Thu. morning Jun. 4
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
How Firm a Foundation
Confession of Sin
When we cry to the LORD in our trouble,
He will save us from our distress.
God will bring us out of darkness
and out of the shadow of death.
Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
A time of silence and self-examination may be kept.
May the Father forgive us by the death of his Son, and strengthen us to live in the power of the Spirit all our days.
Amen.
Let us give thanks to the LORD for His goodness,
and for His wonderful works to all people!
Let us offer sacrifices of thanksgiving,
and declare God’s works with rejoicing.
cf Psalm 107
Psalm 147
𝙍: Great is our Lord, and mighty in power.
Praise the LORD!
For it is good to sing praises to our God;
for it is pleasant, and praise is beautiful.
The LORD builds up Jerusalem;
He gathers together the outcasts of Israel.
He heals the brokenhearted
and binds up their wounds.
𝙍: Great is our Lord, and mighty in power.
He counts the number of the stars;
He calls them all by their names.
Great is our Lord, and mighty in power;
His understanding is infinite.
The LORD lifts up the humble;
He casts the wicked down to the ground.
𝙍: Great is our Lord, and mighty in power.
Sing to the LORD with thanksgiving;
sing praises on the harp to our God,
who covers the heavens with clouds,
who prepares rain for the earth,
who makes grass to grow on the mountains.
𝙍: Great is our Lord, and mighty in power.
He gives to the beast its food
and to the young ravens that cry.
He does not delight in the strength of the horse;
He takes no pleasure in the legs of a man.
The LORD takes pleasure in those who fear Him,
in those who hope in His mercy.
𝙍: Great is our Lord, and mighty in power.
Praise the LORD, O Jerusalem!
Praise your God, O Zion!
For He has strengthened the bars of your gates;
He has blessed your children within you.
He makes peace in your borders,
and fills you with the finest wheat.
𝙍: Great is our Lord, and mighty in power.
He sends forth His commandment to the earth;
His word runs very swiftly.
He gives snow like wool;
He scatters the frost like ashes;
He casts forth His ice like morsels;
who can stand before His cold?
𝙍: Great is our Lord, and mighty in power.
He sends out His word and melts them;
He causes His wind to blow, and the waters flow.
He declares His word to Jacob,
His statutes and His judgments to Israel.
He has not dealt so with any nation;
and as for His judgments, they have not known them.
Praise 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.
𝙍: Great is our Lord, and mighty in power.
Psalm Prayer
Compassionate God, as you know each star you have created, so you know the secrets of every heart; in your loving mercy, bring to your table all who are fearful and broken, all who are wounded and needy, that our hungers may be satisfied in the city of your peace; through Christ who is our peace.
Old Testament reading
Deuteronomy 8:2-16
You must remember that the LORD your God led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you, and to prove you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not. He humbled you and let you suffer hunger, and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of the LORD. Your clothing did not wear out on you, nor did your feet swell these forty years. You must also consider in your heart that, as a man disciplines his son, so the LORD your God disciplines you.
Therefore you must keep the commandments of the LORD your God, to walk in His ways and to fear Him. For the LORD your God is bringing you into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and springs that flow out of valleys and hills, a land of wheat, barley, vines, fig trees, and pomegranates, a land of olive oil and honey, a land where you may eat bread without scarcity, in which you will not lack anything, a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills you may dig copper.
When you have eaten and are full, then you shall bless the LORD your God for the good land which He has given you. Beware that you do not forget the LORD your God by not keeping His commandments, and His judgments, and His statutes, which I am commanding you today. Otherwise, when you have eaten and are full and have built and occupied good houses, and when your herds and your flocks multiply, and your silver and your gold multiply, and all that you have multiplies, then your heart will become proud and you will forget the LORD your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, from the house of slavery, who led you through that great and terrible wilderness, where there were fiery serpents and scorpions and drought, where there was no water, who brought forth for you water out of the rock of flint, who fed you in the wilderness with manna, which your fathers did not know, that He might humble you and that He might prove you, to do good for you in the end.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
1 Corinthians 10:1-17
I would not want you to be unaware that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea; all ate the same spiritual food; and all drank the same spiritual drink, for they drank of that spiritual rock that followed them, and that rock was Christ. But with many of them God was not well pleased, and they were overthrown in the wilderness.
Now these things were our examples to the intent that we should not lust after evil things as they lusted. Neither be idolaters as were some of them. As it is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to revel.” Neither let us commit sexual immorality as some of them committed, when twenty-three thousand fell in one day. Neither let us test Christ, as some of them also tempted and were destroyed by serpents. Neither murmur, as some of them also murmured and were destroyed by the destroyer.
Now all these things happened to them for examples. They are written as an admonition to us, upon whom the end of the ages has come. Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed, lest he fall. No temptation has taken you except what is common to man. God is faithful, and He will not permit you to be tempted above what you can endure, but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that you may be able to bear it.
So, my beloved, flee from idolatry. I speak as to wise men. Judge for yourselves what I say. The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? For we, being many, are one bread and one body, for we are all partakers of that one bread.
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:
Local government, community leaders
All who provide local services
Those who work with young or elderly people
Schools, colleges, and universities
Emergency and rescue organizations
Other intercessions and supplications may be offered as the Holy Spirit leads.
Response
In faith we pray
We pray to you, our God.
Silence may be kept.
Collect of the day
Almighty and everlasting God, you have given us your servants grace, by the confession of a true faith, to acknowledge the glory of the eternal Trinity and in the power of the divine majesty to worship the Unity: keep us steadfast in this faith, that we may evermore be defended from all adversities; 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.
Wed. morning Jun. 3
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
All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name
Confession of Sin
The LORD is merciful and gracious,
slow to anger and abounding in mercy.
He has not dealt with us according to our sins,
nor recompensed us according to our iniquities.
For as the heavens are high above the earth,
so great is his mercy toward 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.
As a father pities his children,
so the LORD pities those who fear Him.
Bless the LORD, O my soul;
and all that is within me, bless His holy name.
Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all His benefits.
Psalm 119:1-32
𝙍: Teach me, O LORD, the way of Your statutes.
Blessed are those whose way is blameless,
who walk in the law of the LORD.
Blessed are those who keep His testimonies,
who seek Him with all their heart.
They also do no injustice;
they walk in His ways.
You have commanded us
to keep Your precepts diligently.
𝙍: Teach me, O LORD, the way of Your statutes.
Oh that my ways were directed
to keep Your statutes!
Then I shall not be ashamed,
when I look upon all Your commandments.
I will praise You with an upright heart,
when I learn Your righteous judgments.
I will keep Your statutes;
do not utterly forsake me.
𝙍: Teach me, O LORD, the way of Your statutes.
How can a young man keep his way pure?
By guarding it according to Your word.
With my whole heart have I sought You;
let me not wander from Your commandments.
Your word have I hidden in my heart,
that I might not sin against You.
Blessed are You, O LORD;
teach me Your statutes.
𝙍: Teach me, O LORD, the way of Your statutes.
With my lips have I declared
all the ordinances of Your mouth.
I have rejoiced in the way of Your testimonies,
as much as in all riches.
I will meditate on Your precepts,
and have respect unto Your ways.
I will delight myself in Your statutes;
I will not forget Your word.
𝙍: Teach me, O LORD, the way of Your statutes.
Deal bountifully with Your servant, that I may live
and keep Your word.
Open my eyes, that I may behold
wondrous things out of Your law.
I am a stranger on the earth;
hide not Your commandments from me.
My soul is consumed with longing
for Your decrees at all times.
𝙍: Teach me, O LORD, the way of Your statutes.
You rebuke the proud, the cursed,
who stray from Your commandments.
Remove from me reproach and contempt,
for I have kept Your testimonies.
Even though princes sit and speak against me,
Your servant meditates on Your statutes.
Your testimonies also are my delight
and my counselors.
𝙍: Teach me, O LORD, the way of Your statutes.
My soul clings to the dust;
revive me according to Your word.
I have declared my ways, and You answered me;
teach me Your statutes.
Make me understand the way of Your precepts,
so shall I meditate on Your wondrous works.
My soul melts for sorrow;
strengthen me according to Your word.
𝙍: Teach me, O LORD, the way of Your statutes.
Remove from me the way of lying,
and graciously teach me Your law.
I have chosen the way of faithfulness;
Your judgments have I set before me.
I cling to Your testimonies;
O LORD, put me not to shame!
I will run the way of Your commandments,
for You shall enlarge my 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.
𝙍: Teach me, O LORD, the way of Your statutes.
Psalm prayer
Faithful God, let your word be the treasure of our hearts, that we may delight in your truth and walk in the glorious liberty of your Son Jesus Christ.
Old Testament reading
Joshua 8:1-29
Then the LORD said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid or dismayed. Take all the fighting men with you. Arise, and go up to Ai. See, I have given the king of Ai, his people, his city, and his land into your hand. Do to Ai and its king what you did to Jericho and its king, except you may plunder its spoils and its livestock. Now set an ambush for the city behind it.”
So Joshua and all the fighting men arose to go up to Ai. Joshua chose thirty thousand men, mighty men of valor, and sent them out at night. He commanded them, “Behold, you shall ambush the city from behind. Do not go very far from the city. All of you be ready. I and all the people who are with me will approach the city. When they come out to engage us as before, we will flee from them. They will come after us until we have lured them away from the city, for they will think, ‘They are fleeing from us as before!’ So we will flee from them. Then you shall rise up for the ambush and take possession of the city. The LORD your God will give it into your hands. When you have seized the city, set it on fire. Act according to the word of the LORD. See, I have commanded you.”
So Joshua sent them out. They went to the place of ambush and took up a position between Bethel and Ai, westward of Ai, and Joshua spent the night among the people.
Joshua got up early in the morning and mustered the people. He and the elders of Israel went up before the people to Ai. All the fighting men who were with him went up and drew near to the city. They camped north of Ai, and there was a valley between them and Ai. He took about five thousand men and set them in ambush between Bethel and Ai, westward of the city. So they stationed the people, all the army that was on the north of the city, and its rear guard on the west of the city, and Joshua spent that night in the midst of the valley.
When the king of Ai saw this, the men of the city hurriedly got up early and went out to engage Israel in battle at the assembly point near the Arabah. Yet he did not know that there was an ambush for him behind the city. So Joshua and all Israel allowed themselves to be beaten before them, and they fled in the direction of the wilderness. All the people who were in Ai were assembled to pursue them, so they pursued Joshua and were drawn away from the city. Not a man was left in Ai or Bethel who did not go out after Israel. They left the city wide open, and they pursued Israel.
The LORD said to Joshua, “Point toward Ai with the sword that is in your hand, for I will give it into your hand.” So Joshua pointed toward the city with the sword in his hand. When his hand pointed, the men in ambush got up quickly from their place and ran. They came into the city, captured it, and quickly set the city on fire.
So when the men of Ai looked back, behold, the smoke of the city ascended to heaven! So they had no power to feel this way or that way, and the people who had fled into the wilderness had turned back toward their pursuers. When Joshua and all Israel saw that the ambush had captured the city and that smoke rose from it, they turned and struck down the men of Ai. Then the men in the city came out to engage them in battle, so they were now in the middle, with Israel on each side. Israel struck them down until neither survivors nor escapees were left. They took the king of Ai alive and brought him to Joshua.
When Israel completed killing all the inhabitants of Ai in the open wilderness where they had pursued them, and when all of them had finally fallen by the edge of the sword, all Israel returned to Ai and struck it with the edge of the sword. All who had fallen that day, men and women, numbered twelve thousand, all the people of Ai. Joshua did not draw back his hand with the outstretched sword until he destroyed all the inhabitants of Ai. Israel plundered only the livestock and the spoil of that city for themselves, according to the word of the LORD that He had commanded Joshua.
Joshua burned Ai and made it a heap forever, a desolation to this day. The king of Ai hanged on a tree until evening. At sunset, Joshua commanded that the people take down the body from the tree and throw it down at the city gate. They erected a large heap of stones over it that remains to this day.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
Luke 11:1-13
He was praying in a certain place, and when He ceased, one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.”
He said to them, “When you pray, say:
Our Father, who is in heaven,
hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come;
Your will be done
on earth, as it is in heaven.
Give us each day our daily bread.
And forgive us our sins,
for we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.”
Then He said to them, “Which of you has a friend and shall go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves, for a friend of mine on his journey has come to me, and I have nothing to set before him’; and he will answer from within, ‘Do not trouble me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give you anything’? I say to you, though he will not rise and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will rise and give him as much as he needs.
“And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.
“If a son asks for bread from any of you who is a father, will you give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will you give him a serpent instead of a fish? Or if he asks for an egg, will you offer him a scorpion? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?”
Silence may be kept.
The Benedictus (The Song of Zechariah)
Luke 1:68-79
Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
for He has visited and redeemed His people,
and has raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of His servant David,
as He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets of long ago,
that we should be saved from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us,
to perform the mercy promised to our fathers
and to remember His holy covenant,
the oath which He swore to our father Abraham,
to grant us that we, being delivered out of the hand of our enemies,
might serve Him without fear,
in holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our lives.
And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Highest;
for you will go before the presence of the Lord to prepare His ways,
to give knowledge of salvation to His people
by the remission of their sins,
through the tender mercy of our God,
whereby the sunrise from on high has visited us;
to give light to those who sit in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the way of peace.
Glory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning, is now,
and will be forever. Amen.
Brief silence.
The Apostle’s Creed
Let us unite in this historic confession of the Christian faith:
I believe in God,
the Father Almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ,
his only Son, our Lord.
He was conceived by the Holy Spirit
and born of the Virgin Mary.
He suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again.
He ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the
right hand of the Father.
He will come again to judge
the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting.
Amen.
Intercession and thanksgiving
Prayers may be offered for:
the day and its tasks
the world and its needs
the church and her life
Prayers may include the following concerns:
The 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, hear your people
and answer our prayers.
Silence may be kept.
Collect of the day
Almighty and everlasting God, you have given us your servants grace, by the confession of a true faith, to acknowledge the glory of the eternal Trinity and in the power of the divine majesty to worship the Unity: keep us steadfast in this faith, that we may evermore be defended from all adversities; 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
Rejoicing in God’s new creation, 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.
Tue. morning Jun. 2
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
O For a Thousand Tongues to Sing
Confession of Sin
Come, Holy Spirit of God,
and search our hearts with the light of Christ.
Our Lord Jesus Christ said:
“The first of all the commandments is, ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”
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 faithfulness is like a morning cloud, and like the early dew, it goes away. 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 5
𝙍: You, LORD, will bless the righteous.
Give ear to my words, O LORD;
consider my meditation.
Listen to the voice of my cry,
my King and my God,
for to You will I pray.
O LORD, in the morning You will hear my voice;
in the morning I will direct my prayer to You,
and I will look up expectantly.
For You are not a God who has pleasure in wickedness,
nor will evil dwell with You.
𝙍: You, LORD, will bless the righteous.
Those who boast will not stand in Your sight;
You hate all workers of iniquity.
You will destroy those who speak lies;
the LORD abhors
the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.
But as for me, in the abundance of Your mercy
I will enter Your house;
in fear of You I will worship
at Your holy temple.
𝙍: You, LORD, will bless the righteous.
Lead me, O LORD, in Your righteousness
because of my enemies;
make Your way straight before me.
For there is no uprightness in their mouth;
destruction is in their midst;
their throat is an open tomb;
they flatter with their tongue.
Declare them guilty, O God;
let them fall by their own counsels;
cast them out in the multitude of their transgressions,
for they have rebelled against You.
𝙍: You, LORD, will bless the righteous.
But let all those who take refuge in You rejoice;
let them ever shout for joy,
because You defend them;
let those who love Your name be joyful in You.
For You, LORD, will bless the righteous;
You surround him with favor like a shield.
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: You, LORD, will bless the righteous.
Psalm Prayer
Lord, protect us from the deceit of flattering tongues and lying lips; give us words of life which speak your truth and bless your name; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Psalm 6
𝙍: Return, O LORD, rescue my soul.
O LORD, do not rebuke me in Your anger,
nor discipline me in the heat of Your anger.
Be gracious to me, O LORD, for I am weak;
O LORD, heal me, for my bones are shaking.
My soul is greatly troubled,
but You, O LORD—how long?
Return, O LORD, rescue my soul.
Save me for the sake of Your lovingkindness.
For in death there is no remembrance of You;
in Sheol who will give You thanks?
I am weary with my groaning;
all night I flood my bed with tears;
I drench my couch with my weeping.
My eyes waste away from grief;
they grow weak because of all my enemies.
𝙍: Return, O LORD, rescue my soul.
Depart from me, all you workers of iniquity;
for the LORD has heard the voice of my weeping.
The LORD has heard my supplication;
the LORD accepts my prayer.
May all my enemies be ashamed and greatly troubled;
may they turn back and be suddenly ashamed.
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: Return, O LORD, rescue my soul.
Psalm Prayer
Lord Jesus Christ, may the tears shed in your earthly life be balm for all who weep, and may the prayers of your pilgrimage give strength to all who suffer; for your mercy’s sake.
Psalm 8
O LORD, our Lord,
how excellent is Your name in all the earth!
You have set Your glory
above the heavens.
Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants
You have ordained strength
because of Your enemies,
to silence the enemy and the avenger.
When I consider Your heavens,
the work of Your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
which You have established,
what is man that You are mindful of him,
and the son of man that You attend to him?
For You have made him a little lower than the angels,
and crowned him with glory and honor.
You have given him dominion over the works of Your hands;
You have put all things under his feet,
all sheep and oxen,
and also the beasts of the field,
the birds of the air,
and the fish of the sea,
and whatever travels the paths of the seas.
O LORD, our Lord,
how excellent is Your name in all the earth!
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
We bless you, master of the heavens, for the wonderful order which enfolds this world; grant that your whole creation may find fulfillment in the Son of Man, Jesus Christ our Savior.
Old Testament reading
Joshua 7:16-26
So Joshua got up early in the morning and brought forward Israel by their tribes. The tribe of Judah was selected. He brought forward the clans of Judah, and the clan of the Zerahites was selected. He brought forward the clan of the Zerahites man by man, and Zimri was selected. He brought forward the household of Zimri man by man, and Achan son of Karmi, son of Zimri, son of Zerah, from the tribe of Judah, was selected.
Then Joshua said to Achan, “O my son, give glory to the LORD, the God of Israel, and give Him praise! Tell me what you have done! Do not hold back anything from me.”
Achan answered Joshua and said, “Indeed, I sinned against the LORD, the God of Israel. This is what I did: When I saw among the plundered goods a beautiful robe from Babylon, two hundred shekels of silver, and a gold bar weighing fifty shekels, I coveted them, so I took them. They are hidden in the ground in my tent. The silver is underneath them.”
So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran to the tent; and behold, it was hidden in the tent with the silver underneath. They took it from the tent and brought it to Joshua and all the Israelites. They spread it out before the LORD.
Then Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan son of Zerah, the silver, the robe, the gold bar, his sons, his daughters, his oxen, his donkeys, his sheep, his tent, and all he had, and brought them up to the Valley of Achor. Then Joshua said, “Why have you brought trouble on us? The LORD will trouble you today!”
So all Israel stoned him. They burned them with fire and stoned them with stones. Then they erected over him a large pile of stones, which is still there today. So the LORD turned from His burning anger. Therefore the name of the place is called the Valley of Achor to this day.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
Luke 10:38-42
As they went, He entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house. She had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus’ feet and listened to His teaching. But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she came to Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Then tell her to help me.”
But Jesus answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed. And Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken from her.”
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:
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
Almighty and everlasting God, you have given us your servants grace, by the confession of a true faith, to acknowledge the glory of the eternal Trinity and in the power of the divine majesty to worship the Unity: keep us steadfast in this faith, that we may evermore be defended from all adversities; 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.