Sun. morning Dec. 21
Opening response
O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth will declare 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 light. 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
Of the Father’s Love Begotten
Words: Aurelius Prudentius (4th century); trans. John Mason Neale (1851)
Music: Plainsong (13th century)
A version of this hymn appears in Our Great Redeemer’s Praise (#166).
Of the Father's love begotten,
Ere the worlds began to be,
He is Alpha and Omega,
He the source, the ending He,
Of the things that are, that have been,
And that future years shall see,
Evermore and evermore.
O that birth forever blessed,
When the virgin, full of grace,
By the Holy Ghost conceiving,
Bore the Savior of our race,
And the babe, the world’s Redeemer,
First revealed his sacred face
Evermore and evermore.
O ye heights of Heav’n adore him!
Angel hosts his praises sing!
All dominions bow before him
And exalt our God and King.
Let no tongue on Earth be silent,
Every voice in concert ring
Evermore and evermore.
Christ! to thee with God the Father,
And O Holy Ghost, to thee,
Hymn and chant and high thanksgiving
And unwearied praises be,
Honor, glory, and dominion,
And eternal victory
Evermore and evermore.
Confession of Sin
Seek the LORD while He may be found,
call upon Him while He is near.
Let the wicked forsake his way,
and the unrighteous man his thoughts;
and let him return to the LORD, and He will have mercy upon him,
and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.
cf Isaiah 55
A time of silence and self-examination may be kept.
Lord God, I have sinned against you; I have done what is evil in your sight. I am sorry and repent. Have mercy on me according to your lovingkindness. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. Renew a right spirit within me, and restore unto me the joy of your salvation, through Jesus Christ my 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 my supplications.
Therefore my heart rejoices,
and with my song I will thank Him.
cf Psalm 28:7,9
Psalm 144
𝙍: Blessed are the people whose God is the LORD.
Blessed be the LORD my rock,
who trains my hands for war,
and my fingers for battle;
my lovingkindness and my fortress,
my high tower and my deliverer,
my shield and He in whom I take refuge,
who subdues my people under me.
LORD, what is man, that You take regard of him?
Or the son of a man, that You are mindful of him?
Man is like a breath;
his days are like a passing shadow.
𝙍: Blessed are the people whose God is the LORD.
Bow your heavens, O LORD, and come down;
touch the mountains, that they may smoke.
Cast forth lightning and scatter them;
shoot out Your arrows and destroy them.
Stretch Your hand from above;
rescue me and deliver me
out of the great waters,
from the hand of foreigners,
whose mouth speaks vain words,
and whose right hand is a right hand of falsehood.
𝙍: Blessed are the people whose God is the LORD.
I will sing a new song to You, O God;
on a harp of ten strings will I sing praises to You,
who gives salvation to kings,
who delivers David His servant from the deadly sword.
Rescue me and deliver me
from the hand of foreigners,
whose mouth speaks lying words
and whose right hand is a right hand of falsehood.
𝙍: Blessed are the people whose God is the LORD.
May our sons in their youth
be like plants fully grown,
our daughters like pillars,
sculptured to adorn a palace;
may our barns be full,
supplying every kind of produce;
may our sheep bring forth
thousands and ten thousands in our fields;
may our cattle be strong in labor,
may there be no breaking in
or going out;
and may there be no outcry in our streets!
Blessed are the people who are in such a state;
blessed are the people whose God is 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.
𝙍: Blessed are the people whose God is the LORD.
Psalm prayer
God our deliverer, stir our weak wills, revive our weary spirits, and give us the courage to strive for the freedom of all your children, to the praise of your glorious name.
Old Testament reading
Micah 5:2-5a
But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,
although you are small among the tribes of Judah,
from you will come forth for Me
one who will be ruler over Israel.
His origins are from of old,
from ancient times.
Therefore He will give them up,
until the time when she who is in labor has given birth,
and the rest of his brothers will return
to the Israelites.
He will stand and shepherd
in the strength of the LORD,
in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God;
then they will live securely, because now He will be great
until the ends of the earth;
and He will be their peace.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
Luke 1:26-38
In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin’s name was Mary. The angel came to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored. The Lord is with you. Blessed are you among women.”
When she saw him, she was troubled by his words, and considered in her mind what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a Son and shall call His name Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest. And the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David, and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever. And of His kingdom there will be no end.”
Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I do not know a man?”
The angel said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you. Therefore the Holy One who will be born will be called the Son of God. And behold, your cousin Elizabeth has also conceived a son in her old age. And this is the sixth month with her who was declared barren. For with God nothing will be impossible.”
Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord. May it be unto me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.
Silence may be kept.
The Benedictus (The Song of Zechariah)
Luke 1:68-79
Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
for He has visited and redeemed His people,
and has raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of His servant David,
as He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets of long ago,
that we should be saved from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us,
to perform the mercy promised to our fathers
and to remember His holy covenant,
the oath which He swore to our father Abraham,
to grant us that we, being delivered out of the hand of our enemies,
might serve Him without fear,
in holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our lives.
And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Highest;
for you will go before the presence of the Lord to prepare His ways,
to give knowledge of salvation to His people
by the remission of their sins,
through the tender mercy of our God,
whereby the sunrise from on high has visited us;
to give light to those who sit in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the way of peace.
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.
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.
He was conceived by the Holy Spirit
and born of the Virgin Mary.
He 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,
and is seated at the
right hand of the Father.
He 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.
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
Father, hear our prayer,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Silence may be kept.
Collect of the day
God our redeemer, who prepared the Blessed Virgin Mary to be the mother of your Son: grant that, as she looked for his coming as our Savior, so we may be ready to greet him when he comes again as our judge; who is alive and reigns with you, 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, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name,
thy kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those
who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
and the power, and the glory,
forever. Amen.
Conclusion
May the Lord, when he comes, find us watching and waiting.
Amen.