth.
With a free will offering, I will sacrifice to you.
I will give thanks to your name, LORD, for it is good.
For he has delivered me out of all trouble.
My eye has seen triumph over my enemies.
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.
Refrain:
God is my helper. The Lord is the one who sustains my soul.
Psalm prayer
O living God,
reach through the violence of the proud
and the despair of the weak
to create in Jesus Christ
a people free to praise your holy name,
now and forever.
Old Testament reading
Genesis 44:1-17
He commanded the steward of his house, saying, “Fill the men’s sacks with food, as much as they can carry, and put each man’s money in his sack’s mouth. Put my cup, the silver cup, in the sack’s mouth of the youngest, with his grain money.” He did according to the word that Joseph had spoken. As soon as the morning was light, the men were sent away, they and their donkeys. When they had gone out of the city, and were not yet far off, Joseph said to his steward, “Up, follow after the men. When you overtake them, ask them, ‘Why have you rewarded evil for good? Isn’t this that from which my lord drinks, and by which he indeed divines? You have done evil in so doing.’ ” He overtook them, and he spoke these words to them.
They said to him, “Why does my lord speak such words as these? Far be it from your servants that they should do such a thing! Behold, the money, which we found in our sacks’ mouths, we brought again to you out of the land of Canaan. How then should we steal silver or gold out of your lord’s house? With whomever of your servants it is found, let him die, and we also will be my lord’s slaves.”
He said, “Now also let it be according to your words. He with whom it is found will be my slave; and you will be blameless.”
Then they hurried, and each man took his sack down to the ground, and each man opened his sack. He searched, beginning with the oldest, and ending at the youngest. The cup was found in Benjamin’s sack. Then they tore their clothes, and each man loaded his donkey, and returned to the city.
Judah and his brothers came to Joseph’s house, and he was still there. They fell on the ground before him. Joseph said to them, “What deed is this that you have done? Don’t you know that such a man as I can indeed do divination?”
Judah said, “What will we tell my lord? What will we speak? How will we clear ourselves? God has found out the iniquity of your servants. Behold, we are my lord’s slaves, both we and he also in whose hand the cup is found.”
He said, “Far be it from me that I should do so. The man in whose hand the cup is found, he will be my slave; but as for you, go up in peace to your father.”
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
Hebrews 2:1-9
Therefore we ought to pay greater attention to the things that were heard, lest perhaps we drift away. For if the word spoken through angels proved steadfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just penalty, how will we escape if we neglect so great a salvation—which at the first having been spoken through the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard, God also testifying with them, both by signs and wonders, by various works of power, and by gifts of the Holy Spirit, according to his own will?
For he didn’t subject the world to come, of which we speak, to angels. But one has somewhere testified, saying,
“What is man, that you think of him?
Or the son of man, that you care for him?
You made him a little lower than the angels.
You crowned him with glory and honour.
You have put all things in subjection under his feet.”
For in that he subjected all things to him, he left nothing that is not subject to him. But now we don’t yet see all things subjected to him. But we see him who has been made a little lower than the angels, Jesus, because of the suffering of death crowned with glory and honour, that by the grace of God he should taste of death for everyone.
Silence may be kept.
The Magnificat (The Song of Mary)
Luke 1:46-55
Refrain:
Come, let us return to the LORD,
for our God will freely pardon.
My soul magnifies the Lord.
My spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior,
for he has looked at the humble state 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.
Holy is his name.
His mercy is for generations and generations on those who fear him.
He has shown strength with his arm.
He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
He has put down princes from their thrones,
and has exalted the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things.
He has sent the rich away empty.
He has given help to Israel, his servant, that he might remember mercy,
as he spoke to our fathers,
to Abraham and his offspring 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.
Refrain:
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
God of grace,
hear our prayer.
Silence may be kept.
Collect of the day
Almighty God,
you show to those who are in error the light of your truth,
that they may return to the way of righteousness:
grant to all those who are admitted
into the fellowship of Christ’s religion,
that they may reject those things
that are contrary to their profession,
and follow all such things as are agreeable to the same;
through our Lord 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
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.
Monday evening March 6
Photo by Miki Czetti via Pexels.
Opening response
Hurry, God, to deliver us.
LORD, come quickly to help us.
Hear our voice according to your loving kindness.
Revive us, LORD, according to your ordinances.
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
Father, By Saints on Earth Adored
Charles Wesley
Father, by saints on earth adored,
By saints beyond the skies
Accept through Jesus Christ our Lord
Our evening sacrifice
If kept today from willful sin
We magnify thy grace:
Thou hast our kind preserver been,
And thine be all the praise
We live to testify the grace
Which sure salvation brings;
And sink tonight in thine embrace,
And rest beneath thy wings
But whether, Lord, we wake or sleep,
(The charge of love divine)
We trust thy providence to keep
Our souls forever thine
Confession of sin
Come, Holy Spirit of God,
and search our hearts with the light of Christ.
Our Lord Jesus Christ said:
The first commandment is this:
‘Hear, Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one.
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart,
with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’
The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbour as yourself.’
No other commandment is greater than these.
The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments.
Amen. Lord, have mercy.
After a period of reflection
Come, let us return to the Lord and say:
Lord our God,
in our sin we have avoided your call.
Our love for you is like a morning cloud,
like the dew that disappears early.
Have mercy on us;
deliver us from judgment;
bind up our wounds and revive us;
in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
cf Hosea 6
May almighty God,
who sent his Son into the world to save sinners,
bring us his pardon and peace, now and forever.
Amen.
Psalm 70
Refrain:
Let all those who seek you rejoice and be glad in you.
Hurry, God, to deliver me.
Come quickly to help me, LORD.
Let them be disappointed and confounded who seek my soul.
Let those who desire my ruin be turned back in disgrace.
Let them be turned because of their shame
who say, “Aha! Aha!”
Let all those who seek you rejoice and be glad in you.
Let those who love your salvation continually say,
“Let God be exalted!”
But I am poor and needy.
Come to me quickly, God.
You are my help and my deliverer.
LORD, don’t delay.
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.
Refrain:
Let all those who seek you rejoice and be glad in you.
Psalm prayer
O God, our helper and defender,
deliver us in our weakness,
answer our longings
and vindicate our faith,
that we may see your glory
in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Psalm 74
Refrain:
God is my King of old,
working salvation throughout the earth.
God, why have you rejected us forever?
Why does your anger smoulder against the sheep of your pasture?
Remember your congregation, which you purchased of old,
which you have redeemed to be the tribe of your inheritance:
Mount Zion, in which you have lived.
Lift up your feet to the perpetual ruins,
all the evil that the enemy has done in the sanctuary.
Your adversaries have roared in the middle of your assembly.
They have set up their standards as signs.
They behaved like men wielding axes,
cutting through a thicket of trees.
Now they break all its carved work down with hatchet and hammers.
They have burnt your sanctuary to the ground.
They have profaned the dwelling place of your Name.
They said in their heart, “We will crush them completely.”
They have burnt up all the places in the land where God was worshipped.
We see no miraculous signs.
There is no longer any prophet,
neither is there amongst us anyone who knows how long.
How long, God, shall the adversary reproach?
Shall the enemy blaspheme your name forever?
Why do you draw back your hand, even your right hand?
Take it from your chest and consume them!
Yet God is my King of old,
working salvation throughout the earth.
You divided the sea by your strength.
You broke the heads of the sea monsters in the waters.
You broke the heads of Leviathan in pieces.
You gave him as food to people and desert creatures.
You opened up spring and stream.
You dried up mighty rivers.
The day is yours, the night is also yours.
You have prepared the light and the sun.
You have set all the boundaries of the earth.
You have made summer and winter.
Remember this, that the enemy has mocked you, LORD.
Foolish people have blasphemed your name.
Don’t deliver the soul of your dove to wild beasts.
Don’t forget the life of your poor forever.
Honour your covenant,
for haunts of violence fill the dark places of the earth.
Don’t let the oppressed return ashamed.
Let the poor and needy praise your name.
Arise, God! Plead your own cause.
Remember how the foolish man mocks you all day.
Don’t forget the voice of your adversaries.
The tumult of those who rise up against you ascends continually.
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.
Refrain:
God is my King of old,
working salvation throughout the earth.
Psalm prayer
Redeeming God,
renew your broken people
with your Holy Spirit,
that they may walk your narrow way,
and greet your coming dawn
in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Old Testament reading
Genesis 43:16-34
When Joseph saw Benjamin with them, he said to the steward of his house, “Bring the men into the house, and butcher an animal, and prepare; for the men will dine with me at noon.”
The man did as Joseph commanded, and the man brought the men to Joseph’s house. The men were afraid, because they were brought to Joseph’s house; and they said, “Because of the money that was returned in our sacks the first time, we’re brought in; that he may seek occasion against us, attack us, and seize us as slaves, along with our donkeys.” They came near to the steward of Joseph’s house, and they spoke to him at the door of the house, and said, “Oh, my lord, we indeed came down the first time to buy food. When we came to the lodging place, we opened our sacks, and behold, each man’s money was in the mouth of his sack, our money in full weight. We have brought it back in our hand. We have brought down other money in our hand to buy food. We don’t know who put our money in our sacks.”
He said, “Peace be to you. Don’t be afraid. Your God, and the God of your father, has given you treasure in your sacks. I received your money.” He brought Simeon out to them. The man brought the men into Joseph’s house, and gave them water, and they washed their feet. He gave their donkeys fodder. They prepared the present for Joseph’s coming at noon, for they heard that they should eat bread there.
When Joseph came home, they brought him the present which was in their hand into the house, and bowed themselves down to the earth before him. He asked them of their welfare, and said, “Is your father well, the old man of whom you spoke? Is he yet alive?”
They said, “Your servant, our father, is well. He is still alive.” They bowed down humbly. He lifted up his eyes, and saw Benjamin, his brother, his mother’s son, and said, “Is this your youngest brother, of whom you spoke to me?” He said, “God be gracious to you, my son.” Joseph hurried, for his heart yearned over his brother; and he sought a place to weep. He entered into his room, and wept there. He washed his face, and came out. He controlled himself, and said, “Serve the meal.”
They served him by himself, and them by themselves, and the Egyptians who ate with him by themselves, because the Egyptians don’t eat with the Hebrews, for that is an abomination to the Egyptians. They sat before him, the firstborn according to his birthright, and the youngest according to his youth, and the men marvelled with one another. He sent portions to them from before him, but Benjamin’s portion was five times as much as any of theirs. They drank, and were merry with him.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
Hebrews 1
God, having in the past spoken to the fathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, has at the end of these days spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom also he made the worlds. His Son is the radiance of his glory, the very image of his substance, and upholding all things by the word of his power, who, when he had by himself purified us of our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much better than the angels as the more excellent name he has inherited is better than theirs.
For to which of the angels did he say at any time,
“You are my Son.
Today I have become your father?”
and again,
“I will be to him a Father,
and he will be to me a Son?”
When he again brings in the firstborn into the world he says, “Let all the angels of God worship him.”
Of the angels he says,
“He makes his angels winds,
and his servants a flame of fire.”
But of the Son he says,
“Your throne, O God, is forever and ever.
The sceptre of uprightness is the sceptre of your Kingdom.
You have loved righteousness and hated iniquity;
therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness above your fellows.”
And,
“You, Lord, in the beginning, laid the foundation of the earth.
The heavens are the works of your hands.
They will perish, but you continue.
They all will grow old like a garment does.
You will roll them up like a mantle,
and they will be changed;
but you are the same.
Your years won’t fail.”
But which of the angels has he told at any time,
“Sit at my right hand,
until I make your enemies the footstool of your feet?”
Aren’t they all serving spirits, sent out to do service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation?
Silence may be kept.
The Magnificat (The Song of Mary)
Luke 1:46-55
Refrain:
Come, let us return to the LORD,
for our God will freely pardon.
My soul magnifies the Lord.
My spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior,
for he has looked at the humble state 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.
Holy is his name.
His mercy is for generations and generations on those who fear him.
He has shown strength with his arm.
He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
He has put down princes from their thrones,
and has exalted the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things.
He has sent the rich away empty.
He has given help to Israel, his servant, that he might remember mercy,
as he spoke to our fathers,
to Abraham and his offspring 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.
Refrain:
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
Lord of life
In your mercy, hear us.
Silence may be kept.
Collect of the day
Almighty God,
you show to those who are in error the light of your truth,
that they may return to the way of righteousness:
grant to all those who are admitted
into the fellowship of Christ’s religion,
that they may reject those things
that are contrary to their profession,
and follow all such things as are agreeable to the same;
through our Lord 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
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.
