Friday morning May 5

Saturday morning
Thursday morning

Preparation

Opening response

Lord, open our lips
and our mouth will proclaim your praise.

In your resurrection, O Christ,
let heaven and earth rejoice. Alleluia.

Prayer of thanksgiving

Blessed are you, Lord God of our salvation,
to you be praise and glory forever.
As once you ransomed your people from Egypt
and led them to freedom in the promised land,
so now you have delivered us from the dominion of darkness
and brought us into the kingdom of your risen Son.
May we, the first fruits of your new creation,
rejoice in this new day you have made,
and praise you for your mighty acts.
Blessed be God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Blessed be God forever.

The night has passed, and the day lies open before us;
let us pray with one heart and mind.

Silence is kept.

As we rejoice in the gift of this new day,
so may the light of your presence, O God,
set our hearts on fire with love for you;
now and forever.
Amen.

Hymn

Draw Near, O Son of God, Draw Near

Charles Wesley
           
Draw near, O Son of God, draw near,
Us with thy flaming eye behold;
Still in thy church vouchsafe to appear,
And let our candlestick be gold.

Still hold the stars in thy right hand,
And let them in thy luster glow,
The lights of a benighted land,
The angels of thy church below.

Make good their apostolic boast,
Their high commission let them prove,
Be temples of the Holy Ghost,
And filled with faith, and hope, and love.

Their hearts from things of earth remove,
Sprinkle them, Lord, from sin and fear;
Fix their affections all above,
And lay up all their treasures there.

Give them an ear to hear thy word;
Thou speakest to the churches now:
And let all tongues confess their Lord,
Let every knee to Jesus bow.

Confession of sin

O King enthroned on high,
filling the earth with your glory:
holy is your name,
Lord God almighty.

A time of silence and self-examination may be kept.

In our sinfulness we cry to you
to take our guilt away,
and to cleanse our lips to speak your word,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

May the God of all healing and forgiveness
draw us to himself,
and cleanse us from all our sins
that we may behold the glory of his Son,
the Word made flesh,
Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

The Word of God

Psalm 107

Refrain:
Give thanks to the Lord because he is good, because his faithful love lasts forever!

“Give thanks to the Lord because he is good,
        because his faithful love lasts forever!”
That’s what those who are redeemed by the Lord say,
    the ones God redeemed from the power of their enemies,
    the ones God gathered from various countries,
    from east and west, north and south.

Some of the redeemed had wandered into the desert, into the wasteland.
    They couldn’t find their way to a city or town.
They were hungry and thirsty;
    their lives were slipping away.
So they cried out to the Lord in their distress,
    and God delivered them from their desperate circumstances.
    God led them straight to human habitation.
Let them thank the Lord for his faithful love
    and his wondrous works for all people,
    because God satisfied the one who was parched with thirst,
    and he filled up the hungry with good things!

Some of the redeemed had been sitting in darkness and deep gloom;
    they were prisoners suffering in chains
    because they had disobeyed God’s instructions
    and rejected the Most High’s plans.
So God humbled them with hard work.
    They stumbled, and there was no one to help them.
So they cried out to the Lord in their distress,
    and God saved them from their desperate circumstances.
God brought them out from the darkness and deep gloom;
    he shattered their chains.
Let them thank the Lord for his faithful love
    and his wondrous works for all people,
    because God has shattered bronze doors
    and split iron bars in two!

Some of the redeemed were fools because of their sinful ways.
    They suffered because of their wickedness.
They had absolutely no appetite for food;
    they had arrived at death’s gates.
So they cried out to the Lord in their distress,
    and God saved them from their desperate circumstances.
God gave the order and healed them;
    he rescued them from their pit.
Let them thank the Lord for his faithful love
    and his wondrous works for all people.
Let them offer thanksgiving sacrifices
    and declare what God has done in songs of joy!

Some of the redeemed had gone out on the ocean in ships,
    making their living on the high seas.
They saw what the Lord had made;
    they saw his wondrous works in the depths of the sea.
God spoke and stirred up a storm
    that brought the waves up high.
The waves went as high as the sky;
    they crashed down to the depths.
The sailors’ courage melted at this terrible situation.
    They staggered and stumbled around like they were drunk.
    None of their skill was of any help.
So they cried out to the Lord in their distress,
    and God brought them out safe from their desperate circumstances.
God quieted the storm to a whisper;
    the sea’s waves were hushed.
So they rejoiced because the waves had calmed down;
    then God led them to the harbor they were hoping for.
Let them thank the Lord for his faithful love
    and his wondrous works for all people.
Let them exalt God in the congregation of the people
    and praise God in the assembly of the elders.

God turns rivers into desert,
    watery springs into thirsty ground,
    fruitful land into unproductive dirt,
        when its inhabitants are wicked.
But God can also turn the desert into watery pools,
    thirsty ground into watery springs,
    where he settles the hungry.
They even build a city and live there!
    They plant fields and vineyards
    and obtain a fruitful harvest.
God blesses them, and they become many.
    God won’t even let their cattle diminish.
But when they do diminish—
    when they’re brought down by oppression, trouble, and grief—
    God pours contempt on their leaders,
        making them wander aimlessly in the wastelands.
But God raises the needy from their suffering;
    he makes their families as numerous as sheep!

Those who do right see it and celebrate,
    but every wicked person shuts their mouth.
Whoever is wise will pay attention to these things,
    carefully considering the Lord’s faithful love.

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:
Give thanks to the Lord because he is good, because his faithful love lasts forever!

Psalm prayer

O living Christ,
rescue us from foolish passion
and still the storms of our self-will;
and, as you are our anchor in this life,
so bring us to the haven you have prepared for us;
for your mercy’s sake.

Old Testament reading
Deuteronomy 7:12-26

If you listen to these case laws and follow them carefully, the Lord your God will keep the covenant and display the loyalty that he promised your ancestors. He will love you, bless you, and multiply you. He will bless the fruit of your wombs and the fruit of your fertile land—all your grain, your wine, your oil, and the offspring of your cattle and flocks—upon the very fertile land that he swore to your ancestors to give to you. You will be more blessed than any other group of people. No one will be sterile or infertile—not among you or your animals. The Lord will remove all sickness from you. As for all those dreadful Egyptian diseases you experienced, the Lord won’t put them on you but will inflict them on all who hate you. You will destroy all the peoples that the Lord your God is handing over to you. Show them no pity. And don’t serve their gods because that would be a trap for you.

If you happen to think to yourself, These nations are greater than we are; how can we possibly possess their land? don’t be afraid of them! Remember, instead, what the Lord your God did to Pharaoh and all Egypt: the great trials that you saw with your own eyes, the signs and wonders, and the strong hand and outstretched arm the Lord your God used to rescue you. That’s what the Lord your God will do to any people you fear. The Lord your God will send terror on them until even the survivors and those hiding from you are destroyed. Don’t dread these nations because the Lord your God, the great and awesome God, is with you and among you. (The Lord your God will drive out these nations before you bit by bit. You won’t be able to finish them off quickly; otherwise, the wild animals would become too much for you to handle.) The Lord your God will lay these nations before you, throwing them into a huge panic until they are destroyed. He will hand their kings over to you, and you will wipe their names out from under the skies. No one will be able to stand before you; you will crush them.

Burn the images of their gods. Don’t desire the silver or the gold that is on them and take it for yourself, or you will be trapped by it. That is detestable to the Lord your God. Don’t bring any detestable thing into your house, or you will be placed under the ban too, just like it is! You must utterly detest these kinds of things, despising them completely, because they are under the ban.

Silence may be kept.

New Testament reading
Ephesians 3:1-13

This is why I, Paul, am a prisoner of Christ for you Gentiles.

You’ve heard, of course, about the responsibility to distribute God’s grace, which God gave to me for you, right? God showed me his secret plan in a revelation, as I mentioned briefly before (when you read this, you’ll understand my insight into the secret plan about Christ). Earlier generations didn’t know this hidden plan that God has now revealed to his holy apostles and prophets through the Spirit. This plan is that the Gentiles would be coheirs and parts of the same body, and that they would share with the Jews in the promises of God in Christ Jesus through the gospel. I became a servant of the gospel because of the grace that God showed me through the exercise of his power.

God gave his grace to me, the least of all God’s people, to preach the good news about the immeasurable riches of Christ to the Gentiles. God sent me to reveal the secret plan that had been hidden since the beginning of time by God, who created everything. God’s purpose is now to show the rulers and powers in the heavens the many different varieties of his wisdom through the church. This was consistent with the plan he had from the beginning of time that he accomplished through Christ Jesus our Lord. In Christ we have bold and confident access to God through faith in him. So then, I ask you not to become discouraged by what I’m suffering for you, which is your glory.

Silence may be kept.

Gospel canticle
The Benedictus (The Song of Zechariah)

Refrain: 
The Lord is risen from the tomb who for our sakes hung upon the tree. Alleluia.

Bless the Lord God of Israel
because he has come to help and has delivered his people.
He has raised up a mighty savior for us in his servant David’s house,
just as he said through the mouths of his holy prophets long ago.
He has brought salvation from our enemies
and from the power of all those who hate us.
He has shown the mercy promised to our ancestors,
and remembered his holy covenant,
the solemn pledge he made to our ancestor Abraham.
He has granted that we would be rescued
from the power of our enemies
so that we could serve him without fear,
in holiness and righteousness in God’s eyes,
for as long as we live.
You, child, will be called a prophet of the Most High,
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way.
You will tell his people how to be saved
through the forgiveness of their sins.
Because of our God’s deep compassion,
the dawn from heaven will break upon us,
to give light to those who are sitting in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
to guide us on the path of peace.”

Luke 1:68-79

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 Lord is risen from the tomb who for our sakes hung upon the tree. Alleluia.

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.

Prayers

Intercession and thanksgiving

Prayers may be offered for:

the day and its tasks
the world and its needs
the church and her life

Prayers may include the following concerns:

The people of God, that they may proclaim the risen Lord
God’s creation, that the peoples of the earth may meet their responsibility to care
Those in despair and darkness, that they may find the hope and light of Christ
Those in fear of death, that they may find faith through the resurrection
Prisoners and captives

Other intercessions and supplications may be offered as the Holy Spirit leads.

Response

Lord, in your mercy
hear our prayer.

Silence may be kept.

Collect of the day

Almighty Father,
who in your great mercy gladdened the disciples
   with the sight of the risen Lord:
give us such knowledge of his presence with us,
that we may be strengthened and sustained by his risen life
and serve you continually in righteousness and truth;
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

Rejoicing in God’s new creation, 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 the risen Christ grant us the joys of eternal life.
Amen.