Tuesday morning January 23
Image: Unsplash
Opening response
O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth will declare your praise.
Your light springs up for the righteous
and all the peoples have seen your glory.
Prayer of thanksgiving
Blessed are you, Sovereign God,
king of the nations,
to you be praise and glory forever.
From the rising of the sun to its setting
your name is proclaimed in all the world.
As the Sun of Righteousness dawns in our hearts
anoint our lips with the seal of your Spirit
that we may witness to your gospel
and sing your praise in all the earth.
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
Abba, Father, Hear Thy Child
Charles Wesley
Abba, Father, hear thy child,
Late in Jesus reconciled;
Hear, and all the graces shower,
All the joy, and peace, and power;
All my Savior asks above,
All the life and heaven of love.
Lord, I will not let thee go
Till the blessing thou bestow:
Hear my Advocate divine;
Lo! To his my suit I join;
Joined to his, it cannot fail;
Bless me; for I will prevail.
Heavenly Father, Life divine,
Change my nature into thine;
Move, and spread throughout my soul,
Actuate, and fill the whole:
Be it I no longer now
Living in the flesh, but thou.
Holy Ghost, no more delay;
Come, and in thy temple stay:
Now thine inward witness bear,
Strong, and permanent, and clear:
Spring of life, thyself impart;
Rise eternal in my heart.
Confession of sin
Let us admit to God the sin which always confronts us.
A time of silence and self-examination may be kept.
Almighty God,
patient and of great goodness:
I confess to you,
I confess with my whole heart
my neglect and forgetfulness of your commandments,
my wrong doing, thinking, and speaking;
the hurts I have done to others,
and the good I have left undone.
O God, forgive me, for I have sinned against you;
and raise me to newness of life;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
May the God of love and power
forgive us and free us from our sins,
heal and strengthen us by his Spirit,
and raise us to new life in Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Psalm 34
𝙍: Taste and see that the LORD is good.
I will bless the LORD at all times;
His praise will always be on my lips.
My soul boasts in the LORD;
let the oppressed hear and rejoice.
Magnify the LORD with me;
let us exalt His name together.
I sought the LORD, and He answered me;
He delivered me from all my fears.
Those who look to Him are radiant with joy;
their faces shall never be ashamed. 𝙍
This poor man called out, and the LORD heard him;
He saved him from all his troubles.
The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear Him,
and he delivers them.
Taste and see that the LORD is good;
blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!
Fear the LORD, you His saints,
for those who fear Him lack nothing.
Young lions go lacking and hungry,
but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing. 𝙍
Come, children, listen to me;
I will teach you the fear of the LORD.
Who is the man who delights in life,
who desires to see good days?
Keep your tongue from evil
and your lips from deceitful speech.
Turn away from evil and do good;
seek peace and pursue it. 𝙍
The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous,
and His ears are inclined to their cry.
But the face of the LORD is against those who do evil,
to wipe out all memory of them from the earth.
The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears;
He delivers them from all their troubles.
The LORD is near to the brokenhearted;
He saves the contrite in spirit. 𝙍
Many are the afflictions of the righteous,
but the LORD delivers him from them all.
He protects all his bones;
not one of them will be broken.
Evil will slay the wicked,
and the haters of the righteous will be condemned.
The LORD redeems His servants,
and none who take refuge in Him will 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.
𝙍: 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.
Psalm 36
𝙍: With You, O God, is the fountain of life.
An oracle is in my heart
regarding the transgression of the wicked man:
There is no fear of God
before his eyes.
For his eyes are too full of conceit
to detect or hate his own sin.
The words of his mouth are wicked and deceitful;
he has ceased to be wise and well-doing.
Even on his bed he plots wickedness;
he sets himself on a path that is not good;
he fails to reject evil. 𝙍
Your loving devotion, O LORD, reaches to the heavens,
Your faithfulness to the clouds.
Your righteousness is like the highest mountains;
Your judgments are like the deepest sea.
O LORD, You preserve man and beast.
How precious is Your loving devotion, O God,
that the children of men take refuge
in the shadow of Your wings!
They feast on the abundance of Your house,
and You give them drink from Your river of delights.
For with You is the fountain of life;
in Your light we see light. 𝙍
Extend Your loving devotion to those who know You,
and Your righteousness to the upright in heart.
Let not the foot of the proud come against me,
nor the hand of the wicked drive me away.
There the evildoers lie fallen,
thrown down and unable 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.
𝙍: With You, O God, is the fountain of life.
Psalm prayer
O God, the fountain 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
Genesis 13:2-18
And Abram had become extremely wealthy in livestock and silver and gold.
From the Negev he journeyed from place to place toward Bethel, until he came to the place between Bethel and Ai where his tent had formerly been pitched, to the site where he had built the altar. And there Abram called on the name of the LORD.
Now Lot, who was traveling with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents. But the land was unable to support both of them while they stayed together, for they had so many possessions that they were unable to coexist. And there was discord between the herdsmen of Abram and the herdsmen of Lot. At that time the Canaanites and the Perizzites were also living in the land.
So Abram said to Lot, “Please let there be no contention between you and me, or between your herdsmen and my herdsmen. After all, we are brothers. Is not the whole land before you? Now separate yourself from me. If you go to the left, I will go to the right; if you go to the right, I will go to the left.”
And Lot looked out and saw that the whole plain of the Jordan, all the way to Zoar, was well watered like the garden of the LORD, like the land of Egypt. (This was before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.) So Lot chose the whole plain of the Jordan for himself and set out toward the east. And Abram and Lot parted company.
Abram lived in the land of Canaan, but Lot settled in the cities of the plain and pitched his tent toward Sodom. But the men of Sodom were wicked, sinning greatly against the LORD.
After Lot had departed, the LORD said to Abram, “Now lift up your eyes from the place where you are, and look to the north and south and east and west, for all the land that you see, I will give to you and your offspring forever.
I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if one could count the dust of the earth, then your offspring could be counted. Get up and walk around the land, through its length and breadth, for I will give it to you.”
So Abram moved his tent and went to live near the Oaks of Mamre at Hebron, where he built an altar to the LORD.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
Matthew 26:17-35
On the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Where do You want us to prepare for You to eat the Passover?”
He answered, “Go into the city to a certain man and tell him that the Teacher says, ‘My time is near. I will keep the Passover with My disciples at your house.’ ” So the disciples did as Jesus had directed them and prepared the Passover.
When evening came, Jesus was reclining with the twelve disciples. And while they were eating, He said to them, “Truly I tell you, one of you will betray Me.”
They were deeply grieved and began to ask Him one after another, “Surely not I, Lord?”
Jesus answered, “The one who has dipped his hand into the bowl with Me will betray Me. The Son of Man will go just as it is written about Him, but woe to that man by whom He is betrayed. It would be better for him if he had not been born.”
Then Judas, who would betray Him, said, “Surely not I, Rabbi?”
Jesus answered, “You have said it yourself.”
While they were eating, Jesus took bread, spoke a blessing and broke it, and gave it to the disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is My body.”
Then He took the cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. This is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. I tell you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it anew with you in My Father’s kingdom.”
And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.
Then Jesus said to them, “This very night you will all fall away on account of Me. For it is written:
‘I will strike the Shepherd,
and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’
But after I have risen, I will go ahead of you into Galilee.”
Peter said to Him, “Even if all fall away on account of You, I never will.”
“Truly I tell you,” Jesus declared, “this very night, before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.”
Peter replied, “Even if I have to die with You, I will never deny You.” And all the other disciples said the same thing.
Silence may be kept.
The Benedictus (The Song of Zechariah)
Luke 1:68-79
𝙍: This is the Christ, the Chosen of God, the one who will bring healing to the nations.
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
because He has visited and redeemed His people.
He has raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of His servant David,
as He spoke through His holy prophets,
those of ages past,
salvation from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us,
to show mercy to our fathers
and to remember His holy covenant,
the oath He swore to our father Abraham,
to grant us deliverance from hostile hands,
that we may serve Him without fear,
in holiness and righteousness before Him
all the days of our lives.
And you, child, will be called
a prophet of the Most High;
for you will go on before the Lord
to prepare the way for Him,
to give to His people the knowledge of salvation
through the forgiveness of their sins,
because of the tender mercy of our God,
by which the Dawn will visit us from on high,
to shine on those who live in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet
into the path 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.
𝙍: This is the Christ, the Chosen of God, the one who will bring healing to the nations.
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 unity of the church
The peace of the world
The healing of the sick
The revelation of Christ to those from whom his glory is hidden
All who travel
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
Almighty God,
whose Son revealed in signs and miracles
the wonder of your saving presence:
renew your people with your heavenly grace,
and in all our weakness
sustain us by your mighty power;
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
Believing the promises of God, 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
May Christ, who sends us to the nations, give us the power of his Spirit.
Amen.
Monday morning January 22
Image: Unsplash
Opening response
O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth will declare your praise.
Your light springs up for the righteous
and all the peoples have seen your glory.
Prayer of thanksgiving
Blessed are you, Sovereign God,
king of the nations,
to you be praise and glory forever.
From the rising of the sun to its setting
your name is proclaimed in all the world.
As the Sun of Righteousness dawns in our hearts
anoint our lips with the seal of your Spirit
that we may witness to your gospel
and sing your praise in all the earth.
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
Author of Faith, Eternal Word
Charles Wesley
Author of faith, eternal Word,
Whose Spirit breathes the active flame;
Faith, like its finisher and Lord,
Today, as yesterday, the same.
To thee our humble hearts aspire,
And ask the gift unspeakable;
Increase in us the kindled fire,
In us the work of faith fulfill.
By faith we know Thee strong to save;
Save us, a present Savior Thou!
Whatever we hope, by faith we have
Future and past subsisting now.
To him that in thy name believes
Eternal life with thee is given;
Into himself he all receives,
Pardon and holiness and heaven.
The things unknown to feeble sense,
Unseen by reason’s glimmering ray,
With strong, commanding evidence
Their heavenly origin display.
Faith lends its realizing light,
The clouds disperse, the shadows fly;
The invisible appears in sight,
And God is seen by mortal eye.
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 40
𝙍: Many, O LORD my God, are the wonders You have done.
I waited patiently for the LORD;
He inclined to me and heard my cry.
He lifted me up from the pit of despair,
out of the miry clay;
He set my feet upon a rock,
and made my footsteps firm.
He put a new song in my mouth,
a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear
and put their trust in the LORD.
Blessed is the man
who has made the LORD his trust,
who has not turned to the proud,
nor to those who lapse into falsehood.
Many, O LORD my God,
are the wonders You have done,
and the plans You have for us—
none can compare to You—
if I proclaim and declare them,
they are more than I can count. 𝙍
Sacrifice and offering You did not desire,
but my ears You have opened.
Burnt offerings and sin offerings
You did not require.
Then I said, “Here I am, I have come—
it is written about me in the scroll:
I delight to do Your will, O my God;
Your law is within my heart.”
I proclaim righteousness in the great assembly;
behold, I do not seal my lips,
as You, O LORD, do know.
I have not covered up Your righteousness in my heart;
I have declared Your faithfulness and salvation;
I have not concealed Your loving devotion and faithfulness
from the great assembly. 𝙍
O LORD, do not withhold Your mercy from me;
Your loving devotion and faithfulness will always guard me.
For evils without number surround me;
my sins have overtaken me, so that I cannot see.
They are more than the hairs of my head,
and my heart has failed within me.
Be pleased, O LORD, to deliver me;
hurry, O LORD, to help me.
May those who seek my life
be ashamed and confounded;
may those who wish me harm
be repelled and humiliated.
May those who say to me, “Aha, aha!”
be appalled at their own shame. 𝙍
May all who seek You
rejoice and be glad in You;
may those who love Your salvation
always say, “The LORD be magnified!”
But I am poor and needy;
may the Lord think of me.
You are my helper and deliverer;
O my God, do not delay.
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: Many, O LORD my God, are the wonders You have done.
Psalm prayer
Free us from our sins, O God,
and may our sacrifices be of praise
to the glory of your Son,
our Redeemer, Jesus Christ.
Psalm 108
𝙍: Be exalted, O God, above the heavens.
My heart is steadfast, O God;
I will sing and make music with all my being.
Awake, O harp and lyre!
I will awaken the dawn.
I will praise You, O LORD, among the nations;
I will sing Your praises among the peoples. 𝙍
For Your loving devotion extends beyond the heavens,
and Your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.
Be exalted, O God, above the heavens;
may Your glory cover all the earth.
Respond and save us with Your right hand,
that Your beloved may be delivered. 𝙍
God has spoken from His sanctuary:
“I will triumph!
I will parcel out Shechem
and apportion the Valley of Succoth.
Gilead is Mine, and Manasseh is Mine;
Ephraim is My helmet, Judah is My scepter.
Moab is My washbasin;
upon Edom I toss My sandal;
over Philistia I shout in triumph.” 𝙍
Who will bring me to the fortified city?
Who will lead me to Edom?
Have You not rejected us, O God?
Will You no longer march out, O God, with our armies?
Give us aid against the enemy,
for the help of man is worthless.
With God we will perform with valor,
and He will trample 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: Be exalted, O God, above the heavens.
Psalm prayer
In times of terror, God,
give us boldness
to act with courage, yet with mercy,
for you rule the nations with the
sword of truth;
in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Old Testament reading
Genesis 11:27-12:9
This is the account of Terah. Terah became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran. And Haran became the father of Lot. During his father Terah’s lifetime, Haran died in his native land, in Ur of the Chaldeans.
And Abram and Nahor took wives for themselves. Abram’s wife was named Sarai, and Nahor’s wife was named Milcah; she was the daughter of Haran, who was the father of both Milcah and Iscah. But Sarai was barren; she had no children.
And Terah took his son Abram, his grandson Lot son of Haran, and his daughter-in-law Sarai the wife of Abram, and they set out from Ur of the Chaldeans for the land of Canaan. But when they arrived in Haran, they settled there. Terah lived 205 years, and he died in Haran.
Then the LORD said to Abram, “Leave your country, your kindred, and your father’s household, and go to the land I will show you.
I will make you into a great nation,
and I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
so that you will be a blessing.
I will bless those who bless you
and curse those who curse you;
and all the families of the earth
will be blessed through you.”
So Abram departed, as the LORD had directed him, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he left Haran. And Abram took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, and all the possessions and people they had acquired in Haran, and set out for the land of Canaan.
When they came to the land of Canaan, Abram traveled through the land as far as the site of the Oak of Moreh at Shechem. And at that time the Canaanites were in the land.
Then the LORD appeared to Abram and said, “I will give this land to your offspring.” So Abram built an altar there to the LORD, who had appeared to him.
From there Abram moved on to the hill country east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel to the west and Ai to the east. There he built an altar to the LORD, and he called on the name of the LORD.
And Abram journeyed on toward the Negev.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
Matthew 26:1-16
When Jesus had finished saying all these things, He told His disciples, “You know that the Passover is two days away, and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified.”
At that time the chief priests and elders of the people assembled in the courtyard of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas, and they conspired to arrest Jesus covertly and kill Him. “But not during the feast,” they said, “or there may be a riot among the people.”
While Jesus was in Bethany in the home of Simon the Leper, a woman came to Him with an alabaster jar of expensive perfume, which she poured on His head as He reclined at the table.
When the disciples saw this, they were indignant and asked, “Why this waste? This perfume could have been sold at a high price, and the money given to the poor.”
Aware of this, Jesus asked, “Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a beautiful deed to Me. The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have Me. By pouring this perfume on Me, she has prepared My body for burial. Truly I tell you, wherever this gospel is preached in all the world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.”
Then one of the Twelve, the one called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and asked, “What are you willing to give me if I hand Him over to you?” And they set out for him thirty pieces of silver. So from then on Judas looked for an opportunity to betray Jesus.
Silence may be kept.
The Benedictus (The Song of Zechariah)
Luke 1:68-79
𝙍: This is the Christ, the Chosen of God, the one who will bring healing to the nations.
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
because He has visited and redeemed His people.
He has raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of His servant David,
as He spoke through His holy prophets,
those of ages past,
salvation from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us,
to show mercy to our fathers
and to remember His holy covenant,
the oath He swore to our father Abraham,
to grant us deliverance from hostile hands,
that we may serve Him without fear,
in holiness and righteousness before Him
all the days of our lives.
And you, child, will be called
a prophet of the Most High;
for you will go on before the Lord
to prepare the way for Him,
to give to His people the knowledge of salvation
through the forgiveness of their sins,
because of the tender mercy of our God,
by which the Dawn will visit us from on high,
to shine on those who live in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet
into the path 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.
𝙍: This is the Christ, the Chosen of God, the one who will bring healing to the nations.
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 unity of the church
The peace of the world
The healing of the sick
The revelation of Christ to those from whom his glory is hidden
All who travel
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 Son revealed in signs and miracles
the wonder of your saving presence:
renew your people with your heavenly grace,
and in all our weakness
sustain us by your mighty power;
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
Believing the promises of God, 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
May Christ, who sends us to the nations, give us the power of his Spirit.
Amen.
Sunday morning January 21
Image: Unsplash
Opening response
O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth will declare your praise.
Your light springs up for the righteous
and all the peoples have seen your glory.
Prayer of thanksgiving
Blessed are you, Sovereign God,
king of the nations,
to you be praise and glory forever.
From the rising of the sun to its setting
your name is proclaimed in all the world.
As the Sun of Righteousness dawns in our hearts
anoint our lips with the seal of your Spirit
that we may witness to your gospel
and sing your praise in all the earth.
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
When Christ Doth in My Heart Appear
Charles Wesley
When Christ dost in my heart appear,
And love erects its throne,
I then enjoy salvation here,
And heaven on earth begun.
When God is mine, and I am his,
Of paradise possessed,
I taste unutterable bliss,
And everlasting rest.
The bliss of those that fully dwell,
Fully in thee believe,
‘Tis more than angel tongues can tell,
Or angel minds conceive.
Thou only knowest who did obtain,
And die to make it known:
The great salvation now explain,
And perfect us in one.
May I, may all who humbly wait,
The glorious joy receive —
Joy above all conception great,
Worthy of God to give.
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 113
𝙍: From where the sun rises to where it sets,the name of the LORD is praised.
Hallelujah!
Give praise, O servants of the LORD;
praise the name of the LORD.
Blessed be the name of the LORD
both now and forevermore.
From where the sun rises to where it sets,
the name of the LORD is praised.
The LORD is exalted over all the nations,
His glory above the heavens. 𝙍
Who is like the LORD our God,
the One enthroned on high?
He humbles Himself to behold
the heavens and the earth.
He raises the poor from the dust
and lifts the needy from the dump
to seat them with nobles,
with the princes of His people.
He settles the barren woman in her home
as a joyful mother to her children.
Hallelujah!
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: From where the sun rises to where it sets,the name of the LORD is praised.
Psalm prayer
From the rising of the sun to its setting
we praise your name, O Lord;
may your promise to raise the poor from the dust
and turn the fortunes of the needy upside down
be fulfilled in our time also,
as it was in your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Old Testament reading
Jonah 3:1-5, 10
Then the word of the LORD came to Jonah a second time: “Get up! Go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it the message that I give you.”
This time Jonah got up and went to Nineveh, in accordance with the word of the LORD.
Now Nineveh was an exceedingly great city, requiring a three-day journey. On the first day of his journey, Jonah set out into the city and proclaimed, “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overturned!”
And the Ninevites believed God. They proclaimed a fast and dressed in sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least.
When God saw their actions—that they had turned from their evil ways—He relented from the disaster He had threatened to bring upon them.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
John 3:16-21
For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that everyone who believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him. Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe has already been condemned, because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.
And this is the verdict: The Light has come into the world, but men loved the darkness rather than the Light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come into the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever practices the truth comes into the Light, so that it may be seen clearly that what he has done has been accomplished in God.”
Silence may be kept.
The Benedictus (The Song of Zechariah)
Luke 1:68-79
𝙍: This is the Christ, the Chosen of God, the one who will bring healing to the nations.
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
because He has visited and redeemed His people.
He has raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of His servant David,
as He spoke through His holy prophets,
those of ages past,
salvation from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us,
to show mercy to our fathers
and to remember His holy covenant,
the oath He swore to our father Abraham,
to grant us deliverance from hostile hands,
that we may serve Him without fear,
in holiness and righteousness before Him
all the days of our lives.
And you, child, will be called
a prophet of the Most High;
for you will go on before the Lord
to prepare the way for Him,
to give to His people the knowledge of salvation
through the forgiveness of their sins,
because of the tender mercy of our God,
by which the Dawn will visit us from on high,
to shine on those who live in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet
into the path 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.
𝙍: This is the Christ, the Chosen of God, the one who will bring healing to the nations.
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 unity of the church
The peace of the world
The healing of the sick
The revelation of Christ to those from whom his glory is hidden
All who travel
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
Almighty God,
whose Son revealed in signs and miracles
the wonder of your saving presence:
renew your people with your heavenly grace,
and in all our weakness
sustain us by your mighty power;
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
Believing the promises of God, 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
May Christ, who sends us to the nations, give us the power of his Spirit.
Amen.