Tuesday morning December 18
Wednesday morning
Monday morning
Preparation
Opening response
Lord, open our lips
and our mouth will proclaim your praise.
Reveal among us the light of your presence
that we may behold your power and glory.
Prayer of thanksgiving
Blessed are you, Sovereign God of all,
to you be praise and glory forever.
In your tender compassion
the dawn from on high is breaking upon us
to dispel the lingering shadows of night.
As we look for your coming among us this day,
open our eyes to behold your presence
and strengthen our hands to do your will,
that the world may rejoice and give you praise.
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
The Great Archangel's Trump Shall Sound
Charles Wesley
The great archangel's trump shall sound,
While twice ten thousand thunders roar
Tear up the graves, and cleave the ground,
And make the greedy sea restore.
The greedy sea shall yield her dead,
The earth no more her slain conceal;
Sinners shall lift their guilty head,
And shrink to see a yawning hell.
But we, who now our Lord confess,
And faithful to the end endure,
Shall stand in Jesus’ righteousness,
Stand, as the Rock of ages, sure.
We, while the stars from heaven shall fall,
And mountains are on mountains hurled,
Shall stand unmoved amidst them all,
And smile to see a burning world.
The earth, and all the works therein,
Dissolve, by raging flames destroyed,
While we survey the awful scene,
And mount above the fiery void.
By faith we now transcend the skies,
And on that ruined world look down;
By love above all height we rise,
And share the everlasting throne.
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 70
Hurry, God, to deliver me;
hurry, Lord, to help me!
Let those who seek my life be ashamed and humiliated!
Let them fall back and be disgraced—
those people who delight in my downfall!
Let those who say, “Aha! Aha!”
stop because of their shameful behavior.
But let all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you,
and let those who love your saving help say again and again:
“God is great!”
But me? I’m poor and needy.
Hurry to me, God!
You are my helper and my deliverer.
Oh, 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.
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
God, why have you abandoned us forever?
Why does your anger smolder
at the sheep of your own pasture?
Remember your congregation
that you took as your own long ago,
that you redeemed to be the tribe of your own possession—
remember Mount Zion, where you dwell.
March to the unending ruins,
to all that the enemy destroyed in the sanctuary.
Your enemies roared in your own meeting place;
they set up their own signs there!
It looked like axes raised
against a thicket of trees.
And then all its carvings
they hacked down with hatchet and pick.
They set fire to your sanctuary, burned it to the ground;
they defiled the dwelling place of your name.
They said in their hearts, We’ll kill all of them together!
They burned all of God’s meeting places in the land.
We don’t see our own signs anymore.
No prophet is left.
And none of us know how long it will last.
How long, God, will foes insult you?
Are enemies going to abuse your name forever?
Why do you pull your hand back?
Why do you hold your strong hand close to your chest?
Yet God has been my king from ancient days—
God, who makes salvation happen in the heart of the earth!
You split the sea with your power.
You shattered the heads of the sea monsters on the water.
You crushed Leviathan’s heads.
You gave it to the desert dwellers for food!
You split open springs and streams;
you made strong-flowing rivers dry right up.
The day belongs to you! The night too!
You established both the moon and the sun.
You set all the boundaries of the earth in place.
Summer and winter? You made them!
So remember this, Lord:
how enemies have insulted you,
how unbelieving fools have abused your name.
Don’t deliver the life of your dove to wild animals!
Don’t forget the lives of your afflicted people forever!
Consider the covenant!
Because the land’s dark places are full of violence.
Don’t let the oppressed live in shame.
No, let the poor and needy praise your name!
God, rise up! Make your case!
Remember how unbelieving fools insult you all day long.
Don’t forget the voices of your enemies,
the racket of your adversaries that never quits.
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
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
Isaiah 50
The Lord says:
Where’s your mother’s divorce decree,
with which I sent her away?
Or to which lender did I sell you?
On account of your sins you were sold;
on account of your transgressions
your mother was sent away.
Why did I come and find no one?
Why did I call when no one answered?
Is my hand too small to redeem you?
Don’t I have enough power to save?
With my rebuke I dry up the sea
and make the rivers into wilderness.
Their fish stink from lack of water;
they die of thirst.
I clothe the heavens with darkness
and cover them with funeral clothing.
The Lord God gave me an educated tongue
to know how to respond to the weary
with a word that will awaken them in the morning.
God awakens my ear in the morning to listen,
as educated people do.
The Lord God opened my ear;
I didn’t rebel; I didn’t turn my back.
Instead, I gave my body to attackers,
and my cheeks to beard pluckers.
I didn’t hide my face
from insults and spitting.
The Lord God will help me;
therefore, I haven’t been insulted.
Therefore, I set my face like flint,
and knew I wouldn’t be ashamed.
The one who will declare me innocent is near.
Who will argue with me?
Let’s stand up together.
Who will bring judgment against me?
Let him approach me.
Look! The Lord God will help me.
Who will condemn me?
Look, they will wear out like clothing;
the moth will eat them.
Who among you fears the Lord?
Who listens to the voice of his servant,
who walks in darkness
and has no light?
They will trust in the Lord’s name,
and rely upon their God.
Look! All of you are kindling fire,
igniting torches.
Walk by the light of your fire,
by the torches you have ignited.
This is what will happen to you by my hand:
you will lie down in grief.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
1 Thessalonians 5:12-28
Brothers and sisters, we ask you to respect those who are working with you, leading you, and instructing you. Think of them highly with love because of their work. Live in peace with each other. Brothers and sisters, we urge you to warn those who are disorderly. Comfort the discouraged. Help the weak. Be patient with everyone. Make sure no one repays a wrong with a wrong, but always pursue the good for each other and everyone else. Rejoice always. Pray continually. Give thanks in every situation because this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. Don’t suppress the Spirit. Don’t brush off Spirit-inspired messages, but examine everything carefully and hang on to what is good. Avoid every kind of evil. Now, may the God of peace himself cause you to be completely dedicated to him; and may your spirit, soul, and body be kept intact and blameless at our Lord Jesus Christ’s coming. The one who is calling you is faithful and will do this.
Brothers and sisters, pray for us. Greet all the brothers and sisters with a holy kiss. By the Lord’s authority, I order all of you to have this letter read aloud to all the brothers and sisters. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with all of you.
Silence may be kept.
Gospel canticle
The Benedictus (The Song of Zechariah)
Refrain:
You have shown the mercy promised to our ancestors, and remembered your holy covenant.
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 shown the mercy promised to our ancestors, and remembered your holy covenant.
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 church, that she may be ready for the coming of Christ
The leaders of the church
The nations, that they may be subject to the rule of God
Those who are working for justice in the world
The broken, that they may find God’s healing
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
O Lord Jesus Christ,
who at your first coming sent your messenger
to prepare your way before you:
grant that the ministers and stewards of your mysteries
may likewise so prepare and make ready your way
by turning the hearts of the disobedient to the wisdom of the just,
that at your second coming to judge the world
we may be found an acceptable people in your sight;
for you are alive and reign with the Father
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever.
Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer
Awaiting his coming in glory, 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 Lord, when he comes, find us watching and waiting.
Amen.