Sun. morning Mar. 8
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Opening response
O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth will declare your praise.
Hear my voice according to your lovingkindness.
O LORD, give me life according to your judgment.
Prayer of thanksgiving
Blessed are you, God of compassion and mercy, to you be praise and glory forever. In the darkness of our sin, your light breaks forth like the dawn and your healing springs up for deliverance. As we rejoice in the gift of your saving help, sustain us with your bountiful Spirit and open our lips to sing your 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 Sands of Time Are Sinking
Words: Anne R. Cousin (1857)
Music: Chrétien Urhan (1734)
Our Great Redeemer’s Praise (#622)
The sands of time are sinking;
the dawn of heaven breaks;
the summer morn I've sighed for,
the fair sweet morn awakes;
dark, dark has been the midnight,
but dayspring is at hand,
and glory, glory dwelleth
in Emmanuel's land.
O Christ, He is the fountain,
the deep, sweet well of love!
The streams on earth I've tasted;
more deep I'll drink above:
there to an ocean fullness
His mercy doth expand,
and glory, glory dwelleth
in Emmanuel's land.
The bride eyes not her garment,
but her dear bridegroom's face;
I will not gaze at glory,
but on my King of grace;
not at the crown He giveth,
but on His pierced hands;
the Lamb is all the glory
of Emmanuel's land.
Confession of Sin
Let us confess our sins against God and our neighbor.
Silence may be kept.
Most merciful God, we confess that we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done, and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We are truly sorry and we humbly repent. For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, have mercy on us and forgive us; that we may delight in your will, and walk in your ways, to the glory of your name. Amen.
Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us all our sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen us in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep us in eternal life.
Amen.
Psalm 46
God is our refuge and strength,
a very present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth trembles,
though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea,
though its waters roar and foam,
though the mountains shake with its swelling.
There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
the holy dwelling place of the Most High.
God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved;
God will help her when the morning dawns.
The nations raged; the kingdoms were moved;
He uttered His voice; the earth melted.
The LORD of Hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our refuge.
Come, behold the works of the LORD,
who brings desolations on the earth.
He makes wars cease to the end of the earth;
He breaks the bow and shatters the spear;
He burns the chariot in the fire.
Be still, and know that I am God.
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth.
The LORD of Hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our refuge.
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
God of Jacob, when the earth shakes and the nations are in uproar, speak, and let the storm be still; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Old Testament reading
Amos 7:10-17
Then Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent a message to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, “Amos has conspired against you at the very center of the house of Israel. The country cannot endure all his words. For this is what Amos said:
‘Jeroboam will die by the sword,
and Israel will surely be exiled
away from its land.’ ”
So Amaziah said to Amos, “O seer, go, flee back to the land of Judah. Earn your sustenance there, and prophesy there. But do not prophesy any more at Bethel, for it is the king’s sanctuary and a royal temple.”
But Amos answered Amaziah: “I am no prophet, and I am no prophet’s disciple. Rather, I am a herdsman and a dresser of sycamore trees. But the LORD took me away from the flock, and the LORD said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to My people Israel.’ Now therefore hear the word of the LORD: You say,
‘Do not prophesy against Israel,
and do not preach against the house of Isaac.’
“Therefore thus says the LORD:
‘Your wife will be a prostitute in the city,
your sons and daughters will fall by the sword,
and your land will be divided by measuring line;
you yourself will die in an unclean land;
and Israel will surely go into exile
away from its land.’ ”
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
2 Corinthians 1:1-11
Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,
To the church of God which is at Corinth, with all the saints who are in all Achaia:
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Blessed be God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble by the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. As the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also abounds through Christ. If we are afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation, which is effective in enduring the same sufferings which we also suffer. Or if we are comforted, it is for your consolation and salvation. Our hope for you is steadfast, knowing that as you share in the sufferings, so also you will share in the consolation.
For we would not, brothers, have you ignorant of our troubles which came to us in Asia. We were pressured beyond measure, above strength, so that we despaired even of life. We had the sentence of death in ourselves, so that we would not trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead. He delivered us from so great a death and does deliver us. In Him we trust that He will still deliver us, as you help together by praying for us, so that thanks may be given by many on our behalf for the gift bestowed upon us by means of many persons.
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:
Those preparing for baptism and confirmation
Those serving through leadership
Those looking for forgiveness
Those misled by the false gods of this present age
All who are hungry
Other intercessions and supplications may be offered as the Holy Spirit leads.
Response
Lord of life
In your mercy, hear us.
Silence may be kept.
Collect of the day
Almighty God, whose beloved Son did not ascend to joy without first enduring pain, and did not enter into glory before being crucified: Grant us mercy, that as we follow the way of the cross, we may discover it to be the path of true life and lasting peace; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer
Trusting in the compassion of God, 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 God our Redeemer show us compassion and love.
Amen.