Tuesday morning September 5

Wednesday morning
Monday morning

Preparation

Opening response

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

Prayer of thanksgiving

Blessed are you, Sovereign God, creator of all,
to you be glory and praise forever.
You founded the earth in the beginning
and the heavens are the work of your hands.
In the fullness of time you made us in your image,
and in these last days you have spoken to us
in your Son Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh.
As we rejoice in the gift of your presence among us
let the light of your love always shine in our hearts,
your Spirit ever renew our lives
and your praises ever be on our lips.
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

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

Come, Holy Spirit of God,
and search our hearts with the light of Christ.

Our Lord Jesus Christ said:
The first commandment is this:
‘Israel, listen! Our God is the one Lord, 
and you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, 
with all your being, with all your mind, 
and with all your strength.’

The second is this: ‘You must love your neighbor as yourself.’
No other commandment is greater than these.
All the 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 goes away 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.

The Word of God

Psalm 106

Refrain:
Bless the Lord, the God of Israel, from forever ago to forever from now!

Praise the Lord!
    Give thanks to the Lord because he is good,
    because his faithful love endures forever.
Who could possibly repeat all of the Lord’s mighty acts
    or publicly recount all his praise?

The people who uphold justice,
    who always do what is right, are truly happy!
Remember me, Lord, with the favor you show your people.
    Visit me with your saving help
        so I can experience the good things your chosen ones experience,
        so I can rejoice in the joy of your nation,
        so I can praise along with your possession.

We have sinned—right along with our ancestors.
    We’ve done what is wrong.
    We’ve acted wickedly.
Our ancestors in Egypt didn’t understand your wondrous works.
    They didn’t remember how much faithful love you have.
    So they rebelled by the sea—at the Reed Sea.
But God saved them for the sake of his good name,
    to make known his mighty power.
God scolded the Reed Sea, and it dried right up;
    he led them through the deeps like they were a dry desert.
God saved them from hostile powers;
    he redeemed them from the power of the enemy.
But the waters covered over their foes—
    not one of them survived!
So our ancestors trusted God’s words;
    they sang God’s praise.

But how quickly they forgot what he had done!
    They wouldn’t wait for his advice.
They were overcome with craving in the desert;
    they tested God in the wastelands.
God gave them what they asked for;
    he sent food to satisfy their appetites.

But then they were jealous of Moses in the camp,
    jealous too of Aaron, the Lord’s holy one.
So the earth opened up, swallowing Dathan,
    and covering over Abiram’s crowd.
Fire blazed throughout that whole group;
    flames burned up the wicked.

They made a calf at Horeb,
    bowing down to a metal idol.
They traded their glorious God
    for an image of a bull that eats grass.
They forgot the God who saved them—
    the one who had done great things in Egypt,
    wondrous works in the land of Ham,
    awesome deeds at the Reed Sea.
So God determined that he would destroy them—
    except for the fact that Moses, his chosen one,
    stood in the way, right in front of him,
    and turned God’s destructive anger away.

But then they rejected the land that was so desirable.
    They didn’t trust God’s promise.
They muttered in their tents
    and wouldn’t listen to the Lord’s voice.
So God raised his hand against them,
    making them fall in the desert,
    scattering their offspring among the nations,
    casting them across many lands.

They joined themselves to Baal-peor
    and ate sacrifices offered to the dead.
They made God angry by what they did,
    so a plague broke out against them.
Then Phinehas stood up and prayed,
    and the plague was contained.
That’s why Phinehas is considered righteous,
    generation after generation, forever.

But they angered God at Meribah’s waters,
    and things went badly for Moses because of them,
    because they made him bitter
    so that he spoke rashly with his lips.

They didn’t destroy the nations
    as the Lord had ordered them to do.
Instead, they got mixed up with the nations,
    learning what they did
    and serving those false gods,
    which became a trap for them.
They sacrificed their own sons and daughters to demons!
They shed innocent blood,
        the blood of their own sons and daughters—
    the ones they sacrificed to Canaan’s false gods—
        so the land was defiled by the bloodshed.
They made themselves unclean by what they did; they prostituted themselves by their actions.

So the Lord’s anger burned against his people;
    he despised his own possession.
God handed them over to the nations;
    people who hated them ruled over them.
Their enemies oppressed them,
    and they were humbled under their power.
God delivered them numerous times,
    but they were determined to rebel,
    and so they were brought down by their own sin.
But God saw their distress
    when he heard their loud cries.
God remembered his covenant for their sake,
    and because of how much faithful love he has,
    God changed his mind.
God allowed them to receive compassion
    from all their captors.

Lord our God, save us!
    Gather us back together from among all the nations
        so we can give thanks to your holy name
        and rejoice in your praise!

Bless the Lord, the God of Israel,
    from forever ago to forever from now!
    And let all the people say, “Amen!”

Praise the Lord!

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:
Bless the Lord, the God of Israel, from forever ago to forever from now!

Psalm prayer

Holy God,
when our memories blot out your kindness
and we ignore your patient love,
remember us, remake us,
and give to us poor sinners
the rich inheritance of Jesus Christ our Lord.

Old Testament reading
Proverbs 15:18-33

Hotheads stir up conflict,
    but patient people calm down strife.
The path of the lazy is like a hedge of thorns,
    but the way of those who do right is a clear road.
A wise child brings joy to a father,
    but fools despise their mothers.
Folly is joy to those who lack sense,
    but those with understanding walk straight ahead.
Plans fail with no counsel,
    but with many counselors they succeed.
To give an appropriate answer is a joy;
    how good is a word at the right time!
For those with insight, life is an upward path,
    avoiding the grave below.
The Lord snatches away the arrogant one’s house,
    but he preserves the widow’s boundaries.
The Lord detests evil plans,
    but gracious words are pure.
Those who acquire things unjustly gain trouble for their house,
    but those who hate bribes will live.
The righteous heart reflects before answering,
    but the wicked mouth blurts out evil.
The Lord is far from the wicked,
    but he listens to the prayers of the righteous.
Bright eyes give joy to the heart;
    good news strengthens the bones.
The ear that listens to life-giving correction
    dwells among the wise.
Those who refuse discipline despise themselves,
    but those who listen to correction gain understanding.
The fear of the Lord is wise instruction,
    and humility comes before respect.

Silence may be kept.

New Testament reading
Mark 7:1-13

The Pharisees and some legal experts from Jerusalem gathered around Jesus. They saw some of his disciples eating food with unclean hands. (They were eating without first ritually purifying their hands through washing. The Pharisees and all the Jews don’t eat without first washing their hands carefully. This is a way of observing the rules handed down by the elders. Upon returning from the marketplace, they don’t eat without first immersing themselves. They observe many other rules that have been handed down, such as the washing of cups, jugs, pans, and sleeping mats.) So the Pharisees and legal experts asked Jesus, “Why are your disciples not living according to the rules handed down by the elders but instead eat food with ritually unclean hands?”

He replied, “Isaiah really knew what he was talking about when he prophesied about you hypocrites. He wrote,

This people honors me with their lips,
    but their hearts are far away from me.
Their worship of me is empty
    since they teach instructions that are human words.

You ignore God’s commandment while holding on to rules created by humans and handed down to you.” Jesus continued, “Clearly, you are experts at rejecting God’s commandment in order to establish these rules. Moses said, Honor your father and your mother, and The person who speaks against father or mother will certainly be put to death. But you say, ‘If you tell your father or mother, “Everything I’m expected to contribute to you is corban (that is, a gift I’m giving to God),” then you are no longer required to care for your father or mother.’ In this way you do away with God’s word in favor of the rules handed down to you, which you pass on to others. And you do a lot of other things just like that.”

Silence may be kept.

Gospel canticle
The Benedictus (The Song of Zechariah)

Refrain:
You have raised up a mighty savior for us in your servant David’s house.

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:
You have raised up a mighty savior for us in your servant David’s house.

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:

All who are sick in body, mind or spirit
Those in the midst of famine or disaster
Victims of abuse and violence, intolerance and prejudice
Those who are bereaved
All who work in the medical and healing professions

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 and everlasting God,
you are always more ready to hear than we to pray
and to give more than either we desire or deserve:
pour down upon us the abundance of your mercy,
forgiving us those things of which our conscience is afraid
and giving us those good things
      which we are not worthy to ask
but through the merits and mediation
of 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

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

The Lord bless us, and preserve us from all evil, and keep us in eternal life.
Amen.