Shane Raynor 8/1/23 Shane Raynor 8/1/23

Wednesday morning August 2

Opening response

Lord, open our lips.
Our 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

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

The LORD is merciful and gracious,
slow to anger, and abundant in loving kindness.
He has not dealt with us according to our sins,
nor repaid us for our iniquities.
For as the heavens are high above the earth,
so great is his loving kindness towards those who fear him.

Silence is kept for reflection.

Holy God,
Holy and strong,
Holy and immortal,
have mercy upon us.

As far as the east is from the west,
so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
Like a father has compassion on his children,
so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him.
Praise the LORD, my soul!
All that is within me, praise his holy name!
Praise the LORD, my soul,
and don’t forget all his benefits.

Psalm 34

Refrain:
Oh taste and see that the LORD is good.

I will bless the LORD at all times.
His praise will always be in my mouth.
My soul shall boast in the LORD.
The humble shall hear of it and be glad.
Oh magnify the LORD with me.
Let’s exalt his name together.
I sought the LORD, and he answered me,
and delivered me from all my fears.
They looked to him, and were radiant.
Their faces shall never be covered with shame.
This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him,
and saved him out of all his troubles.
The LORD’s angel encamps around those who fear him,
and delivers them.
Oh taste and see that the LORD is good.
Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.
Oh fear the LORD, you his saints,
for there is no lack with those who fear him.
The young lions do lack, and suffer hunger,
but those who seek the LORD shall not lack any good thing.

Come, you children, listen to me.
I will teach you the fear of the LORD.
Who is someone who desires life,
and loves many days, that he may see good?
Keep your tongue from evil,
and your lips from speaking lies.
Depart from evil, and do good.
Seek peace, and pursue it.
The LORD’s eyes are towards the righteous.
His ears listen to their cry.
The LORD’s face is against those who do evil,
to cut off their memory from the earth.
The righteous cry, and the LORD hears,
and delivers them out of all their troubles.
The LORD is near to those who have a broken heart,
and saves those who have a crushed spirit.
Many are the afflictions of the righteous,
but the LORD delivers him out of them all.
He protects all of his bones.
Not one of them is broken.
Evil shall kill the wicked.
Those who hate the righteous shall be condemned.
The LORD redeems the soul of his servants.
None of those who take refuge in him shall be condemned.

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:
Oh taste and see that the LORD is good.

Psalm prayer

Send your holy angels
to watch over us, O God,
that on our lips will be found your truth
and in our hearts your love;
so we may ever taste your goodness
in the land of the living;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Old Testament reading

Jeremiah 33:1-13

Moreover the LORD’s word came to Jeremiah the second time, while he was still locked up in the court of the guard, saying, “The LORD who does it, the LORD who forms it to establish it—the LORD is his name, says: ‘Call to me, and I will answer you, and will show you great and difficult things, which you don’t know.’ For the LORD, the God of Israel, says concerning the houses of this city and concerning the houses of the kings of Judah, which are broken down to make a defence against the mounds and against the sword: ‘While men come to fight with the Chaldeans, and to fill them with the dead bodies of men, whom I have killed in my anger and in my wrath, and for all whose wickedness I have hidden my face from this city, behold, I will bring it health and healing, and I will cure them; and I will reveal to them abundance of peace and truth. I will restore the fortunes of Judah and Israel, and will build them as at the first. I will cleanse them from all their iniquity by which they have sinned against me. I will pardon all their iniquities by which they have sinned against me and by which they have transgressed against me. This city will be to me for a name of joy, for praise, and for glory, before all the nations of the earth, which will hear all the good that I do to them, and will fear and tremble for all the good and for all the peace that I provide to it.’ ”

The LORD says: “Yet again there will be heard in this place, about which you say, ‘It is waste, without man and without animal, even in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, that are desolate, without man and without inhabitant and without animal,’ the voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the voice of those who say, ‘Give thanks to the LORD of Armies, for the LORD is good, for his loving kindness endures forever;’ who bring thanksgiving into the LORD’s house. For I will cause the captivity of the land to be reversed as at the first,” says the LORD.

The LORD of Armies says: “Yet again there will be in this place, which is waste, without man and without animal, and in all its cities, a habitation of shepherds causing their flocks to lie down. In the cities of the hill country, in the cities of the lowland, in the cities of the South, in the land of Benjamin, in the places around Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, the flocks will again pass under the hands of him who counts them,” says the LORD.

Silence may be kept.

New Testament reading

James 3

Let not many of you be teachers, my brothers, knowing that we will receive heavier judgement. For we all stumble in many things. Anyone who doesn’t stumble in word is a perfect person, able to bridle the whole body also. Indeed, we put bits into the horses’ mouths so that they may obey us, and we guide their whole body. Behold, the ships also, though they are so big and are driven by fierce winds, are yet guided by a very small rudder, wherever the pilot desires. So the tongue is also a little member, and boasts great things. See how a small fire can spread to a large forest! And the tongue is a fire. The world of iniquity amongst our members is the tongue, which defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature, and is set on fire by Gehenna. For every kind of animal, bird, creeping thing, and sea creature is tamed, and has been tamed by mankind; but nobody can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our God and Father, and with it we curse men who are made in the image of God. Out of the same mouth comes blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so. Does a spring send out from the same opening fresh and bitter water? Can a fig tree, my brothers, yield olives, or a vine figs? Thus no spring yields both salt water and fresh water.

Who is wise and understanding amongst you? Let him show by his good conduct that his deeds are done in gentleness of wisdom. But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your heart, don’t boast and don’t lie against the truth. This wisdom is not that which comes down from above, but is earthly, sensual, and demonic. For where jealousy and selfish ambition are, there is confusion and every evil deed. But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceful, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy. Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

Silence may be kept.

The Benedictus (The Song of Zechariah)

Refrain:
You have raised up a mighty savior for us in your servant David’s house.

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:
You have raised up a mighty savior for us in your servant David’s house.

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.

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 social services
All who work in the criminal justice system
Victims and perpetrators of crime
The work of aid agencies throughout the world
Those living in poverty or under oppression

Other intercessions and supplications may be offered as the Holy Spirit leads.

Response

Lord, in your mercy
hear our prayer.

Silence may be kept.

Collect of the day

Almighty Lord and everlasting God,
we beseech you to direct, sanctify and govern
both our hearts and bodies
in the ways of your laws
and the works of your commandments;
that through your most mighty protection, both here and ever,
we may be preserved in body and soul;
through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
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 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

The Lord bless us,
preserve us from all evil,
and keep us in eternal life.
Amen.

Shane Raynor 7/31/23 Shane Raynor 7/31/23

Tuesday morning August 1

Wednesday morning
Monday morning

Opening response

Lord, open our lips.
Our mouth will declare your praise.

Prayer of thanksgiving

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

See How Great a Flame Aspires

Charles Wesley

See how great a flame aspires,
Kindled by a spark of grace.
Jesus’ love the nations fires,
Sets the kingdoms on a blaze:
To bring fire on earth he came;
Kindled in some hearts it is;
O that all might catch the flame,
All partake the glorious bliss!

When he first the work begun,
Small and feeble was his day:
Now the word doth swiftly run;
Now it wins its widening way:
More and more it spreads and grows,
Ever mighty to prevail;
Sin’s strongholds it now overthrows,
Shakes the trembling gates of hell.

Sons of God, your Savior praise,
who the door hath opened wide;
He hath given the word of grace,
Jesus’ word is glorified;
Jesus, mighty to redeem,
He alone the work hath wrought;
Worthy is the work of him,
Him who spake a world from naught.

Saw ye not the cloud arise,
Little as a human hand?
Now it spreads along the skies,
Hangs over all the thirsty land.
Lo! the promise of a shower
Drops already from above;
But the Lord will shortly pour
All the spirit of his love.

Confession of sin

Come, Holy Spirit of God,
and search our hearts with the light of Christ.

Our Lord Jesus Christ said:
The first commandment is this:
‘Hear, Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one.
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart,
with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’

The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbour as yourself.’
No other commandment is greater than these.
The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments.

Amen. Lord, have mercy.

After a period of reflection

Come, let us return to the Lord and say:

Lord our God,
in our sin we have avoided your call.
Our love for you is like a morning cloud,
like the dew that disappears early.
Have mercy on us;
deliver us from judgment;
bind up our wounds and revive us;
in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

cf Hosea 6

May almighty God,
who sent his Son into the world to save sinners,
bring us his pardon and peace, now and forever.
Amen.

Psalm 32

Refrain:
Be glad in the LORD, and rejoice, you righteous!

Blessed is he whose disobedience is forgiven,
whose sin is covered.
Blessed is the man to whom the LORD doesn’t impute iniquity,
in whose spirit there is no deceit.
When I kept silence, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long.
For day and night your hand was heavy on me.
My strength was sapped in the heat of summer. Selah.

I acknowledged my sin to you.
I didn’t hide my iniquity.
I said, I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,
and you forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah.

For this, let everyone who is godly pray to you in a time when you may be found.
Surely when the great waters overflow, they shall not reach to him.
You are my hiding place.
You will preserve me from trouble.
You will surround me with songs of deliverance. Selah.

I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you shall go.
I will counsel you with my eye on you.
Don’t be like the horse, or like the mule, which have no understanding,
who are controlled by bit and bridle, or else they will not come near to you.
Many sorrows come to the wicked,
but loving kindness shall surround him who trusts in the LORD.
Be glad in the LORD, and rejoice, you righteous!
Shout for joy, all you who are upright in heart!

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:
Be glad in the LORD, and rejoice, you righteous!

Psalm prayer

Give us honest hearts, O God,
and send your kindly Spirit
to help us confess our sins
and bring us the peace of your forgiveness;
in Jesus Christ our Lord.

Psalm 36

Refrain:
With you, O God, is the spring of life.

A revelation is within my heart about the disobedience of the wicked:
There is no fear of God before his eyes.
For he flatters himself in his own eyes,
too much to detect and hate his sin.
The words of his mouth are iniquity and deceit.
He has ceased to be wise and to do good.
He plots iniquity on his bed.
He sets himself in a way that is not good.
He doesn’t abhor evil.

Your loving kindness, LORD, is in the heavens.
Your faithfulness reaches to the skies.
Your righteousness is like the mountains of God.
Your judgements are like a great deep.
LORD, you preserve man and animal.
How precious is your loving kindness, God!
The children of men take refuge under the shadow of your wings.
They shall be abundantly satisfied with the abundance of your house.
You will make them drink of the river of your pleasures.
For with you is the spring of life.
In your light we will see light.
Oh continue your loving kindness to those who know you,
your righteousness to the upright in heart.
Don’t let the foot of pride come against me.
Don’t let the hand of the wicked drive me away.
There the workers of iniquity are fallen.
They are thrust down, and shall not be able to rise.

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:
With you, O God, is the spring of life.

Psalm prayer

O God, the spring of life,
make us bright with wisdom,
that we may be lightened with the knowledge of your glory
in the face of Jesus Christ our Lord.

Old Testament reading

Jeremiah 32:1-15

This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD in the tenth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, which was the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar. Now at that time the king of Babylon’s army was besieging Jerusalem. Jeremiah the prophet was shut up in the court of the guard, which was in the king of Judah’s house.

For Zedekiah king of Judah had shut him up, saying, “Why do you prophesy, and say, ‘The LORD says, “Behold, I will give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he will take it; and Zedekiah king of Judah won’t escape out of the hand of the Chaldeans, but will surely be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon, and will speak with him mouth to mouth, and his eyes will see his eyes; and he will bring Zedekiah to Babylon, and he will be there until I visit him,” says the LORD, “though you fight with the Chaldeans, you will not prosper” ’?”

Jeremiah said, “The LORD’s word came to me, saying, ‘Behold, Hanamel the son of Shallum your uncle will come to you, saying, “Buy my field that is in Anathoth; for the right of redemption is yours to buy it.” ’ ”

“So Hanamel my uncle’s son came to me in the court of the guard according to the LORD’s word, and said to me, ‘Please buy my field that is in Anathoth, which is in the land of Benjamin; for the right of inheritance is yours, and the redemption is yours. Buy it for yourself.’

“Then I knew that this was the LORD’s word. I bought the field that was in Anathoth of Hanamel my uncle’s son, and weighed him the money, even seventeen shekels of silver. I signed the deed, sealed it, called witnesses, and weighed the money in the balances to him. So I took the deed of the purchase, both that which was sealed, containing the terms and conditions, and that which was open; and I delivered the deed of the purchase to Baruch the son of Neriah, the son of Mahseiah, in the presence of Hanamel my uncle’s son, and in the presence of the witnesses who signed the deed of the purchase, before all the Jews who sat in the court of the guard.

“I commanded Baruch before them, saying, the LORD of Armies, the God of Israel, says: ‘Take these deeds, this deed of the purchase which is sealed, and this deed which is open, and put them in an earthen vessel, that they may last many days.’ For the LORD of Armies, the God of Israel says: ‘Houses and fields and vineyards will yet again be bought in this land.’

Silence may be kept.

New Testament reading

James 2:14-26

What good is it, my brothers, if a man says he has faith, but has no works? Can faith save him? And if a brother or sister is naked and in lack of daily food, and one of you tells them, “Go in peace. Be warmed and filled;” yet you didn’t give them the things the body needs, what good is it? Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead in itself. Yes, a man will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without works, and I will show you my faith by my works.

You believe that God is one. You do well. The demons also believe—and shudder. But do you want to know, vain man, that faith apart from works is dead? Wasn’t Abraham our father justified by works, in that he offered up Isaac his son on the altar? You see that faith worked with his works, and by works faith was perfected. So the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him as righteousness,” and he was called the friend of God. You see then that by works a man is justified, and not only by faith. In the same way, wasn’t Rahab the prostitute also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way? For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, even so faith apart from works is dead.

Silence may be kept.

The Benedictus (The Song of Zechariah)

Luke 1:68-79

Refrain:
You have raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of your servant David.

Blessed be the Lord, the 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 who have been from of old),
salvation from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us;
to show mercy toward our fathers,
to remember his holy covenant,
the oath which he swore to Abraham our father,
to grant to us that we, being delivered out of the hand of our enemies,
should serve him without fear,
in holiness and righteousness before him all the days of our life.
And you, child, will be called a prophet of the Most High;
for you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways,
to give knowledge of salvation to his people by the remission of their sins,
because of the tender mercy of our God,
by which the dawn from on high will visit us,
to shine on those who sit in darkness and 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.

Refrain:
You have raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of your servant David.

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 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:

All who are sick in body, mind or spirit
Those in the midst of famine or disaster
Victims of abuse and violence, intolerance and prejudice
Those who are bereaved
All who work in the medical and healing professions

Other intercessions and supplications may be offered as the Holy Spirit leads.

Response

Lord, in your mercy
hear our prayer.

Silence may be kept.

Collect of the day

The Lord’s Prayer

As our Savior taught us, so we pray

Conclusion

The Lord bless us,
preserve us from all evil,
and keep us in eternal life.
Amen.

Shane Raynor 7/30/23 Shane Raynor 7/30/23

Monday morning July 31

Tuesday morning
Sunday morning

Opening response

Lord, open our lips.
Our mouth will declare your praise.

Prayer of thanksgiving

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

Rejoice and Sing, the Lord is King

Charles Wesley

Rejoice and sing, the Lord is King,
And make a cheerful noise,
To God your ceaseless praises bring,
Again, I say, rejoice!

The great I Am, from heaven he came,
To make that heaven our own,
Bow every knee to Jesus’ name,
And kiss the incarnate Son.

The Son of God poured out his blood
And soul in sacrifice;
Plunge all in that mysterious flood,
That bears you to the skies.

The Victim slain arose again,
Returning from the dead:
Ye saints, essay your choicest strain,
And shout your living Head.

His glorious reign he shall maintain—
Your crowns from him receive;
And live, redeemed from death and pain,
As long as God shall live.

Confession of sin

Seek the LORD while he may be found.
Call on him while he is near.
Let the wicked forsake their ways,
and the unrighteous their thoughts.
Let them return to the LORD, and he will have mercy on them,
to our God, for he will freely pardon.

cf Isaiah 55

A time of silence and self-examination may be kept.

Lord God,
we have sinned against you;
we have committed evil in your sight.
We are sorry and repent.
Have mercy on us according to your faithful love.
Wash us completely clean of our guilt; purify us from our sin.
Put a new, faithful spirit deep inside us,
and return the joy of your salvation to us
through Jesus Christ our 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 our petitions.

Therefore our hearts greatly rejoice.
With our song we will thank him.

cf Psalm 28:7, 9

Psalm 27

Refrain:
The LORD is my light and my salvation.

The LORD is my light and my salvation.
Whom shall I fear?
The LORD is the strength of my life.
Of whom shall I be afraid?
When evildoers came at me to eat up my flesh,
even my adversaries and my foes, they stumbled and fell.
Though an army should encamp against me,
my heart shall not fear.
Though war should rise against me,
even then I will be confident.
One thing I have asked of the LORD, that I will seek after:
that I may dwell in the LORD’s house all the days of my life,
to see the LORD’s beauty,
and to enquire in his temple.
For in the day of trouble, he will keep me secretly in his pavilion.
In the secret place of his tabernacle, he will hide me.
He will lift me up on a rock.
Now my head will be lifted up above my enemies around me.
I will offer sacrifices of joy in his tent.
I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the LORD.

Hear, LORD, when I cry with my voice.
Have mercy also on me, and answer me.
When you said, “Seek my face,”
my heart said to you, “I will seek your face, LORD.”
Don’t hide your face from me.
Don’t put your servant away in anger.
You have been my help.
Don’t abandon me,
neither forsake me, God of my salvation.
When my father and my mother forsake me,
then the LORD will take me up.
Teach me your way, LORD.
Lead me in a straight path, because of my enemies.
Don’t deliver me over to the desire of my adversaries,
for false witnesses have risen up against me,
such as breathe out cruelty.
I am still confident of this:
I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.
Wait for the LORD.
Be strong, and let your heart take courage.
Yes, wait for 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.

Refrain:
The LORD is my light and my salvation.

Psalm prayer

God, our light and our salvation,
illuminate our lives,
that we may see your goodness in the land of the living,
and, looking on your beauty,
may be changed into the likeness of Jesus Christ our Lord.

Psalm 30

Refrain:
Sing praise to the LORD, you saints of his.

I will extol you, LORD, for you have raised me up,
and have not made my foes to rejoice over me.
LORD my God, I cried to you,
and you have healed me.
LORD, you have brought up my soul from Sheol.
You have kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit.
Sing praise to the LORD, you saints of his.
Give thanks to his holy name.
For his anger is but for a moment.
His favour is for a lifetime.
Weeping may stay for the night,
but joy comes in the morning.
As for me, I said in my prosperity,
“I shall never be moved.”
You, LORD, when you favoured me, made my mountain stand strong;
but when you hid your face, I was troubled.
I cried to you, LORD.
I made supplication to the Lord:
“What profit is there in my destruction, if I go down to the pit?
Shall the dust praise you?
Shall it declare your truth?
Hear, LORD, and have mercy on me.
LORD, be my helper.”
You have turned my mourning into dancing for me.
You have removed my sackcloth, and clothed me with gladness,
to the end that my heart may sing praise to you, and not be silent.
LORD my God, I will give thanks to you forever!

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:
Sing praise to the LORD, you saints of his.

Psalm prayer

Lord, you hide your face
when we trust in ourselves;
strip us of false security
and re-clothe us in your praise,
that we may know you
as the one who raises us from death,
as you raised your Son, our Savior Jesus Christ.

Old Testament reading

Ezekiel 28:1-19

The LORD’s word came again to me, saying, “Son of man, tell the prince of Tyre, ‘The Lord GOD says:

“Because your heart is lifted up,
and you have said, ‘I am a god,
I sit in the seat of God,
in the middle of the seas;’
yet you are man,
and no god,
though you set your heart as the heart of a god—
behold, you are wiser than Daniel.
There is no secret that is hidden from you.
By your wisdom and by your understanding you have gotten yourself riches,
and have gotten gold and silver into your treasuries.
By your great wisdom
and by your trading you have increased your riches,
and your heart is lifted up because of your riches—”

“ ‘therefore the Lord GOD says:

“Because you have set your heart as the heart of God,
therefore, behold, I will bring strangers on you,
the terrible of the nations.
They will draw their swords against the beauty of your wisdom.
They will defile your brightness.
They will bring you down to the pit.
You will die the death of those who are slain
in the heart of the seas.
Will you yet say before him who kills you, ‘I am God’?
But you are man, and not God,
in the hand of him who wounds you.
You will die the death of the uncircumcised
by the hand of strangers;
for I have spoken it,” says the Lord GOD.’ ”

Moreover the LORD’s word came to me, saying, “Son of man, take up a lamentation over the king of Tyre, and tell him, ‘The Lord GOD says:

“You were the seal of full measure,
full of wisdom,
and perfect in beauty.
You were in Eden,
the garden of God.
Every precious stone adorned you:
ruby, topaz, emerald,
chrysolite, onyx, jasper,
sapphire, turquoise, and beryl.
Gold work of tambourines
and of pipes was in you.
They were prepared in the day that you were created.
You were the anointed cherub who covers.
Then I set you up on the holy mountain of God.
You have walked up and down in the middle of the stones of fire.
You were perfect in your ways from the day that you were created,
until unrighteousness was found in you.
By the abundance of your commerce, your insides were filled with violence,
and you have sinned.
Therefore I have cast you as profane out of God’s mountain.
I have destroyed you, covering cherub,
from the middle of the stones of fire.
Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty.
You have corrupted your wisdom by reason of your splendour.
I have cast you to the ground.
I have laid you before kings,
that they may see you.
By the multitude of your iniquities,
in the unrighteousness of your commerce,
you have profaned your sanctuaries.
Therefore I have brought out a fire from the middle of you.
It has devoured you.
I have turned you to ashes on the earth
in the sight of all those who see you.
All those who know you amongst the peoples will be astonished at you.
You have become a terror,
and you will exist no more.” ’ ”

Silence may be kept.

New Testament reading

James 2:1-13

My brothers, don’t hold the faith of our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with partiality. For if a man with a gold ring, in fine clothing, comes into your synagogue, and a poor man in filthy clothing also comes in, and you pay special attention to him who wears the fine clothing and say, “Sit here in a good place;” and you tell the poor man, “Stand there,” or “Sit by my footstool” haven’t you shown partiality amongst yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts? Listen, my beloved brothers. Didn’t God choose those who are poor in this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the Kingdom which he promised to those who love him? But you have dishonored the poor man. Don’t the rich oppress you and personally drag you before the courts? Don’t they blaspheme the honorable name by which you are called?

However, if you fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you do well. But if you show partiality, you commit sin, being convicted by the law as transgressors. For whoever keeps the whole law, and yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all. For he who said, “Do not commit adultery,” also said, “Do not commit murder.” Now if you do not commit adultery but do murder, you have become a transgressor of the law. So speak and so do as men who are to be judged by the law of freedom. For judgment is without mercy to him who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.

Silence may be kept.

The Benedictus (The Song of Zechariah)

Luke 1:68-79

Refrain:
You have raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of your servant David.

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:
You have raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of your servant David.

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 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 media and the arts
Farming and fishing
Commerce and industry
Those whose work is unfulfilling, stressful or fraught with danger
All who are unemployed

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

The Lord’s Prayer

As our Savior taught us, so we pray

Conclusion

The Lord bless us,
preserve us from all evil,
and keep us in eternal life.
Amen.