Sunday morning May 3

Monday morning
Saturday 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

The Lord is King and Earth Submits

Charles Wesley
           
The Lord is King, and earth submits,
However impatient, to his sway,
Between the cherubim he sits,
And makes his restless foes obey.

All power is to our Jesus given,
Over earth's rebellious sons he reigns;
He mildly rules the hosts of heaven,
And holds the powers of hell in chains.

In vain doth Satan rage his hour,
Beyond his chain he cannot go;
Our Jesus shall stir up his power,
And soon avenge us of our foe.

Jesus shall his great arm reveal;
Jesus, the woman's conquering seed,
Though now the Serpent bruise his heel
Jesus shall bruise the Serpent's head.

The enemy his tares hath sown,
But Christ shall shortly root them up,
Shall cast the dire accuser down,
And disappoint his children's hope;

Shall still the proud Philistine's noise,
Baffle the sons of unbelief,
Nor long permit them to rejoice,
But turn their triumph into grief.

Come, glorious Lord, the rebels spurn,
Scatter thy foes, victorious King!
And Gath and Askelon shall mourn,
And all the sons of God shall sing;

Shall magnify the sovereign grace
Of him that sits upon the throne;
And earth and heaven conspire to praise
Jehovah and his conquering Son.

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.

The Word of God

Psalm 106:6-24

Refrain:
The Lord remembered his covenant.

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.

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 remembered his covenant.

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
Nehemiah 9:6-15

You alone are the Lord.
        You alone made heaven, even the heaven of heavens, with all their forces.
        You made the earth and all that is on it, and the seas and all that is in them.
            You preserve them all, and the heavenly forces worship you.
Lord God, you are the one who chose Abram.
        You brought him out of Ur of the Chaldeans and gave him the name Abraham.
        You found him to be faithful before you,
            and you made a covenant with him.
You promised to give to his descendants the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites,
        the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, and the Girgashites.
And you have kept your promise because you are righteous.
You saw the affliction of our ancestors in Egypt
        and heard their cry at the Reed Sea.
You performed signs and wonders against Pharaoh,
        all his servants, and the people of his land.
    You knew that they had acted arrogantly against our ancestors.
        You made a name for yourself, a name that is famous even today.
You divided the sea before them so that they went through it on dry land.
        But you cast their pursuers into the depths,
            as a stone into the mighty waters.
With a pillar of cloud you led them by day
        and with a column of lightning by night;
            they lit the way in which the people should go.
You came down upon Mount Sinai and spoke with them from heaven.
        You gave them proper judgments and true Instruction,
            good statutes and commandments.
        You made known to them your holy Sabbath,
            and gave them commandments, statutes, and Instruction through your servant Moses.
When they were hungry, you gave them bread from heaven;
        when they were thirsty, you brought water out of the rock for them.
You told them to go in to possess the land that you had sworn to give them.

Silence may be kept.

New Testament reading
1 Corinthians 10:1-13

Brothers and sisters, I want you to be sure of the fact that our ancestors were all under the cloud and they all went through the sea. All were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. All ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink. They drank from a spiritual rock that followed them, and the rock was Christ. However, God was unhappy with most of them, and they were struck down in the wilderness. These things were examples for us, so we won’t crave evil things like they did. Don’t worship false gods like some of them did, as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink and they got up to play. Let’s not practice sexual immorality, like some of them did, and twenty-three thousand died in one day. Let’s not test Christ, like some of them did, and were killed by the snakes. Let’s not grumble, like some of them did, and were killed by the destroyer. These things happened to them as an example and were written as a warning for us to whom the end of time has come. So those who think they are standing need to watch out or else they may fall. No temptation has seized you that isn’t common for people. But God is faithful. He won’t allow you to be tempted beyond your abilities. Instead, with the temptation, God will also supply a way out so that you will be able to endure it.

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

Loving God, we look to you.
Receive our prayer.

Silence may be kept.

Collect of the day

Almighty God,
whose Son Jesus Christ is the resurrection and the life:
raise us, who trust in him,
from the death of sin to the life of righteousness,
that we may seek those things which are above,
where he 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.