Fri. morning Jul. 24
Opening response
O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth will declare your praise.
Prayer of thanksgiving
Blessed are you, Sovereign God, creator of all, to you be glory and praise forever. You founded the earth in the beginning, and the heavens are the work of your hands. In the fullness of time, you made us in your image, and in these last days you have spoken to us in your Son Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh. As we rejoice in the gift of your presence among us, let the light of your love always shine in our hearts, your Spirit ever renew our lives, and your praises ever be on our lips.
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
This Is My Father's World
Confession of Sin
O King enthroned on high, filling the earth with your glory: holy is your name, Lord God Almighty.
A time of silence and self-examination may be kept.
In our sinfulness, we cry to you to take our guilt away, and to cleanse our lips to speak your word, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
May the God of all healing and forgiveness draw us to himself, and cleanse us from all our sins that we may behold the glory of his Son, the Word made flesh, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Psalm 17
𝙍: Deliver me, O LORD, by your hand.
Hear a just cause, O LORD,
attend to my cry;
give ear to my prayer
that is not from deceitful lips.
Let my vindication come from Your presence;
let Your eyes behold the things that are right.
You have tried my heart; You have visited me by night;
You have tested me and found nothing;
I have purposed that my mouth will not transgress.
Concerning the works of men,
by the word of Your lips
I have avoided
the paths of the violent.
Keep my steps in Your paths,
that my footsteps may not slip.
𝙍: Deliver me, O LORD, by your hand.
I have called upon You, for You will answer me, O God;
incline Your ear to me, and hear my words.
Wondrously show Your lovingkindness by Your right hand,
O Savior of those who seek refuge
from their adversaries.
Keep me as the apple of Your eye;
hide me in the shadow of Your wings,
from the wicked who oppress me,
from my deadly enemies who surround me.
𝙍: Deliver me, O LORD, by your hand.
They close their hard hearts;
with their mouths they speak proudly.
They have now surrounded us in our steps;
they have set their eyes to cast me to the ground,
like a lion eager to rip its prey,
and like a young lion lurking in secret places.
𝙍: Deliver me, O LORD, by your hand.
Arise, O LORD! Confront him, cast him down!
Deliver my soul from the wicked by Your sword,
from men by Your hand, O LORD,
from men of the world whose portion is in this life.
You fill their belly with Your treasure;
they are satisfied with children,
and they leave their abundance to their infants.
As for me, I shall behold Your face in righteousness;
I shall be satisfied when I awake in Your likeness.
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: Deliver me, O LORD, by your hand.
Psalm prayer
Generous Lord, deliver us from all envious thoughts, and when we are tempted by the desire for wealth, let us see your face; for your abundance is enough to clothe our lack; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Psalm 19
𝙍: The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes.
The heavens declare the glory of God,
and the firmament shows His handiwork.
Day unto day utters speech,
and night unto night reveals knowledge.
There is no speech nor are there words
where their voice is not heard.
Their voice has gone out through all the earth,
and their words to the end of the world.
In them He has set a tent for the sun,
which is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber,
and rejoices like a strong man to run its race.
Its rising is from one end of the heavens,
and its circuit to the end of them,
and there is nothing hidden from its heat.
𝙍: The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes.
The law of the LORD is perfect,
converting the soul;
the testimony of the LORD is sure,
making wise the simple;
the statutes of the LORD are right,
rejoicing the heart;
the commandment of the LORD is pure,
enlightening the eyes;
the fear of the LORD is clean,
enduring forever;
the decrees of the Lord are true
and righteous altogether.
More to be desired are they than gold,
yes, than much fine gold;
sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.
Moreover by them is Your servant warned,
and in keeping them there is great reward.
𝙍: The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes.
Who can understand his errors?
Cleanse me from secret faults.
Keep back Your servant also from presumptuous sins;
let them not have dominion over me!
Then I will be upright,
and I will be innocent of great transgression.
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
be acceptable in Your sight,
O LORD, my strength and my Redeemer.
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 commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes.
Psalm prayer
Christ, the sun of righteousness, rise in our hearts this day, enfold us in the brightness of your love and bear us at the last to heaven’s horizon; for your love’s sake.
Old Testament reading
1 Samuel 13:5-18
The Philistines gathered together to fight with Israel, thirty thousand chariots and six thousand horsemen, with people like the sand which is on the seashore in multitude. And they came up and camped in Mikmash, east of Beth-aven. When Israel’s fighting men saw that they were in a strait (for the people were distressed), then the people hid themselves in caves, in hollows, among rocks, and in cellars and cisterns. Some of the Hebrews went over Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead.
But as for Saul, he was still in Gilgal, and all the people followed him, trembling. He waited seven days, according to the set time that Samuel had appointed. But Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and the people were scattered from him. Saul said, “Bring here to me the burnt offering and the peace offerings.” Then he offered the burnt offering. When he finished offering the burnt offering, behold, Samuel came. And Saul went out to meet him to greet him.
Samuel said, “What have you done?”
And Saul said, “Because I saw that the people were scattered from me, and that you did not come to the appointed assembly days, and the Philistines are gathering themselves together at Mikmash, therefore I said, ‘The Philistines will come down now upon me to Gilgal, and I have not yet appeased the face of the LORD.’ So I forced myself, and offered the burnt offering.”
Samuel said to Saul, “You have done foolishly. You have not kept the commandment of the LORD your God, which He commanded you. Truly now, the LORD would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. But now your kingdom will not continue. The LORD has sought for Himself a man after His own heart and the LORD has commanded him to be prince over His people, because you have not kept that which the LORD commanded you.”
Samuel arose, and went up from Gilgal to Gibeah of Benjamin. And Saul numbered the people that were present with him, about six hundred men.
Now Saul, and Jonathan his son, and the people that were with them, were staying in Gibeah of Benjamin, but the Philistines encamped in Mikmash. Then raiders came out of the camp of the Philistines in three companies. One company turned to the way that leads to Ophrah, to the land of Shual. And another company turned the way to Beth-horon. And another company turned to the way of the border that looks to the Valley of Zeboyim toward the wilderness.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
Luke 22:63-71
The men who guarded Jesus mocked Him and whipped Him. When they had blindfolded Him, they struck Him on the face and asked Him, “Prophesy! Who struck You?” And many other things they blasphemously spoke against Him.
When day came, the assembly of the elders of the people, both the chief priests and scribes, came together and led Him away to their council, saying, “Are You the Christ? Tell us!”
He said to them, “If I tell you, you will not believe. And if I also question you, you will not answer Me or release Me. From now on the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the power of God.”
They all said, “Are You then the Son of God?”
He said to them, “You truly say that I am.”
Then they said, “What further testimony do we need? We have heard it from His own mouth.”
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:
Political leaders and the armed forces
Peace and justice in the world
Those who work for reconciliation
All whose lives are devastated by war and civil strife
Prisoners, refugees, and homeless people
Other intercessions and supplications may be offered as the Holy Spirit leads.
Response
Father, by your Spirit
Bring in your kingdom.
Silence may be kept.
Collect of the day
Lord of all power and might, the author and giver of all good things: graft in our hearts the love of your name, increase in us true religion, nourish us with all goodness, and of your great mercy keep us in the same; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer
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
The Lord bless us, and preserve us from all evil, and keep us in eternal life.
Amen.