Thu. morning Dec. 11
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
Come, Let Us Join Our Friends Above
Music by The Hymnodist: Spotify, Apple, Amazon, iHeart, YouTube Music, Pandora, Boomplay, Deezer
Lyrics by Charles Wesley
Chorus
Come, let us join our friends above
Who have obtained the prize
And on the eagle wings of love
To joys celestial rise
Let saints on earth unite to sing
With those to glory gone
For all the servants of our King
In earth and heaven are one
Verse 1
One family we dwell in Him
One church above, beneath
Though now divided by the stream
The narrow stream of death
One army of the living God
To His command we bow
Part of His host have crossed the flood
And part are crossing now
Chorus
Verse 2
Ten thousand to their endless home
This solemn moment fly
And we are to the margin come
And we expect to die
Even now by faith we join our hands
With those that went before
And greet the blood-besprinkled bands
On the eternal shore
Chorus
Verse 3
Our spirits too shall quickly join
Like theirs with glory crowned
And shout to see our Captain's sign
To hear His trumpet sound
O that we now might grasp our Guide
O that the word were given
Come, Lord of Hosts, the waves divide
And land us all in heaven
Chorus
Confession of Sin
When we cry to the LORD in our trouble,
He will save us from our distress.
God will bring us out of darkness
and out of the shadow of death.
Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
A time of silence and self-examination may be kept.
May the Father forgive us by the death of his Son, and strengthen us to live in the power of the Spirit all our days.
Amen.
Let us give thanks to the LORD for His goodness,
and for His wonderful works to all people!
Let us offer sacrifices of thanksgiving,
and declare God’s works with rejoicing.
cf Psalm 107
Psalm 53
𝙍: The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom.
The fool has said in his heart,
“There is no God.”
They are corrupt, and have committed abominable injustice;
there is none who does good.
God looks down from heaven
on the sons of men
to see if there are any who understand,
who seek after God.
Every one of them has turned aside;
together they have become corrupt;
there is no one who does good,
no, not one.
𝙍: The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom.
Have the workers of iniquity no knowledge,
who eat up my people as they eat bread,
and do not call on God?
There they are, in great fear,
where there is nothing to fear,
for God has scattered the bones of him who encamps against you;
you have put them to shame, because God has rejected them.
Oh, that the salvation of Israel would come from Zion!
When God brings back the captivity of His people,
Jacob will rejoice, and Israel will be glad.
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: The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom.
Psalm prayer
Without you, God, nothing is real, all things are open to corruption and we are deadened by deceit; do not abandon us to our folly, but give us hearts that seek you and, at the last, joy in your heavenly city; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Psalm 54
Save me, O God, by Your name,
and vindicate me by Your strength.
Hear my prayer, O God;
give ear to the words of my mouth.
For strangers have risen against me,
and oppressors seek my life;
they do not set God before them.
Behold, God is my helper;
the Lord is with those who uphold my life.
He will repay my enemies for their evil.
In Your faithfulness, destroy them.
I will sacrifice a freewill offering to You;
I will give thanks to Your name, O LORD, for it is good.
For He has delivered me from every trouble,
and my eye has looked in triumph on my enemies.
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
Living God, reach through the violence of the proud and the despair of the weak to create in Jesus Christ a people free to praise your holy name, now and forever.
Psalm 60
𝙍: Restore us, O God of our salvation.
O God, You have rejected us; You have broken our defenses;
You have been displeased; oh, restore us.
You have made the earth tremble; You have split it open;
heal its breaches, for it is shaking.
You have shown Your people hardship;
You have given us wine to drink that makes us stagger.
You have given a banner to those who fear You,
that they may flee to it from the bow.
That Your beloved may be delivered,
save with Your right hand and answer us!
𝙍: Restore us, O God of our salvation.
God has spoken in His holiness:
“With exultation will I divide Shechem,
and measure out the Valley of Sukkoth.
Gilead is Mine, and Manasseh is Mine;
Ephraim also is My helmet;
Judah is My scepter;
Moab is My wash basin;
upon Edom will I cast My shoe;
Philistia, shout in triumph because of Me.”
𝙍: Restore us, O God of our salvation.
Who will bring me to the fortified city?
Who will lead me to Edom?
Have You not rejected us, O God?
And will You not go forth with our armies, O God?
O grant us help against the adversary,
for vain is the help of man.
With God we shall do valiantly,
for it is He who will tread down our enemies.
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: Restore us, O God of our salvation.
Psalm prayer
Risen Christ, you claim your own among the nations; mend what is broken in us, loving Savior; do not forsake us when we fail, but in your service grant us daring and love; for your name’s sake.
Old Testament reading
Isaiah 32
Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness,
and princes shall rule justly.
A man shall be as a hiding place from the wind,
and a shelter from the tempest,
as rivers of water in a dry place,
as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land.
The eyes of those who see shall not be blinded,
and the ears of those who hear shall listen.
The heart also of the hasty shall understand knowledge,
and the tongue of the stammerers shall be ready to speak plainly.
The vile person shall no more be called noble,
nor the rogue be spoken of as generous;
for the vile person will speak nonsense,
and his heart will work iniquity:
to practice hypocrisy
and to utter error against the LORD,
to keep the hungry unsatisfied
and to withhold drink from the thirsty.
The instruments also of the rogue are evil;
he devises wicked schemes
to destroy the poor with lying words,
even when the needy speaks right.
But the noble devises noble things,
and by noble things he stands.
Rise up, you women who are at ease,
hear my voice;
you careless daughters,
give ear to my speech.
Within a year and a few days
you shall be troubled, you careless daughters;
for the vintage is ended
and the fruit gathering shall not come.
Tremble, you women who are at ease;
be troubled, you careless daughters;
strip, undress,
and put sackcloth on your waist.
Beat your breasts for the pleasant fields,
for the fruitful vine,
for the land of my people
in which thorns and briers shall come up,
yes, for all the joyful houses
and for the jubilant city;
because the palaces have been forsaken,
the populated city is forsaken.
The forts and towers shall be caves forever,
a joy of wild donkeys, a pasture of flocks,
until the Spirit is poured on us from on high,
and the wilderness is a fruitful field,
and the fruitful field is counted as a forest.
Then justice shall dwell in the wilderness,
and righteousness will abide in the fruitful field.
The work of righteousness shall be peace,
and the effect of righteousness, quietness and assurance forever.
My people shall dwell in a peaceable habitation
and in secure dwellings
and in quiet resting places;
and it shall hail when the forest comes down,
and the city shall be utterly laid low.
How blessed are you
who sow beside all waters,
who send out freely the ox and the donkey.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
Matthew 15:21-28
Then Jesus went from there and departed into the regions of Tyre and Sidon. And behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same regions and cried out to Him, saying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David. My daughter is severely possessed by a demon.”
But He did not answer her a word. And His disciples came and begged Him, saying, “Send her away, for she cries out after us.”
But He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”
Then she came and worshipped Him, saying, “Lord, help me.”
But He answered, “It is not fair to take the children’s bread and to throw it to dogs.”
She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.”
Then Jesus answered her, “O woman, great is your faith. Let it be done for you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed instantly.
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
In faith we pray
We pray to you, our God.
Silence may be kept.
Collect of the day
O Lord, raise up, we pray, your power and come among us, and with great might assist us; that whereas, through our sins and wickedness we are grievously hindered in running the race that is set before us, your bountiful grace and mercy may speedily help and deliver us; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, to whom with you and the Holy Spirit, be honor and glory, 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.